As a decent and organized person, I could force myself to get out of bed in the morning and make myself presentable, even with the greatest pain. Especially on school days. That's why when Monday came, when I was to cross the gates of the private high school, to which Vincent had sent me, for the first time I was ready to leave well ahead of time.

The uniform fit me like a glove. The khaki plaid skirt reached just above my knee, the tucked-in white shirt smelled of newness, and the stiff dark blazer weighed down dignifiedly on my shoulders. I kept glancing at my right breast, where the school's logo was embroidered on the pocket. On my feet, I had patent shoes and long white knee socks. I couldn't get used to the fact that I looked like all those characters from books and TV shows about rich kids in private academies. However, the thought occurred to me that I preferred reading about them rather than embodying them myself. In this version, I just felt uneasy.

I longed to put on something familiar, something that would remind me that I was still the same person, Hailie. I started looking around the wardrobe for such an item, but the uniform was so complete that any accessories would be unnecessary. That's when my eyes fell on the box of earrings from my mom. I slowly reached for them, opened it, and stared at the two shiny hearts.

Will, who knocked on my door to wake me up, snapped me out of my reverie. He acknowledged my self-discipline with surprise and approval, then approached me and glanced over my shoulder at the treasure I held in my hand.

"Beautiful."

"From mom," I whispered. It cost me a lot to hold back tears. They liked to appear in my eyes at moments like this, completely unexpectedly. And I didn't want to go to school with a puffy face.

"Why don't you wear them?"

"She wouldn't let me. I guess she was afraid I was too young and would lose them." I smiled slightly.

"So why did she give them to you?" Will raised an eyebrow.

"She didn't give them to me. I found them myself a few years ago while playing in her room. She was a bit angry with me. She gave me a long lecture about rummaging through other people's things."

"She hid them from you?" Will was intrigued. Oh, how nice his voice was, so gentle and calm. It brought me the comfort I needed, especially that stressful morning. I also liked his sincere but non-intrusive interest.

"She bought them for me on the occasion of my birth, but she wanted to give them to me only when I was of legal age. As a symbolic gift, you know. She liked such things."

"I understand." Will nodded and thoughtfully stared at my earrings. "Would you like to wear them now?"

I hesitated.

"Hm... I think... I think not," I whispered, and after confirming this decision, I closed the box and placed it on the shelf in the wardrobe. "I really wouldn't want to lose them, so maybe better not."

Will patted my shoulder, showing that he supported my decision. I know it's just a matter of stupid earrings, but that gesture gave me courage.

Then he sent me to the kitchen, where, with a headband in my hair and a sparkle in my eye, I ate breakfast when Shane joined me. In contrast, he was tousled and groggy, with the tie of his uniform hanging loosely around his shoulders, not yet tied. I noticed that he gave me a long look but didn't comment on my appearance, so different from his own. He was clearly not in the best mood; he sighed loudly, impatiently waiting for the coffee machine to work.

Next down the stairs into the kitchen rolled Tony. Without a doubt, he won the contest for the grumpier twin. He hadn't even tucked his shirt into his pants, not to mention that he had misplaced his tie. He didn't even look at me or bother to respond to my hoarse "hi." Not that I had a great desire to greet him myself, especially after overhearing a conversation the previous evening. I knew I had upset him and suspected he would ignore me, but what could I say – my mom raised me to be polite.

The same couldn't be said about him. For the first time, I started thinking about my brothers' childhood. Our shared father apparently died a few years ago in an accident, and although I felt great dislike for this man, I began to wonder what kind of parent he was to his sons. Then I went a step further and tried to imagine what their mother might have been like. I was very curious, but unfortunately, I couldn't imagine ever daring to ask any of them a question about her.

I thought about it that way and inadvertently caught Tony's eye, because when I awoke, he was already sitting at the table and glared at me - wrinkling his eyebrows grimly, his tattooed hand tossing handfuls of cinnamon breakfast cereal into his bowl.

"What?" I asked, reaching the heights of my confidence.

I wasn't supposed to mess with him, but I didn't want him to think he could intimidate me with one stupid look. Even if it was true. Besides, between the two of us, he was the one seething with hostility.

"What a bullshit," he murmured. 

How mature.

