Sorry for the late update guys but I'm starting to get motivated to write more frequently and hopefully I'll start updating more often!
ATHENA RUSSO:
I gaze up at the mansion, which is the residence of my brothers. I step out of the car slowly. Ivan tries to get out of the car, but I intervene.
"I need you to wait here until I return," I mutter.
Ivan waits in the car as I approach the grand entrance, unsure if I should knock. I take a deep breath and knock on the door.
As I stood there lost in my thoughts, the door creaked open, and there stood Marcello, his gaze fixed on me. With a curious tilt of his head, he called out my name, "Athena? What are you doing here?"
"I say, "I'm here to see you and the others," as he steps aside and lets me in. I glance around. This place looks so similar to the old mansion.
Abruptly, I hear brisk footsteps approaching. As I look around, I see Dante and Dom, walking together. They pass by me, but their faces quickly turn to surprise when they halt and slowly turn to me, their eyes widening. "Athena?!" they exclaim, in perfect sync.
Sometimes I forget they are twins. But even twins shouldn't be in such perfect sync. It honestly creeped me out a lot when I first came back and it still does.
I quickly observe Dante and notice he's a little pale.
"Is everyone else home?" I ask them, not bothered by their faces of surprise. I look at Marcello, expecting him to answer my question.
He nods, "Yeah. Dante, and Dom, go and get them and tell them to come to the living room."
They continue to stare at me for a couple of seconds before quickly nodding and walking off.
"Come," Marcello says, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and leading me to the living room.
"How have you been?" I asked him in a soft voice, carefully observing his facial expression.
He looks at me and says, "I've been doing well. I've started smiling more, just like you said."
I softly smile, pleased to hear that he is doing well. "One day, those smiles will come naturally," I whisper.
He looks at me for a moment before nodding and looking straight ahead.
As we step into the living room, Marcello comes up from behind and places both of his hands on my shoulders, forcefully pushing me down onto the couch.
I look up at him with a perplexed expression, trying to make sense of his sudden action. "Marcello, I am perfectly capable of sitting down on my own," I say, feeling a mix of annoyance and confusion.
He stares at me, an emotionless expression on his face, "I knew that, I was just being kind and helping you sit down."
"Next time, don't be so aggressive," I mutter, rolling my eyes at him. He sits down beside me and nods.
I sigh and lean my head against his arm. The cuddle— or should I call it a group hug? Well, whatever it's called, Noah and Artemis made me feel exhausted after that hug.
Marcello tenses and then relaxes after a few seconds. "I can sense you are tired," he speaks in a low voice.
"Do you really need me to remind you not to state the obvious?" I mutter, closing my eyes. He sighs, "No, you do not, dear sister."
A few seconds later I hear a bunch of whispers and I open my eyes and see all of my brothers standing in a line, watching me.
Elijah runs up to me and picks me up. "Athena! My beautiful precious little sister!" He exclaims, holding onto me tight.
"Elijah put me down!" I angrily say, kicking my legs around.
He starts squeezing my cheeks, giving me these soft eyes, "Aww you're so adorable when you're angry–"
"Put her down! You're going to break her!" Ares shouts, running over to me and pulling me away from Elijah.
I breathe a sigh of relief as my feet touch the ground. I pat Ares on the shoulder and take a step back.
As I catch Lorenzo's gaze, he locks his eyes on me without uttering a single word. The silence between us is almost tangible, and I can't help but wonder what thoughts are running through his mind.
I take a seat next to Marcello, lean back against the couch and cross my legs. "Listen up everyone," I say firmly. "My wedding is in just a few days, and as part of the contract, I will be on house arrest for the next two months for safety reasons. I wanted to speak with you all before this happens." I make eye contact with each person in the room as I speak, making sure they understand the gravity of the situation.
"What did you want to talk about? Has something happened?" Dom asks, looking a bit nervous.
I stare at them all for a moment and let out a heavy sigh. "Ever since I came back we haven't spent a lot of time and that is partly my fault."
I go quiet and then take a deep breath. "Could you guys visit me?" I quietly ask, nervously looking down at my lap.
All I hear is their silence.
I'm suddenly overwhelmed with regret. I knew I shouldn't have come here, it's so awkward. Acting like a little girl and asking them to come see me is absolutely embarrassing. They're obviously very busy.
"Never mind, forget I asked," I mumble, standing up to leave.
Suddenly Marcello places his hand on my shoulder and pushes me back down on to couch.
