Neliono
Li's still not here.
How long does it take to walk from the kitchen to the living room? 1 minute the most, right?
But where is she then?
After the little bump-in-accident with non other than our father, we somehow got separated. I hate being not able to see her, to know what's going on. Call me crazy and over protective like you want, but it's just likely a trauma from our past. From all the horrible things, Li had to go through and me being not there to protect her back then. I'm still feeling kinda guilty for it even though I know that I couldn't change the actions from the pathetic psychopaths - but I could've at least tried.
The living room is very quiet. Since all the younger once are not here, I'm now surrounded by old dudes who already cracked the 20 - line. To be exact the two mafia dons Alessandro and Ernesto, the right hand man Angolo, Lorenzo, Alonzo, Francesco, Alijo and even Massimo and Georgio, who likely just wanted to stop by before going back to work.
Using work to escape reality something I'm too familiar with.
Riccardo was with them too as they came back and is now probably with Li in the kitchen, which calms me a bit down if I'm honest. He was the kindest till now - not that I trust him. You never know what is going on in somebody's head.
Their stares make me hella uncomfortable. Being in the middle of 9 full grown, muscular and big men, who all look like they want to slide you open to reveal your secrets, gives me honestly shrills. Everything feels so much more difficult to face alone than with Li by my side. Speaking of her, my eyes are still fixed on the door which leads towards the room, where my sister should be. My leg's bouncing. My hands clench into fists aggressively. And my breathing is going rapidly.
I barely pay any attention to Alessandro's attended speech to scold me. My brain just can't focus on anything else at the moment, my gut feeling is telling me that something is wrong. Very wrong.
"Piccolo Neliono? Are you even paying attention to what I'm saying?"
My name brings me back to reality. My head snaps in Alessandro's direction, but I fastly avert my gaze back at the door, mumbling something like 'sure'.
I can formally sense them exchanging a look, the silent communication with their eyes again. How I hate this.
"Look in my eyes when I'm talking to you." Ah here we go. The cold Alessandro is back. I've already thought something happened to him.
Unexplainable, I turn my gaze to him - likely because the day was too much. My whole energy to fight with these scary big asshole dudes is already used up. I just want to go home. Back to my old life. Curling into a ball on our balcony and whining my eyes out while watching the natural beauty of the see in Norway. This shit here is so freaking exhausting.
I'm exhausted.
From playing that everything is okay. That we are just two normal fourteen years old teenagers with normal problems. But we are not. We have a fucked up past, we have a fucked up life and we have a fucked up family. We are not normal. We have several mental diseases, live a life from a fucking adult, are billionaires and additionally professional athletes and so famous that we can be literally seen on every social media app or are even part of a few movies.
It's a mystery to both of us that our family hasn't notice anything yet. I mean, Li hacked all the databases like our medical files or police reports but blocking them out of social media or the film industry is nearly impossible.
We play neutral and hope that they won't put two and two together. But actually, I don't freaking care whether they know or not. It's not like we're embarrassed for what we reached in our lives yet, just too lazy for explanations.
Nevertheless, my face doesn't hold even one emotion, blankness is the only visible thing. So I shrug - not knowing what game I should play at the moment. Maybe for one time none? Just being myself?
Nah, too complicated. But if he - scratch that - if they still think that they could command us around, they are even stupider than I thought.
Alonzo
His brown messy curls are slightly falling into his eyes. His blue and brown eyes formally burning into Alessandro's one. And his jar line clenched and unclenched tensely.
It's very obviously that something is bothering him. Emotionally this time. Normally we're hopeless in searching for any emotions by them. But at this moment I'm able to see maybe the real thoughts they hold towards us.
Exhaustion.
Fear.
And I would lie if I say that this doesn't hurt. They should respect us - following a few more rules than in the past and talk about all the secrets, they hold. But they shouldn't fear us. We're their family and not some strangers. However maybe that's the problem: they see us as strangers and the worst we can't even be mad since we are nothing else to them theoretically.
Indeed our long family motto is La famiglia prima di tutto (family over everything). Being relative trough blood means a lot in our family as you can see at how big ours is. Or how much our nonno cares about knowing our native language Italian and all the old traditions or attempting every important event together. I can't even count down on my fingers how many discussions, we already had about modernness - particularly now at the returning of the twins.
Girls, having to wear dresses. Girls, having to keep 'their hands clean'. Girls, having to subordinate men in the mafia.
Bullshit. Such a bullshit, but getting this out of a very traditional man is nearly impossible.
