"When are you expected to be home?" Lucas asked, watching the street for the bus."It's funny. Tate is kind of like your dad." He supposed that was because he was the oldest child and their parents were never around. As much as it was amusing it was also poignant.
"Don't get me wrong. It doesn't make me feel any less scared of him.If anything, it should be more a reason for me to be more reserved." He quickly added, raising his hands up in defense.."But, I can be understanding. He's trying to look out for you."
Claudia scoffed. "He's more like my dad than my actual dad is. He's been looking after us since he was thirteen." Until then, her parents had alternated days; their mother would take care of them Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and their father would fill in the gaps. Then, when they decided Tate was old enough to take up a full-time babysitting job, they had started working full-time. "I think the power's gone to his head a little. We're all old enough to take care of ourselves now but he still bosses us around."
Claudia paused before she answered his question. "Probably around ten," she said. She had been out later but because it was Lucas, she doubted Tate would tolerate one in the morning.
"In that case, we should be fine," Lucas said just as the bus pulled up.
The bus ride was short, it couldn't have lasted more than fifteen minutes. They stopped in a neighborhood full of greenery. It was definitely not the wealthier side of town where Claudia lived, it was average. The houses were pretty but smaller than the estates from her neighborhood.
His home, however, was a modern cottage, it was nowhere as huge as Claudia's practically mansion of a house, but it was still decent size, bigger than most of the other houses around. It was a gorgeous house. The front windows, which were practically the walls, were lit up letting anyone close enough to see inside.
Lucas opened the gate to the front yard and suddenly stopped."I forgot to ask! Are you allergic to any animals or something? Or even afraid? Because we have quite a collection of animals here." He said and pointed to a calico cat laying in front of the door. It was staring directly at them, tail swaying.
Claudia stared in wonderment at Lucas's house. It was so pretty. His house had character, unlike her own, which was more of a museum than a house.
"Allergic?" Claudia leaned down to scratch the cat behind its ears. It purred contently. "No, I'm only allergic to stupid questions," she joked. "Not that your question was stupid. I was referring to Crystal." She sighed. "We're not allowed to have pets. Pets make messes, and my parents can function in messes. I had a pretty snazzy goldfish once."
"I had a pet fish once too." Lucas smirked."But, I tried feeding it an oreo. I thought I was sharing. You know how that ended."
He scooped up the calico in his arms."This is Tiggy. And she's a very affectionate, but as a cat, when she's mean, she's cruel." Lucas shifted his arms to make her feel more comfortable as she squirmed. "Anyway, I'm glad to hear you're down with thembecause there are five more pets."
He opened the door and the warm air hit them simultaneously with the mouthwatering aroma known as dinner. It was definite, they were having seafood tonight. Tiggy jumped out of his arms and ran away to mind her own business.
Lucas ushered her inside before closing the door and dropping his backpack onto the floor. The first thing she'd notice were the books. He wasn't lying when he said they were everywhere. Stacks on the floor, underneath the staircase, on the coffee table, on the mantel, on the bookshelves! The books were old and new, paperback and hardcover. And this wasn't even their library.
Another thing was that his house was out of order. Not a complete mess, but enough to tell someone's tracks.The floors mainly had pet toys scattered about,while for everything thing else,items were obviously misplaced. Yet,for the most part, his house had a cozy and vibrant feel, furniture and all.
Claudia kicked off her flats and looked around, her eyes wide. The books. The fucking books. It was like Lucas's family had raided a library and stolen every single book from the damn place. So many books and so little time.
Yeah, the house was messy, but it was comfortable and a relief for Claudia. When you live in a house where you have to bleach the floor if you spill your drink, mess was a relief. "I love your house," she whispered to Lucas, a wide smile on her face. "Seriously. I freaking love it. Can I live with you?"
Lucas stepped out of his sneakers and smiled."As long as you pay rent on time, I don't see why not." He started picking up the the along with other items that did not belong on the floor. He only wanted to straighten up as they went.
"Come on, I'll introduce you to the rest of the crew. You already met Tiggy, so that leaves Sweety, Robin, Sonic and Kipper. Don't ask why there's so many, not one of them have I actually picked out. She just brought them home."
Lucas moved over to a bird stand next to a window."This is where Sweety should be, I need to put her back in her cage before she let's attacked by the cat." He pointed to the couch where a small white and brown Shih Tzu slept peacefully. "And that's Kipper."
Claudia smiled as Lucas introduced her to his pets. It was nice to see this side of Lucas; much more comfortable, at home. Literally. Plus, she loved animals and she rarely got to meet any. She gently stroked Kipper's fur, careful not to wake the little pup. "He's so lovely," she whispered, smiling. "I might steal him and hide him in my room," she joked.
Claudia straightened up and fixed her lilac sweater so it looked neater. "So, is your mom home? I'd like to meet her."
Lucas put on a knowing smile after watching her straighten up. "I'm guessing she's in the kitchen." He pointed as he said so and led them to. "Mom, I'm home." He called before they entered.
Amalie just turned around away from the sink, drying her hands on a towel, when they walked in. She looked a little surprised to see Claudia, but that was quickly overrun by a warm smile."Hallo. What a delightful surprise." She greeted, her English accent rich.
"This is Claudia." Lucas introduced her and glanced around."Where's Lord Snooty?"
