Chapter 29 - Twenty-Eight: Strangled By Leo

I clasped my right hand over my mouth as soon as I realized what just happened.

I laughed!

I laughed listening to their bickering! And the worst part? Well all the three of them noticed it.

I quietened down quickly as I returned to my indifferent facial expression.

However, it was already too late.

The next second I found myself strangled by the strong arms of Leo who was probably trying to give me a back hug as I kept sitting in my chair.

Did that boy had any idea exactly how muscular his arms were and at the same time how fragile my neck was?

Probably not! Because he only tightened his hold around my shoulders and neck.

"Let go of me!" I commanded as I tried to remove his hands.

However, I was completely ignored by that idiot as he started spouting nonsense.

"Did you all see? I made my baby sis laugh! Yeaaa! I'm actually the best brother ever." Leo said as he looked at his two older brothers with sparkling eyes.

"You made her laugh? Are you sure?" Simon asked with a raised eyebrow as he looked at his youngest brother with a mocking expression in his eyes.

But Leo was definitely not ready to back down. He was set to take the credit for making me finally lose my control.

"Why? Are you trying to say that you were the one acting like a cartoon or a joker just now that made her laugh?" Leo asked his brother with his own eyebrows raised as high as the sky.

The fact that he just called himself a joker and a cartoon almost made me smile again, almost!

Simon just scoffed in reply but did not say anything giving Leo the impression that he, Leo, had won the battle.

While these two were busy in their own world of bickering my eyes landed on Daniel who was looking at me with soft eyes.

His dark green eyes were once again filled with warmth as he smiled softly at me when he caught me looking at him.

Of course, I did not reciprocate. Not with the smile nor with the softness in eyes. I just kept looking at him with my cold emotionless eyes as I tried my best to see if I could find the real face of Daniel Alessandro behind his mask.

However, deep down in my heart, a battle was going on. I thought that they all were liars and fake people who were playing with me.

But were they really fake? Were they actually what I was portraying them as? Or had I misunderstood them?

These questions had been constantly nagging me, making my anger towards them dissipate little by little with each passing day. In place of anger, there was frustration now.

The frustration of not knowing exactly what was going on around me, the frustration of being left in the dark.

A voice in my mind suggested me to come out clear with my questions with them. But no! I was not going to make a fool of myself in front of them ever again.

It would be a different thing if I actually misunderstood them. But what if it was not a misunderstanding? What if the Alessandro brothers were exactly how I was portraying them for the past two weeks?

Would not I look like a fool for opening up my heart to them if it was the second scenario? 

Yep! I would probably appear like an insecure fool while the Alessandro's would laugh at me and my pathetic self.

Maybe my facial expression changed as I was busy thinking about these dark thoughts because I noticed that the room had quieted down.

It was not until two warm hands covered either side of my cheeks that I finally returned to reality.

My eyes stared directly into the dark green orbs of Daniel as he was crouching in front of me while looking at me with worried eyes.

Why was he worried? I was not planning on setting his kitchen on fire. At least not yet!

"What do you want to do on your birthday, Sorrelina?" He asked while moving his hands to hold my hands.

I just kept staring at him, not even thinking about his question. What Birthday? For me, my birthday was no different from the rest of the days of the year.

I had no idea what I was supposed to do on birthdays. Believe it or not!

I could remember a few of my birthdays that I celebrated with my mom before she lost herself in alcohol and drugs.

She would dress me in beautiful clothes, brought me to amusement park, or sometimes we would watch a movie together. At night she would bake a cake and we would cut it together. 

That was the time when I was living probably in the happiest moments of my life. A time when I loved to eat ice cream and cakes.

Pitty that it did not last for long.

As Daniel noticed my lack of interest in his question he started suggesting his own ideas.

"Well..., since you don't like sweets what about we prepare a big feast with a lot of delicious food and if you would like then all the seven of us can watch a movie together here at home in the evening. What do you think?"

He was looking at me with such hopeful eyes that the words that were supposed to decline his offer got stuck in my throat.

I had no idea why I did that and how I did that. But even before I could realize I was nodding my head in agreement. 

"Perfect! Don't worry baby sis, we will not let you down on your birthday. Promise." Leo said as he planted a huge kiss on my temple. 

And that was the final blow. With all my might I pushed him away from me which made him stumble back in both shock and horror. 

"Don't you dare cover my face with your filthy saliva. I swear I'll kill you!" I growled at him as I stood up from my seat and left the room. 

The laughter that erupted in the kitchen and Leo's complaints made a tiny smile appear on my lips as I walked towards my room.