Six

Aubrey was sitting on the couch in the living room, watching TV and enjoying a cup of hot chocolate.  It was Saturday and she had nothing to do, so she decided to have a lazy day by herself. Maria was out, since she had a photo session, leaving the apartment for Aubrey.

            An hour ago, Jessica messaged Aubrey asking her if she was free the next day to have dinner at the Hill's place. Since Aubrey had nothing to do, she agreed. All of that was still a bit shocking to her. She could not grasp the thought of being this close to him and slowly she was getting close to his family.

            As she was watching an episode of Friends, her phone rang. She grabbed it from the coffee table to check the caller I.D. Jordan was calling her. She smiled to herself and answered the phone.

            "Hey," she said, smiling a little to herself.

            "How have you been?" he asked.

            "Everything's good, I'm actually having a lazy day," she replied. "And I'm watching Friends," she added.

            "Lucky you, I have work to do today. I have a photoshoot," he said.

            "Photoshoots aren't that bad."

            "True, they aren't the worst," he agreed. "I have a suggestion and you have every right to refuse, but it's just an idea that came to my mind," he said. Aubrey could tell how nervous he was. Why on earth would Jordan Hill be nervous on speaking to me? She couldn't help but ask herself.

            "Sure, what is it?" she wondered.

            "Would you like to collaborate with me?" he suggested, causing her eyes to go wide.

            "I'd love to!" she exclaimed, hoping that she was not too loud.

            "Really?"  Happiness was obvious in his voice. "This is great!" he said. His enthusiasm was almost equal to hers.

            "We can meet up and discuss the whole thing whenever you have time," Aubrey told him and he agreed. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow. I don't know if you know this or not, but Jess invited me to your family's place tomorrow for dinner."

            "Yeah I know, my mum will love you," he said, then he quickly slapped his forehead, feeling so stupid for saying something like that. "I mean my whole family will love you, you're a great person," he corrected himself.

            "Thank you." She blushed a bit as she was still not used to receiving compliments from him. "See you tomorrow," she said then she hung up. Once she was sure that she hung up, she threw her hands up in the air, screaming a loud 'YES' while doing a little happy dance in her place. She could not believe that she was about to collaborate with her celebrity crush.

            She decided to Skype with her parents since she hadn't talked to them for a couple of days; she missed them a lot. During the first three months of moving to Los Angeles, she used to get homesick a lot that she considered returning to Louisiana. Her parents were happy for her when she shared the news of collaborating with Jordan with them, but like any other father, hers did not miss the chance to ask if something was going on between her and Jordan. For sure, Aubrey assured him that they were just friends and he was just probably being nice to one of his fans who happened to be in the same industry as him. Aubrey was truly oblivious to the thoughts that roamed Jordan's mind every night.

            The next day, Maria took care of styling Aubrey's hair and putting on her make-up. She made sure to keep everything as simple as possible, just like how Aubrey loved it.

            "I'm starting to love the fact that I have a best friend who happens to be a make-up artist, a hairstylist and a photographer." Aubrey grinned as she looked at her reflection in the mirror.

            "I get to experiment on you, it's a win-win situation," Maria joked. She was never experimenting on Aubrey, she knew what she was doing. Aubrey took her phone and snapped a couple of selfies of her look and she took a couple of ones with Maria. After choosing the best ones, she posted them on Instagram, knowing that they would boost Maria's followers.

            "Thank you." Maria smiled at her.

            "It's nothing, Ria. It's the least I can do."

            Aubrey got up to get dressed and once she was done, she called Maria again in her room to see how she looked. She was wearing a simple knee-length black dress with a small V cut on the back and a bow at the end of the cut. Aubrey styled the dress with burgundy heels and a burgundy clutch. She looked elegant, but not extra. Aubrey's hair was pulled up in a curly ponytail and her make-up was very simple; the only visible thing was the burgundy lipstick. 

            While Aubrey was driving to the Hill's place, she hummed to the song on the radio. It was one of her favourites.

"I'm out of touch, I'm out of love
I'll pick you up when you're getting down
And out of all these things I've done I think I love you better now
I'm out of sight, I'm out of mind
I'll do it for you in time                                            
And out of all these things I've done I think I love you better now."

            After a little while, she arrived at the house, Aubrey looked at it with great admiration. It was the kind of place she would want to live in with the love of her life.

"This place is amazing," she spoke to herself in a low voice. She got out of her car and straightened her dress. She took one deep breath before walking to the front door.

            She rang the doorbell and waited for someone to open the door. Jessica opened the door with a wide smile on her face. "Welcome to our place," she greeted Aubrey with a gentle hug. 

            "Thank you." Aubrey's smile was wide and genuine.

            "You're choking the poor girl, Jessie," Jordan said chuckling as he appeared in front of them. The two girls pulled away and Jessie glared at him playfully.

            "She gives amazing hugs," Jessica defended herself, earning a small laugh from Aubrey. Jordan agreed with his sister, Aubrey did give him an amazing hug when he surprised her on the show.

            The three of them walked inside, Aubrey could not help but look around in great fondness, admiring every corner of the big house she was in.

            "You've such a nice place. I'm in love with the interior designing," Aubrey told them.

            "Thank you. In fact, Jordan did most of the choosing. He surprised us one day with the keys and we didn't really change anything. We loved it the way it was. However we chose the design of our own bedrooms," Jessica replied. 

            "You're such a family guy," Aubrey whispered to Jordan. He chuckled to himself a little, out of nervousness.

            "I just love my family," he said, looking at her. "I love your dress," he complimented her, making her smile grow as she thanked him. He guided her to the living room and they both sat beside each other. 

            Soon his other siblings and parents appeared, welcoming Aubrey to their house. Jordan looked like a younger version of his father. They both were almost identical in height, but Jordan was a little bit taller. His mother was so lovely towards her, making Aubrey feel at home. Just on one day, Aubrey met his older brother, Jason and his fiancée, Nina. She also met Jayden, the youngest sibling.

            "It's really nice having you here." Marissa smiled at her.

            "Thank you. Thanks for having me here," Aubrey replied with a bright smile on her face.  

             She felt at home; the whole family was really welcoming. She clicked more with Jessica, they chatted together a lot and talked about various things. Jordan almost forgot that Jessica was not a real huge fan of Aubrey as she acted quite natural. He did not think that Jessica was acting anymore, seeing both, Jessie and Aubrey, really enjoying each other's company.

"Has Jordy tried to flirt with you?" Jason asked Aubrey with a smirk, meaning to embarrass his younger brother. Jason and Jordan were so close to each other. Jason was only two years older than Jordan, so the age gap was not big; however, Jason enjoyed embarrassing Jordan, calling him with his childhood nickname and doing other things.

            "Shut up, Jace," Jordan muttered with a scoff.

            "He has been nice. He didn't try to be flirty at all," Aubrey defended him with a small giggle.

            "Ooooh, you've got the girl defending you. Now I can't annoy you," Jason teased Jordan.

            "You're just mad you don't have my charm," Jordan fired back with a smirk.

            "All right everybody, let's have dinner." Jordan's mother announced and everybody went to the dining room.

            "Sorry about what happened, Bree," Jordan told Aubrey, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

            "It's okay, Jordy," she told him, smirking, earning a groan from him.

            "If you want a nickname for me, please stick to Dan," he told her, chuckling.

            "It's okay, Dan. I really like your family," she told him truthfully, she did not feel homesick when she was with them, she felt comfortable and relaxed. A part of Jordan was over the moon on hearing her say that. He wanted her to get closer to him and his family. Although he was scared of that at first, he had a feeling that it could lead to something beautiful later on.