×    It's All About Us   ×

Anna Grace's mother, Lillian, died in a tragic house fire, or so everyone thought. But Anna knows the truth - her mother was murdered. Lillian was hiding something, and someone was willing to kill to keep it hidden.

Haunted by this dark secret, 12-years-old Anna Grace becomes burdened with a heavy weight she cannot share. Complicating matters further, Lillian's will reveals an unexpected twist- Travis Greeley, Anna's eldest half-brother, is named as her legal guardian. 

Receiving the call about his half-sister Anna Grace, Travis Greeley is flooded with emotions, as he had long wondered about the fate of Lillian Miller, the woman who had brought love and kindness into their lives. Travis recalls the pregnant woman his father brought home, who lovingly embraced him and his brothers, filling a void they had longed to fill. 

Entrusted with Anna by Lillian, Travis and his brothers embrace their roles, determined to provide her love amidst the secrets and dangers that lie ahead. Anna must navigate the complexities of her new familial bonds while uncovering the truth behind her mother's murder.

×××××××××××××××××××××

Welcome everyone to my first book - It's All About Us!

I'm yours truly, the author, and I feel very happy to see you here. This may be my first rodeo in writing this genre, but believe me when I say that I have another account with some completed Fanfics. Maybe later I'll reveal it to you guys if I feel like it. 

This book is only available on Wattpad under mine, 0ne_who_reads' profile, so if you are reading it from somewhere else I would request you to kindly report it.

Feel free to share your views via comments, I love to read them and will try to acknowledge everyone. Just a quick note, English is not my first language so the story may have some grammatical errors. Don't be afraid to point them out, I'm very much willing to learn. :)

Initial chapters are smaller to introduce the characters slowly, but the length will increase as you keep reading.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This is NOT a Mafia Story.

Anyways, thank you to everyone who decided to give this book a chance by pressing the 'Read' button. I'm very excited to embark on this journey with you.  

Anna

The first thing I noticed when I opened my eyes and looked outside the window was the sunny blue sky. There was not one cloud visible, which was surprising because yesterday it was drizzling.

But today's weather didn't match how I was feeling. Because the way I was feeling was anything from sunny and joyful.

I heard the door open and saw a nurse entering my plain hospital room. At first, she didn't even notice that I was awake as she continued reading her notepad, but then she looked up and gasped.

"Oh, you are awake," she stated while coming towards me. "How are you feeling? Do you feel any pain?"

That's when I realized that my whole left arm was hurting. I slowly raised it up to properly look at it and noticed the cotton crepe bandages wrapped around my wrist. There were some scratches and burn marks too, but nothing major.

"Only your wrist is hurting then?" The nurse noted, then gave me a small smile. "Falling from the second floor can generally break more bones, but you were lucky to fall in the bushes."

I frown at the last part.

If I had been truly lucky, I shouldn't even be in the hospital right now.

I'm once more left alone in the room after the nurse mentioned calling my doctor.

The only thing I was feeling at the moment was sorrow. There was a hollowness in my heart, and the memory of what had happened itched in my brain forever.

"Run, Annie! Run!"

That was the last thing she said to me. More like, she shouted at me as a knife was held against her throat. The flames had started covering us from all sides, making it harder to breathe, but she still managed to scream. Her words were still echoing in my ears, and her face full of regret was what I could still see when I closed my eyes.

"Ms. Grace, it's good to see you are awake."

I opened my eyes and turned towards the door again to see a doctor, the nurse from before, and an unknown lady enter the room.

The lady seemed to be someone professional, wearing a simple blue shirt tucked into her trousers. She had a kind face, tanned skin, and glasses on her nose. She was looking at me in concern and was carrying some files in her hands.

"My name is Jonathan Potts." The doctor introduced himself with a smile, showing me his ID for a second. "I'm the one who treated you when you were brought in. As long as you are here, you will be under my observation. I'll also be the one to grant you discharge."

He waited for me to say something, but I stayed quiet, looking at him for a moment. Then I turn towards the water jug kept on the table beside me.

"You want to sit up?" The nurse asked, taking a few steps. "It will be easier for you to drink the water."

I nodded slowly, so the nurse pressed a button, and the bed started to move me up. Once I was neatly seated, she poured some water into a glass and helped me take a few sips.

"Ms. Grace, may I ask how you are feeling?"

I heard the doctor say, but I kept quiet and looked out at the sunny sky again.

"Doctor, can I try to talk with her?" I heard a new voice, mostly the professional lady's, but didn't hear any reply. The doctor must've nodded because I noticed her moving towards me from the corner of my eye.

"Anna?" I heard her and turned to look at her. She smiled softly and kept one hand on my not-injured arm. "Hey, I'm Emilia Calder, and I'm here to help you too. You can speak freely with us."

I nodded, then looked back towards the window.

"Um, is there an issue with her vocal cord, doctor?" I heard her ask, moving away from me and towards the doctor. "Did the inhalation of smoke damage her vocals?"

"That can be a possibility."

The doctor came by my side, slowly put his hand on my chin, and turned my face. "Ms. Grace, can you open your mouth for me? I need to check if your throat is damaged."

I opened my mouth obediently as he flashed a small torch inside and tsked.

"Everything looks normal to me." Dr. Potts said, gesturing for me to shut my mouth. "We will keep an eye on her vocals too, then."

The doctor noted something down on his pad, then smiled at me. "Apart from your sprained left wrist and some scratches on your face, you got a concussion and luckily just a few first-degree burns. But they will heal in about a week. I've prescribed an oilment for you, and Nurse Kitty will help you apply it. Now, we are going to ask you a few simple questions, and you can just nod or shake your head."

I nodded at him slowly, and both the doctor and nurse gave me encouraging smiles. When I looked at Ms. Calder's face, she was deep in thought but then caught me looking and gave me a smile too.

"So, most important, your name is Olivianna Grace, right?"

I nodded again, and he continued.

"We found your medical records in the system, and according to those, you are 12 years old. You have always been in perfect health and have taken all the vaccines. Your mother always took care of that."

I shrugged, not knowing how to answer that.

"Next question, do you remember what happened last night?"

After blankly staring at him for a minute, I slowly nodded, and Ms. Calder sighed.

"So amnesia is ruled out. Ms. Calder, you can continue with your questions." Dr. Potts said, and she moved forward towards me again.

"I talked with a few of your neighbors, and they were surprised to hear your legal name was Olivianna. So I know you prefer the name Anna, right?"

Another nod.

"Anna, do you know any relatives we can contact? Maybe an aunt or uncle? Any of your mom's cousins?"

I scrunched my eyebrows at the question, and she widened her eyes.

"Okay, Anna, listen." Ms. Calder said, keeping a hand on my shoulder in comfort. "I'm sorry to inform you, but your mother passed away."

The little hope that something miraculous may have happened, that maybe Mum managed to escape from them and ran out of our burning house, that maybe all that was just a dream, is broken.

Everything that I saw happened. My Mum was no more.

"It was your neighbors, the Smiths, who called 911 when they saw your house burning. They also saw you jumping out of your bedroom window from the second floor."

I decided to tune her voice out because all this information wasn't going to help me. My Mum wasn't coming back.

Ms. Calder talked for another minute, then realized I was not listening to her and just staring out of the window. She sighed, then went to the doctor again.

Alone. That's what I was now.

