Deception

Following the navigation, I drove my truck along the dirt road. My tyres kicking up dust as we turned onto the road that would be our new street.

"You have reached your destination." The robotic voice from my cell phone alerted.

"This is it." I said as I peered out of my windscreen, pulling into the driveway.

"It's huge!" My girlfriend Sian exclaimed.

It was huge. As the truck came to a stop, I took the time to look at our new home.

The house was charming, red brick making up its exterior, white framed windows scattered around the walls allowing the sun to shine through the glass panes. A front porch wrapped around the side of the house, forgotten plant pots littering the faded wooden boards. The back of the house was visible from where I'd parked, I could see the back porch. A pair of abandoned rocking chairs sitting snugly beside the back door. The yard looked slightly overgrown but I could just make out a vegetable patch tucked beside a weathered red shed.

I turned my head to Sian who was staring at the house, her eyes wide and filled with excitement.

She let out a small squeal.

"Max this is amazing!" She said in a gleeful shriek as she clapped her hands.

I expected this reaction from Sian. She hasn't had a home to live in for a while. Her parents are deeply religious and once they'd found out that she was in a relationship with a girl, they threw her to the streets. For the past 7 months she's been living in a youth hostel in the city. My Mom had tried talking some sense into her parents as they both attended the same church, unfortunately Mom's reasoning and pleas with them fell on deaf ears. When Mom and Dad had decided to move us across the state they had offered for Sian to come with us, much to her surprise, and mine.

We hopped out of the truck, Sian bounding ahead of me toward Felix who was now sat on the steps of the front porch reading a comic book. I chuckled as she sat beside him, making conversation about the comic. Sian and Felix had a close relationship, she'd never had siblings so she took Felix as one of hers almost instantly. Felix appreciated having someone with a shared interest in his favourite comic - Reverend Death. As I caught up to them, they were laughing and chatting away about the latest plot Felix had been reading.

"Hey squirt." I said as I ruffled his shabby brown hair.

He ducked slightly to free his hair from my rough tousling.

"Hey Max! Mom and Dad are inside, I've already claimed my room, it's the one on the left of the hallway." He informed.

I slinked past him, helping Sian to her feet before walking through the front door. The house already smelt like home, the aroma of fresh cookies hit my nostrils, along with the smell of fresh paint mixed with a hint of old wood.

My the sound of my boots echoed through the house as my heavy footsteps clunked on the wood beneath me. I held Sian's hand as we made our way through the hallway toward the kitchen where I could hear my Mom singing, Sian taking in every detail of the house's interior.

"Max this house is so beautiful." She whispered.

I smiled at her as we went through an archway, entering the kitchen. It had a homely feel, the cabinets a dark wood, light marble countertops lay on top of them. We walked up to the kitchen island without Mom noticing us. Letting go of Sian's hand I put my elbows on the counter tops, resting my head in my hands before clearing my throat.

"Hmh."

"Oh my lord! you're both here!" Mom said as she turned around.

She rushed over to us, gripping us around our necks and pulling us in for a close hug.

"What do you think?" She asked as she released us.

"It's great Mom." I replied, failing at hiding my excitement.

"Bonnie it's amazing!" Sian said with a high pitched squeal.

Mom smiled at Sian before turning to me.

"Go ahead and take a look around, Felix has already claimed his room but any of the others are up for grabs."

Sian wasted no time in grabbing my hand and dragging me back to the hallway, turning the corner and pulling me up the stairs. Unable to keep up I tripped a couple of times as she picked up speed. As she got to the top of the staircase she paused, allowing me to catch my breath.

"Which one did Felix say was his again?" She asked.

"The one on the left." I panted as I pulled myself up the last remaining steps.

Sian turned right down the hallway, stopping outside of an open door before skipping in, greeting my Dad.

"Hey Jesse!" She said cheerily.

"Oh hey there Sian!" Dad replied.

Entering the room I could see dad halfway up a ladder, a pot of white paint resting on a step.

"Max! How did you find the drive baby?" He asked me as I followed Sian into the room.

"It wasn't bad." I shrugged as I walked over to fist bump him.

Dad and I usually greeted each other with a fist bump, ever since I was a little kid.

"Well... Max took a few wrong turns and almost ran over an Opossum." Sian confessed.

Dad laughed as he returned my fist bump.

"That rough, huh?" He asked as he turned his attention back to painting the wall.

I looked at Sian and rolled my eyes, I could always count on her to be truthful. She raised her hands to her shoulders and shrugged.

