Natasha's pov:
I wake up to a bright light being shone directly into my eyes. I hear my alarm buzzing and I lazily slam it silent. I squint as I get up. I gently rub my eyes to wake myself up and stretch while still in bed. I let out a loud yawn as I unwillingly step outside of my bed. I slide my feet into my slippers and walk towards the bathroom.
It was a long night.
I vividly remember waking up in the middle of the night to a weird thud but I quickly dismissed it and fell asleep again. I only remember smelling a faint hint of rosemary and wood but that's it. I feel a bit groggy in the mornings so I splash water onto my face to wake me up. The icy water rejuvenates my attention and skin. I remember to apply my sunscreen and finish my morning skincare routine.
It makes me feel better when I have it done.
I waltz into my wardrobe and find my ironed uniform. Woah, I haven't been to school since Tuesday. It's been a rough week. I hurriedly change into my uniform and chuck on my black loafers. I search around my room until I finally find my phone. I check the time which states: 7:30.
Aye! Right on schedule.
I grab my school bag from the floor and then I suddenly remember that I have P.E as my last class today. I scurry back to my wardrobe and find a cute pair of gym wear. I tuck a pink shirt into my gym bag along with a pair of white Lululemon shorts.
I zip up my bag and make my way downstairs. I remember that Chase is meant to drop us to school today. I walk towards the garage. I dump my bags in Chase's car and go back to the breakfast bar. I spot Adrien looking through the pantry whilst Leo and Chase stand around the counter.
"Morning!" I greet in a cheery tone.
"Morning irmã bonita." Chase is the first to greet me. He kisses my forehead and I flash a smile at his kind gesture. "G'morning sunshine." Adrien says out loud. "Morning Adri." I reply back to him whilst sitting on a stool. I sit on the middle seat so Xavier and Xander can sit beside me.
That's step 1 to making my brothers like me more.
"How did you sleep Gorgeous?" Leo then asks me whilst helping Adrien with the breakfast. "It was good, nothing out of the ordinary." I shrug my shoulders. I don't quite remember what happened last night. "Where's Vincent? He's usually early to breakfast." I ask my biological brothers.
"He's probably coming down soon." Adrien reassures.
I hear someone walking down the stairs and talking on the phone at the same time. Once they're close enough I hear their voice. I can recognise that voice anywhere. Vincent Morales walks in the room in a full tuxedo. "Speaking of the devil." I overhear Chase mumble.
I grin at his expression and he smirks back.
Vincent is speaking in french to the person on the phone. Luckily for me, I'm fluent. "Merde. Je vais demander à Adrien et Léo de me rejoindre. A bientôt, Bastien. (Shit. I'm going to ask Adrien and Léo to join me. See you soon, Bastien.)" Vincent speaks in a frustrated tone.
Huh, I wonder what that's about.
Now that I realise it, Adrien and Leo are both in tuxedos too. Something must be going on with work. I make a mental reminder to repeat his words to Flynn later. Vincent hangs up the phone as Adrien tosses him a glass of water. "Everything alright?" Adrien asks Vincent.
"Just peachy." He replies in a sarcastic tone.
He lets out a frustrated sigh and gulps down his water. His gaze switches to me. "Good morning Princess." Vincent says as he walks over to me. I hop off my stool to talk to him. He gently places a kiss on my forehead and my eyes meet his. He's so tall that merely looking at him hurts my neck. I don't even know how I'm so short compared to my biological brothers.
It must be a weird genetic thing.
He stares into my eyes for a few moments, admiring my cobalt eyes whilst I admire his arctic ones. His eyes soften as I gaze into his eyes. I find guilt laced within them. Huh. Guilt? Why would he be guilty? He hasn't done anything wrong. He brings me into a tight hug. His hands grip onto me.
He holds onto me as if he doesn't want to let go.
His warm hands rub up and down my back. My head is squished against his chest. He's so much taller than me that I can't even have a proper hug with him. Or anyone in fact. It feels as if time freezes. I get a whiff of his strong cologne. My nostrils inhale the familiar scents of rosemary and wood.
That's strange.
I swear that I've smelt that scent last night. It's so vaguely familiar to me, I just can't quite remember it. "I'm sorry Princess, for everything. I love you so much." He whispers into my ear. I'm taken aback. What did he just say? WHAT DID HE JUST SAY? This man just said he loves me?
I can't believe my ears.
All this time I thought that he was being hard on me because he didn't like me. My heart tugs at his words. Why was he being so sentimental right now? It was 7:45 in the morning. Even though I'm surprised, I don't want to leave him hanging. "I love you too Vince."
His hands squeeze harder, him not wanting to let go.
"It's me and you forever, remember?" I try to reassure him. I hear his nose sniffle a bit. "Yeah, me and you forever." He repeats in a softer tone. I can feel him smiling at the thought. I don't know what he was sorry for but it must've been killing him on the inside. It was probably older sibling guilt. As curious as I am, I know that he probably doesn't want to talk about it and I respect that.
I don't want to push his emotions even further.
I don't want to break away but I'm afraid that if I don't I'll suffocate to death. I slowly pull away to meet his watery eyes. Awh no. Did I do this to him? The guilt must've really eaten him up. I turn to face my other biological brothers. They all have a confused look plastered all over their faces.
But one quick glance from Vincent makes them look in every other direction but his.