I could hear the doctor and Ms. Calder whispering something among themselves. The words 'will', 'lawyer' and 'brother' are mentioned too, but no one speaks to me again.

I leaned my head back against the pillow and closed my eyes. I was suddenly feeling tired, mostly because of the meds that were being injected into me through an IV.

Sleep came to me out of nowhere.

××××××××××××

Travis

It was around noon when my personal phone lit up to show an international number calling. There were a few VIPs that traveled around and stayed at the various hotels owned by Apollo Group, so it was a common occurrence.

"Hello?" I asked, accepting the call and swiping through the file in front of me.

"Is this Mr. Travis Greeley?" A female voice asked with a Canadian accent.

"Yes, it's Travis Greeley speaking. May I know who I'm talking to?"

"Good morning, Mr. Greeley. I'm Emilia Calder, a social service officer from Vancouver."

Wait, what?

"Social service officer? Vancouver?"

"Yes, I wanted to speak with you about Ms. Anna Grace. Do you know her?"

I thought about the name for a second, but it didn't mean anything.

"No, this is the first time I'm hearing about her. Who is she?"

"Well, according to her medical records, she is the daughter of Lillian Grace and John Greeley. I believe John Greeley is your father too."

For a moment, all I could hear was that one name. The name of the sweet and selfless woman who was nothing but like a mother to me and my brothers. It has been years, but there is no way I was going to forget her name.

Lillian.

"Yes, John Greeley was my father, he died three years ago. But what... what about Lilian? What... about her daughter?" I managed to ask with a stammer.

"I'm sorry to hear about your father." She paused. "And I'm also sorry to inform you that Lillian Grace died last night."

The breath was knocked out of me with those words.

Lillian was no more. She was gone.

"Lillian's house caught fire late in the evening. She and her daughter, Anna, were both inside, but Anna managed to get out of the burning house by jumping out of her window. The neighbors had already called 911, and the paramedics found Anna unconscious in the bushes. I was appointed to her case and got the information about you through public records."

I stayed silent, trying to grasp everything the lady was saying.

"Now, for the most important part," She continued as I sat straight too. "I had to contact you because Lillian Grace had named you as the guardian for her daughter in her will. The will was made in 2019 here in Vancouver, and she stored the document in a bank safety locker with Anna's birth certificate and passport. She had signed a disclosure that if anything happened to her, the bank could freely open the safe."

Did I hear her correctly? Lillian had made a will in 2019? And she had named me as the guardian for her daughter? It was the same year Dad died.

"The will said that her child, with John Greeley as the father, should be under the guardianship of Travis Greeley if something ever happens to her. Apart from that, everything she owns, like the house properties in Vancouver and New York and also her car, will be given to Anna when she becomes 18 years old."

"Wait a second," I said as soon as I heard the last sentence. "How old is Anna?"

If I calculate correctly, she must be 11 or 12 years old now.

"Anna is 12 years old and will be put into foster care if you deny the guardianship."

"No!" I exclaimed hurriedly. "No, don't put her in foster care. I... I will take her custody."

What was I even saying? Was I even capable of taking care of one more person? That too, a 12-year-old girl?

But I have read about the horrors of the foster system. And Lillian herself had trusted me with her daughter, who also happens to be my sister.

"Alright then, you have to come to Vancouver as soon as possible. I'll get the papers ready with the court on an urgent basis and inform her too. You will be taking her to Virginia with you, right?"

"Yes, she will then stay with me and my brothers..."

Shit. What were their reactions going to be to everything?

"Okay. And when can you arrive here?"

After managing to calculate the time difference and informing her accordingly, I shared my email address with her before hanging up the call.

I quickly shut down my computer, locked my files in drawers, and signaled my secretary, Stacey, inside my cabin.

"Yes, Mr. Greeley?" Stacey asked once inside my cabin.

"Cancel all my meetings for today and tomorrow. Tell anyone who asks that I'm out for a family emergency. Also, book a ticket on the earliest flight to Vancouver."

Stacey blinked at me, then nodded. "Yes, sir, I'll do all of that. But, are you okay? You look distressed."

I loosened up the tie around my neck, stood up, and grabbed my phone, keys, and suit.

"Just something that has happened."

Before she could say anything else, I was out of my office and making my way to the lifts.

After coming down and getting into the car, the first thing I did was call Justin on the car's system.

"Hey, Trav. What's up?"

"Meet me back at the house in 10 minutes." I replied, starting the car. "It's an emergency."

I have a half-sister.

×××××××××××××××

So, what do you guys think?

We are going to be meeting the rest of the brothers in the next chapter.

The book will get weekly updates and I'll post them every Monday night!

Don't forget to Vote and Comment if you really like the chapter. :)

Anna

I have half-brothers.

As per what the social worker, Ms. Calder, was saying, they all live in Virginia, USA, and the eldest was coming here to pick me up.

Then he will take me back to live with him and my other brothers.

Is this a prank?

In all my 12 years of life, it was always just me and my Mum. There was never any mention of any brothers or a father.

Apart from that one time.

And the fact that Mum had already made a will with a stranger's name as my guardian is somewhat betraying.

"The police couldn't find anything intact in the debris of the fire." Ms. Calder was saying. "I'm sorry, Anna. 90% of your house got destroyed."

So that meant I didn't even have a home to go back to.

"Also, if you want, we can hold a funeral for your mother tomorrow."

I just continued looking out of the window at the late afternoon sun going down while laying on my hospital bed.

The police had come in earlier to talk with me and get my statement about last night, but after trying for 10 minutes, they gave up on me.

I wasn't cooperating, they said.

Can you blame me? Was my statement going to make my mom alive again?

I heard Ms. Calder sigh, which she was doing a lot with me, and take a sip of her coffee. Then she said something about making arrangements for the funeral and left me alone.

Moving my head towards the bedside table, I decided to look at all the things the police had found in my Mum's bank safe.

A small purple jewelry box was stored alongside some of my documents. It had my name taped on the front, so I slowly take it in my hands to open it.

It was a silver bracelet with a weird sphere attached in the middle. One side of the sphere was flat to rest upon the wrist, and it had two initials carved on it.

B.R.

As far as I could remember, there was no one close to us whose name had the initials B.R. So it's another mystery why Mum must've kept this bracelet so safe in her locker. I closed the lid again and kept it on the table before grabbing my documents.

First there was my American passport, then my citizenship card and birth certificate.

Name: Olivianna Aster Grace
Date of Birth: 1st January, 2010.
Place of Birth: Smithfield, Virginia.
Mother's Name: Lillian Grace
Father's Name: John Greeley

Wow, I didn't even knew I was born in Virginia. I always assumed I was born here in Vancouver itself, where I had lived my whole life.

This was the first time I looked at my own birth certificate, so I also had no idea that my father's name was mentioned on it.

John Greeley.

If I remember correctly, this name was once trending everywhere. It was three years ago when this person died in a car crash.

Why do I remember it so well?

Because it was the first night my mom had come home drunk.

The front door banged shut, which made me jump up in fright.

I remembered Mom's instructions that when someone is breaking into the house, the first thing to do is grab the house phone and hide in a safe place while calling 911.

But before I could do anything, I heard my name called.

"Annie! I'm home, baby!"

I sighed in relief, as it was just Mum home from work.

But my relief was short-lived as my mom stumbled into the living room.

Literally stumbled.

"There she is! My precious Annie!"