He effectively silenced me because, although I knew a few comebacks I could use in this situation, I didn't want to bicker with him, not when he wasn't doing it for fun. Evidently, I seriously irritated him. It hurt me a bit, I won't hide it, but I tried to tell myself to ignore him. After all, at this point in my life, I had much more serious reasons to be sad.

"Don't talk to her like that," Will scolded him.

He had just entered the kitchen to hear our brief exchange. I was glad he joined us because I felt the safest and most comfortable in his presence. Although at this moment, he looked quite stern, but that was only because he was giving Tony a serious look.

Shortly after, Dylan also came to the kitchen, surprisingly energetic compared to the twins. He was also already dressed in his uniform, but water was still dripping from his hair, and when he started making himself a protein shake, I guessed he had already done his morning workout, and I have to admit, I was a bit impressed by his motivation. Maybe I would have asked him about it if I wasn't sure he would respond in an unfriendly way. 

Just like Tony, he didn't like me very much, and it was noticeable.

For this reason, I was glad that I was going to school with Shane in his car. That shiny, bright navy blue one that looked like it was straight out of a racing movie. Inside, there were only two seats, and I wasn't too upset that Tony and Dylan didn't fit. They probably weren't either because Tony, with visible pleasure, started his impressive motorcycle, which both intrigued and frightened me. With such a machine, my teenage brother could easily join a motorcycle gang, and who knows, maybe he did belong to one. I wouldn't be surprised at all. Despite my dislike for Tony, an intriguing image of him was beginning to form in my head.

The boys overtook us without any fuss as soon as we left the Monet property. The straight, forest-lined, rarely used road begged for speeding, and even I felt it, even though I'm not a big fan of fast driving. That's why I was holding on to the seatbelt running across my chest, waiting for Shane to press the gas pedal, which didn't happen. The car was rolling steadily at an ordinary speed, and the engine occasionally purred impatiently. Shane kept his hands loosely on the steering wheel, and I stared straight ahead. I noticed a large, elegant, sprawling script on the dashboard, "Lamborghini."

Okay, I was sitting in a sports car of the Lamborghini brand, and even I knew that many car enthusiasts would give a kidney to be in my place. The car's interior shone with the highest elegance – the seats were leather and ash-black, in the center, right at the dashboard, there was a touch screen where Shane was shuffling music and turning on the air conditioning, although in my opinion, it wasn't so warm that we needed it.

"Idiots," he muttered, watching the silhouettes of our brothers on the motorcycle, disappearing far ahead of us.

"Couldn't you catch up with them? In such a car?" I asked, more interested in starting any conversation with him than in the capabilities of his car.

"Maybe I could catch up, I don't know." He shrugged and glanced at me cautiously. "And you don't have any trauma or something?"

Oh, so that's what he was getting at. I frowned, seriously considering it because, after all, he asked a pretty good question.

"It's not speed that killed my mom. It was a drunk driver." 

Shane nodded, and I thought it would make him speed up. Not that I cared so much about catching up with Dylan and Tony, but I wanted him to feel comfortable around me and act naturally. However, that didn't happen, and his explanation was as follows: 

"Vince told me to be extra careful when driving with you." 

The smile that appeared on my face was one of the most forced ones that had ever graced it. 

Soon, however, another part of his statement caught my attention, and I focused on it. 

"So Vince is legally your guardian too?" 

"No, he just likes to give orders." 

"But you and Tony aren't eighteen yet, right?" 

I pretended that this had just occurred to me. 

"Right." 

"So who is responsible for you then?" I asked directly. 

I hoped I wasn't making a huge faux pas. Shane was staring at the road from under his brows, but it didn't seem to be a reaction to my nosiness, as – I noted – he had been frowning like that all morning. 

"Uncle Monty." 

His laconic answers were starting to tire me, and this time I didn't intend to press him further, though I had no idea who this person could be. Surprisingly, Shane miraculously caught himself and explained: 

"Dad's brother. But he rarely visits us. Sometimes he helps Vince with the business, and that's it. He's our guardian only on paper; he doesn't interfere in our lives." 

"So, in reality, you're responsible for yourselves?" 

"In reality, Vince interferes with everything, but yeah, we have a lot of freedom. Thank goodness, because if he were to be my guardian, I think I'd lose it." 

