I replied today's events in my mind while I was waiting for Timo to call. At least someone in my family still loved me.
I was greatly surprised to discover Jaxon and I shared the same love for cars. However, not so surprised to be scolded by Paolo when he found out just how much I spoiled his kids.
Jaxon was dry, rude, disrespectful and cold. But I still had a smile plastered on my face when I remembered I saw none of that today. Instead he was much more accessible and he actually tried to be nicer... well and dry, but I'd just come to terms with the fact that he just couldn't help himself.
Then my phone rang and I saw Timo's name on the screen.
"Forgot your older sister yet young man?" A genuine smile was making its way and it felt so good I allowed myself to get a glimpse of what it felt like to live under the protection of my family's name. However it confused me because during my little outburst I realized maybe happiness was not what I thought. Or maybe there were different types of happiness.
I has never thought of that before, but things had changed and I realised I was changing too.
"Alessia!" I heard him sob and then he was crying leaving me all broken inside.
It didn't matter whether they knew me as Alessia or Quinn. The one thing they all knew about me was that my little brother Timothy was my weakness. He was such a good boy. My parents were busy people, my sister was always too absorbed in her project, my brother Elijah had enough with the ski club, or hanging out always with different girls or with mom teaching him the ropes of the bussiness and then Christian was too preocupied being the perfect son. I didn't know what were my flaws, but what I knew was that I was the one child who was given more points to fail than to succeed.
But I loved them. All of them. At the end of the day the raised me. And my family was also next to me when I was so down I couldn't even remember who I was.
But Timo... ever since he was born he's been my shadow. He had his golf club classes and competitions but he still squeezed his schedule to sneek out to see me practicing. The track was just 3km long and he would sit next to the end and cheer every single time. Which wasn't really sneeking out as Annie, Timo's driver, presented weekly information to my parents and I'd bet she wrote down every single time he wasn't doing his homework but paying me a visit.
"Come back Alessia." He sobed again. "Please. Please come back!"
"Hear me out Timo."
He finally agreed to explain myself. "You need to know it's not because of you I'm not back home. You know that right?"
There was a silence and then a hurried "yes" followed when he realized nodding was probably not the best way to enhance communication. "But I tried to talk to mom or dad but Blaine keeps telling me not to disturb them." I was shocked to hear him spit the words. He wasn't like that.
"Look, I don't know why mom and dad are insisting on keeping you away and I've never really liked Blaine." He tended to confuse the line between PA and parent. "But I know you're a smart kid and that there's a high chance you know what's going on. Nevertheless, what's clear is that our parents want the best for you."
"Like they wanted the best for Meera. For you." He snorted. Knowing him he was probably in our manor's land playing golf so as to let out some steam. "And look at Meera now. She's achieved her main goal but she is..."
"Yeah. She's pregnant."
After that, silence followed. I remembered that day as if it was yesterday.
▪ ▪ ▪
I jumped into my best friend's arms who decided to wait for me as today was an important day.
"So? What did she say!" Excitement dripping from every word she said.
I put a straight face which was just the complete opposite to how I was feeling inside. My heart was bumping my blood too fast, my hands were sweating and my legs were shaking.
"She said..." I casted my eyes to the floor. I noticed Lexi worring and I couldn't hold my smile any longer. "She said I'm ready!!!"
We both engaged in a tremendous hug and jumped uncoordinately laughing as loud as we could.
"That's so fcking great Quinn, I can't even..." she sobbed and laughed again.
"She said and I quote: you're recovery has been so good I don't want to see you walk through this door ever again." Now I was crying too and flapping the last paper I needed to be free again, to let the past stay in the past.
"I'm so glad you had Dr. Hudson, she really did a good job, I mean I knew your parents would get you the best help in existance, but this is still a very good piece of new." She smiled warmly and I wondered how I got such a good friend.
"I know." I sighed. "You know what? Forget our little party in Manhattan. We're going to the manor. I want to give all of you a special thank you and it's been too long since the last time we all gathered to celebrate good changes in our lives."
That's exactly what we did. Three hours later an espectacular meal was in the beautifully layed round table. My parents were both looking at me proudly, Elijah was animately chatting with Christian who hadn't realize he had a huge hickey, which was the reason why Lexi, Timo and I couldn't stop laughing.
Even Lexi's parents came which was a miracle. Stella Wellington was an important woman and she really was nice but lately, and by lately I mean the last four or five years, she spent too much time in Europe, specially in Spain and France tasting and extending their business. I never really understood Zachary Wellington. He was so unpredictable and so different to any of us, always talking about species and telling us shocking made up stories. He was a nice man though, and so was the reason why I had strange dreams at night. I mean that it was not normal to dream with an omelette who had overcame the scorch of the dessert and then unluckily fell into a boiling oil pan.
