1

I nervously waited in the living room, wringing my fingers. Soon there would be two additions to our family, and I really didn’t know how to feel about all this.

But at least I would finally meet the mystery man my mother was married to and his even more mysterious child.

I couldn’t want to see how this played out, because I had no idea how we would get along with each other.

As far as I know, this man was only coming here because he saw a big house and wanted to make it his. I could see myself being like ‘Cinderella’, having to work and be locked away while his child gained it all.

My mother finally told me about this man, but it was too late. He was slated to arrive any moment now, so all it does was work on my nerves. And apparently, I wouldn’t be having a stepsister as I originally thought but a stepbrother. I really didn’t know which would have been worse.

My mom’s new husband had been divorced for some years now and had decided to move back to town due to his son having some behavioral problems. Which he blamed himself for since he wasn’t in this boy’s life, but he wanted to make things right between them and also discipline him.

She didn’t say what kind of problems he had been in, but I think I know. The only information that she gave me about this boy was that his mother would let him get away with anything, even murder.

It left me to wonder why she thought I will be comfortable with someone like him around.

She talked more about her husband than his son she would be helping him raise. She never mentioned his name, age or anything, just how wonderful her husband was.

 Turned out, he owned an art gallery place here in Seattle and has had lots of famous buyers.

Mom soon got up and went upstairs for the fifth time to make sure things were ok for her new stepson. She was fussing too much in  my opinion.

I heard a car driving up and I peeked out to see a red Mercedes in the driveway. I rolled my eyes.

It was a good thing we lived in a quiet neighborhood; else our house would have been a target to looting. As if the four-stories house wasn’t drawing enough attention, now there were five cars and they were sure to make us the center of it all.

I looked over at the stairs to see if mom knew of their arrival, but she seemed still caught up in whatever she was doing.

She has high hopes that we would get along, but I highly doubted it.

I found it weird that mom was hiding so much from me, like what was so hard to let me know who would be invading my home?

I had no idea what they look like, not even as much as a picture. She even went as far as hiding their wedding photos from me, which made me wonder. I knew it’s not because I refused to go to their wedding. There was something more to it.

The front door opened, a man walked in first. Introducing himself as Johnathan.

I stared up at the man, thinking that he looked oddly familiar.

But Johnathan was surprisingly handsome; he stood at about five feet eleven inches, had a clean shave, short dark hair, warm ivory skin and grey eyes. That made me start to imagine what his son might look like.

I could see him with curly dark hair and the same skin tone. Don’t get me wrong, but Johnatan seemed as if he had some strong genes, so his son would bound to look like him.

The car door slamed and Johnatan sighed.

I could see the pain in his eyes, and I knew he loved his car more than how he loved his son.

I looked towards the door, but the person must have been taking their time because the walk to the house wasn’t so long.

I suddenly got nervous all over again, waiting for the boy to walk through the door. I still couldn’t believe that I now had a stepfather and a stepbrother. It felt weird to even think about it.

‘’Can you get your ass in here? You are wasting the heat,’’ Johnatan’s gruff voice suddenly came.

There was a grumbling from outside, and soon the person entered.

A lump formed in my throat when he stood in the doorway. I swallowed hard and took him in for a few seconds. My heart pounded harder and harder as the realization hit. I knew him; we used to go to the same school together.

My eyes widen. I couldn’t believe it.

This was who my stepbrother would be?

He looked all over the place before entering fully into the house and the smell of his vape smoke hit me. It was a scent I knew all too well. Strawberries. I had the same flavor hidden in my underwear draw.

He came to stand beside Johnatan, and I could see the striking similarities between them. The only difference was that he had hazel eyes, a fairer skin complexion and dimpled chin.

“Mia, this is my son. Aaron Boyd, your new stepbrother,’’ Johnathan told me.

Little did he know; I had already met my stepbrother before. It might have been years since I had last seen him, but I remembered that face, even though he had changed and not for the better.

I looked the tattooed, rebellious, yet handsome Aaron Boyd up and down.

Was this why my mother refused to tell me who would be living with us?

Johnathan gave a small smile. ‘’This punk, who has been in and out of juvie.’’

And here he was to be living with us. I thought.

But why?

‘’Aaron has gotten in trouble for underage drinking, smoking weed, and God knows what else. But I’ll set him straight.''

It was hard to believe that we were the same age. He looked older than seventeen. With a stubble, and bushy brows and a gruff look.

We stared at each other, and I soon felf awkward.

I wondered if he remembers me.

‘’It is so nice to meet you.’’ Mom rushed down the stairs and pulled him into a hug, and he stiffened then pulled away and brushed his clothes off as if mother was a carrier of some disease.

‘’Can’t say the same about you,’’ he told her.

Johnathan placed a hand on Aaron's shoulder, gave it a squeeze and pulled him close. ‘’I hope we can get along and be one big, happy family.’’

He must be joking; didn’t he know that his son used to bully me for years? He had done so many horrible things to me.

‘’Where’s my room?’’ Aaron asked.

‘’Upstairs, but you are not going anywhere until you say hello to your sister.’’ Johnathan forced a smile.

Every muscle in my body tightened as I cringed at the words.

There was no way I want to be his sister, and I could tell from the murderous look he just gave that he felt the same way. His look seemed as if he wanted to kill me.

While I was here stupidly gushing over his good looks, it was as if I had lost all sense of reason and was now under his spell.

Aaron's eyes bore into mine with daggers, and he said nothing.

‘’Who would have thought that we would become siblings, or step-siblings.’’ I held my hand out, thinking that we could put the past behind us, be friends, and make amends.

He took my hand in a hard squeeze, and I could see a smile playing on the corner of his lips before he let my hand go.

‘’I never wanted Duckie as my stepsister. I was hoping for someone more… a hot chick, not some rich, friendless nerd.’’

His words caused my throat to close up. 

‘’Mia, why don’t you show Aaron to his room?’’ My mom asked, as if she didn’t just hear the filth that just came out of his mouth.

‘’I’ll find my way,’’ he told her, lifted his bags and head towards the stairs.

‘’You need to cut the shit, boy; this isn’t your mother’s place.’’

Aaron ignored him and still made his way up; I wondered where he was going to go. This house was large and most of the closed doors weren’t even room to sleep in.

“I am sorry about that, Sharon.’’

“It’s okay. He’ll warm up. Let him be alone for a while. I’m sure this entire thing can’t be easy for him.''

‘’Don’t make excuses for him, he is nothing but a little disrespectful prick.”

‘’Whoa,’’ I said after he said those words.

But at least he could admit to his son’s nasty attitude. He was being a disrespectful prick.

But the most laughable thing of it all was that neither my mother nor her husband seemed to think or care about how someone like Aaron living here would affect me.

Should I let them know?