Ezra took a detour, and we visited the aquarium. The trip was worthwhile. I can't remember the last time I had so much fun.

"Want a cotton candy?" Ezra pointed at the roadside store.

"Really, I can have one?" I confirmed, hopeful.

Laughing, Ezra crossed the road and bought two cotton candies.

Finding an empty bench, we sat there. I excitedly took one of the cotton candies from his hand.

"They are like clouds melting in my mouth," I motivated when I saw him looking at his cotton candy with reluctance.

Ezra was a health freak and he hated street food. I knew he was going out of his way to treat me with junk food. I wasn't sure what he was aiming for. No matter how I see it, he had nothing to gain here.

"Just say it," Ezra interrupted my thoughts, "Don't overthink and just ask me what you want."

At his encouragement, I decided to get my curiosities answered, "Why are you being so good to me?"

"Did I ever treat you bad?" He asked, genuinely wanting to know.

"No, you didn't." Sure, he didn't necessarily treat me badly like my other siblings. But his indifference towards me hurt, too.

Among my siblings, Ezra was the most self-centred one. All he would think of was himself. He was caring but he would never put anyone before him. All our problems would appear insignificant before him.

He would never try to understand you, for he believed he was always the one getting the shorter end of the stick.

"Why are you trying to close this distance between us when you were the one who created it in the first place?" I asked instead.

Ezra stayed quiet for a while. I looked at him to find him staring at his half-finished cotton candy, deep in thought.

I gave him the time he needed, silently enjoying my own candy.

When I was almost finished, Ezra broke the silence.

"I'm not making excuses, but I was a child, too. I was still not over the fact that Mom's dead when they said I have two little sisters. I didn't know how to deal with this new addition to my life. So I distanced myself from you two. And before I knew it, I had built this wall around me. And by the time I realized, it was too late. You were already gone."

It was true he never gave Eveline preferential treatment like the others. But was it wrong of me to want him to spend some time with me?

Every time I asked him to play with me, he would reject it. Albeit, with a smile. Whenever I would go to him with my problems, he would say he already had enough of his own and to go bother someone else. But was it so wrong of me to want to rely on him for once?

"I know I can be selfish at times. But I am trying my best to change. I'm trying every day, to become a better version of myself. To become a better brother for you. But it's so much harder than I had imagined." He sounded like he was genuinely struggling with this.

"It's okay. You don't have to try so hard. I already love you the way you are." I couldn't stop my body when it moved on its own accord. I tightly hugged him and he returned immediately, putting his arms around me.

... ... ...

By the time we reached home, it was already dark.

Before I could get out of the car, Ezra stopped me.

"I heard Stephen gave you a welcome present. I figured I couldn't fall behind." He winked at me.

Excited to see what his present was, I quickly rushed to my room. In my hurry, I didn't see Noah coming out of his room and bumped into him.

"Watch where you're going," Noah growled, furious.

"Sorry," I apologized. What was wrong with him all of a sudden? He was alright just this morning.

Ignoring my apology, he glared at me one last time before going downstairs.

Noah always had anger issues, but I thought it was him going through puberty. Shouldn't he have overcome it by now?

Ezra had told me, Noah was in his second year of college. He had gotten into one of the best colleges on a sports scholarship.

Ignoring him, I rushed to my room remembering my previous excitement.

I had hoped his present was some sort of delicious food. But I wasn't disappointed to find a nicely wrapped laptop in my bed. A note accompanied it.

'I hope you like it. Find me if you face any trouble operating it.
-Ezra.'

... ... ...

Dinner had started relatively calmly. Stephen wasn't late today, and we didn't have to wait.

Everyone made small talk. Telling bits of how their day went. Stephen asked me if I was settling in and faced any troubles.

While Ezra was busy putting food on my plate without stopping, Kai ignored my presence altogether and Noah glared at me from time to time.

It was all under control until Stephen decided to open his mouth.

"Tomorrow is Dad's funeral. Be ready by 5." Stephen informed me. Everyone else seemed to be already aware of the fact.

"Can I not go? I don't want to," I mumbled, quietly.

"He was your father. How can you not come?" Eveline looked up at me with anger.

I laughed at her reasoning, "He was your father, not mine. For me, he was worse than a monster."

"Oh, my bad. Did my words hurt Daddy's princess?" I taunted in a sweet voice, noticing Eveline clenching her fists to keep her anger at bay.

"Shut up," Noah, who couldn't take it anymore, threw a porcelain cup in my direction. Maybe I could've dodged it if I tried. But I didn't, instead, I let the fragile porcelain crash against my forehead.

Ezra rushed to my side, trying to stop the bleeding with a napkin.

"Dad was right about you. You are nothing but a cold-blooded murderer."

Noah spit out before leaving the dining hall, Eveline following him.

And that's how my perfect day came to an end.