Annaliese

Pursing my lips, I stare at Fransesco's sleeping figure next to mine. His whole body is practically crushing mine. I feel bad for whoever he marries in the future. They'll be a pancake every night.

A small smirk rises on my lips as I quietly move my fingers above his ribs. My shoulders shake as I struggle to contain my giggles and in a quick movement, I pinch his ribs as hard as I can. I screech with laughter as he jumps out of his skin with a loud grunt, his eyes nearly popping out of his skull.

"Oh my fucking- you little shit, what the fuck," Fransesco blurts out, holding a calloused hand over his pounding heart. I can barely breathe as I'm clutching my stomach to relieve the pain in my abs. His pale blue eyes dart to me accusingly. "We bond and shit and this is how you repay me?"

I'm gasping for air by the time he's staring at me with a flat expression. I weakly kick away the covers. "I-I'm gonna.. pee myself..." I cry, practically running to the bathroom.

"That's fucking gross!" His voice calls after me as I slam the door shut. I struggle to breathe for a few more moments until I've finally calmed down. A wide grin lingers on my lips when I leave a few moments later.

Fransesco has the pillow over his head with his stomach facing the mattress. My grin widens as I jump on his back, spreading out like a starfish. He groans louder, his hand swatting the air above his head. "Let. Me. Fucking. Sleep."

"Hmm," I pretend to think, tapping his shoulders gently. "No."

He turns his head to where he can look at me from the corner of his eye and I smile mischeviously. "Annaliese?"

"Yes big bro?"

"Fuck off."

I gasp dramatically, hitting the back of his head lightly. "Bad Franny," I scold him.

Fransesco groans again, stuffing his face in his pillow. He pulls his arm back and tackles me to the bed singlehandedly. His strong arm pulls me to his side. He's holding me like I cuddle Mr. Bunny to sleep!

"Now be a good kid and shut it," Fransesco grumbles, pushing his face into my hair. I sit there for a few moments until the delicious smell of bacon wafts towards me. My energy spikes back up and I try to jump out of his arms.

"Franny, Franny, they're making dinner. We gotta go," I tell him excitedly. He sighs and faces me, his cheek pushing into the pillow.

"I'm not gonna get any sleep am I?" He questions, more to himself.

I giggle. "Nope," I sing, tugging on his muscley arm. He narrows his eyes at me and reluctantly gets out the bed.

"Shoo brat, I have to get changed," Fransesco mutters grumpily, turning his back to me while he sits on the edge of his comfy mattress. I quickly wrap my arms around his neck in a short, tight hug.

"Okie dokie!" I exclaim, releasing him and rushing to the door. "I'm coming back in a few minutes so don't you dare go back to sleep Fran!"

"Don't you dare go back to sleep, Fran," He mocks as I close the door behind me. The weight that's been dragging me down for so long finally lifted, even if it's a little bit.

I missed Franny so much.

——

"I can't believe this," Fransesco grumbles as he sits down at the dinner table. He glares at me from under his messy locks. I struggle to hide my amused smile. Luca looks between us with curious eyes.

"Can't believe what? What happened?" He asks, taking a sip of water from his wine glass. I don't really know why we drank water from wine glasses. I guess it made us feel cooler. It's a totally valid feeling.

"That brat next to you wouldn't let me sleep," Fransesco complains, placing his jaw on the palm of his hand while sending me a glare. A few giggles slip past my lips and I desperately cover my mouth, trying to block the noise.

"Oops," I say in return, my shoulders shaking with silent laughter. Fransesco rolls his eyes with a scowl. Luca glances between us with a small smile on his lips. He must be relieved that we're talking again. He's really caring when it comes to us.

Marcello and Valentino enter the room quietly. Instead of avoiding them, like I really want to, I force myself to face them head on. If I'm honest, I don't want to talk to Valentino. He showed me a side that resembled so many of the people that hurt me in the past. At the same time, he's always happy. Shouldn't he deserve a chance to lash out every now and then?

Marcello is neutral for now. I don't know if he wanted to join Valentino or not, but he didn't seem all that concerned with my driving arrangements. I guess I just have to talk to him.

They both sit down in their respective seats without a word or glance to any of us. Maybe I should talk to them? Footsteps echo in the room and I grin brightly at my eldest brother. "Alley!" I exclaim happily.