Mom had been excessively loud, and she simply drew me in for a hug.

She kissed me on the head and pulled me even closer, if that was possible.

"Mum? Are you okay? You came home late. I was worried."

But she didn't reply, and the next thing I knew, I could feel her sobbing above me.

"Mumma? What's wrong with you?"

She let go and then kneeled in front of me. "Annie, I want to tell you something today."

I frowned at her because she wasn't speaking normally. It looked like she was struggling to speak her words.

"I've got some news. The man I loved once, the one man who I thought would always love me and you, died today. Your father is dead."

This isn't something I expected my mom to tell me out of nowhere. Whenever asked, she would say that my dad was busy somewhere and would come when he was free.

Mom gets her phone out and struggles to unlock it. I stood there in shock, not knowing what to do.

After successfully unlocking her phone, she turned the screen toward me.

There was a photo of a man, and after blinking, I noticed that it was a news article.

'The Apollo Hotels chain owner, John Greeley, succumbed to his injuries after a car crash."

"Look at him. This... this was your father."

John Greeley.

I slowly pulled the IV out of my arm, then got my legs to one side and gradually touched my feet to the cold floor.

Ms. Calder had brought in some clothes for me to wear once I get discharged, so I grabbed them, and with the support of the wall, I entered the bathroom. The nurse had helped me shower earlier and showed me a trick on how I could wear and remove clothes without hurting my wrist.

My whole body was hurting, and the skin that has suffered burns is covered in an oilment. The mirror showed how my face was covered in scratches, but it wasn't bothering me, not even a tiny bit. All these scars were temporary; the real pain was deep inside.

I slowly sat on the toilet cover and pulled the loose black sweats over my legs. I lifted my bum up to get the elastic properly around my waist. Then I pulled the strings of my hospital gown to let it loose, and it fell to the floor. The t-shirt was plain gray and kind of loose, so I tucked the bottom to one side.

My hair was a tangled mess, and I knew it was going to be difficult to tie it up in a ponytail or even a bun, so I grabbed the hairbrush that was brought in with the clothes and tried to get the knots out.

Once I felt like I didn't look like a runaway patient, I kept the brush back and slowly made my way back to the main hospital room.

Thankfully, no one was still here, and I took my time getting a few sips from the glass of water. The whole dressing up thing just tired me out, so I really don't know how I was going to manage doing what I'm about to do.

The hallway was mostly empty when I opened my door and looked out into it. No one familiar was there, just some random nurses chatting in one corner near the nurses' station. So I quietly pulled the door close behind me and made my way towards the lift at the end of the hallway.

No one stopped me when I got on the lift with another doctor who was rapidly talking on his phone and got off on the second floor. When the first floor arrived, I looked on both sides like I was about to cross a road and started walking fast to the main glass doors.

The warm July air hit me as I walked through the doors and into the evening. The sun was setting in the distance as I looked up to see where the main gates were.

My hospital file had the heading of Antel Local Hospital, so I already knew how far my house was.

I started walking towards the main gates of the hospital. The guard there gave me a look when I passed by him, but he didn't stop me, and I turned left onto the street.

My whole body was tired, but I needed to see my house. I couldn't just accept that it's gone—the house where me and my Mum lived for all these years.

It took me nearly 20 minutes to reach my street, and the body pain was unbearable. I couldn't even walk straight, taking support from trees and compound walls.

Once I reached the Smith's gates, I got a sudden boost of hope that my house was still there. That all of last night was a prank, or maybe this is still just a crazy and bad dream from my brain.

At last, I reached the threshold where I could see my house, and the sight made me stumble in my steps.

Where once were the light blue walls of the two-story house, now stood the ashen wall of a destroyed home. The fire didn't leave anything to identify it as my house, and the heartbreak just got more real.

I collapsed on the sidewalk, staring at the main door covered by police tape. The same doorway my Mum used to say bye to me when I biked my way to school in the mornings. The same doorway where I greeted my Mum every evening when she came home from work.

But those were just memories now—only my memories that no one else can understand.

"Run, Annie! Run!"

The words echoed in my head, and I covered my ears in an attempt to stop them.

I could still hear her voice, along with the laughter of the men who had held the knife to her throat yesterday.

It was too much; I couldn't breathe. The air was covered in smoke, and I screamed as I ran.

"Oh my god, Anna!" I heard someone exclaim as they wrapped their arms around me. "It's okay; everything's going to be okay. Just keep breathing."

The tears ran down my face while my mind kept showing me my Mum's smiling face. I knew I was sobbing rather loudly, but that's the only thing I could do now. Just cry for my Mum.

Because my Mum was never going to be at that doorway again.

×××××××××××××××

Justin

Bringing everyone together in the living room on a Friday evening was actually easier than I had expected. Everyone was home now and relaxing because the summer holidays were going on and their part-time jobs were done for the day.

But not for me; I have no more summer vacations. As a social worker, I have to help people whenever they need it.

That's why Travis called me first, and also because I am the only other adult in the house apart from him. He always left me to break any kind of major news to everyone else in the family. According to my older brother, I handle situations like this much better than him, which on other days I'm proud of. But today, I didn't want to be the one to tell this particular news to my brothers.

The news he gave me broke my heart, and the decision he had taken was something I will always be proud of.

"So, why this sudden meeting?" Lucas asked, coming in and taking a seat on the big sofa. "I just had a very refreshing shower after coming home from working a shift at the hotel."

"I'll tell you once Logan and Oliver come in too."

"This better be good." Logan entered the living room with his phone in one hand and an orange soda in the other. "I am very busy."

"Um, you are literally just scrolling on Instagram." I point out. "Means you are doing nothing."

"Exactly. I'm doing nothing."

I sighed at his response and heard hurried footsteps coming down the stairs.

"I'm here!" Oliver exclaimed, running in, and I managed to hit his head before he sat down beside Logan. "Ow! Justin! What was that for?"

"First, how many times should I say this? No running inside the house. And second, where were you?" I asked him, crossing my arms.

"Sorry!" He replied, still scratching his head. "I was playing Valorant, and I couldn't just leave in-between. It would temporarily ban me if I went AFK. So I had to finish the match."

Whatever he said was far from my area of expertise, so I decided to just ignore him.

"Okay, so now everyone's here," I started saying. "I have something very important to tell you all."

The twins turned their attention towards me, and Oliver also nodded.

To be honest, I didn't exactly plan how to tell them.

"I don't think you guys will remember her, but there was a woman Dad had brought home when Oliver was barely a year old. Her name was Lillian Miller."

Although they both made an effort to hide it, Lucas and Logan's faces both briefly displayed recognition. Oliver, though, was staring at me with confusion clearly visible on his face.

"What about her?" The youngest brother asked, leaning back on the sofa. "I remember Dad bringing a lot of women home until the day he was alive."

"Yeah, that's true, but..." I replied, remembering Lillian's smiling face. "This one was special. Lillian... she was the only woman who ever loved us as her own. The other women were after Dad's money, but not her. She just wanted one thing from the man she loved."

I could still remember how Lillian used to prepare Dad's meals all by herself, even when she was seven months pregnant. Even though she used to get tired and sleepy after cooking, she never skipped putting us all to bed at night.

"But Dad cheated on her." I continued speaking. "And Lillian left. She didn't want to, but she couldn't just stay with Dad after what he had done. So she left. She was eight months pregnant then."

