~ ~ ~

"Hey, Mum." Luke says, making my eyes quickly drift away from his mother.

"Hey, honey." Luke's mum says, tiredly. "Who's this?"

When I realise that she's referring to me, the girl who is currently sitting on her couch, making herself at home in her house, I feel my heart race in fear. I glance over and watch as she puts her handbag on the table before walking over to us. Luke looks over at me, a small smile on his face.

"This is Grace." Luke says and I watch as Luke's mum looks over at me. "She's a friend from school."

"Hi..." I trail off, not really knowing what to do in this situation. Luke's mum smiles at me, making my heart continue to race.

Suddenly, Luke's mum pulls me into a hug, taking me by surprise. "Hello, Grace. I'm Bree." When Bree let's go of me, I watch her smile continue to grow. "Are you staying for dinner?" Bree asks, her question making me shake my head.

"N-No, I have to leave." I stutter, watching as Bree nods, bringing me into a second hug.

"Well, it was nice to meet you, Grace. Hopefully you can come around for dinner another time." Bree says, her instant niceness towards me making me smile slightly as I stand up. Suddenly, Luke grabs my hand but before I can say anything, he pulls me over towards the stairs.

"We aren't finished talking about..." Luke trails off, hoping that I know what he is talking about, and I do. When nothing comes out of my mouth to try and protest, Luke continues. "We'll talk tomorrow." Luke says, and all I do is nod.

"What about the clothes?" I ask, pointing down at the white tank top and the shorts. Luke glances down before smiling.

"Keep them." Luke says and before I can thank him, or even say anything for that matter, he grabs my hand as we walk out of the house.

"I'll drop you home."

~ ~ ~

After Luke dropping me home, I have now walked into my house to see Mum sitting on the couch, her sketchbook in her hands. Smiling, I close the front door behind me, catching the attention of Mum.

"You're home..." Mum trails off, making me nod as I walk over to her. When I give her a quick hug, I sit next to her and glance over at the drawing that isn't finished yet.

It's a picture of a man. Perfect shaped lips. Sharp jaw. Curved Nose. Neat eyebrows. Freckles. Blue eyes. Taking in the drawing, I immediately recognise the person who Mum has drawn.

Uncle Christian.

"Would you like something to eat?" Mum ask, closing the sketchbook and placing it beside her. Nodding, I stand up the same time Mum does and follow her into the kitchen. When Mum begins to make me a snack, I begin to think about the drawing.

Uncle Christian, or Chris for short, was the most amazing man I had the chance of knowing. Other than the fact that I had first met Uncle Chris when he was in hospital, trying to fight the cancer, he was still pretty amazing. According to Mum, he was the best older brother you'd ever want to have. Protective. Funny. Caring. Mum had always told me stories about Uncle Chris, saying how when her father was never around, her brother would decide to help her with her homework until it was early in the morning. Another story explaining when a few boys at school were texting rude, sexual comments to her, she had shown Uncle Chris and he would set them straight.

And from everything that Mum had told me, I instantly knew that if she had lost her older brother, she would be so broken.

Then, three weeks later, after I had met Uncle Chris for the first time, Mum had received a phone call from the hospital. Like I had predicted, she was crushed. Mum would always stay in her room. She never ate. She never went to work. She didn't even come to check up on me. Mum was a mess, and even though Dad tried to help Mum, she didn't even acknowledge his presence.

Mum had shut everyone out. Including me.

That was until Aunty Carol decided that Mum needed to stop the way she was acting. So, she came over and stayed a few nights, continuing to help Mum, even if all Aunty Carol got Mum to do was eat something. She kept staying over until Mum had finally fixed herself up.

If it wasn't for Aunty Carol, I don't know if Mum would be here now.

This is how Mum started drawing - to express her feelings. It's what her mother used to do too when she was in a mood, so I guess that's where Mum gets it from.

"So..." Mum begins, her voice bringing me out of my thoughts. "Where did you go after school?" Mum asks, taking a seat next to me as she hands me the plate with my sandwich on it. Mum also made herself a sandwich, which made me smile.

"A friend's place." I say, watching as Mum nearly jumps from her seat. Seeing as she knows I don't have any friends at school, this is obviously a surprise to her. I glance over to see Mum wearing a big smile on her face, liking the fact that I have a friend.

Wait. Is Luke even my friend? Can I classify him as that?

"Really?" Mum asks and I nod. "Oh, well, I must meet this friend. I hope she is nice and-"

"Mum," I say, cutting her off. "My friend is a boy." I say, biting into my ham and cheese sandwich. In the corner of my eye, I notice Mum grin.

"A boy?" Mum asks, making me nod slowly. Suddenly, Mum pushes her plate away from her, placing an elbow on the table as she looks at me.

"Tell. Me. Everything."

~ ~ ~

"So, he is one of those... playboy's?" Mum asks, a small frown beginning to spread on her face, making me nod. Mum sighs before composing herself, taking the information in.

"Has he... touched you?" Mum asks, making me shake my head almost instantly.

"No." I say, watching as the concern begins to drift away from her face. "I actually see a whole different side to him when it's just the two of us. It's reassuring." I say, watching as Mum smiles.

"That's so good to hear-"

"What's so good to hear?" Suddenly, the voice of Dad fills my ears, making me nearly jump out of my seat. Mum glances over at Dad, her smile still on her face as he makes his way over to Mum. When Dad kisses her on the forehead, Mum's smile seems to grow.

"Hey, you came home early." Mum says, watching as Dad walks over to the fridge, probably to grab a beer.

"I finished things early." Dad says, popping his head out of the fridge. He glances over at me before speaking again. "What's so good to hear?"

Mum glances over at me, the smile turning into a grin. "Grace made a new friend." Mum reaches over and wraps an arms around my shoulders. "And it's a boy." Mum adds, kissing me on the cheek.

Dad glances between Mum and I before raising an eyebrow at me in question. I nod slowly, watching as Dad returns the nod. "Well... I'll have to meet him soon." Dad says before exiting the kitchen. Mum looks at me before wrapping another arm around me, hugging me.

"I'm really happy for you, Gracie." Mum whispers quietly. "I love you so much."

Mum stands up after breaking the hug, grabbing both of our plates. Before I walk out of the kitchen, Mum calls my name, making me look over my shoulder.

"Yeah?" I ask, beginning to get the feeling that she is going to say one of those inspiring quotes that she secretly steals from Tumblr. She always does this when we part ways. Mum thinks it's good luck, that's why.

"Don't ever give up because there's always someone out there who you inspire." Mum says, making my prediction correct. I send Mum a smile, watching as she returns it before leaving the kitchen.

I love you too, Mum.

~ ~ ~