I looked to the side at the dense forests lining the road, scrolling by like a film reel. This state seemed to be made entirely of trees, I swear. 

"I mean," Shane spoke up again after a moment, perhaps realizing the blunder he made. "I mean, you know, it's different with you. I've known him my whole life; he's always been an annoying older brother to me, so it would be weird if he suddenly became my guardian. Dad knew that too, which is why... that was his... will. For Uncle Monty to have the authority. In reality, it was known that we'd stay at home with Vince and the rest." 

"How was that known?" 

Shane glanced at me, frowning. 

"Well... we're family, right? We stick together." 

"Right," I whispered. 

"But you don't have anything to worry about." 

"Don't I?" I muttered, unusually interested, because I could write a long book about the things I was currently worried about. 

"Vince may have a ton of brothers, but he lacks experience with sisters. Especially younger ones. So I think he won't be as mean to you as he is to us." 

I approached Shane's theory, though interesting, with some skepticism due to the strictness I had encountered from Vincent so far. Soon, however, my entire attention was absorbed by the sight of the faded walls of Northeast Pennsylvania Academy. 

First, I saw the sign with the school's name, and my stomach shrank miserably. From nerves, my hands not only started to sweat but also trembled, and I tucked them under my thighs to make sure Shane wouldn't notice.Here on the road was a designated lane for cars turning into the school. A queue of cars formed on it, which must have been normal at this time, shortly before classes started. However, the queue moved efficiently, and I craned my neck to see as much as possible. 

Shane, on the other hand, impatiently drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, looking out the side window without excitement.Although my brother's car undoubtedly reigned supreme in terms of its elite status, as far as I could tell, there were no ugly cars here at all. 

I was particularly amazed because, while I understood that some of the drivers were parents dropping off their children, I also spotted many teenagers – people only slightly older than me – who were behind the wheels of such beauties that many hardworking adults couldn't afford. 

That's when I roughly understood what kind of school I was about to attend and asked myself a simple but important question. 

How will I fit in here? 

The queue formed because of a barrier. To pass it, you had to use a personal document, presumably issued by the school. After scanning it through the machine, the barrier lifted automatically. When it was Shane's turn, he pulled his card from the door pocket, and after a moment, we entered my new school's grounds. 

My brother turned the wheel lazily, maneuvering among other students with boredom. They seemed to step aside for the blue Lamborghini. I stopped fidgeting and looking around, but rather clung to the back of my seat, hoping it would swallow me up and I wouldn't have to face this dreadful day.I already noticed the first signs of interest in me. People first glanced at the well-known car, then at the equally well-known Shane, and finally, they fixed their gazes on me. I avoided any eye contact with any of them because I sensed an unhealthy curiosity in them. Or maybe I only perceived it as unhealthy for the simple reason that I had never before been the subject of such heightened attention. 

Shane parked in a spot where Tony's bike was already standing. Although other free spaces were filling up quickly, this one seemed to be waiting for him. These must have been the regular spots for the Monet brothers. Nearby was a side entrance to the school, and right next to it was a low wall, against which Tony, Dylan, and a few other boys were already leaning. I guessed they gathered here every morning. 

I also got a share of curious looks from this group. 

Before I got out of the car, I took a deep breath. Well, at least I could always count on Tony's indifference. He was the only one looking at me as if I were a ghost. 

"Oh, look, the famous Monet sister has arrived." 

The comment came from one of the boys. He threw me a mocking smile, which I noticed before I shyly lowered my eyes to the asphalt, slinging my bag over my shoulder. Because everyone here wore identical uniforms, my brothers' crew appeared to me as clones. At first glance, they all looked the same. Two of them had darker skin, and one had hair as white as flour, but those were the only differences between them. 

"Hey," Dylan snapped at him, suddenly oddly on edge. "Don't talk to her." 

"Okay, okay, sorry." The boy shrugged and turned away from me, showing that he didn't care to talk to me. 

This sharp reaction from my brother surprised me a bit, but I quickly guessed that Dylan simply wasn't keen on introducing me to his friends. Honestly, I didn't feel comfortable standing there with them, pretending to be one of them. They were all boys, older than me. Moreover, they exuded an intimidating aura of school stars, which I really didn't want to intrude upon.In my old school, there were also a few more popular groups. I guess that's just how schools are, with always some people being more interesting and liked than others. Usually, these are kids with a bit more pocket money, allowing them to afford nice clothes. 