While the twins were sporting neutral expressions and not even looking at me, Oliver had a mournful expression on his face as he listened to everything I said.

"Lillian died last night."

It crushed my heart to say these words, and the eerie silence in the space grew heavier.

Oliver's face turned pale as both the twins stared at me with wide eyes.

"How?" Lucas questioned me in a pained voice. He was the more sensitive twin of the two, so him being teary-eyed isn't surprising.

"I don't know the exact details," I replied. "But Travis was informed that it was a house fire. And... her daughter was also home at that time with her."

"Please say nothing happened to the young girl." Lucas pleaded as Oliver nodded along. "She must be barely a teenager."

"No, the girl is fine," I assured them, feeling proud of how my brothers were worried about someone they had never met. "Her name is Anna. She was admitted to the hospital soon after. But that's not why Travis was contacted."

Lucas and Oliver frowned, but Logan seemed to guess what I was about to say by the way he stared at me.

"Lillian had apparently made a will in which she had named Travis to be the guardian of Anna if anything ever happened to her, so the social services team in Vancouver contacted him to see if he could take her custody."

I let the news sink in as all three of them leaned forward.

"So that's where Travis is now, right? He is in Vancouver, and he is gonna bring Anna here."

I confirmed Oliver's theory by nodding, and I felt content that none of them were upset about it.

My satisfaction, however, was short-lived since Logan abruptly got up and left the room. I then heard the front door open and close.

"Don't worry about him," Lucas said after I looked at the ceiling and sighed in frustration. "Give him some time to accept the fact that there's going to be one more person living under this roof with him. You know he loves his space."

"I just hope he accepts it soon because she is going to be here for dinner tomorrow." I informed them, and Oliver suddenly got up with excitement clear on his face.

"Really?" He asked me in amazement. "Justin, we have to set up a room for her. She is our sister! And she is the youngest among us!"

Lucas stood up too and gave his younger brother a hearty clap as well, and I grinned at Oliver's enthusiasm.

Oliver is the sweetest when it comes to moments like this. Being the youngest and just 4 months old at the time of Mom's death, he received all of our attention since we didn't want him to feel neglected.

He's 14 years old now and doesn't shy away from showing his emotions.

"Oli, why don't you go and pick up a room for Anna?" Lucas asked him. "We will then make a list of more things to buy for her. We even need to buy some girl clothes, assuming hers' must have gotten destroyed in the fire. We will go shopping tomorrow, okay?"

That being said, Oliver nods and sprints upstairs.

"No running in the house!" I shouted at him as Lucas chuckled, but then his face turned serious. "What?"

"I don't know. You tell me." He replied, looking at me. "I don't remember much about Lillian, but you must have some memories of her."

I averted my eyes towards the window, where the evening sun was setting.

"Are you okay?"

Was I?

Yes, the news had shocked me to the core. But apart from shedding a few tears after Travis left, I had to toughen myself up and tell everyone else too.

"I'll be okay." I replied, turning towards him. "Once Anna comes home, I'll probably be okay then."

"Yeah, I'm excited to have a sister." He nodded, thinking to himself. "Apart from my broody twin, everyone else is pretty excited. Right, Buster?"

I looked behind me at a certain bull terrier, who had been quiet since the meeting started and was laying near the bookshelf.

He gave a loud 'woof' in reply and waggled his tail.

Buster was a surprising addition to the family two years ago. He was a rescued dog that I had brought home for one night, and the next morning Logan was hellbent on not letting him go.

Logan doesn't ask for much, so the dog was something we had to let be.

"See, as long as she stays here, there will be nothing to worry about."

I really hope Lucas was right.

××××××××××××××

Chapter 2 Done!

I'm gonna try and give every sibling a POV, but mostly the focus will be on Anna.

What do you guys think of it?

Vote & Comment.

Anna

I stood in front of Mum's headstone, looking at all the white roses people have kept in front of it.

My own white rose was somewhere below them too, as I was the first one to keep it.

Lillian Grace Miller
1983 - 2022
Beloved by family, cherished by friends.

So my mother's last name was really Miller. They weren't lying that night.

Ms. Calder had asked me last night if I wanted to write any custom words on the headstone, but after all the crying I had done outside my house, I didn't felt like responding.

A brand new black dress was kept in my hospital room before I opened my eyes in the morning. It was a simple dress, suitable for a funeral, so most probably the social worker had brought it for me.

More people than I had expected came to this last-minute funeral. Some were mom's coworkers, old and new neighbors, and some of my teachers.

All of them came to greet me, looking at me with pity, and kept saying, "Take care" and "Your mom is looking over you."

But one person had been keeping his distance from me.

He was older than me and wearing a nice black suit with dark eyewear. He had been watching everything from the side during the entire ceremony, and I frequently felt his eyes on me.

After assuming who he must be, I felt anxious to meet him.

But today wasn't about me.

Suddenly, I see a shadow rising in front of me on the headstone. Quickly turning around, I see the mystery man standing just behind me.

He was probably 6' tall, towering over my 5' body. I was barely reaching his chest and had to look straight up to clearly see his face. He still had those dark shades on and was staring at me through them.

I took a step back and saw that he was holding a white rose in his hand.

Swiftly stepping aside, I made his path clear. He glanced at me once more, then got in front of the grave and kneeled down.

He kept his rose on top of all the others as I continued looking down at the new sandals. "You'll be missed, Lili. Thank you for all the love and kindness. Don't worry about your daughter, we will take care of her now. Rest in peace."

His smooth voice had an American accent, which helped me identify him as the person he was.

He was my brother, and he was here to take me with him.

"Hey, Anna?" Ms. Calder came towards me and stood beside me. "You good?"

I nodded but kept my eyes fixed on the headstone.

"I don't think you know this man." She said this, wrapping her arm around my shoulder. When I looked up at the man again, I was slightly surprised to see that he had taken off his glasses and was now looking at me again.

My mom had green eyes; therefore, I've always been curious as to why my eyes were this particular shade of blue. But as I noticed that my brother has pale blue eyes just like me, I realized that I probably inherited it from my father.

"Hi, Anna," He greeted me in a soft but steady voice, giving me a small smile. He also had dimples like mine. "I'm Travis. It's nice to finally meet you."

I slowly nodded at him, then turned to look back at the headstone.

"Mr. Greeley, can I talk with you alone for a moment?" Ms. Calder asked, and I can sense both of them glancing at me.

"Of course."

They made their way away from me, probably to talk about how uncooperative I have been and what to do with me.

I continued staring at the headstone, knowing this was probably the last time I could see it before moving to America.

×××××××××××××××

Travis

"I'm glad you could come here on such short notice." Ms. Calder said as we stepped under some trees on one side of the cemetery. "It's nice to see that Anna has people who care about her well-being. Thank you for arranging this funeral."

The whole time I've been observing the girl, she hasn't spoken a single word to anyone. Not even to the social worker here.

Her pale blue eyes, which matched my own, made it clear that she was my sister. Her dark brunette hair, which were tied up in a ponytail, matched her mother's though. There were small scars all over her face and some burn marks too, but nothing major that couldn't heal in a few days. She wore the black dress I sent to her hospital room, while her left arm was wrapped in a sling.

"Lillian was someone I would never forget." I replied, staring at the silent girl. "And if she wanted me to look after her daughter, then I'd definitely help her. Not to forget, Anna is also my sister."

