Liviana’s head was a mess, her thoughts running wild through the jungle of her chaotic mind.As she sat there, on the bed of Leona Castelli, the words of another Castelli rung through her head like the tune of an old song. And to her, it was.It wouldn’t be the first time someone had turned on Liviana. Someone she thought was a friend had turned out to be nothing more than a fake, a foe in disguise. Friendships had turned fatal and people who she once thought she knew well had become strangers, all in the blink of an eye.This would only be the first time that she had completely trusted the one who turned on her.In the weeks she’s known the two women in front of her, Liviana never had a sliver of a doubt that they were like the ones before. Leona and Violet both seemed so genuine and authentic. Their eyes held honesty and their words were always sincere, and she never had to pick apart their every sentence to try to figure out where the lie was hidden, like she had done with everyone
After a night of binge watching old reruns of Friends and stuffing their faces with cake, Liviana wakes up feeling oddly refreshed and ready to start her day. Carefully, Liviana climbs out of bed, trying to not disturb Leona who lay beside her, having fallen asleep during their midnight movie marathon, taking up the majority of her bed. Not that Liviana was complaining. She was just pleased they had worked everything out. With that thought in mind, Liviana closes her bathroom door, clicking it shut and leaning against it with a sigh. As happy as she was to have her friends back, she couldn't help but be confused on why Amara was trying to come between them in the first place. Why would she lie? What was her motive behind her attempts at causing chaos? From what Leona had told her, she didn't have any. She was simply a bad person who took joy from others' misfortunes, even going as far as to create their hard times just for the fun of it. Still, despite Leona's explanation, Liviana co
Liviana was a dreamer. She was the person who always thought the best-case scenario before the worst. The type to see the silver lining in a storm cloud and the half of the glass that was full, ignoring the part that was empty. At least, that is who she tried to be. Who she convinced herself, and everyone else around, that she was. When in reality, she was just a girl who believed in hope. And even then, sometimes she lost that. And one of those times was when they pulled up to the tattoo parlor. "You change your mind yet?" At the sound of her husband's voice, Liviana lets out a small huff. She leans back in her seat, hand lingering at her seatbelt's buckle as she stares at the sign. Tattoos and piercing. Maybe she had changed her mind. "Is it too late?" She asks. "To, what? Change your mind?" Blaze asks, watching as her green eyes stare ahead, her leg bouncing with nerves. She nods. "Perhaps I could just get a piercing instead?" "Perhaps." The man shrugs. "It would be les
"So, what do we think?" "I think that it's good that I chose a spot where it can be hidden." Liviana mutters, letting her shirt fall and fixing her jeans, turning to face Violet and Leona who linger behind her and the mirror. "It's beautiful, though. And I love it." "Well, if you love it, then somebody else's opinion should not matter." Leona says, giving her a pointed look as she comments that Liviana shouldn't care what her parents thought. "Yeah." Violet agrees. "It's your body, Livi. You can do with it what you please and your parents don't get a say in any of it." "It's your body, your life, and your happiness on the line." Leona says, placing a hand on her shoulder and spinning her back to face the mirror. Violet lifts the corner of her shirt for her to see the blue butterfly once more. "Don't let your parents dictate it, okay? You have to do what's right for you." "And if getting a beautiful picture of art tattooed onto your skin is what feels right for you," Violet adds,
Smoothing down the dark emerald silk, Liviana takes a deep breath, admiring the way it hugs her figure through the reflection of her mirror."You look great." Violet compliments from behind, flashing her a smile through the glass.Liviana spins around to return the gesture and compliment, complimenting the lavender dress her blonde friend wears. "You look amazing, Violet. Purple really suits you." She says, and Violet smiles."Thank you." Violet smiles."Alright," Leona starts, rounding through the door with her heels clicking loudly, her blue velvet dress dragging on the floor behind her. "How are we doing in here? Are we ready?"Violet only raises a brow at Liviana in question, waiting for her to take the lead, and when she nods, Violet does, too. "Yes, I think we are." Violet says, turning around to face Leona who nods, staring at her phone and informing them that they had twenty minutes to get to the venue."I thought you said it doesn't start until seven?" Liviana asks, and Leona
“Liviana?” The knocking persists and the woman in question sighs.Taking a deep breath to compose herself, Liviana tilts her chin up and plasters a smile on her face. “Coming!” She calls before turning to open the door, greeting the woman on the other side and praying she couldn’t see past her wide smile.. “Hi, Elara!”The mother-in-law couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “Do not take that fake enthusiastic tone with me, Liviana.” She warns, strutting past her into the girl’s bedroom. “And don’t think that overcompensating smile is going to fool me into thinking that you’re alright, when I know that you’re anything but.”Liviana sighs, letting the door fall closed once more than she turns to face the older woman. There’s an inner battle of debate on whether to feign ignorance of having no idea what she was talking about, continuing her act of being perfectly fine, or to give Elara a peek behind the curtains to find her true vulnerable self that was riddled with anxiety, intimidated by ju