However, being popular in this particular academy seemed to me an oddly unsettling achievement. As far as I had observed, most of the students here, if not all, came from wealthy families. Money didn't impress anyone here.Unless someone had so much of them that they drove a sports Lamborghini to school. As a girl from a simple family, living a simple life until now, I never thought that wealth had its levels. Some people are just well off, and there are those who have obscene amounts of money. 

I was slowly beginning to understand that my brothers apparently belonged to the latter, and it still all seemed like a dream to me.

"Hailie, do you hear me? I'm saying you should go to the secretary's office, preferably that way," Shane instructed, snapping me out of my reverie. Both he and his friends, and even Dylan and Tony, were now looking at me. "You'll get your schedule and such there. Introduce yourself and they'll sort everything out for you."

I looked in the direction Shane's hand was pointing. I didn't quite understand how to get there, but I already started heading that way, wanting to separate from the brothers as soon as possible. For a moment, I still felt the gazes of other people on me, but when I disappeared around the corner of the building, I felt a moment of respite as people stopped paying attention to me. However, I knew that the lack of attention was only due to the temporary ignorance that this ordinary girl was the lost sister of the Monet brothers.

I reached the secretary's office without any problems and without needing to ask strangers for help, which I particularly wanted to avoid. It crossed my mind that if my brothers were more friendly, they would have shown me the way themselves, but if being in their company meant always being under the scrutiny of stares, maybe it was better that their behavior lacked such courtesies.

The local secretary's office was very different from the one at my old school. Somehow, the staff managed to maintain relative order here, while at my previous high school, the secretaries tried to convince everyone that it was impossible due to the amount of paperwork they had to handle every day. Here, evidently, they had a better system or stricter discipline, because every file and every binder had its place, and the dark brown furniture combined with light walls added seriousness and neatness to the room.

I approached the desk where the secretary was sitting. She was sipping coffee from a mug decorated with pink flamingos and typing something on a computer whose monitor was out of my sight. I introduced myself politely, to which I received more looks from everyone present in the room who heard my quiet voice. I was glad that at least the school staff tried to be professional, as I was ultimately served in the most ordinary way and wished a successful first day of school with a smile.

It was in this secretary's office that I gained hope that maybe I would be treated normally here. The students were very curious about me, but that's usually how it is when someone joins a month and a half after the school year starts. Especially in a small school like this. You don't have to be the lost sister of popular brothers to attract attention.

The instructions I received from the secretary were so clear that I had no trouble finding the classroom for my first class. The corridors were well marked, and the building itself was not a labyrinthine complex like my old school, where every new person felt lost.

I was reading my schedule and had to concentrate because things got complicated. The layout was very different from what I was used to in England. I stood outside the classroom and stared at one of the many sheets I received, neatly packed in a cardboard folder with the school logo, which seemed to be stamped everywhere. That's when the first person spoke to me.

A girl named Tanya, petite and wearing rectangular violet glasses that rested on her long, straight nose. I let her look at my schedule because she was curious if we had more classes together besides the upcoming French lesson. Then another girl joined us, with whom I had math in the second period, and then another, and yet another.

"So it's true that you lived in England?"

"You can even tell from her accent. By the way, it's wonderful!"

"And how was the move? It must have been so difficult to suddenly move your whole life to another continent..."

"How do you like it here?"

"Hey, by the way, I'm also half-English, I often visit London, I have family there, you know..."

I tried to catch all the questions and respond appropriately. Soon I was literally surrounded. The girls were talking over each other like market vendors. Some introduced themselves to me, and in the end, I didn't remember any names except Tanya's, only because she was the first to approach me. My memory wasn't helped by the fact that all the girls looked the same to me because of their identical outfits, just like my brothers' friends. Their hair, figures, facial features, and skin color somehow didn't matter to my brain – only the black blazers, shirts, and plaid skirts did.

"Wait, do you live with the Monet brothers now?" one of them asked.

"Stupid question," another scolded her. "You saw she arrived with Shane."