"He spilt food on his shit when he was helping prepare dinner."Amalie waved off his question and approached Claudia."I'm Luke's mother, but you already knew that. Just call me Amalie."
Claudia briefly wondered who this mysterious Lord Snooty was. She didn't have much time to dwell on it, however, as Lucas's mother approached her.
Claudia put on her prettiest smile. "Hi, Amalie. It's so nice to meet you. I'm Claudia Lightwood, Lucas's friend."
Claudia realised that this was probably the first time Lucas had had a friend over. She could not imagine how confused and happy and mystified Amalie was at this fact.
She also wondered if Amalie thought Claudia and Lucas were dating. Honestly, the idea didn't seem so bad to the blonde.
"So where in England are you from?" Claudia asked Amalie conversationally.
"Bristol." Lucas chipped in, raising his hand up as if he was called upon in class. "She came to the US for school and somehow she ended up staying."
"Uh, she was asking me, thank you very much." Amalie rolled her eyes good-naturedly and continued to speak with Claudia."Anyway, that's essentially what happened. Save for the 'somehow' was his father. That's what made me stay, originally. Enough about me. Why don't you tell me about yourself? This is the first time he's brought a friend over, yet alone, a girlfriend."
His mother's eyes twinkled with anticipation. She didn't even try to be subtle about it. How could she when this was the first time her son brought someone over. A pretty girl at that. And from what she saw at first glance they looked close enough to be in a relationship.It only made sense to her,and she was sure to anyone else who saw would feel the same. And,she was high on joy.
Lucas, on the other hand, choked loudly on air at her words. He could see how she could insinuate that, but he still never introduced her as his partner. He mumbled something incoherent, but for the most part decided not to interrupt, because he was curious as to how Claudia would reply. Would she be embarrassed as him?
Instead of being embarrassed Claudia laughed. "We're not dating," she assured Amalie smoothly, waving her hand as if brushing away the thought.
As much as she would like to be dating him, though.
"There's not much about me that's interesting, really," said Claudia. It was true. She was quite mundane. "My parents are lawyers, I have three brothers ... I love reading, so your house is like actual heaven to me." She beamed.
Amalie, again, was surprised for a short while but didn't comment any further on the topic. "Thank you! Most people say I'm a book hoarder, including the blonde over there." She pointed her elbow to Lucas."I'm happy someone else sees the beauty in it all. You can come here anytime you like to just read and hang out."
"You can even take a copy if you like, I'm certain there's like three different copies of every book in this house."
"He's right. For now,why don't you two wash your hands while I set the table? I'm so excited. My moment to be a so-called 'embarrassing mom' has arrived. If you haven't noticed, I don't get to do it often. I have so many stories and secrets to tell."
Claudia followed Lucas to the bathroom and washed her hands. "Your mother's really nice," she told him with a smile. "Really. I love her. You two are a lot alike."
Claudia wiped her hands off on a towel. "Didn't you say her boyfriend was going to be here? What's he like?" Claudia had an inkling that Lucas's didn't particularly like his stepdad.
"Yeah,I wanted to give you a pre-warning about Lord Snooty." Lucas folded his arms over his chest and shook his head after washing his hands."Don't call him that in front of him,I'll get in trouble. His real name is Norman."
In his opinion, that's where his mother and his similarities ended. While she got along with the man,he did the opposite. Not that the two got into heated arguments, but they did get into disagreements here and there. Nor did he try to hide his dislike for the man.
"As his nickname suggest, he's a cold snoot. But if we 're lucky he won't talk at all." He told her."I don't like him."
Claudia frowned. She couldn't imagine living with someone she didn't even like. Yeah, she had disagreements with her brothers from time to time but she still loved them with all her heart. Though, she guessed a brother and a stepdad were quite different.
"I'll be here for you," she reminded him, putting a hand on his arm. "Always. If he gets too much for you just let me know and we'll go outside and talk, okay?"
"Thanks. And I know we must have said it before, but it really is nice to have someone to talk to, honestly." In times where he needed someone to talk to and it couldn't be his parents, he didn't know what to do with himself or the emotions he was holding in.
"I'm really glad you agreed to come and be here." He breathed out, clearly relieved and happy.
Claudia grinned. "You're welcome. And I wouldn't miss it for the world."
She was being honest. She would much rather come here to have dinner with Lucas and his family than be at home right now. The tension in the Lightwood house was so thick you could cut it with a knife.
When they entered the dining room, Lucas's mother had already set the plates and silverware on the table. The dishes holding dinner were set out as well, sitting in the center, still topped and covered. Amalie was just setting down the serving spoons.
"Go ahead and sit." She gestured for them to take a seat
So, Lucas pulled out a chair beside his own for Claudia to sit in."Ladies first."
Claudia beamed at Lucas as she sat down. "Thank you, Sir Lucas, the finest of gentlemen."
Claudia looked over the spread on the table and smiled politely at Amalie. "This looks and smells amazing, Amalie. Lucas wasn't lying when he said you were a good cook."
Claudia tried the prawns Amalie had prepared and made a little noise of contentment at the wonderful flavours. "This is so good."
She briefly wondered where Lord Snooty was. Hadn't Lucas said he would be joining them? But, if Lucas was happier without him present, she hoped he wouldn't show at all.
