Chapter 2 - One: The Red Porsche Cayenne

"Family" isn't defined only by last names or by blood; it's defined by commitment and by love. It means showing up when they need it the most. It means having each other's backs. It means choosing to love each other even on those days when you struggle to like each other. It means never giving up on each other. ~

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I checked my phone for the hundredth time within the last twenty minutes as I waited for some kind of miracle to happen.

I was currently sitting at the first bus stand closest to the City A International Airport, where my flight had landed about half an hour ago.

I was about to become a fried chicken because of the burning sun when finally a shining red Porsche Cayenne stopped in front of me.

The driver window rolled down and in there sat a handsome man probably in his mid-twenties. His designer suit, perfectly combed hair, and dark glasses created an intimidating aura around him.

I was about to ignore both the car and the man when he suddenly opened the car door and slipped out.

I still pretended to not give him too much attention but exactly that moment my phone finally buzzed.

My hands trembled slightly as I opened the screen lock and found a message.

'Let's go home, Emily.'

I raised my brow in confusion as I stared at the message. Suddenly I noticed the man who was now standing exactly in front of me only a few feet away to not invade my personal space.

Before I could say anything, the man showed me his phone which was showing a message that he had sent to someone.

My breath caught in my throat as I realized that the message was exactly the same that I had received just a minute earlier, which meant that the man who was standing in front of me in his full glory was one of my brothers. But exactly which one?

Yeah, meet my poor self, Emily. I'm a fifteen-year-old orphaned girl who was adopted by a man last week who claimed himself as my eldest brother along with five more elder brothers.

The worse part, I couldn't even deny it since it had already been verified by a DNA test that I'm indeed the youngest member of the Alessandro family.

How would you feel if after six years of being an orphan you suddenly found out that you had a family? Not one, two, three, or four but exactly six elder brothers.

I should be feeling happy, right? But there was no happiness. All that I could feel at that moment was numbness...

I slowly nodded my head and stood up from the bench. I was about to reach for my suitcase when a large hand dragged it away from me.

I looked at him with confused eyes which grew even bigger when he suddenly engulfed me in a warm hug. I had even forgotten exactly how warm and comforting hugs could be.

"Welcome back little sister. Welcome back." He softly murmured in my hair and finally let me go.

For a moment I thought that his eyes looked moist but when I looked more closely I realized that I was only imagining things. Moreover what he meant by welcome back? It's my first time in City A, isn't it?

I was too tired at that moment that I dismissed all the questions and silently slid into the passenger seat when he opened the door for me like a gentleman.

"I'm sorry that you had to wait here like this. Actually, Mark was supposed to pick you up but then he had an emergency at work and I was the only one who was free. But since I was at the other end of the city, it took me a little bit of time to reach here. I hope you will forgive us for such a poor welcome." His voice was full of regret and hope as he looked at me with warm eyes.

I was too shocked by his gentle tone and the fact that he was actually apologizing, that I hurriedly nodded my head to tell him that I wasn't angry at them. How could I be?

I didn't even ask him exactly which brother of mine he was. At least I know he wasn't Mark. To be honest, I actually didn't care which brother he was, as long as they didn't abandon me here in an unknown city.

Yeah, it had happened before. Three years ago, a foster family adopted me. I traveled to City N and waited at the airport for almost ten hours but no one ever came to pick me up. Could you imagine that?

I never got to know exactly what happened to that family and why didn't they pick me up from the airport, because according to the orphanage administration I didn't have any right to disturb them for such mere problems.

"Did you have any kind of problems during the flight?" He asked in a way to start a conversation. He probably didn't like the thick silence inside the car.

"I'm already here. It doesn't matter now." I replied in a soft tone. It was actually true. What's the point in complaining now when it was already over?

He was shocked by my response or maybe my soft voice, I wasn't sure. I asked my own question before he could say anything, "Which one are you?"

He stared at me in shock. For a few seconds, I saw a hurt look in his eyes as his knuckles turned white around the steering wheel as his grip tightened and a vein in his neck throbbed.

My heart started beating so fast as nausea erupted inside me. Had I angered him? Was he going to throw me out of the car?

My breathing was accelerating as the dark thoughts took over my mind. The future which was supposed to give me some kind of hope suddenly became hazy and just as dark as my past.

