Eros was pacing back and forth in the lounge. He checked the time and it had already been ten minutes since he last talked with Ana, but she was nowhere to be seen.

He glanced at the gate and it was still closed, much to his dismay. "Where is she? This girl will kill me someday with a heart attack."

He sighed and turned around, marching toward the couch and plopping down uninterestingly. "Will Austin drop her? No way!" He shook his head vigorously at the ugly idea he was getting. He couldn't imagine Ana involving herself much with Austin.

He knew it wasn't supposed to happen. Because if it happened, Austin would know who was Ana's brother. Things would turn ugly if that was the case. And now his anxiety was increasing.

Ana was someone who would trust people quickly. She was a naive girl. And he was worried that Austin would take advantage of his sister because of her nature. He wanted to talk with Ana soon now. He needed to see her in one piece and hug the living life out of her.

"Hello, Brother!" A boisterous, joyful voice echoed abruptly, grabbing Eros's attention. 

He instantly got to his feet and raced in the direction of the girl he was looking for. His heart was beating at an insane speed and the lines on his forehead appeared, which caused Ana's smile to fade. 

She knew by now that Eros must be making theories because that was all he did when he was worried for his sister.

Eros caressed Ana's shoulders while cautiously scanning her from head to toe to see whether any part of her body was intact or not. "Are you okay, sweetie? Did that asshole -"

"Enough, Mister Eros Anderson!" Ana yelled, yanking herself free of Eros's hold and stepping back to distance herself. She closed her eyes and started to breathe rapidly, attempting to contain her wrath so as to not burst out. However, she failed at it.

Once she opened her eyes, she couldn't help but glare at her brother. "I'm tired of you and your limitations. I hate him as well, but he is my boss. I work for him, so if he needs my assistance, I need to help him. You need to stop it now." 

Though she made an effort to sound respectful, her voice came across as a little rougher than she anticipated.

"Why do we need to talk about him if you aren't interested in the first place? Either tell me what's up with you guys or stop mentioning him while I'm at home." 

She continued to observe the expressions on her brother's face that shifted completely, from anger to guilt, and that's when she realized she wouldn't get any answers to her queries.

Ana's eyes immediately began to well up when Eros glanced down and was unable to face her. "I'm extremely tired right now. This is too much for me."

Her sniffles filled the room, making Eros look up at Ana anxiously. His heart wrenched to witness her beautiful ocean-blue eyes shedding cascades of tears. He was the cause of her tears, so how could he see them?

Eros knew he could get a bit overboard at times; however, he loved her and wished the best for her. He was unable to witness her being hurt, and the scene in front of him was excruciatingly terrible. Tears started to flow down his cheeks as well.

"Baby, please don't cry! I'm not going to say anything." He murmured gently while struggling to contain his sniffles. But his gentle comments only exacerbated her tears.

Eros cried as well and instantly drew her into a tight hug. He stroked her head lovingly in an attempt to calm her. "Hey hey marshmallow, please no! I'm really... very sorry. I love you, my baby sis. I can't see tears in your eyes."

The siblings sobbed more while being held by each other. This proved how close they were to one another. Even if there were times when they couldn't agree, they would eventually make up for their crude words or obnoxious actions.

When Eros claimed that his sister was the reason he was still alive, he wasn't fooling around in the slightest. His mother's death caused him to lose hope in life. But then, his sister's presence proved to be a blessing. She was like an angel, who gave him new life. And since then, he never stopped loving her. 

Now that his sister was sobbing like a baby, he made a promise to stop pestering her for the time being with inquiries about Austin or his other two friends. Even if he wouldn't be able to trust their involvement in her life, he decided to put his concerns at bay.

︵‿︵‿୨♡୧‿︵‿︵

After five minutes of a long hug, both of them calmed down. Ana was seated on the couch while Eros was on his knees on the ground.

Ana noticed her hands in the tight clutches of Eros that were resting on her thighs, as he continued to glance at her with tender gaze. It appeared to her as if he was contemplating something in his mind. 

"Brother, could you at least say something," she said as she softly stroked the backs of his hands with her thumb.

Eros sighed in response to the query. He closed his eyes for a bit before opening them and responding to her as calmly as possible. He didn't want her to think that he was warning or controlling her again.

"I'm sorry, baby! I'm not going to bring him up again. It's only a request, keep your distance from him and don't tell him you're my sister. I don't have faith in him. I just can't trust him around you, it bothers me."

"And why is that?" He could see the dubious expression on her face. But he couldn't tell her anything so soon.

"When the time is right, I'll let you know. This is the only time you should put your trust in me. I am concerned about you." He pulled out his hands from her grasp and reached out his right hand, gently stroking her cheek.