"We're gonna go look around, get a feel for a room." I said to Dad before exiting the room.

"Okay baby girl! Have fun!" I head him shout back as I entered the room next door.

Sian and I took our time, evaluating each room, imagining how our stuff would look and how we would decorate it. None of them seemed to fit what we had in mind until we entered the last room. It was large enough for a king bed and room to swing a cat. Sian walked over to a door in the corner of the room, swinging it open and standing with her jaw wide open in shock.

"This closet is huge max!" She exclaimed in excitement.

I chuckled and carried on checking out our new room as Sian lost herself in the closet. Walking over to the large window in the middle of the room, I could see the street. It was summer, the sun shined down onto the dirt road and green grass lining it, the blades glistening. I could see a neighbour leaving her house with two little boys, I assume they're her kids. Just past the street was a tree line bordering a forest, the trees standing tall, their branches full of big green leaves swishing in unison with the light breeze. It was tranquil, a far cry from Dallas.

I pulled myself from the peaceful view and walked to another door next to the closet, opening it I found a small bathroom. Nice, I'd never had an en-suite before. The stand alone tub stood in the corner, a shower sitting just above it on the wall, a toilet nestled in the opposite corner with a round sink near the door where I stood. It looked like it hadn't been used in a little while, dust resting inside the tub's glossy white walls. I made a mental note to give it a good clean before we used it.

I left Sian as she mentally visualised where everything was going to go in our new room and made my way back to my truck. Felix still sat on the steps, fully immersed in his comic book. I walked past him, giving his hair another ruffle, I looked back to see him scowling at me. He hated me ruffling his hair, I've been doing it for so long now it's almost habit, being a 16 year old he thinks he's too old for it.

Reaching the truck I undid the tailgate door and dragged a couple of boxes towards me, stacking them on top of each other so I could carry more.

"Don't over do it!" I heard Felix shout, teasing me.

I turned to him, lifting my t-shirt sleeve to my shoulder and lifting my arm up to flex it.

"More muscles than you'll ever have squirt!" I laughed as I shouted back.

Felix narrowed his eyes, sticking his tongue out at me, not noticing Mom walking out of the door behind him.

"You're such a strong man, go give your sister a hand." I heard her order him.

Felix huffed, putting his comic down on the steps before lifting himself up and walking to me unenthusiastically.

"Here, grab this one." I said as I handed him the lightest box I could find, his legs buckling under the weight.

I chuckled as I watched him struggle back into the house. I grabbed my 3 stacked boxes with ease and strolled after him. On the stairs Felix was taking one at a time steadily as I glided up behind him.

"Still think you're stronger?" I asked, amused.

He didn't answer but I could feel the frustration from him. Dad emerged from the room, paint covering his flannel shirt and the odd splotch on his blue jeans.

"Pass me that Felix." Dad said as he took the box from Felix, allowing him to relax.

"You need to gain a bit of strength boy, this box doesn't weigh a dime." Dad said whilst looking at Felix before disappearing in to Sian and I's room.

I let out a snicker as Felix shot me daggers before crossing me on the stairs and going back out to his comic. Shaking my head and smiling I followed Dad, Sian had already started digging into the box that Dad had placed in the middle of the room before leaving to resume painting. She'd started placing the contents into piles.

"What's with the piles?" I asked as I placed my stack of boxes down next to her.

"They're in their own category, each for a different part of the room." She started.

"Okay...." I said, confused.

"This pile here, it goes in the bathroom, then this pile is for our nightstands, this one is for the closet and this one is miscellaneous." She explained as she pointed to each pile in turn.

"Sounds great babe, am I good to leave you to it so I can grab the rest?" I asked.

She nodded without looking up, already removing things from the boxes I'd just brought up. I loved her need for order, it gave me a sense of structure that I'd never had before. I'm a notoriously messy person. Before I met Sian, clothes littered my bedroom floor, dishes and trash cluttered my desk, nothing had a place, it was where ever I left it. The first time she came to my house and saw my room, she scrunched her nose up and cleaned it, giving everything a home that was neat and accessible. It's been like that ever since. I'm the chaos to her calm, or she's the calm to my chaos, however you want to look at it.

Back at my truck, I piled up the last of the boxes when a voice chirped up behind me.

"Hi there neighbour!" It said.

I turned on my heels, finding a short woman stood in the middle of the driveway, she had red hair, tied up in a pony tail. A taller girl stood next to her, with dark brown hair that fell down to her shoulders.