My sister Meera stood up like a sore thumb that night. She was rather lonely during dinner and she didn't even try to congratulate me. Not that I asked for a big applause but... I don't know. The point is that she was all rude and then suddenly she looked at me and started crying. My mom was the first one to notice something was up with her, but she let it slide as it was not exactly the best time to do that.
So when we finished our desserts I stood up and started my speech.
"After what happened with Charles I didn't want to eat, I didn't want to go out, I refused to talk to you or to my friends. However, all of you never left my side and when I first was dragged to talk to a therapist I was... well you know, I was constantly rude to her and to you. But then I realized that bit by bit every time I was rude to Dr. Hudson I felt better. She made me understand I was reflecting what I felt inside using her and my loved ones. Since that moment I knew I could only go up. And that's what has happened for this tough year and a half. Finally I'm able to say I'm fine without lying and I'm ready to go out there again and be the girl I used to be. Thank you mom, dad. Thanks big bro for not giving up on me. Thanks Meera for-" I never finished that sentence.
"I'm pregnant!" She shouted." And... I don't know who the father is. It's not Herman." She said. And everything went crashing back down.
Dad left the table and I couldn't make out any words with all the crying and screaming and yelling and scolding. It was absolute chaos. The only reason I knew Elijah crushed the vessel from last weeks auction was because two weeks later after my parents had frozen his bank account he asked me and my brother for the money. Of course, it was not nearly a third of what the vessel cost.
Anyways, I still hadn't processed the information but what made me wake up was a resonating slap and the silence that followed.
"How could you do this to him!" Stella was never known for holding her horses. I didn't know why people believed that rumor. Until it wasn't. She slapped my sister!
I shook my head, "Oh my god Meera!" I rounded the table until I was close enough to hug my sister.
"If you do that you're as worthless as your sister!" Warned Stella.
"Stella!" Mum couldn't understand what got into her best friend.
Lexi took her hand to her mouth and stood up to help her mother out of the dinning room.
I narrowed my eyes at her and while everyone else was fuming and crying I held my older sister's arm and carry her to her bedroom.
I wasn't stupid. I knew the only reason why Stella was angry was because her 'oh so perfect son' wouldn't be heir to the Williams Consolidated. Why were mom and her best friends? I didn't know. While mom was aswell a pretty detached woman, she was still caring and would never have cheated on dad. Which was exactly why Herman was born. Lexi's step brother.
▪ ▪ ▪
"Dad got so angry." Said Timo as if he was remembering that shocking moment.
"Mom got so angry." And an image of mom's red face and popping vein came into to mind.
"The Wellingtons left inmediately." Our conversation became some kind of fast-paced short monologues.
"Elijah crashed the vessel against the newly painted wall."
"You dropped the glass you were holding and stained the new carpet."
"Yeah... not my strongest times."
But noyone really seemed bothered about that fact. No, uh uh. There was a bigger elephant in the room and it was not my sister's unexpected anouncement. This one was starred yet again by the moron in the other side of the line.
"At least I didn't burst in laugher and got water dripping from my nose!" I spoke again.
Yep, that was the biggest, fattest elephant. Timo is known to be a very cheerful boy. I know it, my parents know it, his teachers know it, the director knows it... that's a long list of victims to Timo's active and talkative personality.
Everything was chaos but before I took Meera to her bedroom and everyone left. Timo being Timo laughed. Not did he only laugh. But he almost fell to the floor of laugher. You can only imagine how his next two weeks went without hanging out with his friends. Mom insisted on three, but I'd always been Timothy's lawyer.
"Oh, wait Timo hold on, gotta call from the other line!" I paused our call and answered the other.
"Quinn!" Her voice could only be described as urgent and freaking unsettling.
"Lynn? Is that you?"
"Listen to me, are you home?" She asked hurriedly.
"Why? What's going on?"
"Just answer dammit! Are you or are you not at home?"
"Yes, yes I'm at home jeez!" What got into her?
"Listen and listen carefully. Me and Jaxon are heading to your house. Don't open unless it's us. You hear me? Do not open the door until you see Jaxon step out of the car." I could tell she was running and a deep voice was telling her to hurry up. I would recognize that voice anywhere.
"Lynn! What the hell is going on!"
"Just do what I say. Stay inside. Do not open the door. They've been watching us."