The week after visiting Grandma Eleanor was different.
I found myself calling Uncle Matthew every evening. Just to talk. Just to hear his voice. Just to remind myself that I had family I'd been ignoring for too long.
"She asks about you every day," he told me on Wednesday. "She doesn't always remember your name. But she remembers someone came to see her. She remembers you made her happy."
I felt something warm spread through my chest. "I'll come again soon. Maybe next weekend."
"She'd like that."
On Thursday, Aunt Elaine called.
I almost didn't answer. Our last conversation was still fresh in my mind. The way she looked at Lucas. The way she questioned him like he wasn't good enough.
But I answered.
"Vivian," she said. Her voice was different. Softer. "I've been thinking about what you said."
I sat down at my desk. "What did I say?"
"That I should respect your choices. That Lucas doesn't need to prove anything to me." She paused. "You were right."
I blinked. "I was?"
"I was protecting you. That's all I've ever done. After your mother died. After your father. After Alexander. I watched you fall apart, and I couldn't do anything to stop it." Her voice cracked. "I couldn't lose you too."
Aunt Elaine never cried. She was the strong one. The one who held everyone together.
"Aunt Elaine..."
"I'm not saying I was right. I'm saying I understand now. You're not the same girl who locked herself in an office for three weeks. You're not the same woman who pushed everyone away." She paused. "You're someone new. And I want to know her. If you'll let me."
I wiped my eyes. "I'd like that."
"Good. Then bring Lucas to dinner. Saturday. At my house. I'll make sure your uncle doesn't burn the food this time."
I laughed. "I'll be there."
---
I told Lucas about the invitation that night.
We were on my couch. His arm was around me. My head was on his shoulder.
"Aunt Elaine wants us to come to dinner," I said.
He went still. "The same aunt who didn't shake my hand?"
"The same aunt."
He was quiet for a moment. "Is she going to interrogate me?"
"Probably."
"Should I be worried?"
I tilted my head to look at him. "She cried on the phone today. She said she wants to know the new me. She said she was wrong about you."
Lucas raised an eyebrow. "Aunt Elaine admitted she was wrong?"
"I couldn't believe it either."
He smiled. "Then I guess I should show up and be charming."
"You're always charming."
"To you. To her, I'm the assistant who stole her niece."
I kissed him. "Then steal me."
He pulled me closer. "Gladly."
---
Saturday came faster than I expected.
I stood in front of my closet for an hour, trying to decide what to wear. Too formal and I looked like I was trying too hard. Too casual and Aunt Elaine would think I didn't care.
Lucas watched from the bed. He was already dressed. Simple button-down. Dark jeans. He looked comfortable. Confident.
"You're overthinking," he said.
"I'm not overthinking."
"You've tried on eight outfits."
"Nine."
He got up and walked to the closet. He pulled out a simple blue dress. Soft fabric. Not too fancy. Not too casual.
"This," he said. "You wore it to Sophie's party. Everyone said you looked beautiful."
I took the dress. "Everyone said that?"
"I said that. Everyone else agreed."
I smiled. "You're biased."
"I'm honest." He kissed my forehead. "Now get dressed. We're going to be late."
---
Aunt Elaine's house was in the suburbs.
Big yard. Flowers everywhere. A porch with a swing that had been there since I was a child. I remembered sitting on that swing with my father, counting stars.
Lucas parked the car. I didn't move.
"Nervous?" he asked.
"I haven't been here in years. Not since..." I stopped. "Not since before Alexander."
Lucas took my hand. "We can leave anytime. If it's too much, we leave. Okay?"
I looked at him. At this man who had never once pushed me. Who always let me set the pace.
"Okay," I said.
---
Aunt Elaine opened the door before we knocked.
She was in an apron. Her hair was pinned up. There was flour on her cheek.
"Vivian." She pulled me into a hug before I could say anything. "You came."
"Of course I came."
She held me for a long moment. Then she pulled back and looked at Lucas.
He extended his hand. "Mrs. Chen. Thank you for having me."
She looked at his hand. For a moment, I thought she was going to ignore it again.
Then she took it. And she smiled.
"Call me Aunt Elaine," she said. "Everyone does."
Lucas smiled back. "Thank you, Aunt Elaine."
She pulled him into a hug. He looked surprised. I almost laughed.
"I was wrong about you," she said, pulling back. "Vivian told me. And she was right. So let's start over."
Lucas nodded. "I'd like that."
"Good. Now come in. Your uncle burned the potatoes. He's very sorry."
---
Uncle Matthew was in the kitchen, staring at a smoking pan.
"I don't know what happened," he said. "I followed the recipe."
"You added too much oil," Aunt Elaine said, opening windows.
"I added the amount the recipe said."
"The recipe was for two potatoes. You used ten."
"Oh."
Lucas walked over to the stove. "I can help. My mother taught me to cook."
Uncle Matthew stepped aside. "Please. Before she banishes me from the kitchen forever."
I watched Lucas move around the kitchen. Comfortable. Confident. He found new potatoes in the pantry. Chopped them quickly. Tossed them in a pan with rosemary and garlic.
