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Sienna had it clear what she had to do, but not yet. She couldn't leave the Carringtons at a time when they most needed her. The first night after the funeral would be the hardest and she had to be there with them in case they needed her, but she knew from experience that the healing part was about to begin, helping them all to move on.
"Do you want me to stay with you?" Jensen asked his mother, but Aurora shook her head.
"I'll be okay," she told him. "I need some time for myself."
"Call me if you need me, okay?"
"I promise," Aurora told him, then kissed her eldest son on the cheek. She left them behind, going to the old part of the building, while Jensen and the other Carrington heirs turned to go to the Carrington suite.
"Wait," Adrianna called, stopping them halfway. "I want to say goodbye. I'm leaving tomorrow morning with Angel."
Sienna lifted her brows in confusion. She knew it would happen, but she didn't expect it to be so soon. Jaxon was the first one who approached Adrianna, pulled her into a hug and whispered something into her ear. Adrianna nodded, smiled at him and gently caressed his cheek. Something unspoken was exchanged between them and even though Sienna didn't know what, she could feel the peace that settled on them. Xavier didn't say anything but simply gave her a hug before retreating into himself. When it came to Aiden, it was Adrianna who had to approach him.
"Take care of yourself," she told him. "Stay off your feet for as long as you can. It's not worth going through all the troubles of healing up again just for the sake of taking two steps too soon."
"Easy for you to say," Aiden replied with a smile on his lips. "You've never been particularly active and didn't mind sitting behind the TV."
"Neither do you. Now you can finally catch up on all your action movies. Hopefully, you'll finally watch new ones instead of constantly rewatching the same old classics," Adrianna teased.
"They're called classics for a reason."
The two of them looked at each other for a second longer, then Adrianna leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Next, she turned to Jensen, who opened his arms for her. Surprise was clearly written on Adrianna's face, but it was soon replaced with a different emotion. It wasn't easy saying goodbye to family.
"Stay safe, Ade," Jensen told her. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to call us."
"Thank you for everything, Jensen," Adrianna said, leaning into the hug.
Sienna's chest was full of love and warmth was she watched the Carrington heirs say goodbye to the person they grew up with. Before she could prepare herself, it was Sienna's turn. Adrianna gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek, then hugged her as fiercely as ever.
"The day that you entered my life, everything started changing for the better," her best friend told her. "You've turned into my best friend, my confidant, and my biggest bringer of gossips. We've laughed and cried together. You're my family. You're the sister I've never had but always wanted."
"Same goes for you, Ade. Thank you for everything. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you," Sienna told her, then continued when Adrianna shook her head. "You gave me strength when I didn't have it. You showed me hope when there was none. You brought me news from the outside world. You kept me fed, bathed, and clothed when I didn't even want to get out of bed. You kept me going when I had no reason to. I know I said it before, but I'll say it again, whatever you need, day or night, all you need to do is call me."
Adrianna, the strongest of the pair, pulled away, breaking the hug first. She gave Sienna one of her radiant smiles, then turned toward the old part of the house and left, but not before she waved at them one final time.
Sienna had suspected that the Lockwoods would pay her a visit tomorrow before leaving or maybe even later in the night. Whenever it would be, she was glad that it wasn't now. Saying goodbye to her best friend was hard enough, but there was one more thing she had to do before she could call it a night and find a bed to sleep in.
Xavier pushed Aiden's wheelchair toward the Carrington suites. The big living room where they'd slept for the last couple of weeks wasn't nearly as beautiful as before, showing clear signs of battle. Whoever was in charge of cleaning did a good job and even prepared their mattresses on the floor where they'd spend the night. The only exception was Aiden, who had a hospital bed prepared in the corner and a hook to hang his IV fluids.
Sienna looked around the room with a feeling of nostalgia mixed with sadness. In a way, it was fitting that her last night in this house would be in the room she felt the safest and the happiest. As far as she was aware of, Tina was still in her old room. Tomorrow, Sienna would go to her and invite her to join her in their new home. It would be weird living in what used to be the Aghayan mansion, but she had to start from scratch in a place she'd never been while at the same time staying close to the people she loved the most. It was the best kind of compromise that occurred to her.
Sienna took over the biggest bathroom, locked herself in and enjoyed a hot bath. It was her way of postponing the inevitable. As far as she knew, the rest of the heirs took their turns using the other three bathrooms, but only for a quick shower. They weren't into long hot baths like she was.
Once the water started cooling down, Sienna had to face the music. She dried her body, considered wrapping herself in the bathrobe, but then decided it would be easier to talk to the heirs, knowing that she carried more clothes than only something that could be easily undone with a slight pull of the belt.
When she entered the living room, Aiden was comfortably settled on his hospital bed, his eyes on the big TV on the wall. Xavier and Jaxon were also watching the movie, but from the sofa.
"Where's Jensen?" Sienna asked, looking around for the new head of the family.
"I'm here," he said from behind her.
Sienna turned around just in time to see him put his shirt over his head, covering her impressive eight pack. His wet hair was dripping on his fresh shirt, but he didn't seem to care. He looked fresh and clean just like she felt.
"Would you mind sitting down for a bit? I'd like to talk to all of you," Sienna said, offering him a smile of assurance.
In charge of the remote, Aiden slightly lifted his hand and paused the movie. Sienna made sure to position herself in a way that everyone could see her as she spoke.
"I'm moving out tomorrow," she told them, then cursed herself for not starting slower when Jaxon jumped on his feet. Sienna lifted her hand and waved him back down. "Give me a moment to explain, please."