His stoic expression softens once he sees me and he sends me a small smile. "Bambina," He greets me warmly, sitting at the head of the table elegantly. "How was your first day of school?"

"It was fun!" I reply happily as maids begin setting small salads in front of us. "My teacher offered to take her clothes off for me."

Luca chokes on his water while Marcello's head snaps over to me. Fransesco's fork drops on his plate as his jaw drops. Valentino doesn't have a reaction - he doesn't even seem to be paying attention. Allessandro blinks slowly at me. "..Pardon?"

"Yeah! Basically, I walked in my first class and I was like: hey, I'm new and I'm Annaliese Invernizzi. I like your dress. And then she was all like: omg have it, its yours. And I was like: uhh, that's okay, you can keep it. Because why do I need a dress? Would she walk around naked the whole day? Then she called me a sweetheart and said that I wasn't like you guys or something like that. I thought that was a little weird because you guys are always nice to me," I explain, taking a few bites of my salad once I'm done.

"Oh my," Allessandro comments afterward, his lips twitching upwards. He runs a hand through his curls, the strands of hair falling around the top of his face. "It seems she took quite a liking to you."

"Apparently," I reply, my eyes brightening when I find extra croutons on my plate. I glance to Marcello's croutonless plate. Aww, you're forgiven.

"Listen brat, if anyone offers to take their clothes off for you, run away and call me," Fransesco comments, pointing from me to him. "Then I'll take care of the shithead who said that to you."

"I can drive the getaway car," Luca volunteers with a small smirk. Fransesco reflects it wider, finishing the rest of his salad.

"Be responsible," Allessandro chides, sipping the wine from his glass. He's the only one out of all of us who had actual wine. "You'd have to take them with you so they can receive proper punishment."

My jaw drops as a maid takes my empty salad plate. "Goodness, you guys are too much!" I point out, my eyes widening at their planning. "They don't need a punishment."

"I disagree," Marcello speaks up quietly, his gaze fixated on my face. His blue eyes darken. "Anyone who hurts you should be taught a lesson. It's only fair."

"Agreed," The three oldest brothers synchronize.

I purse my lips at them and shake my head. A maid places a bowl of soup in front of me. "You're all coo coo," I tell them with an amused tone. Allessandro's eyes sparkle at my statement. "Oh, by the way, when's Daddy coming home? It's been forever."

Allessandro clenches his jaw, avoiding eye contact with me. "I don't know. Hopefully soon."

"Oh," I say dumbly. I really miss Daddy. I didn't even get to see him on my birthday because of how busy he is. Luca told me that it's really important to celebrate it with your friends and family, so why wasn't he there? Is he mad at me? I just want to give him a hug and tell him everything that's happening.

Speaking of telling people things - I completely forgot to tell Fransesco to keep everything a secret! Oh my goodness, what if he goes and tells Allessandro or Luca? Without even thinking, I slam my foot into his shin under the table to get his attention.

Fransesco chokes on his soup while glaring at me. As he coughs, our brothers turn to him with concern. I point to him and zip my lips, narrowing my eyes in what I hope is an intimidating stare. His face reddens as a few laughs mix with his coughing.

Well that's just rude.

"You okay?" Luca asks gently, his eyebrows furrowing in concern. Don't be sweet to that jerk Luc. "You need a cough drop or anything?"

Fransesco smirks, his eyes connecting with mine. "Yeah, I'm good," He chuckles, shaking his head in amusement.

I sigh silently to myself. I don't think Fransesco will ever see me as intimidating. I just hope he'll take my message seriously, or else I'll be really sad.

"Dramatic bitch," Valentino mutters for the first time tonight. He smiles, except it doesn't have the usual glamor. It's sarcastic and a little hostile. "Can't go two seconds without making a scene, can you Fran?"

Fransesco's eyes darken as he turns toward his younger brother. He forces a malicious smirk on his lips. "You'd know a lot about making a scene, wouldn't you Valentino?"

I uneasily try to finish eating my soup. The tension in the room rose a little too quick for my liking. This was how it used to be on the streets. Little comments lead to bloody fights. I glance to Allessandro, hoping he won't let it get that far. They're family. They wouldn't hurt each other.. right?

