Olivia's P.O.V.

The house is quiet as Jack pushes my wheelchair inside. The familiar scent of home wraps around me, but something feels off. I can't quite put my finger on it until I hear a voice-one that instantly sets my teeth on edge.

Her voice.

It's her.

I pause, my fingers tightening on the armrests of the chair as my eyes flicker toward the dining room. I don't even have to see her fully to know who it is. That voice. The one that always manages to sound so sweet and innocent, the one that never fails to make me feel small and insignificant.

Meloni Hernandez.

Sitting at the dining table, her perfect posture and exaggerated gestures screaming for attention. Her dark hair cascades over her shoulders like she just stepped out of a salon, and she's grinning as she talks, her eyes sparkling with feigned excitement. The sight of her makes my blood boil.

My fists clench tightly in my lap, my nails digging into my palms as I glare at her. She doesn't notice me yet, too busy basking in the attention she's getting from everyone. My jaw tightens, teeth gritting so hard I wouldn't be surprised if they cracked.

This overly good cousin of mine. Everyone seems to adore her, but to me, she's nothing more than a thorn in my side. She's always been good at pretending to be sweet, at playing the perfect girl, but I see through her. I always have.

I know her because Luna follows her private account on Instagram and she sends me everything this bitch is posting there. From close friend stories to her posts. Everything. So, I know her fully.

Jack continues to push me forward, but I can't tear my eyes away from the scene.

"Olivia," Jack's voice pulls me out of my thoughts as he pushes my wheelchair closer to the dining room. I barely register his words. My glare remains fixed on Meloni.

I'm filled with this strange, almost suffocating sense of anger.

Why is she here ?

What she needs now ?

As we reach the dining room, all eyes shift toward us, and I feel the weight of everyone's gaze. I swear, their eyes soften.

Hazel's face lights up, when she sees me, and I hear her voice, warm and welcoming. "We all were actually waiting for you only," she says, her eyes shine with something like relief, but I barely register it.

I force a small smile, nodding politely, though my mind is still racing with thoughts of Meloni. My eyes move to William, and I can't stop myself from asking, in the coldest voice I can muster,

"What is she doing here ?"

The words leave my mouth like ice, the familiar chill creeping back into my tone. It's the same tone I used to have before everything fell apart, before I was suddenly here, stuck in this chair, fighting my own thoughts and feelings.

A slight frown etches on almost everyone's face.

I can feel Meloni's gaze on me, even without looking directly at her. Her eyes burn with something-disdain ? Annoyance ? I don't care. I don't care.

William sighs, his shoulders slumping a little. "Her parents are out of town, and they didn't want her to be alone."

I scoff, the sound bitter and almost mocking. "And I thought we were on a family trip."

Before anyone can respond, Meloni opens her mouth, eager to stir things up. "I'm also family, Olivia, if you're forgetting."

My lips curl into a thin, unimpressed line, and I don't even spare her a glance.

I just don't even want to look at her.

My eyes stay focused straight ahead, ignoring the challenge in her voice, the way she seems to thrive on causing tension. "You are just a relative, Meloni. Not family. If you are forgetting."

She gasps.

But I don't care.

I don't look at her, not once. My gaze is fixed, unflinching. I can feel her fuming beside me, her annoyance practically radiating, but I'm beyond caring.

"Olivia, what the hell-"

"Its truth, Meloni. I was tolerating you just because you were my Da- Mr. Hernandez's favourite. Now as he is not here, I am not going to tolerate you anymore."

She scoffs and leans forward, "You're just jealous, Olivia. It's pathetic."

I don't even flinch. My voice remains calm, too calm, like ice cutting through the warmth of a summer day. "Jealous? Of you ?" I say, the words dripping with sarcasm. "Please. You're not even worth being jealous of."

Meloni's face twists with fury, but I still don't look at her. I don't need to. I already know how she's looking at me, how her eyes narrow with anger. Her attempts to rile me up only make me feel more satisfied, more in control. She's not going to win. Not this time.

"Wow, Olivia," she says, her tone laced with mock hurt. "Do you always have to be so rude ? No wonder you're on this wh-"

"OK ENOUGH" William's reaction is immediate, and it's terrifying in its calmness. His voice cuts through the air like a whip-sharp, stern, and controlled.

"Enough. Meloni" He says, his tone cold enough to send a shiver down my spine. I glance at him, my chest tightening as I see the look on his face. His jaw is clenched, his eyes blazing with anger, but not the kind that comes with yelling or wild gestures. No, it's worse.