I trotted over to them, abandoning the boxes. As I got closer I held my hand out, meeting the woman's hand and giving a firm handshake.

"Hey there." I said.

"I heard there was a family moving into this place, it's about time. It's been empty for a few years, I'm excited to see what you guys do with it. You're the Turner's right?" The woman asked.

"Oh yes, sorry, I'm Max." I said, introducing myself.

"I'm Celeste, and this is Cassidy." She said as she nudged the brown haired girl.

"Hi." Cassidy muttered.

"She's just shy honey. I'm sure you'll get along great. You're about the same age right?"

"Uh, my girlfriend and I start high school around here as seniors next week." I replied.

"Oh, Cassidy's just a bit younger than y'all, she's a sophomore." She went on.

"Felix is starting as a sophomore next week, he's that thing sitting on the steps." I joked pointing to him.

I watched as Cassidy looked at him.

"Oh well that's great! I'm sure Cass would love to show him around the place and get acquainted."

Panic spread across Cassidy's face.

I turned to her and joked.

"Don't worry, he's antisocial."

Her face softened in relief.

"We best get going, let y'all settle in, tell your Mom and Dad I'll be by soon to introduce myself!" She said as she walked out of the driveway and down the street waving.

Taking the boxes in my arms I made my way back up to Sian. She was putting up my posters along the back wall, the nightstands sitting either side of where our bed will be.

"You move fast." I stated as I plopped the boxes down on the floor.

She turned her head and smiled.

"I sure do!" She said.

"I'm gonna get the bed."

"Okay babe, don't be long." She replied without looking back.

The beds were all in the basement, Mom figured it would be easier to have them down there whilst we moved boxes around the house. I took a detour to the kitchen where Mom was unpacking her utensils, the smell of the cookies too much to resist. I grabbed one, leaning against the counter as I ate it. Mom made the best cookies I'd ever tasted.

"They're for later Max, I thought I could drop some around to the neighbours."

"Oh yea, uh a neighbour come over, a woman and her daughter, Celeste and Cassidy, she said she'd drop by later to meet you and Dad." I said.

"Oh that's great!" Mom said cheerily.

I finished my cookie and made my way towards the basement. There were so many doors along this hallway I didn't know which one would lead to it. I tried a few doors all leading to a bathroom, a storage room and office space before finding the door that lead down to the basement. I flicked the light switch beside the door and the staircase lit up. As I made my way down, I noted the soft carpet covering the steps. At the bottom the room had whitewashed walls with a cream carpet, the space as large as the house above. Along the far wall stood two white doors with brass door knobs. I scanned the room, taking in the vast space before my eyes settled on the pile of beds and mattresses.

I called up the stairs to ask someone for a hand, I didn't want to have to climb the stairs more than once. Footsteps echoed as someone walked down to me.

"I'll give you a hand baby." Dad said.

"I just need you to grab the mattress Dad, I can manage the rest." I said to him as I grabbed the wooden frame of the bed.

Dad obliged and grabbed the mattress. Hauling the bed to the bedroom, I dragged the frame to where Sian had made space for it, dad placing the mattress on top.

"Good progress girls, it's starting to look cosy already."

"Thank Sian, it's all her, I'm just the muscle." I said proudly.

Dad gave Sian a nod before leaving again.

I flopped on to the bed, catching my breath from all of the lifting I'd done.

"Do you like it?" Sian asked.

I propped myself on my elbows, still on my back and looked around the room. She'd really made it look like home. Her nightstand was adorned with cute trinkets, a lamp in the shape of a pink cloud took up the space at the back with a little electric alarm clock covered in rainbows in the middle. It was a stark contrast to my nightstand, band albums stacked, a black lamp with my raven ornament taking guard over all of the other gothic style trinkets, all arranged neatly. Posters of my favourite bands overlooked the bed, on the wall to the left, Sian's posters scattered across it bearing her favourite singers, the latest pop stars and photos of kittens. We couldn't be more like chalk and cheese if we tried, but it worked.

"I love it babe." I said truthfully.

