*The next day*
I woke up at 3 a.m. due to a nightmare.
Deciding that it wasn't worth trying to go back to sleep, I got ready for the day.
Once I was done, I sat by the bay window, and looked at the dark sky.
I sat there for a few hours, lost in thought, until someone knocked on the door.
"Come in." I said quietly.
"What time do you wake up?" Ace asked with a small laugh.
I shrugged with a small smile, watching him move to sit next to me.
"But seriously, what time did you wake up?" He asked, still smiling.
"I think it was 3:32." I mumbled, seeing his smile drop slightly.
"You need more sleep than that." He said seriously.
If I could sleep longer, trust me, I would.
"Why do you wake up so early?" He asked.
I just shrugged lightly, picking at my nails.
"Do you get up that early every day?" He asked.
Why do these people ask so many questions?
"Most of the time." I mumbled.
He nodded slowly, running his hand through his hair.
"Ready to go down?" He asked.
We went downstairs together to the kitchen where, surprisingly, Mr. Thompson was waiting.
"Good morning." He said, not looking away from the paper in his hands.
"Good morning."
"What are you doing up so early, Adeline?" He asked, keeping his eyes focused on his paper.
"I don't know." I said quietly, not knowing what to say to that.
He finally looked away from the paper, looking at me with his cold eyes.
"You say that a lot." He commented, keeping his signature flat tone.
I wanted to say, 'because there are a lot of things I don't know,' but I decided it would be better to just give him a small smile and nod.
"It doesn't have anything to do with what is taking place today, does it?" He asked.
I wasn't sure if he was talking about the party or funeral, but I didn't ask.
I shook my head, still smiling a little, trying to make this less awkward.
Awkward silence filled the room as the three of us sat at the counter, waiting for each other to speak.
Soon, Mr. Thompson had to leave for work, which left just Ace and me.
"So, what do you plan on doing today?" He asked with a smile.
"Same as usual, probably; what about you?" I said with a small smile.
"Probably just paperwork and stuff." He said with a small shrug.
"What exciting lives we have." I mumble sarcastically, which made him laugh.
Soon, Hunter, Charlie, Noah, and Daxton came down.
After we all ate, the other four went to get ready for school or work while Hunter and I stayed at the island.
He was already dressed for work, which made me a little uncomfortable, but I didn't say anything.
"Are you going to be ok today?" He asked.
"Yeah, why?" I tried to play dumb.
I really didn't want to talk about it.
"The funeral and everything." He pushed lightly.
I just shrugged and continued to mess with the hair tie on my wrist.
"I heard that Daxton and Noah wanted to meet one of your friends." He said after a few minutes of silence, "They said you were acting weird about it."
"I don't have friends." I said like it was a normal thing.
"Jack was your only friend?" He asked slowly, obviously trying to not upset me.
I was fine talking about it sometimes, but it wasn't something I wanted everyone to know.
"Yep." I said with a small fake smile.
Before he could respond, Winston entered the room with a smile.
"Adeline, your father has requested that I pick you up and bring you to the cemetery after school." He said.
"Ok, thank you." I said with a smile.
"Does anyone know?" I asked Hunter after Winston left.
"Only dad and I know." He assured me with a smile.
I nodded, starting to mess with my ring.
Today was not going to be fun.
*Later that day*
I was currently in the back of a limo, staring out the window silently.
We were on our way to the cemetery.
The feeling I felt sitting in the back of that car was the same thing I felt the day Jack died.
I honestly didn't know something could hurt this much.
When we got to the cemetery, Winston waited in the car while I went to where Jack was going to be buried.
I saw the casket and that's all I needed to start crying.
Thankfully I was able to compose myself and blink the tears away before the people noticed me.
"Are you the only one coming?" One of the men asked.
I nodded with the smallest fake smile, making confusion spread across the three men's faces.
They nodded slowly before stepping away, letting me have a moment with just Jack.
The casket was open, and he was dressed in his favorite T-shirt and sweatpants.
"Uh, hi," I said awkwardly, "Um, sorry I wasn't the best friend."
I bit my lip in an attempt to stop myself from crying.
"I hope you are happier," I whispered, feeling my voice crack, "I, um, I'm living with those rich people who live in that mansion on 2nd street; it's not the worst, but it's not anything compared to when you were here."
A tear fell from my eye, but I ignored it.
I took a deep breath, trying to compose myself as best as I could.
"Sorry, I'm still not good at this," I tried to laugh, "Uh, I just hope you are ok, and you're happy. I'll never forget you."
I leaned down and placed a small kiss on his forehead.
"I love you." I whispered.
I walked away from the casket, giving the men the ok to bury him.
Once he was in the ground, I placed a flower on top of the casket, whispered one last 'thank you for everything,' and walked away.
When I got back into the car, Winston gave me a small sympathetic smile before driving away.
On the way home, I kept my head against the window, thinking about all the good times Jack and I had.
When we first got the apartment, we were completely broke, but we didn't care.
We made our own fun and got through it as best as we could.
Though it only lasted a year, those were the best times of my life.
If only I knew what Jack was going through at the time.
I didn't even realize we got to the mansion until Winston called my name for the 5th time.
I mumbled a quiet 'sorry' before unbuckling my seatbelt and getting out of the car after thanking him.
When we went inside, it was completely silent.
I went to 'my' room to see three women fixing a beautiful red dress on a mannequin.
"Ah, Mrs. Thompson, you are here," One said happily, "Are you ready to get changed?"
I was confused.
Change for what?
"I'm sorry?" I asked politely, not knowing what they were talking about.
