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Friday, December 21, 2018.

Kellin felt like shit. That's what he claimed but most of all he felt embarrassed. It had already been at least an hour since Vic Fuentes changed the tire of his rental car and helped him make it through the remaining kilometers to their hometown. And all the while the other man worked on his rental car, Kellin wanted the ground to swallow him whole.

It had been around six years, seven at most. And there was a reason they hadn't seen each other in all those years. He wasn't supposed to be running into him like that again. He wasn't supposed to be the first person from his past that he encountered again. And in such an awkward circumstance too.

He always knew there was a possibility of seeing him again by going back home. It's not like he hadn't thought about that. He really hoped it was slim, though. Best laid plans.

Now Kellin was parked outside his parents' house and he didn't know why he was still thinking about the encounter. It hadn't been bad exactly. More polite than necessary. Borderline friendly. He didn't think Vic was capable of anything otherwise.

And Vic seemed fine. Happy. Grown-up. He hadn't changed a thing but at the same time, he knew he had. It was unavoidable. Either way, there was no way for him to know.

Kellin was glad Vic seemed happy. He was happy himself too. Very happy. Very successful. Everything was perfect. Everything turned out the way it was supposed to. He was living out his dreams far, far away. Vic stayed in his favorite place. And he seemed to be at peace with that, with his same old truck and his same hats and his same kind eyes.

Kellin shook his head.

He had no business thinking about Vic at all. He hadn't since he left so why start now? He won't be thinking about his ex for the whole week he'll be home. He wasn't going to let it happen. So with another sigh, he opened the car door, rolled his eyes at how unbelievably cold it was, and went to retrieve his luggage from the backseat.

He walked up the small pathway to the front door of the two-story house he hadn't seen in forever and knocked lightly. He didn't miss how everything was fully decorated for the holidays, Christmas lights hung from all the windows, an inflatable Santa waved to him beside the door, everything smelled of pine and snow, a full wreath hung from the middle of the door, there was even a cheesy mistletoe above him.

He always admired his family's effort in putting up decorations. Back in L.A. he could never be bothered unless it was absolutely necessary. And even then he'd get someone to do it for him, a whole team of decorators just for him. As he said, Christmas was just... meh.

Not even a second after knocking, loud steps could be heard behind the closed door and Kellin couldn't help smiling, already knowing who was coming. And when the door opened, it revealed a pair of identical little brunette girls dressed in matching holiday pajamas.

"Kellin!!" They both yelled and almost knocked him down wrapping their arms around his waist.

He laughed and tried his best to hug them back. "Ahh, you monsters!"

"We've missed you," one of the girls, Thea, said, holding on tightly to Kellin.

"Yeah! You've been gone too long, big brother." The other, Dora, pouted. Their eyes bright and similar to Kellin's.

"I've missed you too guys," Kellin replied.

He didn't want to think about how he's never been home with them at all. They only ever saw him when he flew them all to L.A. at least once a year. If he regretted one thing about leaving, it was missing seeing his sisters grow up.

"Mom says you're going to stay for Christmas!" Dora beamed and Kellin nodded his head.

"Thought we'd never see the day," Thea grinned mischievously.

"Hey," Kellin warned lightly.

They giggled and finally let him go, letting him walk inside properly. Now that was a surreal feeling, standing at this house, his home. The living room to the left, the set of stairs leading to the bedrooms upstairs, the hallway leading to the kitchen and the dining room in the back, and the small backyard outside. It was all the same. Christmas version, but the same.

"You have to come to the tree lighting tonight," Thea brought him back from his thoughts, both of them were helping with his many bags.

"Isn't it a little late for that?" Kellin chuckled and helped them.

"Mom had them do it again because you're back," Dora shrugged, taking the last suitcase from her brother. "It's cause you're so famous,"

"Yeah, so famous," Thea mocked and twirled one of her braids in her fingers.

Kellin rolled his eyes, "shut up or you won't get any presents."

The twins gasped but still giggled loudly.

They were 8. Kellin didn't think they would grasp the magnitude of his fame so soon but apparently, they (kind of) did. It made him a bit sad, to be true. Now the girls were the last of his normalcy gone.

"Go put them under the tree then," Kellin said after closing the door. He was referring to the wrapped boxes he'd brought in too. Of course he came home full of presents, it was the least he could do.

The girls gladly obliged and after they were done, they didn't waste any time yelling for the whole house that Kellin was home. He internally flinched but didn't expect much of a reaction. Only his mom was home at the moment, his dad at his job, and his brother moved out a while ago too.

"Kellin? Honey, I'm so glad you made it!" Said a voice rushing down the stairs.

Mrs. Quinn crushed Kellin into a tight hug once she made it to the entrance. The lady was small but she sure as hell could pour all her strength into a single hug. Kellin couldn't deny he had missed that too.

"Can't believe you're here," she smiled at him after she let go. "Am I dreaming?"

"Mom..." Kellin started but smiled too.