"That's nice to know." Ms. Calder said, and then her smile turned into a frown. "I've been talking to some people about Anna and her mother to understand her more, and I've learned some things that you should know about."

My face scrunched up in confusion, and I remained silent to let her continue.

"When Anna and her mother first came here, she was barely a couple of months old. They had some good years together, according to what their neighbors say. She was an introverted girl, but with her mother, she used to talk and laugh endlessly. Her teachers also informed me that she was able to skip a grade as she was very intelligent for her age."

I look back at the said girl, because this wasn't the first impression I'd gotten from her.

"But then something happened with her mother, they say," Ms. Calder continued. "Lillian Grace started to come home drunk most of the nights and talk rather loudly, disturbing everyone in the street. Everyone started to get worried because Anna too started showing signs of stress when in school. Her grades are still good and steady, but as her teachers informed me, she stopped talking with her peers and being active in class."

My heart sank hearing all this, because this wasn't the Lillian I had gotten to know.

"Was she... Did Lillian ever hit her?" I asked in terror, praying that my assumption was wrong. "When Lillian was drunk, did she ever hit Anna?"

"No, apparently, bless her soul," Ms. Calder replied as I exhaled the breath I was holding. "When the doctor checked her in the hospital yesterday, she didn't show any signs of abuse. Her left arm was hurt from jumping out of her bedroom window in an attempt to flee the other night."

"What happened the other night, then?" I asked her. "Anna must've made a statement, right?"

"That's the thing, Mr. Greeley." Ms. Calder sighed, frowning and looking at Anna. "She hasn't said a single word to anyone. Anna kind of ran away from the hospital yesterday, and I finally found her outside her burned house. The injured girl wanted to see the house for herself, and she just collapsed on the sidewalk. That's the only time she has cried while experiencing a panic attack."

What?

"The neighbors say that Anna screamed that night while jumping out of her own room's window. Since yesterday, she hasn't said a single word to anyone. I think it's maybe because of PTSD."

I couldn't help but promise myself that whatever happens, I'm never going to leave Anna alone. She has already gone through so much, and all I want is for her to be happy.

"My younger brother is also a social worker, and he suggested yesterday that if it's necessary, we can try therapy with Anna. What do you think about that?"

"Therapy differs from person to person." She replied. "You can, of course, try. But if you want my opinion, the girl just needs to be assured that she is not alone. That none of what happened was her fault."

That could be easy, I guess.

Justin claimed that everyone was delighted to have Anna back home. I have my doubts about that. Logan wouldn't be genuinely thrilled, unlike Lucas and Oliver. He must have just left the room.

After talking for some more minutes, we made our way back to where Anna was still standing, in front of her mother's headstone.

"Anna," Ms. Calder said, putting her arm around my sister's shoulders once again. "We need to leave now. I have a backpack ready for you in the hospital. You can take it and then go with your brother to Virginia. C'mon."

Before she could wipe away the lone tear that had fallen from her left eye onto her cheek, my hand had already reached out to touch it. Unaware that I would wipe away her tear, she gives me a startled expression.

"We can come back whenever you want to." I assured her, and she turned to look back at the headstone. Then she made her way to the exit of the cemetery with the social worker by her side.

I gave the headstone one last look and followed them out.

It took us around half an hour to go to the hospital and collect the backpack. I had to sign some documents while Anna changed from her dress to a comfortable t-shirt and sweats. Then we were finally ready to leave for the airport.

"You take care of yourself, okay?" Ms. Calder hugged Anna close, but the little girl kept her hands by her side. "We will see each other again; don't worry. I'll probably come around to check on you."

Anna nodded to her and then stepped into the awaiting cab. I closed the door once she was seated, then turned to look at Ms. Calder.

"Thank you." I shook hands with her. "For calling me and telling me so much about her."

"Of course. Take care of her, please."

"I will."

With that being said, I walked to the other side, opened the door, and got in the back seat. Anna was staring straight ahead but then turned and waved at Ms. Calder when the cab driver started the car.

"You can go to sleep if you want." I told her, but she kept her gaze away from me and outside the window. The hospital exit went by, but Anna didn't show any sign that she heard me.

Just then my mobile rang, and I saw it was Justin calling me.

"Hey man!" My brother greeted me. "Did you meet her?"

"Yeah, I did." I glanced at Anna. "We are on our way to the airport now. It will be dinnertime when we reach home."

"Everyone is looking forward to seeing her. Oli wanted me to ask you to ask her what her favorite color is. He needed it to customize her room."

I sighed, knowing Oliver was going to be slightly disappointed when she will not talk much.

"Tell him that he can ask Anna himself once she gets home. She is tired right now."

"Um... okay." There is confusion evident in his voice. "We will see you later then. Bye."

"Yeah, bye."

I decided that talking with her would distract from whatever was going on inside her head.

"Everyone is very excited to meet you." I started saying. "The summer holidays have just started, and the boys spent much of their time chilling at home. Oliver, who's one of our brothers, is already customizing your room there. He wanted to know your favorite color."

At my words, Anna gave me a side glance but didn't reply and continued looking out of the window.

"Look, I know this is going to be hard for you." I sighed again. "Things are going to change. You are moving to a whole new country, nonetheless. You must be scared, maybe terrified. But I assure you that I'm going to be right here. I will be here when you are ready to talk."

Anna looked surprised for a second, her eyes slightly wide, and she stared at me. Then she does something I didn't expect her to.

She reached across the seat and squeezed my hand, as if thanking me.

Before I could react, she had already resumed her activity of staring out of the window.

I was quite happy with the fact that I had made little progress with her.

Maybe her social worker was right; she just needs assurance that she is not alone in this world. And I'm going to do everything in my power to keep her happy.

×××××××××××××××

Like I said in the introduction, the initial chapters will be small but starting from next chapter it will get lengthy in size. 

Anyways, how are you liking the book?

Suggestions are always welcomed :)

Anna

The first thing I noticed when I got out of the car was the swing set to the left of the big house. It was made of fine-quality wood and also had a rope ladder on one side. A slanted wall climbing structure, which later took the form of a tent below it, stood on the other side of the two swings.

All in all, it looked like something any kid would like to play on.

The front lawn was beautifully kept, most likely as a result of a hired gardener. The grass was sharply mowed, and the bushes were in perfect shape.

As for the big house, I couldn't help but be amazed by it.

After landing here at the Norfolk International Airport in Virginia, it took us another hour to finally reach the house that was in the small town of Smithfield.

During all the traveling, my oldest brother hadn't asked any more questions. Maybe he was being considerate, or worse, he just wasn't much interested in me anymore.

Travis had driven us through various small towns, the sun setting behind us, then took a side and quiet path after we crossed through all of Smithfield. For a moment, I really thought he was taking me into some deep woods to murder me, but then we reached a gate. Travis then typed something into the keypad, probably a pin number, to open up the gate.

The house was big, three storeys tall. It had eggshell-colored walls with dark gray roofs. There is also a pattern of dark gray bricks going around the garages and the front door. Most of the rooms inside were lightened, and it looks like a cozy place to live.

"C'mon, let's go in." Travis said, snapping me out of my daze. I noticed that he had already taken out my backpack, so I just took a deep breath and followed him.

Before we could press the doorbell, the double oak front doors opened up, and an excited voice greeted us.

"I knew it would be you." The man said, smiling happily as he looked down at me. "C'mon in, you guys! I need to take a good look at her."