Fortunately, before the girls could insult each other or delve too deeply into my relationships with my older siblings, which would have been very awkward for me to discuss, the bell rang. At least that was something my old school had in common with this new one. Bells signaling the start and end of classes.

That was probably where the similarities ended. The classrooms were larger than those at my old high school, and the student groups less numerous. The curiosity of the teachers barely yielded to that of the students, and in each class, they asked me to introduce myself publicly. I expected that the first day wouldn't pass without this form of self-presentation, so I had a few banal sentences rehearsed, which I repeated over and over until I was bored.

"Well, we'll see if you can save the Monet family's reputation," joked Mr. Dalton, the English teacher, a young man who was typically joking and seemed to be liked by most of the school. He was also not unattractive, rather short, and some girls even gave him flirtatious looks, which he ignored with full professionalism.

I immediately liked Mrs. Roberts, who made a good impression from the start as the type of teacher I favored – she seemed understanding, warm, and very calm, and every word she said sounded pleasant, making listening to her talk about photosynthesis almost therapeutic. Besides, I also sensed that I had the potential to become her favorite. Today, I was still quiet and shy, but if I had to point out something I was good at, it would definitely be learning.

The first truly awkward situation I found myself in came during the lunch break. I reached the cafeteria, which surprised me with its spaciousness and a high glass wall that overlooked the colorful crowns of densely planted Pennsylvania trees. A golden autumn glow was seeping in, coloring the dining area.

While everyone seemed to swarm around me during breaks, when I most needed a companion now, suddenly everyone was busy with their own groups of friends. I was beginning to accept that I would either have to unceremoniously join someone's table or find a secluded, deserted spot to eat alone. The latter option particularly discomforted me because I soon noticed the crowded corner, which was evidently the regular spot for the Monet brothers. Of course, I would never join them for anything, but I didn't want them to see me standing around, lost, alone, and unable to make simple friendly connections.

I felt relieved when my small problem solved itself because as I was served by one of the two active kitchen ladies and walked away from the counter with a tray full of food I didn't even want, a girl I had already seen a few times today approached me. She had said something to me earlier, but I no longer remembered what it was. I either had math or science with her.

"Hey, I just want to tell you..." she began, intertwining her hands in front of her and playing with her fingers, "that if you want, you can sit with us. Over there, at that table. If you want."

The stone that fell from my heart simultaneously triggered a smile on my face.

"Sure, I'd love to join you," I replied. "Thank you."

Mona, as my new friend introduced herself, led me to a table where another girl was already sitting. I greeted her politely, and we immediately struck up a conversation. It was the first meaningful conversation I managed to have today at this school. It was definitely easier for me to focus on two people than on half the school's population. The girls asked me about my impressions of the teachers and confirmed my assumptions about Mrs. Roberts' kindness and Mr. Dalton's sense of humor.

"Audrey is in love with him," Mona revealed, lowering her voice only a little, and the embarrassed friend gave her a strong nudge.

"You're silly," she muttered, and with a seemingly casual movement, she swept her long, straight hair forward. It was as straight and long as mine, but much thinner and so dark it was almost black, which contrasted sharply with her pale, cloud-colored skin. "I just like him because he's not a bore or a vindictive loser, like, for example, Coach Mendoza."

"Oh, he simply hates anyone who's not good at sports," Mona informed me matter-of-factly. "He even liked me until he calculated that I reported my period too often as an excuse."

"I hate sports, and in return, sports and Mendoza hate me," Audrey shrugged, resigned to her fate.

"Um, I think I don't really like sports either," I confessed, with a clear note of worry in my voice.

"Oh, come on, you have nothing to worry about!" Mona waved her hand, with silver bracelets dangling from her wrist. "Mendoza loves your brothers. Just the mention of the Monets makes his knees weak. There's so much admiration that it'll be enough for you just because of your last name, even if you're not good."

"Are they really that good?"

"The best."

"I've always wondered how Tony balances sports with smoking," Audrey mused aloud.

"Hey!" a boy called out, appearing at our table as if from nowhere. His copper hair reached past his ears and was slightly curly and very tousled. He had a round face with lots of freckles, and his almond-shaped eyes smiled at us even more warmly than his mouth. "Listen, I talked it over, and we can do the project for Roberts together."

