87 • A Complicated Family

◆ LORENZIO ◆

As I put on clean clothes, messy and dark thoughts spun in my head, pushing me to step out of the bathroom and confront our issues.

The rest of the house stayed quiet. Alarmingly silent.

We'd be having dinner alone in a few. The food Mykaela thoughtfully prepared was just waiting downstairs.

Darn. I had to fix this now. Another stupid fight about her stalker and her manipulative older brother was definitely not the prelude our long-overdue dinner date indoors needed.

I let out a sigh. I sat alone on the edge of the bed, my fist and gut clenching, the dimness offering no comfort. My heart skipped a beat when I found her buried under the sheets.

Covered from head to toe. Lying on her side. Fetal position. Sniveling. Mykaela wiped her tears off with a handkerchief, crying to herself and not quite trying to hide it.

Everything inside me twisted into tight knots. My chest felt heavy. Tired. Like the rest of me.

Logic and past traumas told me I shouldn't give in—but I ju