A wide smile spread across her face, revealing her dimples, her eyes gleaming in the sun that leaked through the window. I'd always loved her eyes, they're what drew me to her to begin with. Her left eye was a cool icy blue whilst her right was a deep chocolate brown, I'd never seen something unique like that before. When Sian and I first met, I was desperate to be close to her, I wasn't sure if she even liked girls, but I'd get what I could take with her, even if I could never be with her. We became close friends over the course of a few months. I'd drop subtle hints to her that I liked her but she seemed oblivious, well that's what I thought anyway until one day she confessed she liked me. Obviously I was delighted and we've been together ever since. She is the sunshine in my life, before her everything seemed so dark.

Breaking me from my day dreaming, Mom shouted up.

"Girls! Dinner!"

Sian took my hand and we made our way to the kitchen. Mom handed us a plate of lasagne each and we walked to the living room, sitting on the couch. Felix followed and dropped to the floor, devouring his food like an animal. I looked at him in disgust as I turned to my own food. As we ate, there was a light knock on the door. Wolfing down the last of what was on his plate Felix shot up.

"I'll get it!" He shouted.

I pierced my ears to listen in.

"Why hey there Felix! We haven't met but I'm Celeste! Are your parents home?" A familiar voice echoed off of the walls off the hallway.

"Sure." I heard Felix mumble.

He entered the living room again, Celeste and Cassidy following him.

"Hi there again Max." Celeste said.

"You must be Sian, I'm Celeste." She said offering her hand out to Sian.

Mom walked through from the kitchen holding her spatula casually in her hand she wiped her other hand on her jeans and held out her hand.

"Good evening Celeste, I'm Bonnie, my husband Jesse is painting but I'm sure he'll be down soon to meet you." Mom said.

Mom lead Celeste into the kitchen, I could hear her offering her some of the lasagne she'd been serving, Celeste kindly refusing but offering to Cassidy. Mom passed Cassidy a plate and Celeste instructed her to sit with us.

Cassidy shyly entered the living room, I could see her eyes scanning for somewhere to sit. I'd finished eating as Mom had been introducing herself so I stood up, offering my seat to Cassidy as I took a seat next to Felix on the floor who had by now grabbed himself a second serving of food.

"So, what's your name?" Sian asked as she swallowed a mouthful of food.

"I'm Cassidy, but people call me Cass." She replied as she moved her fork around her plate.

"Hey Cass, I'm Felix." Felix said, food spilling out of his mouth.

"We aren't all animals Cassidy, he's a different breed." I said to her.

She let out a small laugh still staring at her food.

"So what's the school like? We start next week, I'm kinda nervous." Sian asked.

Cassidy looked up at Sian.

"It's okay. I'm not much of a talker, I don't have many friends but it's as bearable as school gets I guess." She said whilst shrugging.

Sian gave her a smile.

"We'll be your friend, won't we guys?" She said, giving Felix and I a hopeful look.

"Sure." Felix took over as he polished off what was left of his second helping.

"Of course." I said with a softer tone.

Cassidy smiled at us, her cheeks turning a light pink hue.

Dad entered the living room, looking at our guest as Mom and Celeste's chatting echoed faintly in the kitchen.

"And who's this young lady?" He asked staring at Cassidy.

"This is Cass. She's shy." Felix remarked.

"Son, wipe that sauce off your chin. You're scaring her." Dad said half serious, half joking.

Felix swiftly used his sleeve to wipe his chin, leaving a faint red smear.

"Nice to meet you Cass. Now I must excuse myself ladies... and animal, I need some grub." He said, giving Felix a look of repulse.

I could hear Dad introduce himself to Celeste, his voice booming through the house. I stretched my arms and looked at Sian.

"Well, it's lovely to meet you properly Cass, I'm sorry to be leaving you with this creature but Sian and I have some stuff we gotta do." I said as I stood up.

Sian took the hint and handed her empty plate to Felix. I led Sian down to the basement, a puzzled look on her face.

"Max we already have the bed?" She said, confused.

"It's not for that, when I was down here earlier I noticed a few doors, I thought we could take a look whilst everyone else is busy."

I held her hand and we stood at the bottom of the basement stairs, Sian taking in the room.

"This is huge!" She said.

She noticed the doors and strode over to them. Opening the first door she gasped.

"Oh my god, Max, this bathroom is amazing!"

I peeked inside and my jaw dropped. The bathroom was huge. A stand alone tub took the centre of the room, the feet covered in a gold finish. I walked in and took note of the separate shower, jets fixed into the wall below the huge shower head attached to the ceiling. Against the wall nearest the door was a countertop with two sinks nestled into it, the brass coloured taps glistening in the light. A huge rectangular mirror sat on the wall above.