I gulped in nervousness and took my first step into what I'll call, from now on, my home.

The interior was modern, and I could already feel the homey vibe inside. The hallway lights were all on as we stepped in, and the man who had opened up the door had a big, welcoming smile on his face as he looked me over. The dimples in his cheeks were very visible.

I noticed that Travis and him shared the same hair genes. Both had dark brown hair, a darker shade than mine. But this brother of mine had hazel eyes that were covered by his glasses.

His excitement was pretty clear, with him nearly bouncing in his place, and it felt kind of nice to see that what Travis had said earlier about them being excited wasn't a lie.

"You're so pretty." He said that, then shook his head. "Sorry, I didn't introduce myself. Hi, Anna. My name is Justin. I'm one of your older brothers. Second oldest, to be exact."

I looked at him and nodded.

"Aww, she's shy." He said, tilting his head, then suddenly shouts. "BOYS! COME TO THE FRONT DOOR NOW!"

"We're right here in the living room, J." A boy, slightly older than me, said as he entered the hallway while scratching his ear. When he suddenly saw me, an exciting smile came on his face.

"Wait..." A second boy followed him out. This one, which looked older than the last one, smiled at me briefly. "Is that...? Is that her?"

"Yes," Justin replied, looking at them first, then at me with a fond expression. "Meet Anna."

"Anna!" The younger one exclaimed, then ran towards me and pulled me in for a hug, neatly avoiding my injured arm. "You don't have any idea how excited I was to meet you."

I could totally see that.

He smells of grapefruit; it must be his perfume, which is kind of soothing. But I just stood still as he hugged me, hoping he would understand that I was not hugging him back. My right arm was hanging by my side, but he still continued to hug me.

I love hugs, but they don't need to know that yet.

"Oli, don't overwhelm her." Travis said from behind me, and 'Oli' let go.

"Sorry." He smiled sheepishly at me, then at Travis, and stepped back to be beside Justin. "I was just... excited?"

"Your excitement is very clear, baby bro." A new voice spoke, and a new person came into view. He had his hands in the pockets of his shorts as he stood against the banister. He looked at me as if he was staring deep into my soul, narrowing his eyes. "Hello, Anna."

Out of all my brothers, this one had a serious vibe around him. His face was emotionless, giving nothing away.

But I also noticed how similar he looked to the one who hadn't spoken to me yet. This one had clean hair cut and shaved at the side, while the smiley one had slightly longer hair, which suited his goofy look.

And both of them had pale blue eyes.

"I'll introduce you all." Justin said, then put a hand around the youngest's shoulders. I noticed both of them had hazel eyes. "This one is Oliver. He is the youngest one, but still about a year older than you."

"Hi, Anna." Oliver waved at me. "It's very nice to meet you."

Oliver was the one who was asking Travis what my favorite color was.

Justin briefly furrowed his brows after I nodded at Oliver, but he soon resumed his cheerful expression.

"This is Lucas."

"Anna, it's very nice to finally meet you." The silent guy said, coming closer to me and keeping his hand on my cheek. I let him, as I have literally nowhere to go.

Lucas' hand was unexpectedly softer than Travis', and it felt nice. But I didn't let myself be carried away.

He just gave me another genuine smile, then turned away from me.

"And this here is..."

"Logan." The last one said, interrupting Justin but still leaning against the banister.

For a minute, there was an awkward silence in the air. I think they were all waiting for Logan to say more, but he just kept silently staring at me.

"Alright then," Justin said, clearly embarrassed by his brother. "I think that's everyone."

"Woof!"

Everyone turned to watch as a big gray dog came in from somewhere inside. He was sniffing the air around him and then started making his way towards me.

I had never interacted with such a big dog in my 12-year-old life, so not knowing what to do, I just stood still as he came and started sniffing me.

"Yeah, that's Buster," Oliver informed me as Buster started slightly wagging his tail. "He's the most important member of the family. How can you forget him, J?"

"You should've introduced everyone then." Justin answered back, but then nodded. "Buster is a big dog, but also a big softie. Once familiar, he will also be your friend."

Buster then put his mouth against my right hand and licked me. It surprised me, but then he softly barks once and starts wagging his tail furiously.

He looked up at me in wonder, and I couldn't help but be amazed by him. Suddenly, I got the courage to just touch his head, so I slowly squatted down to be at his height and put my hand forward.

"I wouldn't do that," Travis said as he came and stood beside me. "He doesn't let strangers pet him first..."

But Travis stopped himself as Buster quietly sat down and let me pet him. He looked like he was enjoying me just scratching his head and behind his left ear. His coat was dark gray, but a slight blue tint was visible. I also noticed that his right ear was smaller than his left, and it looked like someone had cut it off. The injury was old, but I still feel bad for such a good dog.

"Am I seeing this right?" I looked up at Lucas as he motioned to his arm. "J, pinch me. I think I'm dreaming."

Justin actually pinched him on the arm, and Lucas yelped, rubbing the spot.

"Thank you for that, big bro."

"Of course." Justin replied, but smiled at my confused expression. "Buster doesn't make friends that easily. Believe me when I say, it took him nearly a month to stop growling at Travis."

Looking back at the dog, I see that he was actually smiling at me. His mouth was stretching like an actual smile, and his tongue was hanging out.

Unknowingly, a ghost of a smile creeps on my face too as I continue scratching Buster's back.

"So Buster gets a smile but not me?" I looked at Oliver, who was pouting now. "I see how it is."

"Oli, you at least got a hug."

"No, he didn't; she got a hug from him."

"Well, she didn't push me away, so I think it counts."

"What other choice did she have? You literally got into her air bubble before she could even see your face."

I stood up, feeling shocked.

They are all arguing about me?

Logan was rolling his eyes in the background and looked so done with his brothers. So I looked up at Travis, who was shaking his head at them but then turned to me.

"You must be tired." He stated, then turned to everyone else. "Guys, stop it. Anna is tired after the flight. Let me take her to her room."

"I will take her!" Oliver exclaimed and was about to take my hand, but stopped himself. "Is it okay if I hold your hand? I wanna show you the room."

I blinked at his innocent and hopeful face, surprised that he even asked me. So I nodded, and a grin crept onto his face. He gently took my hand and made motions towards the stairs.

"C'mon then."

I looked back at Travis and the backpack he was carrying.

"I'll get your bag for you in some time." He replied to me. "Also, you can remove your shoes here; we don't wear outside footwear indoors."

I nodded and took off my shoes in the corner beside someone's blue sneakers.

Oliver then started pulling me along with him, as Buster also got up and started following us. But then the dog stopped near Logan and sat beside him.

"Are you hungry, boy?" Logan asked, scratching Buster's head. The tone he had while speaking with the dog was the opposite of how he greeted me.

As Oliver pulled me up the stairs, I couldn't help but wonder how different each of my brothers were from the each other. They all seemed happy to have me here, apart from Logan, because he didn't show any sign of wanting to welcome me here.

We got to the second floor, where the hallway goes both ways. There seemed to be numerous rooms on either side, and Oliver pulled me to the right hallway.

"Your room is at the far end." He said while looking back at me as we passed two doors on either side. "The first one was Lucas' room, and the second was Logan's. And this here is yours."

We stopped in front of a plain white door that was clearly waiting to be decorated.

"Open the door." Oliver motioned towards the handle, and I opened it up.