He's glaring at Meloni, his gaze cold and unwavering, the kind of glare that makes you want to shrink into yourself and disappear. His fists are clenched at his sides, the tension in his shoulders obvious, but he doesn't raise his voice again. He doesn't need to. The weight of his words and the fury in his eyes say everything he doesn't.

"Enough of this discussion." He grits his teeth.

I steal a glance around the room and notice my other brothers. Ethan looks like he's barely holding himself together, his fists tight on the table. Jack and Mason both wear matching expressions of quiet fury, their jaws set in stone. Michael frowns, his eyebrows drawn together as he stares at her.

Meanwhile, Noah-well, he's the only one not looking at anyone. He's glaring at his plate, his fists clenched so tightly around the fork that his knuckles turn red.

"Willyy" I sigh at her thin crying like a squeak.

Drama begins. Good.

I watch as William narrows his eyes at her.

"You guys won't see me as your family, now ?" She asks in a small voice.

I don't look at her, but I bet there's a pout on her face.

I see William's tense shoulders relax slightly as he lets out a slow sigh.

I glance at my other brothers, watching as they exchange slightly uncomfortable looks. My chest tightens, but I keep my expression neutral. I want to know what they'll say. Will they defend her ? Take her side ?

Before anyone could say anything, Sophia coughs slightly, gaining everyone's attention, "Why are we even talking right now, guys ? It's been late. We should have dinner."

Her voice cheerful and everyone nod their heads.

I roll my eyes but stay quiet as the topic is successfully changed.

"Olivia, let's go in your room" Hazel smiles at me, "I'll take your food to your room."

I open my mouth to agree, but then something inside me snaps. I wasn't the one to stay in the background anymore. I wasn't the one to be sidelined.

"I want to eat here," I blurt out, the words slipping out before I can even think about them.

Their heads snap towards me and I can see their faces light up, their expressions softening, the surprise evident in their eyes. They're happy.

Everyone except Meloni.

She is also one of the reason, I am here siting with my family. I just don't want her alone with my brothers.

"Wow ... First time, I am impressed with your decision, little sister." Michael grins at me.

I roll my eyes at that but a small smile remains at my face.

Mason immediately stands up and pulls my chair beside him and says, "From now on, you are going to sit beside me, like old times."

I smile at him slightly and softly.

I look around the dining room. The only things I saw in my family's eyes are proudness and happiness.

They're proud of me? Like, just because I said I'd sit with them at dinner, they're happy?

And here I was, overthinking that they'd laugh at me.

My eyes meet Noah's. His gaze softens, but in the next second, he looks away, shifting his focus to his empty plate.

I frown. Did something happen to him ?

This isn't the first time our eyes met, and he immediately broke eye contact.

The others are trying to apologize, but he hasn't even looked me in the eye properly.

Is he angry ? No, why would he be ?

Should I apologize ?

No, no, no... why should I ? He's the one who should apologize, not the other way around.

<<°>>~<<°>>

"I can do this, you know," I mumble softly.

Hazel chuckles. "I know, but I want to." She smiles while massaging my legs with oil.

"And besides, we want to ask you so many things about today," William chimes in. "Like, How did your day go with Jack ?"

I shrug, my eyes not leaving Hazel's hands as they massage my legs.

"We talked."

"About?"

About many things, William. He made me realize that I have my fair share of mistakes in our fucked-up relationship. He made me realise that your caring for me now isn't out of pity, but out of love. Maybe that's why I found the courage in front of Meloni. Maybe because now I have the assurance that they won't leave me.

Before today, I never realized my mistakes. Because of Jack, I got a reality check-

A sudden thought crosses my mind as I turn my head toward William.

"William."

"Hmm?" he says, looking at me.

"Umm... did you ever feel angry with me for something? I mean, I wasn't a saint before, so... did you ever feel disappointed or maybe hurt by me?"

He frowns, looking into my eyes before he sighs and says in a calm tone, "Why are you thinking about the past again, Olivia? Let it go-"

"No, William, please, I want to know," I insist.

He looks at Hazel, who is already watching us worriedly. She immediately shakes her head, thinking I didn't notice.

"Please, William... Today, Jack made me realize that I'm at fault too-I mean, I was rude-"

"What did Jack tell you?" he asks, raising an eyebrow as his face turns serious.

I sigh. "William, that doesn't matter. I'm just saying that I wasn't a saint. I did some things I shouldn't have done-"

"But that was the past, Olivia. Let's not talk about it now," he sighs softly.