"Can't we change and have the basement as a bedroom?" Sian pleaded.

I chuckled and left the bathroom, focusing on the next door. If that last door had a bathroom so magnificent, this door can only be better. I turned the handle eagerly and opened the door. As we looked into the small room disappointment filled our faces.

"What is that?" Sian said.

Inside of the small closet sized room was a round, metal lid fixed to the floor.

"I...I have no idea." I replied.

I wasn't about to leave it a mystery. I moved toward the strange round lid and grabbed a small handle that sat at the front of it, lifting it towards me. It was heavy and I struggled to get it open on my own, Sian grabbed the handle with me. Together we managed to get the lid to lift open, a black hole greeted us, seemingly to nowhere.

"What the heck." I said.

"Here this might help." Sian said as she pulled a cord hanging from the ceiling.

The cord switched on the light to the small room, illuminating the top of the hole. This was a door.

"Wait here." I ordered before running back up, going to our bedroom and grabbing my hand torch.

Returning to a stunned Sian staring into the hole, I flicked my torch on, pointing it down the hole. It was at least 20 feet deep. I handed the torch to Sian and told her to hold it facing down as I climbed into the hole, grabbing the metal arch shaped steps that stuck out of the stone wall. As I got a few feet down I called for Sian to throw me the torch, catching it in my left hand. As I reached the bottom it felt cold, I could hear every movement I made echo through the halls. I looked up towards Sian and whistled, gesturing for her to join me. I stood at the bottom of the steps, anticipating catching Sian if she fell.

As she reached the bottom, I shone the light towards the hallway, its long dark walls illuminated. It smelt slightly damp as we ventured further inside. Scattered along the walls were steel doors, all leading to big empty rooms. We decided to carry on exploring, turning a right at the bottom and being met with another hallway. This time two rooms sat either side, opened up to make one larger room split by the path of the hall. I shone my light around us, not noting anything other than emptiness and stone walls. At the end of the hall was a smaller hall leading to the left, we carried on, following it. This hallway had no doors or rooms but stopped suddenly with another steel door. Handing the torch to Sian I used my strength to open the door, the steel creaking and groaning from its lack of use.

When the door was open I stared into the room, if you could call it that. It was smaller than the room in the basement that led us here. Sian handed me the torch and I looked around, noticing about 4 feet up the wall were the same style of steps we used to climb down here. I told Sian to stay put whilst I climbed the 20 foot to the top. I was met with another circular door at the top. I noticed it had a bolt to the left of it. Unbolting the door, I pushed against it. On the other side of the door I could hear water trickling off of the metal. With one last push the door swung open, I looked up and saw trees, the sky an orange hue of the sun splitting through the leaves. I lifted myself out, perching on the rim of the door, it led to the forest across the street. It was quite deep in the forest, I couldn't make out where and I definitely couldn't see any sign of our street. Looking around, I could tell this door was well concealed by ferns that covered the forest floor.

I shouted down to Sian.

"It's a door, in the middle of the forest."

"What?!" She asked, shocked.

Carefully I balanced myself back on the steps and closed the door, making sure to bolt it shut again before making my way back down to Sian.

"I think we've accidentally found a bunker." I explained to her.

I couldn't see her face clearly but I could make out her mouth gaping open.

"Why would there be a bunker under the house?" Sian finally asked.

"I don't know." I shrugged.

This was so cool, I'd never had somewhere to skulk off to before, I'm sure Felix will love it down here to read his comics.

Choosing to explore the bunker further, we made our way back to the large room.

"There has to be light down here." Sian said as she inspected the walls for a light switch.

I suddenly noticed another cord hanging in the corner and pulled it.

"Like this?" I said with amusement.

"Wow, that's bright!" Sian pointed out.

I flicked my torch off and looked around us. The stone walls painted a dull grey, the concrete floor dusty from neglect. A few spaces against the wall were slightly wet. As I moved around, my footsteps echoed around us. We made our way back to the first hallway, inspecting the slew of rooms. Each room had an alcove, the concrete from the floor elevated at least 2 foot above the height of the rest of the room, thin mattresses placed neatly inside.

"Wow, bedrooms." Sian said, astonished.

The old owners must have been apocalypse prep fanatics.

We finished exploring the bunker and made our way back up to the main house. As we reached the top, Felix and Cassidy stood in the doorway of the small room.

"Have fun?" He said with a smirk.

I pulled myself out of the hole, dusting off my cargo pants as I walked into the basement, brushing by Felix.

