Leilani's POV:

"Muuuuuuuum?" I heard Aurora call from her bedroom obviously in need of something. I let out a sigh as I pulled away from my work in the study and made my way to her bedroom with a sigh.

"I just can't catch a break around here," I muttered under my breath so that she wouldn't hear me. When I reached her room she was moving quickly from one side of the room to the other shoving items of clothing and make up into her floral backpack. I coughed a little so she would notice my presence, she stopped in her tracks and turned back to look at me with a toothy grin. Her smile lit up my world, boy had my life turned upside down from the day I met her.

"You know how much you just love me?" she used the same line every time she wanted something. I laughed a little before rolling my eyes at her forthcoming request.

"What do you want now honey?" I waited for her to ask for a lift to Sabrina's or to ask if she could go to some concert that was coming up.

"Do you always have to call me such lame names?" I could tell she was kidding because of the bright pink her cheeks were blushing, she secretly loved the pet names I called her.

"Why yes baby I do," I joked stepping forward squishing her chubby cheeks together between my palms. She chuckled uncontrollably as I did so.

"Anyway can I have a lift to Sabrina's for a sleepover tonight?" she finally asked.

"Are her parents home?" I queried only letting her stay over if there was someone home to look after them after the last time her parents weren't home.

"No but Trent is and he's old enough to look after us and after last time he knows what to do if my heart plays up," she was practically begging and I couldn't help but give in to her puppy dog eyes. Something I gave into way too easily with my daughter was her eyes, they were just like Austin's.

"Ooh la la Trent," I extended the 'e' in his name as she blushed a crimson red now.

"Mum shut up! He's Sab's brother that'd be weird!" she gets so defensive when he's mentioned, like any teenage girl does when their crush is mentioned.

"Maybe but you think he's cute!" I teased, it was such a Mum thing to do embarrassing their kid.

"This is something I talk about with Aunty Tarni or Sab not my Mum!" she was getting shy now so I just agreed to take her to her friends house for the night.

"Fine you can go over but only because Trent knows what to do, make sure he has my phone number please in case anything does go wrong," I was stern now only because I get worried when she's not in my care.

"I'll be fine Mum," she tried to reassure me but it didn't calm the tension that was filling my body.

"You said that the last time," I certainly remembered her saying that the last time and then getting the phone call that she was in hospital.

"I, but, uh," she knew exactly what I was talking about but I trusted she knew how to avoid the situation again.

"Just give me some time to finish this article for work and then we'll go okay?" she nodded in agreement letting me to go finish my report on one of the biggest court hearings in Australia right now.

An hour later I'd finally put the finishing touches to my article and submitted it to Annette, my boss and editor of The Australian Times. I closed the lid to my laptop and brushed all my pieces of research into the bin before I heard my phone buzz. Without looking at the caller ID I answered the phone.

"Hello Leilani Bennett speaking?" I always answered formally in case it was someone from work.

"Leilani glad I caught you!" Mike's husky voice blared through the speaker of my phone making me smile.

"Hi Mike," my voice had softened now.

"I've got some good news!" he cheered so happily that I could almost see the smile on his chirpy face.

"And what would that be Mikey?" I hummed waiting for his announcement.

"Well I've got a tour coming up in Australia in two weeks and in that time frame I have a completely free calendar so I'm at the airport now about to board a plane into Brisbane. Thought I'd give my two number one girls a visit," he explained. A wave of excitement to see my best friend to crashed over me causing a smile to form on my lips.

Oh yeah, that was something else that changed over the years since I'd had Rory. After about a year of Mike and I trying to do the whole long distance parenting thing we realised it wasn't as easy as we thought it would be with him touring all the time. However Mike did stay in Rory's life, always visiting when he could, teaching her how to play the drums, teaching her to ride her first bike and what not. He still raised her and we still stayed close which is something I accidentally forget to appreciate enough sometimes.

"That'd be great! I've missed you so much and I bet Rory could go with a bit of time with her partner in crime!" I know Rory loved me but I was okay with the fact that Mike was her favourite. In her eyes he was the 'cool' one, she always was a daddy's girl. I chuckled lightly to myself at my own thoughts.

"Can I grab a lift when I land tomorrow?" he begged.

"Well I did have to pick up Rory from Sabrina's tomorrow could you get a cab?" I panicked not knowing what to do. Sabrina's parents weren't home so they couldn't drop her home.

"Really? I don't even get to see you on my first day of holidays?" he whined. "Can't that Trent kid give her a ride home?" he practically spat Trent's name. He can't stand him, apparently he's got 'ulterior motives' when it comes to Aurora yet he's asking for them to be in a car alone together, god forbid.

"There you go with the childish whining again," I joked and he laughed, "hold on let me ask Rory if she can get a lift," I put the phone down on the text while I went to ask Rory.

I didn't want to make it obvious as to why I couldn't get Rory, I think it'd be a nice surprise when she came home tomorrow to Mike being here but I don't think that'd be the case because when I got closer to the door I heard the pitter patter of her feet running quickly away on the wooden floorboards meaning she was eavesdropping on Mike and I's conversation.

Aurora's POV:

"Hold on let me ask Rory if she can get a lift," Mum replied to what I was assuming was Mike on the other end of the phone. Shit I thought to myself as I heard her get closer to the door. I quickly turned and ran towards my room jumping on my bed before she could even turn the handle to her office door.

"Aurora?" she called in what I called her 'mum voice' from the studies doorway.

"Yes Mum?" I called back knowing all to well what she was going to ask.