It was then that I noticed the discrete wobble in the table, as if someone was shaking so badly that it was moving it. While the two stared each other down silently, I accidentally (on purpose) drop my napkin on the floor. No one gave me a second glance as I bend down in my seat to pick it up. While my head's under the table, I catch onto Valentino shaking like a leaf. His fists were clenched, like he was desperately trying to stop it.

Just what happened today? I sit up and try to wipe the concern off my face. I watch Valentino's face out the corner of my eye. His eyes were constantly moving, never settling in one spot. He seemed strained, almost in desperation.

"If you're talking about the driver thing, I already apologized," Valentino feigns a laugh. His shoulders tense and anyone would be able to tell he's faking. "Isn't that right Annaliese?"

Annaliese. No principessa.

Is yelling at me, without listening to a word I say, apologizing? "Yeah," I smile softly to him. "I've already forgiven you for everything."

His arrogance fades into avoidance and it seems that his soup becomes the most interesting thing in the room. It's clear he's caught onto my double meaning. I didn't lie. What he said hurt -- in a way I've never known before -- but that means he needs forgiveness much more than I need an apology. At the end of the day Valentino's my brother and I never want him to leave. I need him.

"That's good," Allessandro comments, his gaze burning a hole into the side of Valentino's face. I'm not the only one who knows something's wrong. Good.

"Um," I speak up nervously, handing my dirty dishes to a maid passing by. I thank her quietly. "Do you think we could watch a movie after everyone's done eating? Um, please?"

"Absolutely," Allessandro replies immediately. Goodness, he didn't even think about it. Usually he stays up late working. Does he really have the time for it? "Go pick a movie. We'll be with you shortly."

My eyes brighten. Standing up from my seat, I pepper a kiss to his cheek. "Thank you Alley!" I exclaim excitedly, grinning as I skip up the stairs and into the movie room.

I settle into a comfortable seat at the top and grab the remote. After I begin searching through movies on Disney+, I click on Tangled. I haven't seen it with them since I was injured!

I snuggle deeply into one of the blankets that are always in here. As I wait for them to come in, I try to blink away the exhaustion weighing down my eyelids. It's okay.. I'll just close them for a little bit..

----

"Annaliese, you look like shit," Ryder comments as I approach the lunch table. Alexander, Nora, Sophia and Ashton haven't arrived yet. Yes, Nora. Yesterday I was able to convince her to eat lunch with us. Sophia was thrilled to have another girl join us. The boys didn't really mind, though Alexander did grumble something about idiots or something.

I smile to him, hoping the stress I was feeling didn't seem as obvious. This morning I woke up in my bedroom. No one watched the movie with me. Later when I went down to eat breakfast, there was a thick tension in the air. Valentino seemed even grouchier than usual but Luca's glares kept him quiet. Just what happened while I was asleep?

"Hey Ry," I greet him softly. I brush away some of his blond hair that was out of place. He grins at me in response. "How was your day?"

"It's chill," He replies, his usual childish grin brightening his face. "You?"

"It's been good so far," I say, placing my bag down on the ground next to my seat. I place my head on my arms, sighing quietly. "It's been a long day. I had a math test and I have to write a really long paper for English. And- Oh my goodness I can't believe I forgot!"

I sit up jerkily and rise to my feet quickly. Ryder stands as well, his eyebrows furrowing. "What's wrong?"

"Mrs. Lee asked me to help her sort some papers, like right now! I have to go!" I exclaim worriedly, deciding to leave my bag in its' place. I start walking down to the school building when a shadow looms over me. Ryder jogs to my side.

"I'll come with. I don't wanna sit by myself the whole time, waiting for those slowpokes to get here," He explains. I smile at him gratefully. A part of me really didn't want to be alone and I haven't gotten to hang out with Ryder since we were reunited.

"Yay! It'll be like hanging out again!" I cheer happily. Ryder laughs loudly and I turn to him in confusion. "What?"

"Sorry, sorry," He chuckles, opening the glass door for me. I enter and he follows behind me, our footsteps echoing in the bare hall. "I just thought of that text you sent Alexander. Man - he was so pissed about that."

"Oh, you mean when I called him a silly goose?" I ask innocently.

Ryder snickers, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter. "Yeah, that. He couldn't shut up about it. I think you really hurt his man pride."

I giggle along with him. "I don't think it's that difficult."

Ryder bursts out laughing, his eyes widening at my comment. "Damn, he's even gotten you to say shit like that about him."