The room was bigger than what I've always been used to. All four walls are plain white, but the headboard of the queen-size bed was a light shade of green. A white dresser was on one side of the bed, while the other side was touching the wall. Also, a white desk with a green rolling chair was situated in one corner, with a big and empty book shelf beside it. There were two more doors in the room, but my main attention is on something I've always wanted.

The window seat looked very comfortable, and it had a direct view of the front yard. Even before seeing the rest of the house, I was confident that it would quickly become my favorite place in the entire house.

"I really hope you like your room." I looked towards Oliver, who seemed to be frowning. "This was actually a guest room until yesterday. And we didn't exactly get the time to repaint it for you."

I didn't exactly have a problem with that though. Green was actually one of my favorite colors.

Just then, Travis walked in with my backpack and kept it near one of the two doors inside my room.

"Oli, did you take the clothes out of the dryer?" Travis asked him, and Oliver's eyes widened.

"Oh shit, I forgot! I'll get them out and fold them up right away." He replied, then turned towards me. "I'll give you a whole tour later, okay? See you at dinner."

Before I could nod again, he was out of the door, sprinting to wherever the laundry room is.

"HOW MANY TIMES SHOULD I SAY THIS? DON'T RUN INSIDE THE HOUSE!"

"Yeah, Justin is pretty loud." Travis chuckled at my expression. My eyes have widened at the fact that I can still hear Justin clearly, even if we were on a whole other floor. "You will get used to it soon."

I looked down at my feet, realization hitting me.

It had really happened. I have moved to a different country to live with these people, who were supposed to be my new guardians. My brothers.

"I told the boys before that you would need some clothes to sleep in, so they went shopping and brought some things for you." He said while gesturing towards the shopping bags kept near one of the doors. "They have to guess your size, so if the clothes don't fit or something, just inform one of us."

I nodded as he sighed.

"Dinner will be served soon." Travis said, then hesitated. "Do you um... need help changing? Considering your wrist."

I looked down at my wrist, then back at Travis, and shook my head.

"Okay then. Freshen yourself up. Someone will come and get you later for dinner."

As I nodded at him for the umpteenth time and walked towards the shopping bags, expecting that he would leave now, but he stopped while closing the door of my room.

"You have a beautiful smile, love." He said as I paused in my steps. "You should smile more often."

That being said, he left me alone to wonder how my life could change so suddenly in two days.

×××××××××××××××

Logan

"Correct me if I'm wrong," Justin said as he checked his lasagna. "But has Anna said anything since entering the house?"

I looked up from my place on the kitchen island, where I was engrossed in scrolling on my phone. To be honest, my mind was continuously diverting to our newest family member.

There was no doubt about the girl being our sister. Her pale blue eyes, which matched mine and two of my brothers', were a clear indication of her being related to us.

When I first saw her standing still in Oliver's arms, the only thought that came to mind was that she looked lonely. Even after being surrounded by all her brothers, Anna looked like she didn't know what she was doing here. I could understand that this was a big change for her, from being brought up by her mom to getting in the custody of her brothers all while moving across the continent.

Although I showed zero emotions towards her, I was actually happy that she was safe and in our care at last.

"Maybe she is shy?" My twin suggested tapping his finger tips on the counter. "I bet she will be a chatterbox once she starts getting comfortable here."

"Let's hope so," Justin nodded, suddenly getting a faraway look on his face. "I can't wait to have all those gossiping sessions with her."

I shook my head at his thoughts, but I also knew how excited Justin must be to have one more young person to take care of.

"C'mon, Lolo, don't be like that." Lucas said to me. "You have to agree that she's cute. And moreover, your own dog already likes her so much."

Buster's reaction to her was surprising for everyone, no doubt.

"Anna's definitely cute!" Oliver entered the kitchen, with Travis following. "You guys should've seen her face when she saw the window seat in her room; the excitement was clear."

"Did she say that?" Justin asked him, his own excitement clear on his face. "That she liked the room?"

At that question, Oliver started to rack his brain. "...No?"

"No, she didn't speak." Travis confirmed this while coming inside the kitchen and sitting beside me. "I wanted to talk to you all about this."

All my life, there have been very few moments when Travis has voiced his worries. He masked his nervousness well in situations, and I remember him being always confident and positive, making him a role model in all of our eyes. He was there for us when Mom passed away, when Lillian left that man, and then that man himself died in a car accident.

Travis became our guardian at the age of 20, and he has always been there for us. He just knew how to deal with us, always, but right at this moment, it feels like he himself doesn't know anymore.

"What is it, Trav?" Lucas asked, as we all leaned forward to listen too.

"I got to talk with Anna's social worker before coming here," Travis informed us. "And she thinks that after what happened with Anna, she is experiencing PTSD, which may cause her to have selective mutism."

"Wait, what is that?" Oliver asked, confusion clear on his face. Meanwhile, Justin and Lucas have a pained expression on their faces.

Me? I don't actually know what to feel anymore. Such a young girl and already suffering.

"Selective mutism is by choice being mute in situations." Travis explained in simple words. "Anna was in the burning house at the time of her mother's death, so no one apart from her knows what happened. Since waking up in the hospital the next day, she hasn't spoken a single word. The police couldn't get a statement out of her. All that took a toll on her, and now she isn't sure of things."

"So, you are saying that Anna can speak, but she chooses not to?" Oliver asked, making sense of things for himself. "Well, we just have to assure her that she can talk with us without any worries; we are her brothers."

"Yeah, we have to." Justin agreed, but gave a sad smile. "But we also don't want her to feel pressured by it, okay? We have to take things slow."

"Yes, especially you, Oli," Travis said, looking towards the youngest. "I understand that you are excited, but just give her some space to adjust to everything."

"I'm not sorry that I hugged her," Oliver answered back, then shrugged. "I just got excited that there is someone younger than me now."

"I thought you liked being the youngest in the house." I say to him.

"Yeah, I did, but then." He looked everywhere but at Justin. "You and Lucas are nearly out of high school, and Justin has now started smothering me."

Justin gasped loudly with an offended look on his face. Meanwhile, we three had knowing looks, as we actually knew that Oliver's ridiculous answer was just an excuse.

"Take your words back, mister." Justin points his finger at Oliver. "It's just you who think that my love for you is smothering. Right, everyone?"

We all looked away, purposely avoiding Justin's glare.

"Oh my god, I'm not respected enough in this house. You know what? It's fine. Anna is now my new favorite sibling. And once she gets comfortable enough with me, I'll shower her with so much love that I'll become her favorite brother too. Ha..."

I decided to tune Justin's rant off by getting up and leaving the kitchen.

Buster barked once when I entered the living room, and I couldn't help but go near him and start to scratch his back.

"You made her smile, Buster boy," I say quietly as he wagged his tail while laying on his favorite spot in front of the bookshelf. "You knew she was nervous, right? That's why you smiled and calmed her, didn't you? I'm so proud of you."

"You could've done the same, you know?"

I closed my eyes in annoyance, knowing a talk was coming my way.

"Logan, I know you like your space very much," Travis started saying. "But can you at least act like you care about the fact that she is here and safe? Anna doesn't have anyone else apart from us, and right now she needs the assurance that she is not alone either. Make her feel welcomed here; that's what I'm asking from you."