"Can Trent give you a lift home tomorrow, I have an important work meeting and wont be able to get you," I always knew when she was lying because she went from her Mum voice to her teenage, flirty voice and she only got the tone when she was thinking about Mike. Which I didn't understand because they broke up like fifteen years ago but whatever that's gross old people don't date. However I didn't mind if she was lying because it meant Trent and I would be alone in the car for at least half hour alone knowing Sab wouldn't want to tag along.

"Yeah should be fine!" I blushed just thinking about Trent but I quickly stopped myself. Nothing would ever happen with us he saw me as some baby in high school. I was his sisters best friend and that's all I'd ever be to him, that thought alone was enough to wipe the smile from my face. Oh grow up I thought to myself but brushed it off when Mum called out saying she was ready to take me now.

***

This just in at Triple J, Of Mice and Men have SPLIT UP but don't fear the World Tour continues! The boys set foot down under in just two weeks! Get ready Australia this will be your last chance EVER to rock out with the Of Mice guys! Tickets still available at tickettek.com.au!

The radio announcement boomed inside of my Mum's car as she drove me to my best friend, Sabrina's, house before they rolled into playing one of their old songs 'Another You'. From the corner of my eye I could see Mum squirm in her seat at the mention of the band. You see her and I both had a strong mutual feeling of hatred for the lead singer, Austin Carlile. Before you ask, no it's not rude for us to use the word 'hate', we had a better than good enough reason.

"Rory sweetie, could you change the radio station please," it wasn't a question, rather a demand, as she kept her eyes firmly glued to the road. I did as she said not only because she asked but also because I didn't want to listen to my deadbeat father's voice roar through our car.

"I hope that they're splitting up on bad terms and that they all hate each other and I hope he sinks into an overwhelming hole of depression that he can never dig himself out of," I hissed the word 'he' I couldn't even bring myself to say his name. I knew what I said was a bit harsh but in all honesty nor did I care or nor was I sorry because that's how I feel about scum of the Earth men who can't raise their own children.

"Aurora! If you don't have anything nice to say then don't say anything at all," she scolded me. Every time, without a doubt, that I bought up the subject matter of 'my father' Mum tries to avoid it as if he never existed. It just pained her too much.

"Oh god forbid the ass hole gets a taste of his own medicine!" Mum gasped from the seat next to me, my 'language' I'm guessing.

"Language!" she scolded me once again. What a guess.

"Why can't you be cool like Uncle Mike?" before I could stop myself the words had already slipped my mouth and I knew I'd hurt her feelings, she hates it when I call Mike 'Uncle Mike'.

"For one, stop calling him 'Uncle Mike' he's your Dad and two I'm your mother not your best friend I'm not supposed to be cool, I'm supposed to look after you and have your best interests in mind at all times possible to make sure I can give you the life Austin couldn't!" she stuttered his name, almost not able to push it past her lips and by the end of her speech she was yelling. She sure had succeeded at making me feel bad.

"I'm sorry I know you just want the best for me but he's not my Dad," I sighed. I always knew he wasn't my Dad they never tried to hide it from me and I always knew who my real father was and that's what made it hard for me to look at him as my 'Dad'. It hurt him so much and don't get me wrong I felt bad because he did a better job that he ever could but I couldn't bring myself to call him that.

"He raised you! It doesn't matter if he has the same blood as your or not he raised you, he was there for you, he was there for all your surgeries, he taught you to play the drums! What else do you want from him?" she was right again, in fact I'm one hundred percent that she was almost always right.

"I know Mum, I'm sorry," I sighed again making Mum sigh as well. We were both sick of the arguing so she apologised back saying all the cliché things like 'it's not your fault' and 'you just need to see things from our point of view'. The next ten minutes of the drive to Sab's place was spent in silence.

Mum pulled into the drive way of Sab's white, two story house and I leant over placing a kiss on her cheek that she returned back to me. I trudged my backpack from next to my feet and slung it on my shoulder and then leant over to the back seat to grab my pillow.

"Bye Mum love you," I waved as I jumped out of the car.

"Love you too Rory! Are you sure Sabrina's mum is okay to drive you home tomorrow?" I nodded in response before running to the front door and knocking. Moments later the door swung open swiftly to reveal my pink haired best friend. She pulled me into a tight hug that I gladly returned, you would've thought we hadn't seen each other in years but that's not true. We just sore each other yesterday at school. When she pulled back she dragged me by the arm upstairs and into her room where we plunked ourselves on her massive bed.

"Did you hear the news?" she half sobbed.

"Yes, isn't it great! The scum bags band broke up!" her eyebrows furrowed at me. Oh I almost forgot, their her favourite band.

"I know you hate him but their music is soooo good!" she smartly avoided using his name before annoyingly whining about how much she would miss their music.

"More importantly Sab, is our plan still going ahead?" I raised an eyebrow excitingly and shot her an evil wink. She knew exactly what I was talking about according to the smirk that popped up on her lips.

"You know it! Trent," her super cute, older brother, "agreed to drive us there and wont tell Mum or Dad as long as I pay him fifty bucks," she explained.

"What a scam artist!" we both laughed together knowing the twenty five dollars each we'd pay to him was totally worth it.

"Oh well it means I finally get to see my favourite band in concert!" she jumped in her spot next to me before noticing how scared I was becoming for my upcoming confrontation.

"And that I finally get to be face to face with my dad," I frowned as Sabrina rubbed her small hand comfortingly up and down the spine of my back.

You heard me, we were sneaking out of Sab's house in two weeks with the help of her hot brother to go to the OM&M last ever world tour so that I could finally confront my deadbeat father. I felt so badass yet I was so scared of what was going to happen, was he going to welcome me with open arms or brush me off like he has for the past sixteen years of my existence?

Either way, he had some explaining to do.

Notes

Ooooh Rory's crushing!! How do you like it so far guys? Feel free to leave feedback. Thanks for reading! Enjoy! :))))