A smile that wavers is a smile of false of promise.The wise words of Drusilla Santora. Her version of never let them see you weak, though a much more shallow take, Liviana had to admit.Her mother's version of the uplifting saying, was one almost as superficial as the person who says never let them see you without your face - another one of her mothers most popular phrases, and unluckily for Liviana, it fit in perfectly with her mothers favorite lecture."Drop the grim expression, Liviana. You can't let them see you as anything less than promising. And what have I always told you about a wavering smile?""That it shows false promise." Liviana would mumble as she bows her head, avoiding her mother's eyes as she gets belittled in yet another of her parents' routine rants."Exactly." Her mother would agree. "And nobody likes a fake."Liviana wasn't sure why this conversation was replaying in her mind tonight. She knew it by heart- of course she did. It was a common "conversation" in her
The Castelli family was a masterpiece. A piece of art held at the highest standards, while everyone stood around admiring them. In every detail, they were the ideal. Every stitch, every shot, every stroke of their brush was all done with such craft that it was nothing less than a picture of perfection.Their reputation was one of the best, with not a single scratch to ruin their image. It was pristine, and it was something they all made sure of.Elara Castelli was the queen. A ruler who wore her heart on her sleeve- a sleeve that contained a dagger. With a strong mind and loving heart, Elara had a perfect balance between kindness and cruelty. She was an angel whose wings were made of hellfire. They sparked, and she would watch as they fall, turning those around into ash. And if you were lucky, if you were kind, she would do you the honors of helping you rise from the ashes and become better. She was gracious, understanding, caring, and a killer. And as much respect as she was given, s
Before she knew it, and much faster than either cared to acknowledge, two hours had flown by and the two were soon forced to sit and face the intimidating discussion that, in all honesty, they couldn’t have dreaded more.Their morning had come to an end and there was no more running from it, no more avoiding their responsibility. They had matters to attend to, people to see and to discuss - people to punish.In order to place blame and punish anyone, there was a conversation to be had, precautions they needed to take. And so, for better or for worse, Liviana and Blaze sat down and got to work.At least, they tried to. But it turned out to be something much easier said than done, and even Blaze found himself struggling to strike up the conversation.The two sat quietly, the surrounding air packed with the tension of all those things that have gone unsaid. Questions, answers, accusations, and everything in between.Yet, despite the lingering words lost between them, neither could seem t
The night that started off as slow was anything but the moment her emotions started to roll. What started off as questionary, awkward, soon turned into something worse, something vulnerable. And that was her undoing.Livi hated it. Hated the feeling, the way it all unraveled, how she let it. She hated it so much that she began to feel as though she preferred the tension to the sensitivity, almost wanting to cling to it like some sort of shield, as if that could protect her from what was coming, what needed to be said, done.Of course, it couldn't. It all came crumpling down before she had so much as a chance to harvest it, use it. And then, just like that, she found herself back in his arms, the one place she shouldn't be, exactly where she didn't deserve to be.Being held by him was a luxury she almost couldn't afford. The safety he offered her, the comfort and the understanding, the pure kindness that came with the action of being wrapped up in his essence, was nearly too much. Much
One night.It was a deal Liviana made with herself, intending to enjoy the last bit of her husbands whiskey before climbing into the bed she prayed she would never have to leave - the outside world was just too dreadful and she couldn't handle the thought of having to face it again. So, for as long as she was allowed to, she was going to avoid it. She was going to crawl into bed and hide under the covers, and wait for the moment she could retreat into the world of her dreams.Fortunately, that moment was forced to wait when her husband decided to join her. He had strutted into the room with that sour question, "are you okay?" And in all honesty, she wasn't. She knew it, and he knew it too. He knew because he was just as exhausted as she was, just as miserable. And nothing sounded better than to drown in it with her by his side, washing down the bitter taste with a glass of whiskey and letting the sound of her voice drown out his woes. It was the perfect ending to a perfectly awful day