"You don't have to worry about me and my space," I replied, standing and turning around to look at Travis, who has his arms crossed across his chest. "As for Anna, I am truly glad that you brought her here to live with us. But don't expect me to show my pleasure by dancing around or hugging her; I'm not Justin or Oliver. I will converse with her when I feel like it. Call me when dinner is ready; I'll be reading in my room. Nice talk."

"Dinner is already ready," He said, stopping me. "I was actually on my way to call Anna, but you can do that now."

I sighed, rubbing my face, then started to make my way upstairs. Arguing with him more will not result in anything, so I decide to just listen to him now.

Anna's room was located just beside mine, but on the opposite side of the corridor. When I knocked on the plain white door, for a moment I couldn't hear anything from inside. But then I heard small steps coming to the door, and it opened up to show my sister looking up at me.

I didn't noticed it earlier, but she was very short. Must be around 5'.

She seemed to have freshened up already, as she held a white towel in her hand and had also changed into some cartoon pajamas that seemed loose on her. But her hair were still dry and a tangled mess, the same as when she arrived earlier.

Her left arm was no longer in a brace, but her wrist was still wrapped in compression tape.

"Dinner is ready," I informed her, and she nodded at me. Then she went back inside the room, probably to hang her wet towel on the bathroom hanger, while I took a look around the room.

Some of the clothes that Justin brought are neatly folded and kept on the bed, while her backpack was still unpacked and kept on the desk chair.

Anna came out of the bathroom, and I told her to follow me.

We quietly made our way downstairs. Me being me, I didn't talk, and Anna kept following me. Then suddenly I couldn't hear her steps behind me, so I turned around to see her looking intently at a photo frame.

I glanced at the frame and noticed that it was the photo from the day Oliver was born.

Mom was holding a sleeping baby, Oliver, in her arms while she laid on her hospital bed. Her husband, my so-called father, stood beside her, smiling happily towards the camera. Meanwhile, all of Oliver's brothers were excitedly staring at the baby, oblivious to the photo being taken.

But Anna's gaze wasn't on the whole photo. She was staring at the one person responsible for us being related.

"That's John Greeley," I said, and she got surprised, not expecting me to wait for her. "He was also called as our father."

Anna stared back at the photo for one more minute, nodded, then looked at me again.

"C'mon then." I said, and continued towards the dining room.

"You two took your time coming down," Lucas said as we entered. "Justin is bouncing around, very excited to have Anna try his famous lasagna. Hi hun, you look cute."

I took a seat beside my twin, but Anna stayed rooted to the spot.

Anna looked down at her feet, her cheeks slightly reddening.

"Hey, love," Travis said as he walked in after changing into his sweats, eyeing me first and then giving a smile towards our sister. "You must be hungry; you can sit in the chair in front of Logan."

I rolled my eyes at his attempt at the exact moment Anna looked at me. Then she turned her face away, and I felt somewhat guilty. It must've felt like I rolled my eyes at her.

But she still sat quietly in front of me as Justin and Oliver brought in today's dinner.

"Drum roll, please," Justin requested, but everyone just ignored him and took their seats. "Why do I even bother with you guys?"

We took our servings one by one as Justin helped Anna take hers'. Then everyone stopped to stare as Anna took her first bite.

Justin was the only one in the house that could actually cook a whole dinner by himself. His lasagna, no doubt, was his specialty, and that's why he decided to make it for Anna's first dinner with us.

Me and Oliver sometimes help him, while Travis doesn't even try, and Lucas was banned from going near the stove.

Anna chewed her bite slowly, and a pleased expression was now visible on her face. She took a second and third bite, then realized everyone around her was quiet, so she looked up from her plate.

Everyone chuckled at her embarrassed face, and I too couldn't help but smile at her.

"You like it so much?" Justin asked her, and she nodded quickly. "Aww, I will make it for you whenever you want."

We all started to eat too, and Buster came to sit under the table as always.

Suddenly, Anna dropped her spoon on her plate and looked under the table.

"What's wrong, Anna?" Oliver asked her, then bent to look under the table too. "Oh, it's just Buster. Don't get frightened by him; he has a habit of sitting there when we have dinner together. He randomly keeps his head on someone's foot."

"Buster only sees us all together at dinner time every day." Lucas informed as we all resumed eating. "So to not feel left out, we let him sit with us."

"Just don't give him food from the table." Travis added. "He already ate his dinner, and we don't want him to get a habit of it."

As we ate, I saw Justin glancing continuously at Anna, who was sitting beside him. He was sitting at one end of the table, while Travis was sitting on the other.

"Honey, did you not wash your hair?" He asked as Anna stopped and stared at him. "No offense, but they need a good rinse or maybe just a brush."

She blinked at him, then stared down at her injured wrist.

"Oh, that's why." Justin smiled at her. "If you're okay with it, I'll help you wash your hair tomorrow morning. How does that sound?"

Anna stayed quiet for a second, then nodded slowly.

Justin beamed at her, then turned to look at all of us.

"See, at least she listens to what I say, unlike someone who just ignores me and walks out of the room."

I knew the last thing was a jab at me, and I was seriously considering walking out again.

"You know what, Justin?" Lucas started saying, giving him a teasing smile. "I feel like my hair needs a wash too, and I'm too lazy to do that, so can you wash my hair too?"

Lucas' hair were slightly longer than mine, which gives him a hot rugged look. His words, not mine. And he never let anyone else touch his precious hair.

"Really?" Justin squealed. He literally squealed. "Will you let me wash your hair too?"

"No." My twin replied, giving him a deadpan look. Justin's happiness really went from 100 to 0 in a second.

"Scum."

"Birdbrain."

"Dingbat."

"Dunce."

"Kermit."

"Stop it!" Travis shouted, and both of them got quiet. "Can we not have one normal dinner?"

"Isn't this normal though?" Oliver asked, looking amused. "They always fight during dinner. So this is kinda normal for me."

"I second that." I said, and Travis glared at me too.

Suddenly, we all heard a slow giggle, and everyone turned towards the only person who hadn't said anything yet.

Anna's face held a smile, as she also looked amused by our conversation. But as she gets all the attention, her face blanked, and she looked down at her half-full plate.

But I still noticed the small dimples in both of her cheeks.

"Was that a giggle we heard?" Justin exclaimed. "I feel very honored to make you laugh, baby."

"Are you serious?" Lucas asked, smiling slightly. "I was the one who made her laugh."

"Oh you..."

"Stop." Travis stated it again. Then he lovingly looked at Anna. "I'm very glad to see their stupidity is finally good for something, love. You will not be bored here; I'll guarantee that."

Anna nodded and continued eating her lasagna.

"Also, I would like you to follow some rules here." Travis added as Oliver and Lucas groaned. "The rules these people don't like but still follow because they know better than breaking them."

Anna looked questionably at our oldest brother, slightly frowning.

"First, we respect each other in this house, so no talking back. We solve everything in a calm manner. Second, whenever you want to go out somewhere, just inform me or Justin. We will see if you can go alone or need company wherever you go. And... well, that's it."

I sighed, still not liking the last rule.

Travis doesn't control our lives, but he feels responsible for whatever we do outside this house. He will let us do our own things, but we need to inform him first about them.

That was just problematic when we were about to do something he would never approve of.

"Are we clear?" Travis asked softly, and Anna nodded in reply.

Anna was probably experiencing trauma right now, so I couldn't really decipher if in the past Anna was a good girl or a rebel. But it will be very fun to see how many rules she follows.

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