Harper's Hill, Chapter 22: No More Secrets

Getting out of the parked moving truck, Julian looked up at the new house. Him and Isaac had finally found a new home to move into with their daughter Camille, and though Julian was excited, he also felt intimidated. This house was so much bigger, so much newer and more polished compared to their old house, which Julian and Isaac had been living in for almost 20 years. It was time for an upgrade.

Julian watched as his husband ordered people around, delegating but not actually helping in any way whatsoever. "Be careful with that couch, please!" Isaac called out to Julian's younger brothers, Daniel and Alex. Luckily, the whole family had come to help Julian, Isaac, and Camille move into the new house. Nathan and his wife and kids were here, along with Daniel and Alex, and even his sister's daughter Emily was helping, too.

Julian walked over to Isaac, putting a hand on his back. "Relax," He reminded him. "Honey attracts more flies than vinegar."

"Yeah, but you know what else attracts flies?" Isaac asked, watching as Daniel and Alex bumped the corner of the couch into another wall. "Shit."

Julian chuckled and shook his head before walking over to their 16 year old daughter, Camille, who was looking up at the house from the side yard.

"Whatcha looking at, Cam?" Julian asked, putting his hands on his hips and looking up into the direction of which his daughter was looking, only seeing a window up-top that was probably in the attic.

"Do you think this house could be haunted?" She asked, looking up at one of her adoptive fathers.

"Why would it be?" Julian asked. "It's brand new. Just built."

"Oh please, Dad," Camille said. "The land could have been haunted... like maybe because the house that sat here before was haunted." She shrugged her shoulders. "A bulldozer doesn't just magically make the hauntings disappear. It's built into the land. Duh."

Julian smiled to himself and then nodded. "You're right, but I don't think that's the case," He said. "I just don't get the vibe."

Camille shrugged her shoulders again. "Anything could happen, right?" She started, "I've heard that Harper's Hill has so much more history than what people are letting on to."

"You don't have to worry about that here," Julian said. "The East side of Harper's Hill is where the problems are. As long as you stick close and stay in the West side, you'll be fine."

"If you say so, daddio," Camille said, clearly bored of this conversation. She zipped away to go hang out with her cousins, who weren't actually helping... instead, they all sat on the front lawn, picking out the grass.

Julian casually walked over and stood by the group, pretending to look elsewhere while he spoke to them. "If you don't want Uncle Isaac having a meltdown," He started, "I suggest you refrain from picking the grass out of the ground at our brand new house."

The kids (who weren't really kids anymore) all looked guilty and then went back to their conversation. Julian looked around and knew that there were things missing from this picture. His parents, for one. It would have been nice if Isaac's parents could be here too. He had lost his parents about 13 years prior.

Julian was also missing his sister, because they had been close before she went off and did her own thing. Plus, she had another child, James. Julian knew that Emily was "re-entering" the family, and he was happy about that, because the more the merrier... however, he felt guilty for excluding anyone, especially someone that was his sister's own flesh and blood.

"Jules!" A voice called out, and Julian looked to see his brother, Nathan, waving at him from just inside the front entrance. Julian jogged over. "You gotta pick a code for the security system." Nathan owned his own construction company, so he was tasked with setting up the alarm system.

"032308?" Julian asked, looking at his brother with uncertainty. Him and Nathan were always getting into small arguments about stuff like this, and he was never sure how his brother would react.

Nathan thought for a second and then paused. "Your daughter's birthday?" He asked. "No, not good enough. It's too easy."

"Come on, who's gonna know that?" Julian asked.

"Oh I don't know, someone who targets your house specifically and figures that you might set your alarm to something dumb... like your only daughter's birthday," Nathan said.

"What if it was backwards?" Isaac chimed in, walking up to the two brothers. "803230?"

"Still feels too easy," Nathan said. "What about... Sharon's birthday?"

At the mention of his late sister, Julian's stomach dropped. But he was able to pull himself together. "I guess that works, 010682?" He asked, looking over at Isaac.

Isaac gave a thumbs up and Nathan nodded. "Sounds good," He said. His brother continued to work on the code while Julian led his husband into a different room.

The partners walked into the new kitchen, looking at the room that was starting to fill up with boxes, knickknacks, and furniture pieces. "This will b good for us," Julian reassured Isaac, grabbing his husband's hand and holding it in his.

"I still like the old house," Isaac said honestly.

"I did too, but it was time for a fresh start," Julian said. "Time for a new beginning, right?"

"Right." Isaac confirmed. The two men watched as their daughter laughed in the front yard with her older cousins. "You think this'll be good for her?"

"Yes, abolsutely," Julian said. "This place is our chance to start fresh with her. No more secrets."

"No more secrets," Isaac repeated, still watching his daughter, hoping that his secret wouldn't break her happiness completely.