"What? It's been months since the last time I saw you."

"Mom."

"It's true honey."

"So our FaceTime calls mean nothing."

"They're not enough. And they're so short!"

"I'm going to unpack," Kellin started for the stairs but Mom was quicker to stop him.

"I'm kidding! I know you're a busy man," she chuckled. "My superstar son."

"Stop," if he heard anyone from his family say anything else about his fame he would lose it.

"Come on, let's get you something, you must be thirsty," she lead him to the kitchen. "Girls, stop snooping at the presents."

The twins quickly pretended to be doing something else near the tree and then went upstairs, in another fit of laughter and snickering.

"So," Mom said as they went inside the kitchen area, which was also decorated in full, way more than a simple kitchen should, and started taking stuff out of the fridge. "How's it going with–"

"No," Kellin stopped her before she could even finish her sentence.

His mom looked at him a little shocked, a bottle of milk in midair, but quickly understood that Kellin didn't want to talk about it and she respected that.

"Okay... so how was the trip?" She decided instead.

Kellin shrugged and took a seat on the counter. "Flight was okay. The tire of the rental car exploded on my way here."

"What?! My poor baby. You should've called."

"Um... I dind't have a signal," Kellin mumbled. "They really need to take better care of the roads or something."

"So, you changed the tire?"

"Got some help," he said simply.

"Thank goodness," she poured the milk into a pot, and it became clear to Kellin that she was going to make hot cocoa. He appreciated it. He couldn't remember the last time he had a cup. "Gotta count all good deeds this time of year."

Kellin chuckled but it sounded empty. He didn't think Vic could need more good deeds in his life.

"You won't guess who it was," he sighed and his mom turned to look at him curiously. "Vic Fuentes."

"Oh," she raised her eyebrows in surprise and stared for a second, then blinked. "... oh that boy is always there when needed, isn't he?"

Kellin made a face. He wouldn't know anymore. It shouldn't be any of his business that Vic's always there to help. He didn't care. And he was aware of his silence a bit too late before his mom noticed.

"Hey..." she started with that pitiful tone of voice he didn't like. "He's moved on. You've moved on."

Has he?

Kellin sighed again. "I know. It was just... weird."

"I bet, sweetie. You know I've heard he's doing pretty good too. I mean, since you went away we didn't see him much anymore, but a few months ago Ms. Rudy, you remember Ms. Rudy, right? Well, she said that she saw him with this pretty girl that works with her at the flower shop and that–"

"Mom!" Kellin snapped out of nowhere making her stop talking in a heartbeat. "If I wanted to know all this I'd ask."

Honestly, Kellin couldn't even feel bad for almost yelling at her. Vic's life was none of his business. He didn't exactly know how to make that clear so he did the first thing that came to mind, even if it was a rude interruption.

"Sorry honey, I didn't realize..."

But he got off the counter and cleared his throat, he didn't want to be there anymore. And he didn't mean just the kitchen.

"You know what, I'm a bit tired so I'm going to head up."

Mom nodded slowly.

"Alright, yeah, just," she managed a small smile. "The town will have a special tree lighting tonight and I'd love for you to be there."

Right. His special tree lighting. Because he's so special.

"Yeah, sure. I'll be there."

"It's at 7."

"Okay."

"I'll save you some cocoa."

When Kellin stepped inside his childhood room he felt as if a massive anchor dropped on his chest. Six, seven years is a long time. Even more with the kind of life he led. Everything felt longer in the entertainment industry like years lasted double the time they were supposed to. It sucked.

Being back in the room that watched him dream and grow and plan his future felt incredibly unreal.

He got all his luggage inside and dropped himself on the bed, making it creak under his weight. He stared at the ceiling, those glow-in-the-dark stars were still up there and that was the only thing that made his deep frown go away. Then he turned his head and looked at the walls. It was all there.

The posters, the vision boards, the photos. It was all there. Intact. He wondered why his parents never turned the room into a gym or something more useful. He knew it stemmed from waiting for him to come back, but he didn't like to think about that. Maybe in a few years, this room could be turned into a museum. Kellin Quinn's childhood room. Entry: $50 plus get a picture for free!

It was tiny compared to his place in L.A. His loft was probably triple the size of this house. His bedroom could fit at least three of the beds he was laying on. He missed it already. Though now that he's back, he supposed he also missed the strange warmth this town gave off. You don't know what you miss until you get back to it.

He stood up from the bed and went to look for a change of clothes, ignoring all the old photos of his ex-boyfriend grinning at him from the wall. He had been wearing the same outfit since getting on the plane and he needed a shower, so he went to get a fresh change from one of his suitcases. And while he gathered what he needed he saw his phone in between his messy packing. He picked it up and considered it for a moment. Then shook his head and left it on top of his old desk.

Still completely turned off.

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So.... yeah😄 updates should be frequent this week! And wattpad sucks because I think it's not notifying anyone but we move.
Thanks for being here if you are 🖤