The reassuring tone and kind action of her brother touched Ana's heart. She couldn't help but put her hand on his, which was still gently caressing her cheek, while her lips widened a little. "Don't be concerned; everything will turn out fine. Don't worry, I won't tell him anything."

They hugged each other once, only to pull away and look at each other lovingly this time.

"Thanks, sweetie for understanding me and not questioning me any further." He exhaled a sigh of relief and smiled sweetly.

"I love you, Big bear!"

"I love you more, Marshmallow!"

Ana got to her feet, followed by Eros. She stepped forward, kissed Eros on the cheeks, and went to her room.

Meanwhile, Austin was on his way back home, after dropping Ana. He connected the call via Bluetooth and waited for the other person to receive it. 

He tapped on his driving wheel with his thumb as he patiently waited for the phone to be answered on the other end. 

He reduced his driving speed when he realized that the road had fewer vehicles as compared to before since it was getting late. "Oh, look who's calling me at this hour. Mr. Smith, how may I assist you?" The voice grabbed his attention, making him sigh after noticing the playfulness in his friend's voice.

He responded, "Come on, Jake, put a stop to it. I have no strength playing with you."

Jake sighed, shaking his head at his boring friend. He cleared his throat before inquiring seriously this time, "So, why did you call me?"

"Have you completed the task that I gave you?" Austin questioned, jumping right to the point and not beating around the bush. He might be strict with his employees, but his actions were no different to his friends.

"Yes, I did after you two left for the meeting this evening. Are you certain of this?"

The concerned voice of Jake made him respond rather firmly, "Yes, Jake I'm rather certain."

There was a pause for about a minute and Austin didn't even break the silence. He waited for his friend to speak whatever he was thinking since he knew how empathetic person Jake was. He could never think ill of someone even if that person hated him. If we talk about his polite and respectful nature, he was a saint.

"I trust Ana." He finally let out and all Austin could do was sigh. It wasn't like he didn't trust her. But he had a company to run and numerous employees to pay. If he doubted even one employee, precaution was better than cure he felt.

"There's a part of me that trusts her as well. However, you know that she is the sole owner of our office circus. Everyone gathers at her cabin for a picnic. As a result, it's quite necessary."

"As you say, boss."

Again, a silence took over and it was surely a comfortable one. After all, there was nothing uncomfortable around childhood friends. 

This time Jake whistled as he waited for Austin. He was a bit different from Austin. While the latter loved silence, Jake was someone who loved peaceful sounds. Not anything that we would describe as "noise," but rather things like piano music, his favourite tunes, or birds chirping and beach waves.

Jake stopped whistling when he heard Austin clearing his throat. "By the way, have you found her?"

"No dude, I've looked for her all over Michigan. I can't seem to locate her. What if she die-"

Austin got furious. He gripped the steering wheel fiercely, unable to contain his rage. He, however, failed. "DON'T YOU DARE TO FINISH THAT STUPID SENTENCE OF YOURS!" He growled before speeding up his car.

"Relax, buddy!" Jake exclaimed softly to calm him. 

Austin signalled the car after he decided to temporarily halt his car. After taking many heavy breaths, he eventually said, "Brother, you know I promised Mum I'd find her. I really need to." 

He sounded desperate, and why wouldn't he be? He needed to find her and what if, like Jake was thinking, she was dead? He couldn't even let his mind play such tricks on him. He had to find her. A lone tear dropped from his right eye but he was quick to wipe it off and not weaken his mind.

"Hey hey, don't worry. John and I will do our best. Please don't be upset. I can't believe this is the same person who tortures Ana at work." Jake mumbled the last part lowly as he tried to lighten the mood, which clearly worked. Austin's mood flipped so fast that he began driving the car again.

"Oh shut up! To her, I'm her boss, and to you, I'm a friend. If you even mention that clown on the phone, I'll murder you." Austin warned him, playfully and Jake decided to end the call as soon as possible since the mood had lightened up now.

He responded while rolling his eyes, "Yeah, whatever."

"I can see you roll your eyes," Austin commented.

"I'm not afraid of you."

"Whatever. Sleep now! I'm driving."

"Okay, good night bro!"

"Okay!" Austin responded and was about to disconnect the call when Jake said something that sounded more like a comment.

"When someone bids you good night, you should say it. Such a mannerless kid he is."

"A 28-Year-old kid?" Austin questioned, raising his brow as if Jake could see him.

"Yes, you are a 28-year-old kid."

"Good night! Shoo shoo!"

"Bye, bro!!" They disconnected the call and both faces had a sweet smile on their respective faces.