The Good Life.

The soft sound of Metallica coming from the car speakers was helping my nerves stay calm. Brian stayed the night at the hospital with me, while the others headed home. Right now, Brian and Matt were taking me to the youth home so I could get my stuff. Val and Michelle were busy fixing up my room at my new home. I told them I didn't want anything big or fancy, but Michelle wouldn't hear any of it.

I had this queazy feeling in the pit of my stomach. I'm not sure if it's because of moving in with Brian and Michelle or if it's because I have to face Adam one more time.

Brian turned into the all too familiar driveway and the feeling in my stomach got stronger. It was definitely about Adam.

He put the car in park and turned his head to look at me, "Are you ready?"

"No." I answered truthfully.

Brian shot a glance at Matt, before looking at me again, "Eden, I know you're scared to move in with Michelle and I, but I promise you, you're not going to regret it."

To save a long conversation about Adam, I decided to suck it up and smile, "You're right, let's go."

I lead the way into the big, old boarding school that was turned into a youth home which was my home for quite a while. My plan was to head straight to my room, get my stuff, and get out.

As soon as we walked into the main door, my plan went down the drain. Adam greeted us with a smile on his face, which I knew was a fake one.

"Eden, I'm so happy that you're finally going to get a home! It's a shame that it's not with the Beckers." Adam shot me a look.

I rolled my eyes, "What a damn shame."

Adam ignored my comment and turned his attention to Brian and Matt, "Why don't we socialize a bit in the living room while Eden packs up her stuff? I'm sure you would love to hear some stories about her."

Brian placed his hand on my shoulder, causing me to look up at him, he was giving me a questioning gaze. I knew Adam didn't have the balls to tell him about my past, so I figured I was safe.

I gave him a nod, "I'll meet you guys there when I'm done."

They headed into the living area as I made my way up the stairs. Once I got into my room, I was attacked into a bear hug.

"I knew you would come back for me!"

Becca.

She let go of me with a big smile on her face, "I can't believe you're finally emancipated! We have to hurry if you're going to sneak me out!"

Suddenly, the sick feeling in my stomach was back. Adam didn't tell her anything. I started to feel guilty for choosing to live with Brian and Michelle. I told her that I would come back for her.

Becca stopped smiling, "Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Bex, I couldn't get emancipated. You have to be 16 years old to get emancipated." I decided to ease into the explanation.

She frowned, "Mr. Jay-"

I shook my head, "Mr. Jay lied to me."

Becca furrowed her brow up in confusion, "So what does that mean? Do you have to live with those fuckers now?"

"No, I had a choice to make." I said, refusing to look her in the eye.

She sighed in relief, "You chose to live in the youth home so you could be with me, phew! I thought you were going to leave me here for a second!"

I finally made eye contact with her, "Bex, I'm so sorry. My Dad wants me to live with him and his wife."

"And you said yes?!" Her voice started to rise in anger.

I took a deep breath, trying to keep my emotions in tact, "He's my Dad, Becca! He wants me to be part of his family!"

"I'm your family, Eden! I've been here for you since we were five years old!"

I placed my hand on her shoulder, "I know, Bex. Nothing will change that, you can come visit me." I smiled, trying to make her okay with this.

She scoffed, "So that's it? You're really choosing to live with some guy you barely know over staying here with me?"

"He's my Dad!" I exclaimed.

Becca pursed her lips, "Fine, leave! I hope he gets sick of you, just like all the other families did. Then when you come crying back to me, I won't be there for you."

Tears filled up in my eyes, but I sucked it up and decided to get done what I was here for. I shoved all of my clothes into the only two suit cases that I had. I zipped up the last suitcase and looked at Becca, who was pouting on her bed.

I took a deep breath, trying to prevent the tears from falling, "Best friends?"

She refused to look up at me and I waited for to answer. Once I realized she wasn't going to say anything, I headed for the door with tears rolling down my cheeks.

"Till the end." Her voice cracked.

I smiled through my tears and headed for the living room. I placed my suitcases on the floor when I got into the room.

Adam stood up from the couch, "Well, Eden, it's hard to see you go."

That caused me to roll my eyes, but I replaced it with a fake smile, "It's time to move on."

Brian stood up and stuck his hand out in front of Adam, "It was nice to meet you, Adam. I just want you to know that she'll be in good hands."

Adam shook his hand, "I know you will, just remember what I told you."

I squinted my eyes, wondering what Adam told him. Matt headed over to me and grabbed my suitcases, "I'll take these into the car." I gave him a soft smile as he walked out of the room.

Brian walked over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder, "I'll give you time to say good-bye, we will be in the car when you're ready." I nodded as he left me alone with Adam.

"What did you tell him?" I sneered.

Adam smirked, "Oh, I just told him how much of a trouble maker you are. I told him that he can bring you back when he gets sick of you and trust me, Eden, he will."

I tightened my jaw, "You don't know him."

"But I know you. You can't stand rules and you can't live with a family longer than a month. He will send you back just like the others." Adam smiled, showing his happiness about this.

My anxiety started to act up. I could feel my hands started to shake. Adam noticed this, "I give it a week."

I snapped, "Go to hell!" I ran out of the youth home and leaned up against the brick wall, trying to calm myself before I got into the car.

"I know it's hard to leave, but you gotta give Brian and Michelle a chance." Matt made his presence known.

I squeezed my eyes shut and let out a deep breath, "It's not hard to leave."

"What's wrong, then?" Matt asked, concernedly.

I opened my eyes and headed for the car, "Nothing, I'm fine."

We got into the car and Brian smiled back at me, "Ready to go home?"

I looked back at the building that I was forced to call home my whole life and I felt relief come over me. I smiled back at him, "Let's go home."