I was about to start hyperventilating when suddenly a warm hand covered mine, but this only made me flinch as I retreated back in my seat.

I saw a flicker of confusion passed through his eyes before I was pulled into a warm embrace once again. The feeling was so foreign and new that I went stiff immediately but he didn't let me go.

His large hands soothingly patted my head in order to calm me down. For the first time in my life, I felt some kind of protection in the presence of another person.

I didn't remember how long it took, how long I was snuggled up in his arms but it was a moment I wanted to keep in my heart for a long long time.

The warmth, the feeling of safety, and security that I felt at that moment was enough to bring tears into my eyes but I pushed them back. I couldn't let any of my brothers know exactly how broken I was.

I didn't want them to throw me out of their house and life. I didn't want to lose the chance that I had received to leave my past behind.

I finally pulled away from my brother and blushed slightly as my eyes landed on his amused ones.

"Sorry for my impolite behavior Sorellina. I was so excited to bring you home that I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Daniel, 25, and your second eldest brother." Daniel introduced himself as he apologized to me. His eyes still held warmth and a sense of welcome in them.

My breath hitched when the word Sorellina rolled out of his mouth. It meant LittleYounger Sister in Italian. I had taken Italian and French in my middle school and I was pretty decent in both.

The love and warmth that the word held in it was too much for me.

I just silently nodded my head, not sure how to respond. But Daniel didn't make the situation awkward as he immediately fastened my seat belt which had come undone at some point and after securing his own, started the car as we head towards my future home.

The rest of the journey was silent but it wasn't awkward. Daniel didn't try to ask any more questions probably because he didn't want to pressure me or maybe it was because he didn't want to deal with an emotional little girl. No matter how desperate or hopeless this sounded but I wanted it to be the former.

It took us about half an hour before the car was pulled in front of a huge black gate. The area that we had entered about ten minutes ago appeared to be slightly out of the city and I had seen only four or five villas and mansions in the neighborhood.

The next second the huge black gates opened and my eyes landed on the tall trees that were standing on either side of the road.

It took us three more minutes before Daniel finally stopped the car. I could see a glimpse of a house from Daniel's side window but didn't catch much due to the fact that my brother was a 6-foot monster and there wasn't enough space left for me to spy.

I unbuckled my seat belt and before my hands reached the handle, the door opened, and there stood my brother with his hand extended towards me.

I hesitated for a few seconds but then my lips stretched into a tiny-tiny smile and I slowly placed my small hands in his larger ones.

We moved around the car and I came to a halt as my eyes landed on the house...Wait! No, the mansion....a huge fucking mansion that stood in front of me.

It was built in such a way that the main part of the house was residing at an upper level. My eyes were probably about to pop out of their sockets and my jaw was still lying on the ground.

Was it possible to drool over a house?

The first-class ticket that I received to arrive at City A and Daniel's Red Porsche Cayenne had already given me a hint that my brothers were pretty rich but nothing had prepared me for what was standing in front of my eyes.

A chuckle that came from Daniel finally broke my trance. I blushed in embarrassment as I noticed the humor in his eyes. it wasn't a mocking humor but one which held love and adoration.

"Let's go in," Daniel said as he intertwined his large fingers with mine and started walking up the stairs.

I noticed a man in a grey suit, who had appeared out of nowhere, taking my suitcase and bag out of the car.

"Why so many stairs?" I almost whined when we were only halfway up the stairs.

A sweet chuckle broke out of him as he lightly ruffled my hair with his free hand as he replied, "Most of your brothers are foody. These stairs make sure that they exercise a little bit every day."

I turned towards him with raised eyebrows. I wanted to roll my eyes but controlled the urge as something was telling me that such kind of behavior won't be tolerated.

But again the reason sounded ridiculous, right?

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AN: "When someone treats you like you're just one of many options, help them narrow their choice by removing yourself from the equation. Sometimes you have to try not to care, no matter how much you do. Because sometimes you mean almost nothing to someone who means so much to you. It's not pride - it's self-respect. Don't expect to see positive changes in your life if you surround yourself with negative people. Don't give part-time people a full-time position in your life. Know your value and what you have to offer, and never settle for anything less than what you deserve."

Love you all! :)