"I'm not talking about that, William. If you're scared that I'm blaming myself for something, don't worry, I'm not doing that. It's just... I-I want to know at what point you felt hurt or maybe disappointed because of me?"

William scans my face and sighs. "I was never disappointed in you, Olivia... NEVER. Angry? Yes. But disappointed? No. Never. I was angry when you turned a blind eye while we were showing you Lucas's true colors. I was angry when you chose to turn a deaf ear when we were telling you to break up with him. At that moment, Olivia, I was angry at you. Angry for not listening to me."

I look down immediately and mumble, "So-"

"Shut up," he interrupts. My head snaps toward him. "I told you, all these things are in the past, and if you're going to apologize for them now, then we're not talking... Good night."

"No... No... I am sorry-I mean, I won't apologize," I immediately say.

He nods his head. "Good."

"What about hurt? Did you ever feel hurt by me?"

William scans my eyes again and sighs. "Not hurt, Olivia. I was a little bit upset, but never hurt."

I narrow my eyes and look at him curiously.

"When?"

He sighs again. "When I saw how rudely Andrew, Amelia, and you were talking to Hazel. I wasn't expecting anything good from them, but I thought you would accept her. But then, it was my fault for not assuring you that my love for you would always remain the same, even after Hazel came into my life. I should have known that you would feel insecure. Maybe then, it would have all been fine. As an elder, it's my duty to be available for everyone, to love everyone the same, but I got lost."

I lift my hand and gently wipe away the lone tear that falls freely from his eye. His beard prickles my skin, but I don't care.

I turn toward Hazel, only to see her wiping her own tears.

"What about you, Hazel? I was so rude to you back then. But in return, I never received any anger from you. All I got was love and care. Why? You never even raised your voice at me," I mumble softly.

"That's because I love you, Olivia. And I understood what you were going through at that time. I could never be angry at you-heck, I could never get angry at any of you." She ruffles my hair with a smile on her face.

"That's not good, Hazel. You should start getting angry at them..." William grumbles. "You're spoiling them."

Hazel rolls her eyes. "They are just kids, Will. They'll be fine."

"No, Jack is NOT a kid, Haz. You can't just go behind my back and give him the key to his car," William scoffs.

I frown. What are they talking about?

"What are you guys talking about?"

"It's nothing, but your brother is being mean-" Hazel is cut off mid-sentence by William.

"Mean, Hazel? Seriously?" He looks at her in disbelief and then turns toward me. "Olivia, I'll tell you what happened. I caught Jack sneaking out of the house at 2:00 am, so I grounded him for a week, taking his keys and electronics. But this lady here just gave him his keys back," he explains.

My eyes widen at that. Does he still give these kinds of punishments?

"Will, he wanted to go out with Olivia... that's why," Hazel shrugs.

"William, he's 21," I gasp. "And you're taking away his electronics and keys? That's so cheugy."

Hazel laughs out loud. "I know, right? That's the most cheugy thing he did."

William gapes at us, looking at both of us like he's deep in thought.

"Wait... first of all, 21 or 61, it doesn't matter. If you're sneaking out of the house without telling anyone, you're going to get punished. I don't care if you're someone's grandchild or someone's grandparent," he says, narrowing his eyes at us.

"And second, what does this chuugy mean?" He frowns in confusion.

"That's not 'chuugy,' it's 'cheugy,'" I correct him.

"Whatever... but you did call me that, so now I should know the meaning," he says, narrowing his eyes at us.

"That means you're uncool," Hazel says, biting her lip, trying to control her laughter.

"Why the hell are they inventing new words?" he scoffs, annoyed.

Hazel and I burst into laughter and high-five each other.

"Willyyyyy!" Our attention shifts to the door as a loud voice echoes.

I roll my eyes, already knowing who it is before I even look. Meloni. Of course. She comes sprinting into my room without so much as a knock, darting behind William like a child seeking refuge from an imaginary monster. Her eyes are wide, darting toward the doorway, giggles bubbling from her lips.

"S-Save meee!" she exclaims dramatically, her voice ringing with exaggerated fear.

Not a second later, Michael storms in, looking thoroughly in disbelief. His eyes scan the room until they land on Meloni, who is still peeking from behind William.

"Meloni, don't do this... Give me my phone," he demands, stepping in front of my bed, trying to sound serious or stern. But, I could definitely see the amusement in his eyes.

And that actually made my blood boil.