The drive home took about an hour and we pulled into the driveway to the house I would call home now. There were quite a few cars in the driveway and Brian groaned, "I told her not to do this."

"Do what?" I asked while taking my seatbelt off.

Matt opened his door, "She's gotta get used to it, dude. We got a huge family."

I got out of the car, "What's going on?"

Brian sighed as he got out of the car, "Michelle invited some people over to meet you. If it's too much, I can send them home."

Matt grabbed my bags out of the trunk, "You got to meet them some time, Eden. Why not all at once?"

I shrugged and agreed with him, "Matt is right. I'll be fine, Brian." I smiled at Brian.

He returned, "Alright, but you asked for it."

We all walked into the house and I heard laughing and talking. I looked around the house, smiling. The layout was almost identical to Matt's house. It looked like the whole house had hard wood floors and there were plants up against the walls. This was exactly what I pictured my home to look like when I was a kid.

Brian took his jacket off and I copied his actions. He opened a door, showing me that it was a closet, "This is where we hang up our coats and jackets." Brian informed me, while taking my jacket from me and putting it on a hanger.

I looked down at my shoes, "What about my shoes? Do I take them off?"

Brian chuckled, "Nah, we're not that strict."

Matt ruffled my hair, "Ready to meet everyone?"

Before I was going to answer, Brian cut me off, "Why don't you go see your room first? Just incase you need a place to run to."

That seemed like a better idea, "Okay, I just hope you guys didn't go too crazy with it."

Brian laughed, "Knowing Chelle and Val, they probably did. C'mon, follow me."

He lead me up the stairs and showed me where the main bathroom was. He said there was a bathroom on the first floor and a half bathroom in the basement. We got to the end of the hallway and I saw the door that had my name in block letters hanging on it.

Brian laughed, "Ready?"

I took a deep breath and nodded, "Ready."

He opened the door and my mouth fell open. The walls were painted light purple and it had black trim. We walked in and he placed the bags on the floor, "What do you think?"

I looked around the room, it had a queen sized bed in the middle with a whole bunch of pillows on it. The bed set matched the walls, which made me realize that it was a lilac purple and black themed room. There were two black dressers and two end tables on each side of the bed. I smiled when I saw a beanbag in the corner of the room. There was a door next to the dresser, which I assumed was the closet. I walked over to the bed when I noticed a poster on the wall.

Brian followed me and watched me closely, "That was actually my idea."

A smile formed on my lips when I seen it was a signed poster of Duran Duran, "Where did you get it?"

"My Dad got it for me when I was your age. I decided it would look better in your room."

I smiled at Brian, "Thank you, really, you guys didn't have to go through all this trouble for me."

He smiled back, "We just want you to feel comfortable."

"Well, you succeeded. This room is great." I said, taking one more look around the room.

Brian rubbed his hands together, "Alright, well you can unpack and then come down to meet everyone or you can meet them now and unpack later. It's all up to you."

I decided to get the introductions over, "I'll unpack later."

We walked down the stairs and headed for the living room which had leather couches and a nice fire place in it. I looked around at the people and spotted out the faces I knew: Zack, Johnny, Matt, Val, River, Arin, Brian's Dad, and Michelle.

Brian smiled at everybody, "This is my daughter, Eden."

He started to point out some people, "Eden, that's Jason and Matt, the Berry twins."

I waved shyly at them, "Hi." They both did the same back to me.

Brian continued on, "That's Dan. They all help us on tour." He pointed to the redhead next to his Dad, "That's Suzy, my step-mom. I also have a sister your age, but she couldn't make it." I smiled at them, as Brian introduced the rest of them. Most of them were married. Johnny's wife is Lacey, Arin's wife is Kim, but Zack had a girlfriend named Meaghan. Everyone was very welcoming which made me feel good inside.

"Who's hungry?!" Matt asked once the introductions were out of the way.

Everyone shouted and hollered their answers which made me chuckle. Matt looked at me, "We got burgers and hotdogs. Does that sound good?"

"It sounds great."

Matt rounded the guys up, "Alright, why don't we go outside and let Eden get to know the girls."

They all ruffled my hair on the way out, patted my shoulder, or said "Welcome to the family".

"So did you see your room?" Michelle asked with a huge smile on her face. She gestured toward the couch.

I took a seat between her and Val, "Yeah, it's amazing. You really didn't have to go through that much trouble. Everything must have cost a fortune."

Suzy cackled, "Oh, honey, when Chelle wants to do something for someone, there is no money sign that is too expensive for her." All the girls laughed at this.

"When River was six months old, she bought him a five thousand dollar onesie that he only wore once." Val informed me and my jaw dropped.

Michelle smiled innocently, "What can I say? I like spoiling people.." The doorbell rang and Michelle excused herself to answer it.

Kim changed the subject, "Do you play any instruments like your Dad?"

I frowned and shook my head, "No, I've always wanted to learn piano."

Lacey got excited about this, "Well you'll be able to learn every instrument now since Brian has a studio in the basement." I became intrigued.

"You're a Haner, kid, music is your blood." Suzy said while pulling River onto her lap.

That explains why I love music so much. Ever since I was five, I wanted to learn piano, but the youth home wouldn't buy any instruments. Adam used to say that the noise would piss him off.

I heard Michelle's voice, "Hey, Larry. The guys are out back, but I want you to meet someone first."

Another person to meet. Matt wasn't lying when he said they had a big family. I was getting more used to the idea as I got to know everyone.

"Eden, this is Larry Jacobson, the guys' band manager, but he's more than that, he's family." Michelle chuckled, pulling me out of my thoughts.

A gasp fell from my lips when I saw Larry Jacobson. My heart started to beat faster and I rose to my feet, "Mr. Jay?"

He smiled at me, "Hello, Eddie."