"Your father is hosting a dinner party and he has requested that you wear something appropriate for the occasion." A different woman said in the same tone as the other.
I nodded slowly, looking at the dress.
It had off the shoulder sleeves, a bow at the waist, and was short in front and long in the back.
The top part had a flowery design on it and a few sparkles, and the bottom had a million layers of lace.
There was no way that could be for me.
"Great," The third woman said, "Do you need help putting it on?"
"I-I'm ok, thank you." I said, still looking at the dress.
I absolutely loved it.
Whoever picked it out was a genius.
The three women left, leaving me to change.
I slowly put the dress on, making sure to be careful not to rip any seems.
It fit like a glove.
Absolutely incredible.
When I was done, I looked in the mirror, admiring the dress.
I heard a knock on the door making me say a quiet 'come in.'
"Are you ready for make-up?" One of the nice women asked.
I followed her to a different room which looked to be set up for just this.
She had me sit in a chair while she got the stuff ready.
We were both silent as she applied my make-up, seeming very focused.
When she was done, she handed me a mirror.
"Do you like it?" She asked with a smile.
I nodded, also smiling a little.
It was only eyeliner, mascara which made my eyelashes look even longer than they already did, lip gloss, and some light eyeshadow.
For someone who doesn't really like make-up, I really liked this.
Then she curled my long bold hair, letting it fall over my left shoulder.
It was simple but cute which I liked.
I thanked the woman before going back to 'my' room, seeing a pair of heals on the floor.
There was a note with them.
These are for you.
XX Candice
Sighing, I put them on.
They were surprisingly comfortable; except I don't know how to walk in heals.
And because I'm so short, the back of the dress dragged across the floor a little, so I guessed they wanted me to wear the heals because of that.
But I do have to say, I liked them; they were all black and had straps going across the top.
They were very tall, but they were cute.
I was still a little too short for the dress, so the back still dragged across the floor a little, but it didn't bother me.
Whoever picked these had good taste.
For the first few steps, I stumbled a little, but I got my balance and slowly made my way to the stairs.
Once I got there, I realized I had no idea how to get down them.
So, I gripped the railing like my life depended on it, and slowly went down, one step at a time.
Halfway down, I heard a laugh, and was swept into someone's arms.
I let out a small gasp, throwing my arm around Ace's shoulder as he carried me the rest of the way down bridal style.
"Thank you." I said as he set me on the ground.
"No problem," He smiled, "Don't let Hunter catch you trying to do that, because he will lecture you on how dangerous it is."
"Noted." I said with a small smile.
"You look good." He said, pointing to the dress.
"Thank you; you look good too." I said, looking at the fancy tuxedo he had on.
"Thank you."
We sat on the couch together silently, both of us deep in thought.
Soon, Mr. Thompson walked in with a similar outfit that Ace had on.
His eyes landed on me, and I could see the smallest smile form on his lips.
"You look just like her." He whispered to himself.
"I was thinking the same thing." Ace said, also looking at me.
I didn't know who they were talking about, but I didn't ask.
"Are both of you ready?" Mr. Thompson asked, snapping out of his daze, and going back to the strict, cold toned man he was.
Ace and I both nodded, making him nod and walk away.
"That used to be mom's dress." Ace said, "You look a lot like her."
"What, what?" I asked.
If this was his mother's dress, there was no way I was going to wear it and take the chance of ruining it.
"Don't worry about it," He smiled, "You're not going to ruin it; clothes are there to be worn."
"But I can't wear this." I said, sitting up.
"Yes, you can, because you have it on right now, and you look great in it." He smiled.
"If I ruin it-" "You're not going to; she would want you to wear it."
Now I was even more worried about wearing it.
Soon, everyone else came down, also dressed in nice suits.
I didn't know this was such a fancy event.
At around 5:45 people started showing up.
Winston, who was also dressed in a nice suit, greeted all the people and took their coats while someone else parked the people's cars, and another one brought them to the dining room.
The more people that showed up, the more I recognized them.
A few people who worked for Greg and part of the jury from the trial were there which confused me.
But then I stared recognizing people from my childhood and when I was living with Martha and Scott.
That kind of scared me, but I stayed calm and told myself they were just people who worked with Mr. Thompson.
That was until I heard part of a conversation Mr. Thompson was having with another man who looked very familiar.
"She doesn't know that I lead this," Mr. Thompson whispered, "One day she will be a part of the business, but I want to introduce it to her slowly, and you have to keep in mind that she is only 13."
"Yes, but won't she hear us talking?" The other guy asked.
"She will, but she doesn't know Italian." Mr. Thompson retorted.
"And see, that is why you are the best mafia leader in the country."
I'm sorry, what did you just say?
Mafia leader?
Sir, what do you mean 'mafia leader'?
Is that why they are so rich?
A million thoughts flew through my head.
Did they kill people?
Were my brothers apart of it?
Were they going to kill me if they found out I knew?
I walked away, not wanting to hear the rest of the conversation.
As I turned around, I was met face-to-face with Jack's parents.
"Oh, Adeline, what a pleasure it is to see you again," Karen, his mom, said, "We were just talking about how much we have missed you."
"Y-yeah, nice to see you too." I said, trying to pretend I didn't hear anything.
"What have you been up to lately?" Padro, his father, asked.
"Uh, just getting used to this new life." I tried to smile.
"Yes, I'm sure it is a big change," Karen said, "You haven't heard of any conversations, correct?"
"No, nope, not at all, ma'am."
Yeah, real smooth, Adeline.
"Very well." Padro said with a smile, walking away with his wife.
Well, that wasn't weird.