When Our Lives Intertwined

Past Fortunes

A couple of days went by since Ivy talked with Mrs. Langston. Alec had not heard from his father since that day either. They did not mind the space it gave them though they could focus on their relationship. Arlo has been like a kid in a candy store ever since they moved. It was pretty amusing watching him learn about all the rooms in the house.

Ivor and Claire decided they would come over this afternoon. Ivy and Alec decided they would make a little get-together out of it.

The house had been dusted and food had been prepped. Tyler and Theo showed up early so they could watch the afternoon football game right from the beginning ads and all. Vexy, Braxton, and Chase showed up at the same time as Claire and Ivor. Then Christian came separately an hour later. Alec's mom called and told him she was pulled into work. But Mr. Langston was just a no-show.

"Your dad is coming over?'' Ivy asked.

"Probably not. He tends to miss out on all the fun," he said as Christian and Vexy came into the kitchen.

"How's training going," Alec questioned.

"Terrible," Vexy responded.
Christian eyed her saying, "Of course that's your response. You only hate it because Ivy kicks your ass every day."

Ivy laughed as she ate a strawberry out of the fruit bowl.

"What's all the commotion about?" Ivor asked.

Claire replied from the kitchen counter saying, "We are just talking about all the self-defense training."

Alec eyed Claire and asked, "Did you know your best friend over here can street race?"

Claire looked at Ivy then at Ivor, "Yeah. She used to street racing to pay for a living. When she was what sixteen," she asked looking back at Ivy.

"Fifteen," Arlo pipped in crawling out from under the table. Chase is right behind him.

Braxton looked at them all and asked, "Anyone else want to own up to any illegal activities?"

"Like your records clean," Tyler responded walking in from the Living room with Theo.

"True. Remember that time you hot-wired the neighbor's car and went into town for snacks." Theo stated.

"Fair. New topic?" Braxton pleaded.

"Not yet buster. Anything else I do not know about you Miss Ivy," Alec asked.

"Oh there are lots," Claire pipped in.

"I once hacked through the Hillside's Wifi to get into an old man's phone and clear all his data," Ivy stated.

"That was a good day! This guy got so pissed when the phone reset he left," Ivor stated.

Ivy stated, "Dude was a major douchebag." Claire nodded in agreement.

"You know how to hack?'' Theo asked in shock.

Alec looked at Ivy analyzing her facial features.

"Are you being serious," Alec responded.

"What level of hacking are we talking about? Who did you learn from?" Tyler asked.

"When I street raced a friend taught me so that we could be sure my car was not infiltrated before driving off," Ivy stated.

"I guess that makes sense," Alec responded.

"She also hacked my tablet once. It was stolen at daycare and she knocked this dude's door down to get it back," Arlo stated.

Theo and Tyler locked eyes and busted out laughing.

"How did someone so talented wind up with Alec," Braxton stated.

"What does that mean?" Alec asked.

"Well you would think with all your smarts you would fall for someone dumber. I'm pretty sure she is ten times as smart as you," Braxton replied.

Everyone burst out laughing together and then sat down to eat. The room was full of engaged conversation. Until Alec's phone rang.

"Who's calling you?" Arlo asked while eyeing Alec as he denied the phone call.

"My dad," Alec said.

"Oh," Arlo replied as his face dropped in sorrow.

Arlo got up and left the room. Claire went to comfort him. Everyone looked toward Ivy. Then Alec's phone went off again.

"I'm going to take this. I'll be right back," he said.

"So why did Arlo leave?" Chase asked.

Ivy took a deep breath.

"Well, Arlo's father is not a good person. So when Alec hung up on your dad it upset him. He does not understand why people who have what he doesn't react in certain ways," Ivy stated.

"OH, Well I finished my food so I'm leaving," Chase stated.

When Alec walked back in he looked distant.

"I have to go. I'll be back in a few. Love you," he said as he kissed Ivy's cheek.
Christian looked at Braxton and then stood up. He was going to leave but Braxton told him to sit back down.

Ivy got up to put her plate in the sink but thought she saw something out the back window. She froze in place, dropping the plate everyone in the room looked in her direction. Ivor was the closest to her.

He asked her, "What's wrong?"

"The window," Ivy stated.

Ivy walked over to the sliding door focusing on the area where she saw what looked like a human in the shadows. Ivor went to the closet for a broom and dustpan to clean the plate. As Christian and Braxton went over to Ivy. A shot rang out and the door shattered into specks of glass.