LIVING IN CHESHIRE AND CALLING IT HOME CAME QUITE QUICKLY TO THE KING DOMINION STUDENTS, EASILY FITTING THEMSELVES INTO THE ENGLISH CULTURE. It had been 4 years since the first day arriving at the Grey manor. Lilith and the rest of the students, still awaiting for the return of Jason, but he never came.

Marcus and Petra had grown to believe that Jason had just given up on attempting to cause harm on the group, but the Grey family knew better. Each year that passed, Lilith and Alec grew more anxious, yet continued to keep themselves busy and prepared with continuing their training.

It was the day before Lilith's birthday, the prime age of eighteen was hours away. The girl was daydreaming, her attention fixated on her bedroom wall full of photo frames when Marcus dipped his head into her room.

Over the four years, Lilith and Marcus redeemed their friendship they once had before at kings dominion before their feelings got in the way. With Lilith still worrying about the quietness of her brothers surroundings, the girl kept herself busy with practicing her combat and knife throwing, mainly just keeping herself to herself.

As the two grew older, Marcus began to admire the girl more, he took in consideration how much family meant to the girl, admiring the love for family and friends she had, just like he had too. Having had lived with the Grey family for the past four years, Marcus and the rest of the king dominion students classed the family as their own, the group of friends even calling one another family.

Tiana acted like the older sister Marcus never had, from always teasing him about his lack of skills with blow darts and knife throwing to pranking him all throughout the day. Alec too warmed up to the boy, after a not so good starting point between the two at kings dominion, the oldest Grey sibling taking the boy under his wing, showing him the aspects of archery and using the wonders of a map.

Lex felt at home the most, due to him being back in his homeland, taking full advantage of the freedom he had achieved from his eighteenth birthday a month ago.

"Hey."

Marcus climbed out of his thoughts for his eyes to be met with those of Lilith's, a smile plastered across her face as he welcomed the boy into her room. Marcus returned the smile, walking over to her spin-able desk chair, falling back onto it.

"You ready for tonight?" Marcus asked the girl as she moved herself back on her bed, her back now resting against the headboard. Lilith nodded her head to his question, her smile increasing as she fiddled with her hands.

"Tia said to tell you Ethan would be there tonight, and some other people called Layla and Tom."

Those words made Lilith's eyes widen as she leaned forward, Marcus noticing the sudden burst of happiness cover her face.

"Who are they?"

"They were the best friends I could have ever have asked for before I had to move to San Francisco." Lilith spoke. "On our first day home at our welcome party, Ethan was supposed to be there, but he had family matters to attend to."

"Is he? Was he?"

"A friend?" Marcus shook his head. "Marcus I was eleven, nothing happened between me or Ethan, or me and Tom for that matter." Marcus nodded his head as Lilith rolled her eyes.

"Jealous Arguello?" Lilith teased, Marcus smiling as he felt the familiarity of his nickname after Lilith not having of called him it since their departure from America.

"Not at all Grey."

"Sure, whatever you say." Lilith said, giving the boy a wink, to which he returned, the two quickly bursting out into smiles. "Anyway, you will like Layla."

"Why's that?"

"Well if you thought I was brutally honest, you haven't seen what comes out of that girls mouth." Lilith said, shaking her head as she climbed off her bed, walking over to Marcus and her desk, opening the top drawer.

"Layla's the one i kept in contact with all through my time at Kings Dominion, and let me tell you." Marcus looked up as Lilith spoke down to him, pointing at the box of letters she had stored in the drawer. "If Layla doesn't like you. She will let it be known."

"Oh don't worry." Marcus said, shrugging off Lilith's comment. "I've been stuck with you the last five years, I know how to deal with people not liking me."

"Oh they have been the worst five years of my life." Lilith whispered, leaning down to Marcus's ear, the sound of her voice tickling the outside of his ear.

"You won't be saying that soon."

"Oh? Is that so?" Lilith asked, Marcus nodding as he jumped up from the chair, his height having had increased over the years, bringing an extra few inches between the two teenagers.

"You know it. Now, I'll leave you to get changed. Go all out, you have an audience to show off to." Marcus said as he headed towards her bedroom door, Lilith tutting in response as she shook her head.

"You sound like a right moron." Lilith stated, the sound of Marcus's laugh bringing a smile to Lilith's lips as he carried on walking out the door, making sure to give the girl one final wave before he disappeared down the hall.

Lilith sighed as she looked down at her hands, looking at the way she clenched her fists in her palms, the whiteness of her knuckles shining against her skin. The girl would admit, she was a lot stronger than what she was back at king dominion, thanks to the continuous training Alec and Uncle Sam sent her way.

Getting up from her bed, Lilith walked over
To her wardrobe, opening it up to see her wide selection of clothes, mainly consisting of dark colours.

"Red seems like a good colour." Lilith mumbled as she lifted the hanger.

"It does."

Lilith jumped at the sound of someone speaking. As she turned around, she dropped the red dress, the sound of it colliding with the floor flooded the room.

"Oh my." Lilith whispered, her hand finding its way to her mouth. "Layla is that you?"

"In the flesh."

Lilith squealed as she ran over to her childhood best friend, bringing the girl into her arms. Laughter could be heard amongst them both as Lilith felt her eyes begin to tear up at the sight of her friend.

"Oh I've missed you." Lilith mumbled as the two swung themselves back and forth, neither of them wanting to let the other one go.

"Oh look at you!" Layla exclaimed, leaning herself back allowing her to see Lilith clearly, grabbing Lilith's cheeks giving them a quick squeeze before being pushed away by the girl.

"All grown up!"

"Layla you sound like an old woman." Lilith teased, Layla rolling her eyes as she walked over to Lilith's bed, crashing onto it.

"Well excuse me for getting all happy after not seeing you for donkey years." Layla muttered, Lilith laughing at her words before she walked back over to her wardrobe, picking up the dropped dress off the floor.

"So what's this i heard about you being shot?" Lilith's smile dropped as she looked up from the dress to meet Layla's eyes.

"Oh it's nothing, just the cartel trying to act all tough."

"Nothing?!" Layla exclaimed. "Being shot by a cartel gang is not nothing Lilith Adelaide Grey." Lilith rose her eyebrow as she walked over to her desk, placing the dress over her desk chair.

"Oh we're using legal names are we?" Lilith said, her eyebrow still raised as she leaned against her bookshelf, her eyes locking with Layla who did not look impressed with Lilith's way of attempting to lighten the conversation.

"Well Layla Daniella Michaels," Layla rolled her eyes at the sound of her full name, placing her hand on Lilith's bed frame. "The cartel shot me, because Lex held the head of the cartel leaders son in his hand, and i-"

"Wait what? You had his son's head."

"Chico's yeah."

"The fact you say that so calmly Lili worries me." Layla said, shuddering at the thought of Lilith carrying a decapitated head around San Francisco.

"We didn't decapitate him." Lilith said, shrugging at the sight of Layla's widened eyes as she nodded her head, indicating for Lilith to carry on explaining.

"I'll explain it all from the last letter I wrote, let me quickly change into this first." Lilith said, lifting up the red dress, Layla nodding as she watched Lilith walk into her en-suite, closing the door behind her.

/————————————————————\

This is a little chapter i know, I'm just curious and is this gif at the start of the chapter working, because normally when i add them; they move but ever since I've updated my wattpad, they don't move so i don't know if they actually work?!

Anyway, a little update. Love you all, more coming soon xoxo