"Oh Felix it's so cool down there! I think you'll love it!" Sian said excitedly as she lifted herself out, straightening her skirt and t-shirt as she stood up straight.

"I'm going to tell Mom and Dad." I said as I walked back up to the main floor.

Mom would love the bunker. She's always been worried about what we would ever do if world war 3 started, using her skills in canning to have a host of food prepared for the worst.

As I neared the living room, I could hear Mom and Dad laughing with Celeste.

"Ah! Max! You kids having fun?" Mom asked me as i came into her view.

"Yea, we found a bunker, below the basement, it's huge." I explained, Dad and Celeste now turning their attention to me.

Mom jumped up in glee as Dad rolled his eyes.

"A bunker?" Celeste asked.

"Yup, and it's absolutely huge!" Sian said as she bounced into the room, Cassidy and Felix trailing behind her.

"Oh wow, you guys really lucked out with that one." Celeste replied.

Mom made her way to the basement, Celeste following her curiously as Dad remained seated, enjoying a warm cup of coffee. Sian and I followed Mom and Celeste, Felix and Cassidy opting to remain with Dad. Mom walked up to the open door and peered down into the hole.

"Oh my good lord, this is amazing." She gasped.

"You girls wait here, I'm going to take a look."

Sian and I watched as Mom disappeared down into the bunker, Celeste following her. We could hear their remarks and excitement at the discovery echoing through the empty bunker. Eventually they returned, a wide smile plastered across Mom's face.

"So?" I asked.

"I have so many plans! I finally have somewhere I can store all of my canning food and my coupon hauls." Mom said excitedly.

Mom closed the bunker door as Celeste straightened her self.

"You girls aren't to go down there, you hear?" She said sternly.

"Yes Mom."

"Of course Bonnie."

Ah man. I was disappointed that I couldn't use the bunker as my own personal cave when I needed space from the world. I closed the wooden door to conceal the entrance to the bunker, Mom and Celeste making their way back up to main floor.

I nudged Sian.

"Fancy seeing where in the forest the exit leads?"

She grinned at me as she replied.

"Of course."

Back in the hallway, Sian and I started to put our jackets on. The smell of leather hitting me as I swung mine over my shoulders and sliding in my arms, the buckles that hung off of it clattering.

"I must be going now Bonnie, maybe I'll come over one day when all of the kids are at school, have a coffee and show you around the town! Nice to meet you Jesse." Celeste said as she entered the hallway, Mom behind her.

"Where are you two going?" Mom asked.

"Oh we wanted to explore the area." I said, omitting the finer details.

"I don't think so, it's starting to get dark, you have all weekend to explore."

I let out a frustrated huff.

"Okay Bonnie! We can wait." Sian said with a smile as she slipped her denim jacket back off and neatly hung it up on the hook.

"Sure, we can wait." I said with disappointment.

"Bye girls, y'all need anything at all, don't be shy!" Celeste said, leaving the house with Cassidy trailing behind her.

As the night grew in, my thoughts were occupied with next week. The thought of starting a new school during senior year was daunting, although it wasn't a huge change for me. I've only ever had a small hand full of friends, preferring to keep everyone else as mere acquaintances. I scanned my eyes over to Sian who was sat at our desk quietly humming to her favourite song whilst drawing. I watched her, smiling softly. She must have felt my eyes burning her because she turned around and looked at me.

"What?" She asked shyly.

"Nothing." I grinned.

"It makes me nervous when you watch me like that Max." She replied, facing her attention back to her drawing.

I lifted myself from the bed and walked over to where she sat, placing my hands on her shoulders and gently massaging them as I bent over to put my head level with hers.

"I just love watching you be happy." I said softly to her.

Her hair draped down, hiding her face from my view but the tone of her voice told me she was blushing.

"What do you think?" She asked, trying to change the subject.

I looked at her art, she liked to create her own original comic strips. It looked amazing.

"It looks amazing babe." I told her.

"Really?" She asked, lifting her head up and looking at me.

I hated that she had no confidence in her talent.

"Really." I replied sincerely.

Sian beamed at me, her eyes lighting up.

"Come on, let's go to bed, we have a big day of exploring tomorrow." I said as I walked over to the bed.

Sian packed away her art, placing everything back where it belonged carefully before crawling in to bed. As I lay flat on my back, she edged closer before nuzzling her head into my neck and placing a hand on my chest.

"Goodnight max." She yawned.

"Night babe."