Pursing my lips, I fiddle with my blazer sleeves. "Can I tell you a secret?" I ask him, a nervous edge to my voice.

"Duh," He replies, his arm coming across my shoulders as he leads me into a different hallway. "What's on your mind Little A?"

"Well..." I trail off, trying to find the right words to say. "Don't you think Alexander can be a little mean sometimes? Maybe I'm just sensitive or.. or like overdramatic, but sometimes it can really bug me. I don't know.. it's not a big deal."

Ryder stays quiet for a few moments as he processes my words. "I'm not gonna lie, he can get real moody sometimes," He tells me, his hand playing with the ends of my hair. "That doesn't excuse him at all, but right now I don't think he can help it all that much. I think you make him less moody, but he'll never admit that. Maybe you should tell him how you feel - help him understand your boundaries."

"I don't know.. I don't want to cause any trouble," I worry, letting out a sigh.

"Well, I can always beat his ass," He jokes and I instantly snap my head over to him with a gasp. "Kidding, kidding. Not really."

"You can't hurt him!" I scold, narrowing my eyes at Ryder. "That's your friend."

"Yeah, and you're like my little sister. We've been through more shit together than I have with Alexander," Ryder says seriously. Turning to face him, there's a seriousness in his eyes that only came about when he thought of those days. Him, Ash, and I have gained our fair share of scars together.

"Thanks Ry, but you don't have to protect me anymore. You should be happy with the people you choose to be in your life," I smile gently to him. He shakes his head and kisses my forehead.

"Without you, I may not have a life right now Little A." Ryder softens, ruffling my hair. "I'll side with you every time."

"Isn't that sweet," A boy's voice taunts, interrupting our meaningful conversation. Facing the boy, I don't sense any familiarity. Three other boys, a little older than Valentino, stand alongside him. They don't have friendly expressions, more so mischievous. Ryder moves so half of his body is shielding mine.

"It is," I agree, smiling brightly. The boy looks taken aback for a second. "Ryder's really sweet."

The boys all look at each other with surprise. The one who spoke snaps out of it. "You're Invernizzi's little sister, huh?"

"Yeah! Marcello and Valentino are my brothers. Are you friends with one of them?" I ask politely. In the back of my mind, I kept remembering the promise I made to Mrs. Lee. I hope I'm not late.

"We know Valentino real well," One of the boys comments. My smile falters when they step too close to us with predatory stances. "We warned him but looks like he didn't listen all that well."

"What the fuck are you doing?" Ryder snaps, turning back into the boy from our past. When he did, it's never good. It usually means something bad's going to happen - with a lot of pain involved. I swallow my nerves and clench my fists. "We don't give a shit about your bromance with Valentino so fuck off."

"That's not very nice," The boy taunts again, a smirk growing on his thin lips. "Run along kid. We're not here to fuck with you." His eyes connect with mine and fear chills me to the bone. He looks just like.. "We're here to fuck with her."

"The fuck did you just say?" Ryder asks quietly. Memories of him defending Ash and I flash through my mind. He was only 10 and able to beat adults to near death. It's almost scary to imagine how much he's probably improved in the last few years.

"You heard me, bitch boy. We're just gonna have a little fun with her - send a message to her dumbass brother-" His sentence is cut off by a fist striking his jaw. I pull my aching hand back to my side as I glare angrily towards him.

"Watch how you talk about my family," I snap, all friendliness gone. If they can show so much hostility towards my family, they don't deserve an ounce of kindness I have to give. That's a line no one will cross with me.

"You fucking bitch," The boy grunts, holding his jaw with his hand. His friends jump into action, Ryder doing the same. I back away from the violence in shock.

One of the boys crashes into the locker while Ryder tackles another to the ground. Grunts and cracks come from them. I can't even tell what's going on anymore. A hand wraps around my wrist and I gasp as a hand comes across my face.

Before I can process the situation, big hands wrap around my throat and my back hits the row of lockers behind me. "Anna!" Ryder exclaimed in the background. I stare my captor in the eyes, the boy I punched.

His eyes are purely psychotic; no remorse, no feeling. I gasp for air as my feet lift off the ground. I claw at his hands while black dots appear in my vision. His thumbs press into my throat painfully.

I can't die like this, not so soon. I still have to help my friends find homes. I still have to see Daddy one more time. I