"Great, problem solved," Mona concluded, then pointed at me with an open hand: "By the way, meet Hailie Monet."

I wanted to sigh at the sight of the change that came over the boy. He was stunned and blinked his eyes, suddenly strangely tense.

"Oh wow, I didn't notice you, sorry," he explained awkwardly and extended his hand to me. "Marshall. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise," I replied, tilting my head. I wondered why he was looking around so nervously.

"How's your first day going?" he asked.

"A lot of new stuff, but I think I just need to get into the swing of things and it will be fine."

"Cool. You know, with your last name, everything should go smoothly."

"Oh, come on, give her a break with the last name. The poor girl must feel pressured because of it," Audrey admonished them, for which I was grateful.

"Right, sorry."

"Okay, change of topic, are you sitting with us?" Audrey patted an empty chair next to her.

"Or with us?"

It was an overly friendly voice I didn't recognize at first. I probably needed some time to get used to the fact that I had brothers. The first thing I saw were Marshall's bulging eyes, staring at someone who had just snuck up behind me. Mona and Audrey also froze, and then I jumped and turned just in time to see Dylan placing his fingers on the back of my chair. It creaked as he shifted his muscular weight onto it, and his tie dangled in front of my face as he leaned forward slightly.

Marshall, Mona, and Audrey were silent, staring at him with open mouths, and my new friend turned an unhealthy pale.

"W-with you?" Marshall repeated, nervously scratching the back of his head.

Dylan shrugged.

"If you can't find another spot and are bothering the girls, we'd be happy to have you at our table."

We all turned our eyes to the Monet corner, where everyone was now glancing back at us. Some had bored expressions, others mocking ones. Shane and Tony's faces showed something in between.

I furrowed my brows and turned back to Dylan to talk some sense into him. This time I raised my head and tilted it slightly so his tie wouldn't wag in front of my mouth when I opened it.

"Nobody is bothering anyone here."

He glanced down at me, then raised his hand and patted me on the top of my head.

"Quiet, little sister."

I blinked, thrown off by his patronizing manner. I even turned back to my new friends and stared at them in disbelief for a few seconds before snapping out of it and turning my head back with a loud, irritated click of my tongue.

"I'm serious, do you hear me? Cut it out."

But he wasn't looking at me anymore. Instead, his gaze was boring into poor, innocent Marshall.

"So, what's it gonna be?"

"I have a place to sit," my new friend replied with clear tension in his voice. Then he looked at us, or rather at Mona and Audrey, and with feigned nonchalance said, "I'll be going now." Finally, he straightened up and said stiffly to Dylan, "But thanks for the offer."

My brother winked at him cheerfully.

"No problem."

As Marshall fled in an instant, Mona and Audrey sat quietly, clearly surprised by the course of the scene. I stared at the back of the departing boy, feeling in my mouth the sour taste of the consequences of this unnecessary commotion, until my brother, who was standing over me, touched my shoulder

"How's the first day, everything ok?"

I looked up at him. I wanted to say a ton of things to him at that moment, and none of them were by any means an answer to his question. Well, that turned out to be zero problem for him, because in fact he didn't even wait for it.

"By the way, Shane and I have after-school plans, so today you're going home in the car with Tony."

And again, not caring about my answer, he ruffled my hair, then waved at me and my new friends, walking away back to the Monet table.

I swear that for a moment I didn't even dare to look at them. The best thing I could do at that moment was to take a deep breath and try to rid my soul of all the negative feelings that came up during that brief scene. I was angry, powerless and a little humiliated as well. I corrected my hair, which had been disheveled by my brother. I stubbornly did not raise my eyes, sticking them into the food tray. I ordered myself fries and a salad. Now I imagined hurling them in Dylan's face.

"Ehm... So they really are your brothers," Audrey concluded.

I nodded, still tightening my lips and looking down.

Unfortunately, I thought to myself. Because no one will want to hangout with a girl who has such brothers. And the first days at the new school were hard enough for me, really. I didn't need additional obstacles to making friends.

"It's scary to sit with you," joked Mona, trying to defuse the atmosphere.

Then I looked at the two girls, who were looking at me with nevertheless gentle smiles.