Meloni clutches Michael's phone tightly, her grin mischievous. "No way! What were you smiling at while texting, huh? Got a secret girlfriend or something?" she teases, waving the phone in the air and stepping back just as Michael lunges for it.

Michael rolls his eyes. "Shut up, Mel, give me back my phone."

I raise an eyebrow at him. Mel ??

I scoff and roll my eyes.

"Michael," I call him.

He looks over and smiles at me.

"Why don't you take your ass and your Mel out of my room?" I smile at him, fake.

He raises an eyebrow at me like he can see right through me, then suddenly smirks, making me glare at him.

He chuckles and turns to Meloni again, "Mel, give it to me, or once I catch you, you'll regret it."

The next moment, chaos ensues. Meloni darts around the room, with Michael hot on her heels. They start circling everything—the chair, the sofa, even William and me—creating a whirlwind of movement that makes my head spin.

I can feel irritation already creeping in.

Ugghh ! So much for the peace I was enjoying with Hazel and William.

Meloni laughs loudly, her energy seemingly endless. "I’ve got your secrets, Michael! What are you going to do now?" she taunts, ducking behind the sofa as Michael narrowly misses her.

Before I can stop myself, I say, looking to the other side of the room, "There’s no secret, we already met his girlfriend."

From my peripheral view, I see her head snap toward me.

"What?" I hear her gasp. "Mikeyyy... You have a girlfriend?"

Michael sighs and nods.

"You never told me you were in a relationship, Mikey," she says, looking at him with sad eyes.

I roll my eyes. What is she, his guardian ? Who is she to him ? Why the hell does he need to tell her ?

"I never told you because I'm not in a serious relationship... It's just a casual hook-up," he shrugs.

My eyes widen slightly. I thought they were in a serious relationship. I really wanted them to be together.

I sigh, looking down.

"Kids, leave it," Hazel says.

"No, Haz... I thought Michael was my best friend, but here I am, hearing such important news about my best friend's life from a third person. And that literally hurts me," she says, looking at Hazel.

I gasp at that. Best friend ? Third person ? Is she high ?

High on what ? Chocolate ? Because her saint-like image in front of my family wouldn’t allow her to bring drugs into my home.

I sit silently, my annoyance growing with every second. This was my moment, my room, my space with Hazel and William. And now, it’s a circus, thanks to Meloni. I don’t say anything, though. I just sit, hands clenching the phone that's in my hand, watching the chaos with a blank expression.

"That's not a big deal, Meloni," William interrupts. "Don't make it a big deal... They're not in a serious relationship, so he didn't find it necessary to mention it."

"But Will—"

"Meloni," William warns her sternly.

She immediately stops mid-sentence.

"And Olivia is your and his sister, not a third person," William says coldly.

I feel my lips twitch slightly at the mention of my name. Love you too, Liam.

"But she doesn't consider me her family... For her, I’m just a relative," she folds her arms, glaring at my side.

"I would never consider you my family... Do whatever you want," I roll my eyes and look at my phone.

"You-"

"And now, can you please take your and your best friend's asses out of my room ?" I grit my teeth. "I’m actually spending some quality time with my brother and my sister-in-law, before the pair of best friends decides to interrupt us."

I clench my jaw and look away, showing that I'm not appreciating their presence here.

"Olivia, that's rud—" Before she could say anything, Michael snatches his phone from her hand and leaves the room, screaming, "NEVER TAKE MY PHONE AGAIN!"

Meloni looks at me with something burning in her eyes but gulps immediately.

I frown in confusion. What’s with the sudden change in expression?

I glance at William, only to see him giving the same cold glare to her, and she’s scared of him.

I smirk as she stomps her foot and storms out of the room.

I promise, Meloni... This time, I won’t let you take anything that belongs to me here—whether it’s my place in this family or my brothers.

I smirk again, Welcome to the Hernandez Family, Meloni Hernandez.

To Be Continued...

I am sooooo* (♾️ times) SORRY... Even after promising for next update soon, I am as usual late ... So sorry, guys.

As a compensation, I will not ask you to give me votes and comments on this chapter...

Again sorry (busy with internship and work)

Thank you so so much for those who are still here on this book with me ... You are my Angels... Thank you 🥺✨.

Anyways, I know, I am late but Happy New Year, beautiful Humans ❤️🧿✨.

I will meet you guys soon till then stay safe, take care and Love yourself ❤️.

Byee Byee ... Luv ya 😘.

Published : 13 January 2025.

Total words : 3617 words 😁.