Adrien quickly serves breakfast on the counter to drive all the attention away from Vincent and I. I sit back on my stool. I also spot Xander and Xavier making their way to us too. "Hey Tash!" Xavier greets me and shuffles my hair. "Hey! I just combed my hair." I complain. "Too bad love." He replies in a silly mood.
I playfully whack his arm. He laughs along with me. Xander sits to my left whilst Xavier sits on my right. Adrien tosses a plate of eggs and toast to everyone. Mmm. I let the aroma consume me and I dive right in. I enjoy every bite. Although I don't finish the food, it was tasty nonetheless.
"Thanks for the food Adri." I thank him.
"No problem pretty girl." He kindly replies back. Wow, would ya look at that. The articles that I previously read were right. This bonding thing is working, and I'm not complaining. I say my thanks to Vincent and Leo and I glance back towards Chase.
"Remember it's my car, alright Gorgeous?" Chase reminds me. "Got it!" I reply back and I make my way towards his car with the twins trailing behind me.
Oh boy, this was going to be a long day.
I get into the back seat of the car and Xavier sits beside me. Xander sits in the passenger seat while Chase takes the wheel shortly after. I'm happy that Xavier is the one that's sitting beside me, if it was Xander who knows what mischief he would've been doing.
The car engine roars to life and by the time I know it, we're already speeding down the road. There is still one question that is lingering around my mind. "Why are you picking us up Chase?" I voice my query out loud. "Yeah, why aren't we in Xander's car right now?" Xavier chimes in to the questionnaire.
"You'll have to wait and see." Chase replies with a sly grin plastered across his face.
I roll my eyes at his lame response whilst Xavier groans annoyingly. Xander lets out a little chuckle at our reactions.
Time Passes:
"And that's why German Shepards are the best dog breed." I finish off my statement. During the majority of the car ride, Xavier and I were debating which was the best dog breed. "No wayyy, I still think that Dobermanns are the superior dog breed." He crosses his arms and looks away from me.
Xander lets out another chuckle.
Hmm, maybe he was actually warming up to us. I watch the familiar school grounds appear within my field of vision. "Alright, meet me back here after school m'kay?" Chase mentions as we hop out of his car. "Kaykay!" I reply nicely. "Have a good day Beautiful." He adds on.
"You too!" I respond in a happy mood.
I watch Chase drive off into the distance and I turn to face the twins. "What are yous waiting for? Let's get a move on." I hurry them. "Woah there, why are you in such of a rush?" Xavier asks me. "Yeah, we have a good 15 minutes before class, that's ages." Xander adds on.
I roll my eyes at their disobedience.
"Doesn't matter. Just c'mon." I say as I drag them with me to the front school door. "Tash! You're walking too fast." Xavier complains at my pace. "So you can run up and down a football field with no hesitation and now you can't walk through the school doors?" I justify his reasoning.
He awkwardly scratches the back of his head.
"Mhm, right." I playfully smile at him. He shoves my shoulder as a joke and I laugh at him. Out of the corner of my ear, I hear Xander laugh a little at us. I haven't heard his laugh before. It sounds a lot like Xavier's laugh but there's something off about it. I turn to face him, his eyes meeting mine.
I give him a smile and his eyes soften.
If it's progress, I'll take it. As much as I don't like Xander, this new side of him is different. It's nice. "I'll see you two later." I say my goodbyes to the twins and I make my way towards my locker. I have English and French as my next two classes. I put the required books into my backpack and place my gym bag into the locker.
I feel a familiar pair of eyes stare at me from behind.
Slowly yet surely, I turn around to see the one and only Nico Harper. He was leaning against the lockers opposite mine and once my eyes reach his, he grins. I fold my arms as he walks up to me. "Fancy meeting you here Mr.Mysterious." I greet him.
"I could say the same Ms.Perfect." He replies back. His 6'1ft frame towers over me. His shadow casts along my face. "So, you comin' to the party tomorrow?" He asks with a spark of hope in his emerald eyes. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." I reply back with a smirk.
"Seems like the scheming worked out in our favour." He mentions as I shut my locker closed.
"Yea it did. You know.." I begin as we walk to English together. "We're kinda like Chuck and Blair from Gossip Girl. With all the scheming ya know?" I add. His eyes lighten up. "Yeah, Chuck and Blair." He repeats again, mainly to himself. He says the last part in sort of a whisper.
He smiles at the thought.
"Obviously without the love part." I clarify. When I said that we were like Chuck and Blair, I meant the ingenious games and schemes part, not the relationship part. I hope he knew that. He looks down to the floor and I watch his adam's apple bobble as he swallows saliva.
"Obviously." He murmurs quietly to the ground.
We get to English and he walks in without holding the door for me. "Uh rude much." I say to his back when I enter the classroom. He doesn't reply back to me and sits down on a chair. I try sit beside him but his veiny hand quickly moves onto the chair beside him and he says "Not today Nat."
Uh, what the fuck.
Author's pov:
Hey loves! Hope you enjoyed this wholesome chapter as much as I did. A massive thank you to you all for reaching 3k reads! I can't believe that this book has reached such an astounding milestone in such a short period of time. I am beyond grateful for every one of yous.
Thoughts on Vincent this chapter?
Does anyone have an idea of Xander's recent behaviour?
Opinions on Nico this chapter?
Word count: 2200