Elena stepped into the house, her heart racing as if it was trying to escape her chest.
"Elena, are you okay?" James asked, worry evident in his voice as he noticed his daughter's pale face.
She looked nothing like her usual spirited, mischievous self.
"I'm fine," she murmured softly, then hurried up to her room, leaving James troubled and uneasy.
Moments later, Mary re-entered the living room, finding her husband pacing back and forth.
"James, what's going on?"
"Can you go check on Elena?" he asked, his voice thick with emotion, fighting the tears welling in his eyes.
"Why? What happened?"
"She just came back and looked... scared," he managed, his voice breaking.
Mary nodded, immediately heading up to her daughter's bedroom.
Though Elena had always been a bit of a troublemaker, both Mary and James adored her more than words could express. James especially – he loved her so deeply that he felt her pain as his own.
"Elena, sweetheart," Mary called gently, tapping on the door. "Is everything okay?"
The door opened, and Elena gestured her mother in. They sat down together on the edge of the bed.
"Elena, what's wrong? You left so happy, talking about meeting up with your husband. Did something happen?" Mary's voice was calm, soothing.
Elena gave a weak smile. "Mom, I'm fine. Just a little disagreement, that's all."
Mary saw through the facade but didn't push. She placed a comforting hand on her daughter's, gently patting it.
"It's okay, honey. Couples argue all the time. Your dad and I have had our fair share, but we still love each other more than anything. Don't overthink it; everything will work out."
Elena nodded, her mother's reassurance somewhat easing the tightness in her chest.
"Alright, sweetheart. Rest up – your brother will be home soon," Mary said as she stood, casting one last concerned glance before closing the door.
As soon as she left, Elena's phone buzzed. A message from Charlotte lit up the screen.
"So, how did it go?"
"Char, I'm in trouble." Elena quickly replied.
"Why? What happened?"
"My husband... he's the Devil."
"What?! The Mafia Boss?"
"Yes. I'm scared."
"Holy shit. This is big. I'm coming over!"
Elena tossed her phone aside, lying flat on her bed, staring at the ceiling as her heart thundered in her chest.
Downstairs.
"What did she say?" James asked as Mary returned to the living room.
"She didn't say much, but something is definitely wrong," Mary replied, sitting beside him, her face clouded with worry.
At that moment, their son, walked in, looking bruised and battered, a fresh cut bleeding on his lower lip.
"Rico! What happened?" Mary gasped, rushing over to inspect him.
He chuckled softly, pulling her into a gentle hug. "Just another day at work. What's Wrong?"
"Mary shot up in horror after seeing her son's face. He had fresh bruises all over his face and blood oozed from a cut in this lower lip.
"What happened?"
He chuckled softly and embraced her. "Just another day at work. What wrong?"
"It's your sister"
"What has she done again?"
"She got married today and a while ago, she retuned from meeting with her husband all gloomy"
Mary blurted everything.
Rico sat down the information he was receiving was a large task to process.
"Wait. El is Married? When? To Who?"
"We don't know, he will come over tomorrow for dinner" his mother said.
Rico suddenly stood up, "wait, so you're telling me, Elena, my little sister got married and neither of us know the husband?" He asked concerns about his sister clear in his eyes. "Dad, say something?"
"What do you want me to say? Uh? You very well know how your sister is, I tried, I even almost killed her, but she said nothing. What else do you want me to do" James finally spoke.
"Where is she?"
"Up in her room" Mary answered.
Immediately he run up to his little sister's room.
In Elena's Room.
"Hey, little sis,"
Rico said softly as he stepped into her room, his voice a mix of curiosity and concern.
"Heard you're married," he added, lying down next to her on the bed. "So, what's his name?"
Elena had always looked up to her big brother. Despite having loving parents, Rico was her confidant, her protector – the one she always ran to when things went wrong. She turned to face him, trying to muster a smile.
"Hi, big brother."
"Tell me, who is he? Is it that guy from last month's party?"
Elena made a face of disgust. "Ew, no! That guy had ears like horns. Even if I lost my mind, I wouldn't settle for him."
They both laughed, savoring a rare moment of peace. But soon, Elena's eyes fell on the bruises scattered across Rico's face.
"What happened to your face?" she asked, concern lacing her tone. She grabbed a first-aid kit from her bathroom and started tending to his wounds.
"Who did this to you?" she demanded, carefully dabbing medicine on his cuts.
"It's nothing," Rico shrugged.
Elena pressed a bit harder on his cut, making him wince. "Tell me the truth, or I'll press harder."
"Alright, alright!" Rico relented, sharing the story of his earlier scuffle. "You should've seen the other guy's face," he added with a grin.
"Ha! That's what losers always say," she teased back.
Once she was done, she returned the first aid kit to the bathroom.
Re-entering her bedroom she found Charlotte on top of her brother who looked scared.
Charlotte had always had a crush on Rico for as long as anyone could remember. Despite his countless rejections, and his current, committed relationship, she continued to flirt with him with every chance she got.
"El. HELP!"
Elena laughed, the look on her brother's face was just priceless.
"Char get off him" she said yanking her friend off him, "girl how many times do I have to tell you, he's taken. T-A-K-E-N, TAKEN!"
"People break up El, they will break up eventually and I'll be there waiting" Charlotte rolled her eyes, her gaze lingering on Rico with a playful smirk.
"This girl will eat me one day" muttered Rico under his breath as he hurriedly climbed down from the bed.
"I'll leave the two of you alone" Rico said and started making way towards the exit but then paused as he overheard Charlotte's words.
"El, I can't believe you're married to Damon Moon. tell me everything"