"I'm sorry for him..." I muttered. "I don't know what he meant or why he even bothered."

"No worries, he basically just confirmed what everyone already knows." Mona shrugged her shoulders.

"What's that?"

The corners of Audrey's mouth trembled.

"Well, that no guy has the right to approach you."

"Excuse me?"

"How many guys did you talk to today?"

I blinked again. The new revelations seemed so idiotic to me that I immediately thought to answer Audrey's question and at the same time debunk the existing thesis, but then it hit me that in fact I had only been accompanied by girls all day. When I realized this, my eyes widened, and my new friends waited patiently for me to work through this information.

"What did they... How?" I gasped, first putting my hand on my forehead and then lowering it along with my shoulders, which made me grimace: "Did they issue some official statement or what?"

"They didn't have to."

At the sight of my anguished face, Mona finally relented.

"Okay, look. I can see that a lot of things you don't know, so let me explain. Your brothers are infamous," she said quietly and glanced cautiously toward their table again and again.

"What does that mean?"

"There are all kinds of rumors about them, and they don't even try to dement them."

"What kind of rumors?"

"Oh, you know... The name Monet is quite famous here."

"And influential," Audrey added.

"And it feared."

Mona twisted her head, as if trying to decipher whether I'm really so uninformed or just pretending, until she finally said:

"Wow, you really have no idea about this."

"I don't, about anything," I muttered quietly, burying my face in my hands.

"Don't worry, actually it's even cute," Audrey comforted me.

"Well, yeah, Dylan even called you "little sister," Mona nodded.

I looked at them with a blank look.

"Well, all right," sighed Audrey, "he was also terrifying."

"But how handsome."

I croaked, and the girls giggled, as if in agreement. Well, I wasn't laughing. Instead, I grabbed my head, because I just remembered what Dylan had conveyed to me while he was guffawing at his overprotective brother. I was supposed to go home with Tony! Well really, I still missed that. It wasn't fair that of all my brothers it had to fall on him. It didn't make me smile, especially after what I had just heard from the girls.

I didn't see Tony again until after class, when I reluctantly headed toward the parking lot. He was standing alone, wearing a white shirt and no jacket. He was leaning against Shane's lamborghini, smoking a cigarette. Walking toward him, I felt that I was being escorted away by curious stares, which I was slowly getting used to after a day at this school. Without a word, I took the passenger seat and waited obediently for my brother to finish poisoning himself. I was surprised at the same time how it was possible that he didn't even try to cover himself. After all, we were still on the school grounds.

Finally, the driver-side door opened and Tony got inside. I wrinkled my nose, bracing myself for the stench of cigarettes, but whatever he was smoking surprisingly did not smell of tobacco, or at least not intensely. Tony tossed his lighter into a compartment in the door, pulled up the sleeves of his uniform shirt, revealing a piece of his tattoo, and seemed ready to drive, but didn't start the engine right away. Instead, he turned his head toward me, and his blue eyes bore into me menacingly.

"Now that we are alone, let's explain something to each other," he began ominously. "You ratted me out to Vincent."

I looked at his irritated face and until I swallowed my saliva, hoping I was doing it as discreetly as possible.

"I..."

"After I told you to keep quiet," he continued and shook his head with undisguised distaste. "Listen, next time you better do as I say. Got it?"

If it weren't for the chill that froze me to the bone at that moment, I would have been more than happy to tease Tony and ask what he would supposedly do if I disobeyed him. I really wanted to know, because whether he would be able to do me any real harm seemed to me to be quite important information. However, maybe it was because of the unpleasant looks he was throwing me, or maybe it was because of what Audrey and Mona had relayed to me about the Monet brothers at the break, I preferred not to get under Tony's skin any more than I already had, and finally only slowly nodded my head.

I guess I satisfied him, because then he started the engine, his tattooed hand rested on the steering wheel, and I sat stiffly, glancing sideways the whole way. I thought about whether to apologize for ratting him out in front of Vincent or at least explain to him how it happened, but in the end I didn't have the courage to speak up, so as soon as he parked in the sprawling garage of the Monet villa, I got out and got as far away as possible from this brother I particularly disliked.

That evening, of all my brothers, only Will bothered to ask how my first day at the new school was.