The hallways in this area too were well lit, with small chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and bright gold walls that seemed like they were bmade /bbwith /breal gold. I hadn’t really being paying much attention to the furniture around the house, but as Caleb led me to a giant wooden door with intricate bcarvings /bbon /bthe wood, I got the feeling that these doors themselves were he expensive.

The doors opened suddenly and out came a woman with brte hair and green eyes, with a light pink satin dress that reached her knees. She was bwearing /bhuge pearl earrings and a pearl ne. There was not a single doubt in my mind that this was Caleb’s mother, and as soon as she saw bme/bb, /bher face broke

out into a huge smile.

“Oh! Aurora!” She engulfed me in a bear hug bas /bsoon as Caleb let go and stepped back. “Oh my goodness! You look absolutely beautify!”

Blushing at the unexpectedplement, I looked up into her green eyes with a smile of my own. “Thank you, Mrs. ckburn. You look stunning yourselfb./bb” /b

“Oh, please! Mrs. ckburn makes me sound old.” She pushed a strand of hair behind my ear. “I’d love it bif /byou bcall /bme mom!b” /b

My throat closed up with emotion as soon as she said those words. I hadn’t called anyone ‘mom‘ in the past bsix /byears and that had been my most painful memory. Mrs. ckburn must have realized that it hit too close bto /bhome, because the next thing I knewb, /bbI /bwas back in her arms, surrounded by the blove /bband /bfort that I had missed dearly for the past six years.

“If it’s too painful, just call me Maya for now.” She whispered in my earsb. /b“I’ll wait till byou /bbare /bfortable in calling me momb, /bbokay/bb?/bb” /b

“Okay.” I nodded, feeling at a loss for words.

Maya pulled me into the dining area, where Caleb’s father was already waiting for us. However, bI /bwas having trouble telling him apart from Caleb. Caleb looked exactly like his father! From the color of his eyes to his hair and skin tone. He bwas /bwearing a dark blue suit jacket and dress bpants /bwith a white bshirt /bunderneath and I could already tell just how Caleb would look when he was older.

“Hello, child.” He came forward to take my hands in his and give them a light squeeze. “I’m Camden ckburnb, /bCaleb’s father. It is so good to finally meet you,”

“Thank you. It’s nice to meet you too.” I smiled. He seemed to have a daunting personality, but I could tell that he was a nice person.

“Come. Let’s have lunch.” Camden announced. “To celebrate Aurora’s addition to our family.”

It wasn’t until he had spoken those words that I realized exactly the parts of my life that I had been missing all this time. A family. People to call my own.

And now, sitting next to Maya and Camden, I had never felt more at home than I did at this very moment.

Yes, Riley was my family, he was my everything. But all this time, somewhere in the back bof /bmy mind, I bwas /bstill that child who had lost her mother bsix /byears ago and was given a huge responsibility bof /braising my brother all on my own. I had yearned for a responsible adult to take care of me too, to look after my needs and wants, but all that had seemed like a distant dream.

But now, sitting in this very room, overwhelmed iby /ith

word ‘family‘, it felt like bI /btruly belonged somewhere, even if for a little while…

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