As much as I can assess Lia already, I would say: she won't wear a dress, she also won't stay away from 'dirty work' and she won't subordinate herself to men ever.
I guess you can say that it'll be excited to see how they both will get along.
Anyway. Back to reality.
You can see how Lio is fighting to hold the eye contact with Sandro. And if I didn't know better, I could have swear I saw his eyes watering before he blinked rapidly to hide them.
My poor little cousin.
I don't like their emotionless. I want them to be able to show emotions, to speak about emotions and not to be ashamed by having emotions.
Back at our beach day, was the first time Riccardo, Angolo and I get to see their true feelings or more Lio's true feelings since Lia was asleep. It's still a mystery for me, why he just started to speak and reveal so many private things but I don't want to complain. I loved seeing this real smile on his face as he talked about his and Lia's relationship. He looks so beautiful smiling. I want to see it all the time on him.
On the other hand, my heart nearly broke as soon as I heard these terrible thoughts about himself. And even more the flinching when Ric raised his hand just to make him look in his eyes. It was a horrible sight watching your youngest cousin who is like a brother to all of us, thinking he would get beat. I don't even want to image why he showed such a reaction. I just can't.
The room is deadly silent, you could hear a pinch falling to the ground which is very rare in a household full with boys and one girl.
Everybody is looking at the boy sitting on the very end of the couch, who seems to be ready to flee out of the situation each second if necessary.
I look at Sandro, silently informing that there is no need in lecturing now and I'll try my luck - his panicking state is killing me in the inside. So I lean slightly forward from my place on the opposite couch place my hand on one of his thighs and begin to speak slowly and steady while ignoring the flinching.
„Lio hun, you hear-"
All of sudden, a loud shriek comes from the direction of the kitchen, interrupting me and making our heads snap in the direction. A girl's one. Painful and fearful.
The only girl here is Lia.
Our Lia.
Third person
Eyes wide with terror and alarmed, they reach for their hidden guns. Neliono jumps up, ready to run to the kitchen but Aljio is surprisingly faster und grabs him harshly by his jacket. One little kid in danger is enough, they can't stand worrying about both. This action is just the straw that breaks the camel's back. Being touched is bad enough but being held back from his triplet sister, brings back memories, which he somehow can't forget.
So was also his reaction.
He doesn't hesitate even one second before spinning around, swinging his leg over Aljio's neck and letting him do a salto forward and landing with a loud bang in the floor. Quit and fast actions have always been way more effective in such situations than trying to start a conversation.
One thing the past taught him very well.
Unfortunately for Neliono, Massimo has quite good reactions too and held him securely by his chest, having in mind to watch his every little move since their lil brother is capable of defending himself quite well surprisingly for all of them.
"LET GO OF ME! YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!" Neliono screams out of his lungs and making no intention to calm down any time soon.
It took a while to let every present person to snap out of their shock.
Alessandro was the first one. As a mafia don, he has to keep his act together even if it's such an exceptional situation like the sudden outburst from Neliono or the danger of one of their most previous family members. Only the thought of her being around the slightest danger let his body boil with murder attemptions but he keeps calm and mutters to Ernesto.
"Are you okay?" He asks Aljio who brought himself somehow up to the next couch, clutching is stomach like he was in pain. Nevertheless, he mutters a quick "Sure". Even if it hurts like hell, he knows that his action was unfair and disrespectful, and Neliono had every right to react this way. Also, at the moment, there are other, more important things than his bruise.
"P-PLEASE! P-please I-I h-have to go-o!"
Alessandro nods at Aljio before glancing at the wiggling boy in Massimo's arms. He feels sorry for him but knows that it's for his own safety to let them walking in firstly.
Finally he directs his head towards Ernesto. "Take the east door."
He doesn't need to give more explanation, even a nod in this direction would have been enough for Ernesto to understand what Alessandro planned. Surround the intruders. A simple task wouldn't there've been their two little siblings involved.
Alessandro makes his way over to the kitchen, armed and ready to fight. "Riccardo! What is going on-"
But he is interrupt by the sight, playing in front of them. It's everything but what they've expected.
There are in fact no intruders- not even a single one or any other kind of danger.
The only sight is a trembling little girl, sitting on the wall with Riccardo in front of her.
Her legs, tightly brought up to the chest.
Her head, formerly held in both hands.
Her body, rapidly swinging back and forth.
Anxious.
Fearful.
Terrified.
This little girl is Neliana.
Their Lia.
And when their hearts weren't shattered before, they surely are now.
2095 words
No big words, only thank you all for staying 🤍