I slowly turn my head to him, glaring at him. "I told you to not do that," I grumble.
He shrugs and points at the rest of our siblings.
I slowly look at them and see their faces filled with pure happiness and I swear I see Elijah's eyes tearing up.
Oh...
Lorenzo walks over to me and sits down beside me, "Of course Athena. We will come to see you every day."
"Please not every day," I mumble. I feel my cheeks heating up from embarrassment. Why did they all have to look at me like that? It felt so weird.
Lorenzo chuckles. "Fine, two days a week," he says, patting my head.
Elijah quickly comes over to us, "No, five days a week."
Dom shoves Ares out of the way, "Why don't we just live with her?"
Dante nods. "Yeah, we should."
Out of nowhere, I hear the craziest evilest laugh coming from Ares in the corner of the room. "Guys we should let the soon-to-be newlyweds have their time alone," Aes says, smirking.
My eyes widen and I blush furiously. The room starts to feel hot and I fan my face with my hands.
Dom slowly turns around to Ares. "Thanks for reminding us that she's going to be living with Hades. Enzo we should start living there so we make sure Hades doesn't go near her and get her pregnant."
I blush even harder. This is so humiliating. What is wrong with them? Do they really think Hades will get me pregnant? I never thought I would hear that come out of anyone's mouth.
Lorenzo quickly nods, "Yes. That's a good idea. Everyone start packing your stuff."Everyone quickly nods, even Marcello. They all begin to walk out of the room.
I finally calm myself down and sigh in relief. I look around and wonder where they have gone.
It takes me a moment to realise what they said.
"No! Please! You don't need to do that," I shout, quickly running out of the room.
✮ ✮ ✮
After an hour, I finally convinced them all that they didn't need to move in and I definitely would not be getting pregnant because I would kick Hades in the balls if he ever tried to initiate something so intimate.
Dom throws a vase across the room when I win for the twenty-seventh time in Uno. "Why is she still good at this stupid game?!" Dom exclaims.
I smirk, amused by all their shocked expression.
Lorenzo slams the rest of his cards on the floor while Marcello just sits in shock, not moving.
"Athena you've done it again! You've broken Marcello again!" Ares yells, shaking my shoulders. I quickly push him away and he sighs and lays his head on my shoulder, clearly desivated from losing again.
Dante lays down on the floor in defeat, "My life. It has no meaning now. I can't even win a Uno game."
Elijah glances at us from across the room and rolls his eyes, "Stop being so dramatic."
I smile and nod, "Yeah it's just a game—"
"It's not a game!" Dom shouts and then takes a deep breath, sitting down on the floor. "Just... let us win, for once. Please," He whispers.
"Never," I grin.
Lorenzo sighs and stands up, "I give up. She's just too good at this game."
Dante nods and stands up, "Yeah I give up too."
They both sit on the couch, crossing their arms as they both discuss, trying to figure out how I could be cheating secretly.
I roll my eyes and then look at Marcello. He's still sitting frozen on the floor, emotionless.
I poke his cheek, "Snap out of it, Marcello."
He slowly looks at me and quietly says, "After all these years, you're still undefeated."
I deeply sigh as I nod, "I know, even when I don't try, I still win. It's such a shame."
"Shut up Athena. I know you're cheating, but when I figure out how, it's over for you," Dom grumbles, crossing his arms.
"Well, that's never going to happen because I've never cheated," I tell him truthfully. I honestly don't know how I win every time. I guess it's just luck.
The room falls silent as Ivan makes a sudden appearance. "Athena, it's been five hours already. You're going to be late for your meeting," he reminds me.
All eyes turn to Ivan, who seems unfazed by the sudden attention. "Reschedule the meeting," Lorenzo demands, his piercing gaze fixed on Ivan.
Ivan remains calm and collected. "You're not who I work for, Mr. Russo," he responds politely.
Ivan is right. I've already rescheduled this meeting three times. Ares lifts his head off my shoulder and looks at me. I sigh pat his head and then stand up.
"I'm sorry but I'll have to go attend this meeting," I mumble.
As I stand there, my heart heavy and my brothers' disappointed gazes weighing down on me, I can't help but feel a lump rise in my throat. Marcello - poor Marcello - is still in a daze, his eyes glazed over from losing Uno many times.
I take a deep breath and gather my courage, knowing that what I'm about to say won't be easy. I look up at my brothers, my voice trembling slightly as I speak.
"Just... visit me soon, okay?" I say, my words barely above a whisper.