Broken Bonds

Chapter 10

Alexander Romano

Pouring down the last sip of alcohol down my throat, the burning sensation kept me alert as I read through the files for our new shipment for this week. The ringing of my handphone caught my attention and I picked it up,"Alexander Romano speaking."

"Hello Mr Romano, this is the police station in Seattle. We are calling in to check if you had a sister named Ariana Beatrice Romano?" The name of my younger sister caught me off guard, but I immediately replied,"Yes, she is my sister. What's the matter?"

"That's great, currently she is in the police station as of this moment as her mother was pronounced dead upon a car accident which resulted in the explosion of her car. We are wondering if you are willing to take her in as her guardian?" My breathe hitched in my throat. Mum was dead? Ari is now all alone in the police station? What the fuck is going on now?

"I will take her in as a guardian. I will be there tomorrow morning. Thank you." I hung up on the call immediately and sat there in a daze wondering what the fuck exactly happened. Ari was going to be back. And mum was dead. I don't know which one shocked me more.

I immediately headed downstairs and got the servants to get the rest of them down in an instant. Eli was the first to get down, followed by Theo, Avery then Enzo. Once I saw that they were all settled down, I cleared my throat and announced,"Ari is coming home. And...mum is dead, that's why the police got a hold of me and contacted me to get Ari home." The dining table was in complete silence.

Theo was the one to break the silence,"So when is Ari coming home?"

"I will be heading to Seattle tomorrow morning to get her back, so most likely around noon." The next person who spoke was actually Avery. She asked in a monotone,"How did she die?" I looked up at her and her face showed no emotion while asking the question.

"Car accident, her car exploded after that." She lowered her head upon hearing my response while Enzo spoke,"You must be ecstatic now that mum is gone." His words filled with hatred and anger. No one stopped him from saying it and everyone was sitting there and watching it unfold.

Avery looked up and looked at him blankly and asked,"So now am I responsible for her death as well? How are you so sure that she might be dead?" Enzo was just about to open his mouth but I spoked up,"The truth will be revealed after they conduct a thorough examination at the scene."

She then stood up from her seat and turned around to leave. However, the words she said before heading upstairs was left hanging in my mind. She said,"To assume the same amount of trust to be placed in me was the root of all disappointment, isn't it?"

Avery Romano

As I shut the door behind me, I slid down onto the ground as I leaned onto the door for support. Bea is coming back. I smiled slightly at the thought of seeing her again after 14 years. How have she been? Was she doing well? Did that woman abuse her? Does she....hate me?

Various thoughts flooded my mind at one go and I found myself clutching my chest painfully. I struggled as I took in a large intake of air and continued the same action until I felt my lungs started relaxing. I pulled my knees close to my chest and sat in that position until I felt all right again.

Knowing that I was soon going to see Bea again, I only took one pill for the night. Surprisingly, I managed to get a four hours sleep before waking up while covered in sweat. I had called in sick for work in the morning as I knew that I won't be able to focus during work, knowing that Bea was coming home.

I had busied myself with school work and revision until it was around 11.45am that I started pacing around my room, waiting for her arrival. They should be back by now. Suddenly, I heard the opening of gates and immediately ran down the stairs, not worrying if I will fall flat on my face. Nothing mattered as of this moment.

As the doors opened, Alexander and Elijah walked in first, then she walked in. She looks the same as before. I did not realise that I had stopped blinking until I felt tears pricking my eyes and tears flowed out. I took in every feature on her face. I know this may sound weird because we are twins but yet I acted as though I had never seen her before.

We looked almost identical except that she had long hair which reached almost her waist while I had mine kept at shoulder length. She took after the woman's brown eyes while I took after father's dark coloured eyes. Other than that, we were practically similar.

She scanned around the house until her gaze landed on me. Neither of us moved, we both stood there gingerly as though we were glued onto the ground. Bea made the first move by dropping her backpack on the ground. She ran towards me in a few steps, wrapping her arms around my neck and buried her face in my hair.

I remained rooted to the ground. Slowly lifting my hands like a robot, I finally wrapped my arms around her and hugged her back tightly.

"Bea." I whispered, tears could not stop flowing as I closed my eyes, hoping to engrave this moment in my heart.

"Eliz." She whispered my nickname only she had called me by. More tears flowed by upon hearing the name. It's been way too long since I've heard her calling me that.

Neither of us wanted to move. Because we were scared. The last time we had let go of each other, we were separated for 14 years.

In the tears that we shed, a part of it was out of happiness, a part of it was crying for our lost times spent with each other, while the rest of it was for the trauma we received. We were both crying for the pain that we've suffered.

Grieving for the childhood that we had lost.

updated! last 3 days of freedom before the start of internship 😭

Sometimes we are the ones who created our own heartbreaks through expectations.
(came across this quote and thought it was really beautiful and wanted to share it here, not sure who was the author)

Happy reading! -1/9/2022