Aunt Elaine stood beside me, watching.
"He knows his way around a kitchen," she said.
"He knows his way around a lot of things."
She looked at me. "You love him."
It wasn't a question.
"Yes," I said. "I do."
She was quiet for a moment. Then she put her arm around my waist.
"He's good for you. I can see it. The way you look at him. The way you smile." She squeezed. "Your father would be happy."
I leaned into her. "You think so?"
"I know so. All he ever wanted was for you to be happy. To be loved. To have someone who would stay."
I looked at Lucas. He was laughing at something Uncle Matthew said. His hands were covered in flour. There was a smudge on his cheek.
"He stays," I said.
Aunt Elaine smiled. "I can see that."
---
Dinner was at the big table in the dining room.
The same table my father had grown up at. The same chairs. The same plates. It felt like coming home.
Uncle Matthew sat at one end. Aunt Elaine at the other. Lucas and I across from each other.
The food was good. The potatoes Lucas made were perfect. The chicken Aunt Elaine cooked was tender. The salad Uncle Matthew threw together was surprisingly not terrible.
"So, Lucas," Aunt Elaine said, passing the bread. "Tell us about yourself."
Lucas set down his fork. "What do you want to know?"
"Everything. How did you meet Vivian? How long have you worked for her? What do your parents do? Do you have siblings?"
"Aunt Elaine," I said. "Interrogation."
"I'm just asking questions."
Lucas smiled. "It's okay." He looked at her. "I met Vivian five years ago. I was fresh out of college. She was already running the company. She hired me as an assistant."
"And you fell in love with her?"
"Aunt Elaine!"
Lucas laughed. "I fell in love with her slowly. Over years. It wasn't one moment. It was a thousand small moments. The way she stayed late to help with presentations. The way she remembered small details about people. The way she was so much softer than she let anyone see."
I stared at him. I didn't remember any of those moments. But he did.
"My mother raised me alone," he continued. "She worked three jobs to send me to school. She taught me that love isn't about grand gestures. It's about showing up. Every day. Even when it's hard."
Aunt Elaine was quiet. Her eyes were soft.
"And your father?" she asked.
Lucas's jaw tightened. "He left when I was young."
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I had my mother. I didn't need anyone else." He looked at me. "Until I met Vivian."
The room was silent. Uncle Matthew was pretending to focus on his food. Aunt Elaine was blinking rapidly.
"Well," she said finally. "That was very well said."
Lucas smiled. "Thank you."
"Now eat before your uncle finishes everything."
"I heard that," Uncle Matthew said.
"You were supposed to."
---
After dinner, I found Aunt Elaine in the kitchen.
She was washing dishes. Her back was to me. Her shoulders were shaking slightly.
"Aunt Elaine?"
She turned. Her eyes were red.
"I'm fine. I'm just..." She laughed. "I'm just being silly."
"You're not silly."
She dried her hands. "Your father would have loved him, Vivian. He would have sat him down and asked him a hundred questions. And then he would have pulled him into a hug and told him he was family."
I felt tears prick my eyes. "I wish he was here."
"He is." She touched my chest. "Here. Always."
I hugged her. Held her tight.
"I'm sorry," I whispered. "For staying away so long."
"I'm sorry too." She pulled back, wiped her eyes. "But we're here now. That's what matters."
---
On the drive home, I was quiet.
Lucas drove with one hand on the wheel, the other holding mine.
"They like you," I said finally.
"They tolerated me."
"Aunt Elaine cried. She never cries."
He glanced at me. "Because of me?"
"Because she saw how happy I am." I squeezed his hand. "She saw you. Really saw you. And she saw what I see."
He was quiet for a moment. "And what do you see?"
I looked at him. At this man who had waited five years. Who had cooked potatoes for my uncle. Who had told my aunt about his mother. Who had shown up, every day, even when it was hard.
"I see home," I said.
He pulled the car over.
We were on a quiet road. Trees on either side. Stars above. No one else around.
He turned to me. "Say that again."
I smiled. "I see home, Lucas. You. You're home."
He kissed me. Not the gentle kisses from before. Something deeper. Something that said everything he couldn't put into words.
When we finally pulled apart, he rested his forehead against mine.
"I'm going to marry you one day," he said.
My heart stopped. "What?"
"Not now. Not tomorrow. But one day. When you're ready. When we're both ready." He pulled back, looked at me. "I'm going to marry you, Vivian Chen."
I didn't know what to say. So I kissed him again.
And when we finally drove home, I couldn't stop smiling.
---
That night, I wrote in my notebook.
Lucas said he's going to marry me one day.
Not now. Not tomorrow. But one day.
And I realized something. I want that. I want a future with him. I want mornings and evenings and burned potatoes and family dinners. I want everything I was too scared to want before.
I used to think love was something that happened to other people. Something I wasn't meant to have. Something I didn't deserve.
But Lucas looks at me like I'm the only person in the world. And when he looks at me, I believe I deserve it. I believe I deserve him.
I'm not scared anymore. I'm ready.
For him. For us. For whatever comes next.