Happy Family


    Fifteen minutester, we''re all sitting around a beautifully set dining table.


    Mother smiles at everyone. "I wanted tonight to be a test for the setup for the wedding. It''s beautiful, isn''t it?"


    I look down at my te. Clean, with white napkins and gold silverware. There are flowers, vases, and candles spread across the middle of the table. I shift my gaze to Aiden, who is sitting beside me and he is eyeing the entire thing with a scowl.


    The chef is putting the final touches on some of the dishes, and I can''t help but think that this is all a bit too extravagant.


    A little too forced.


    Mother thanks the chef, and then she turns to Aiden, Zaide and me. "I wanted to talk to


    you three about the program for the wedding."


    I tense, and Aiden snaps his head to my mother. Zaid, who is on the opposite side of the table and beside my mother, lifts an eyebrow, but keeps his gaze on his te.


    "Why?" I whisper, my voice cracking.


    "Well, we would like you guys to dance together. You know, to show how happy we are to bring our families together. It would be right after Jake and I''s first dance."


    My eyes dance between my mother and Jake. "You want me us to have a dance?"


    Mother nods enthusiastically, but Jake stays expressionless.


    "You want me to dance with them?" My eyes now shift between Aiden and Zaid.


    "Seriously, Alina," mother whispers, rolling her eyes. "Can you stop being such a pain?"


    Aiden tenses beside me. "She can feel as ufortable about this as she wants. I''ll dance


    with her, not Zaid."


    Zaid recoils, drawing his eyes away from me to look at his brother. "Hold on, if Diana here wants us to look the part of family, then I am more than happy to dance with Alina."


    Happy Family


    "Of course you are, you-"


    "Stop, Aiden." Jake finally enters the conversation. He sighs, looking to mother with an apologetic shake of his head as if saying this is what he expected out of his sons. "You will both dance with Alina, as will 1."


    My heart drops to my stomach.


    Mother smiles at that, looking at him with a grateful nod. "That''s a wonderful idea. Oh, I can dance with the boys, too."


    "No," Aiden grits, cing a hand on my thigh and squeezing it.


    "I will," Zaid forces out, looking at me with narrowed eyes.


    I feel like I''m being watched too much, too many eyes on me.


    Too many Matthews in the room.


    I want to run and hide, find a corner in this world where no one knows who I am.


    "Why are you being so difficult, Aiden? That usually falls on your brother?" Jake asks.


    I notice the way Zaid visibly tenses, the way his jaw clenches and his eyes drop back down to his te. It makes my heartbeat quicken and I want tofort him. It surprises me.


    Aiden looks to me but I only shake my head. I don''t want this night to turn into a


    conversation about how my mother treats me, how she mes me every day for the death


    of my dad and Alex.


    I couldn''t stomach that.


    His nostrils re. I can tell he doesn''t like that I''m holding back, but he listens to me, looking at Jake with defiant re. "Fine. Just tell me what you ant me to do and I''ll do


    it."


    Mother sets her silverware down and forces a smile on her face, continuing to talk


    through the program for the wedding and everyone''s jobs for that day.


    Happy Family


    Eventually, her eyes lighten and her face glows with the fairy tale she''s been building in


    her mind.


    Her and father didn''t have a wedding. They were married in the courthouse after they found out she was pregnant with Alex. They were in love and they had a good marriage. Not perfect, but good.


    They loved each other.


    She wasn''t always such a horrid person and now part of me wonders how much of that was actually her and how much was father tempering her.


    I look down at the fillet on my te and set my fork down. I''m not hungry, not even


    a little. My stomach feels like it is doing somersaults in my body and all I can do is focus on the knot in my throat.


    Aiden keeps his hand on my thigh, his thumb rubbing circles on my skin. "I can''t eat." He whispers so only I can hear him.


    I shake my head and lean back in my chair. "Neither can I."


    "We have the fitting tomorrow, all of us," Jake says, taking a bit of mashed potatoes.


    I frown.


    Zaid finally lifts his gaze. "Fitting?"


    My mother smiles. "Yes! We ordered you both suits and a dress for Alina. We want to make a family day out of it. Do the fitting, get some lunch, have some fun, you know?"


    "We have school," I say.


    Aiden nods.


    Jake grimaces. "This is our wedding week. You can take the rest of the week off of school. I''ll call the office in the morning."


    I swallow, eying Zaid and Jake, my mother and then Aiden. A whole week with all


    of them? I cling onto Aiden''s arm, blowing out a steady stream of air.


    This is just a glimpse of my future.


    Happy Family


    "So, Zaid," mother says, turning to him with a wide smile, "Are you excited to be home?"


    Zaid''s eyes flick toward me before he nods, his expression unreadable. "Yeah, I''m excited."


    Aiden is fuming beside me. I can feel the tension in his fingers.


    At the head of the table, Jake shifts ufortably, picking at his food as he stares hard at Zaid. But his gaze keeps drifting to me, a tight smile on his face


    every time I catch him looking. And I''m doing my best to look anywhere but at him, scared he''ll try to start the conversation I''ve been dreading.


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