"You owe me."The words ring loudly in her head like some kind of siren, a warning and a reminder of her worst mistakes. And it was all because of one stupid party.Little Livi's heart drops and she's leaping toward her sister once again at the feeling, latching onto the older girl who offers a sense of safety despite her earlier harshness.Emilia is quick to return the sentiment, her free hand coming to rest over Liviana's that holds tightly onto her arm. She pulls her closer, the two taking a swift step back as she does so."Oh, my God- Dad!" Emilia gasps, wide eyes locking onto her dad's dark ones. She could already see it in there. The way the cogs spun in his brain, the anger that lurked beneath the green, something that she was sure was doing nothing more than fueling on some ridiculous plan, some way to spin this in his favor.Of course, she was right."What's going on here?" Alonzo questions, eyes bouncing between the two teenaged girls with a cold, calculating gaze. It was sh
The sound of the alarm blared loudly through the home, the sisters practically jumping out of their skin at the sound."The hell is that?" Liviana complains, hand moving to grip at her at the side of her head, where the throbbing only gets worse. The noise wasn't helping her haze at all."I don't know," Emilia murmurs, head twisting and turning in an attempt to catch the cause of the sound. She couldn't see anything out of place or hear a sound aside from the ringing of the security system echoing through the deserted halls."Whatever it is, make it stop!"The sound of her sister's whines has Emilia huffing, rolling her eyes at the show of her mess of priorities. "No," she replies simply, watching as the girl's face twists in confusion at the response."Why not?!" The pout resting on her lips was almost priceless, looking like a little kid who had just been told that they couldn't have their way. "It's loud, and- and it hurts! And worse? It's annoying!""It is." Emilia doesn't disagre
Creeping in through the window was a task that she could hardly handle sober, but after all those drinks she downed, she couldn't do it with her best effort."Livi- Livi!" Emilia whisper-shouts, hauling the girl up from the floor when she takes a tumble through the frame, nearly landing on her face from such a fall. "Hey, are you okay?"For a second, she's quiet, not speaking a word as her sister drags her to her feet, only huffing and puffing as she goes. Then, finally, she nods. "Yeah," she breathes, and all Emilia can do is frown. She wasn't convinced."Are you sure?" She asks, concern written across her face as she reaches out to touch her sister's, gently pushing the dark hair out of her eyes to get a better look at her. "You hit the ground pretty hard-""Fine- it's fine," she says, brushing it off with a small laugh. "I'm fine!"From behind her, Tino scoffs. "You don't sound fine." He couldn't help but disagree.Emilia hums, hating to agree with their brother - more so, hating t
"Alonzo?"The sound of his knuckles knocking harshly on the wood echoes loudly through the vacant hallway, startling Liviana, who lingers behind her husband, with its volume."You don't have to break it down, you know?" She mumbles the warning to her husband, who doesn't even spare her a glance. Instead, he does it again, his knuckles bouncing off the door even harsher this time than it had the last."Open up! We know you're in there!"A sigh can be heard on the other side, accompanied by some shuffling."We can hear you, you little-""Dad?" Livi calls out to him softly, cutting off her husband's shouts of anger and nudging him aside as she does so. "Are you okay in there?" She asks, pressing a hand and an ear to the door. "We know you're there, okay? We can hear you, and we need you to open up.""What for?" Alonzo calls after a beat of silence passes between the three. "I'm busy!""Oh, yeah? With what?" Blaze presses, banging his fist against the wood over his wife's head, causing th
"What is he doing here?"Liviana is met with the question the second she slips into the room, her footsteps faltering at the sound. The raven spins around, eyes catching on her husband, who sits in the darkened corner of their bedroom. "Oh- Blaze," she breathes out his name, pressing a hand to her chest at the suddenness of his question. She hadn't expected him to be here, waiting. If anything, she thought he would have left - ran. "You scared me," Livi mutters, sighing at the thought. "Again..."This time, Blaze doesn't bother with an apology, instead, he pushes for an answer. "Well?" He asks, repeating the question. "What's he doing here?""I..." Liviana trails, clicking the door shut behind her and venturing slowly inside, hating to admit that she hadn't asked. The feeling of her husband's prying eyes pulls the disappointing answer from her before she has a chance to think of something better, shrugging as she says, "I don't know yet."Hearing this, Blaze frowns, repeating the answ
"Well, here we are!" Liviana announces, pausing outside of the closed door and pulling the man to a stop. "Your new bedroom," she says, cracking the door open and insisting he take a look for himself. "What do you think?""Wow," Luka mutters, strolling inside with a hum and a quick look around. "Nice place you've got here, Liv. Looks like it's fit for a king."She couldn't help but chuckle at his words. "Because it is," she tells, reminding the man of who it was built for. And Blaze Castelli would accept nothing but the best for himself and his wife. They deserved a nice place to call their home, and he made sure that that's exactly what they got. She could see the irritation flash across his face at the reminder, and she has to refrain from sighing as she switches from what seemed to be a sensitive topic. "So... do you like it?"Luka shrugs, eyes cast away from her own as he scans the bedroom he deemed his own. "Yeah," he answers after a moment of wonder. "I think that I do.""You th