"Amy!" mom called out.
"Yes mom," I answered, but there was a re-echo of my sound.
It took me a while to realize that little Amy and I had replied simultaneously.
"Amyra I mean," mom smiled.
Little Amy crossed her arms with a puffed-up face, showing disappointment. We all shared a moment of laughter at that; well, except Kelvin, as expected. For some reason, he was standing at a corner of the hall room by the window, glancing outside, ever since we came. Bruno was flitting by his feet; Kelvin had brought him inside.
Maybe he was feeling the odd one out.
"I'll feed you myself today," mom beamed.
"It's been so many years..." she murmured.
So many years, indeed.
"Is that your tiramisu?" I asked enthusiastically, scanning the huge plate in her hand.
"Yes, it was your favorite when you were little-"
"-Do you still love it?" she sounded uneasy.
"Oh yes, she does!" Jonas proclaimed in my place.
"She even ordered tiramisu when we went to a restaurant for the first time."
"Just that never found one as good as yours," I bemoaned.
"Come here," mom called me.
I settled on the same sofa beside her as she fed me the tiramisu. A wave of déjà vu washed over me, drowning me in a pool of nostalgia.
"Mom, I want some too!" Little Amy squeaked, sprinting towards mom.
Mom grabbed another spoon from the table and scooped a spoonful of tiramisu in little Amy's mouth.
"Wait, why should I be left out then?" Jonas joined in, hopping down and settling by mom's knees.
Mom laughed at her children's childishness; this was surely the happiest moment of her life, having three of her kids beside her. There was one last slice left after feeding Jonas.
"Mom, I'm the youngest, I should get it!" little Amy claimed.
"It's for someone else, dear," she replied.
I wondered who it was for.
"Xaviers," she called.
For a moment, I had completely forgotten that he was still in the room.
I noticed him turning sideways, and brushing his face against his arms before coming to mom.
Was he wiping his eyes?
He leaned by the sofa near mom as she bent sideways to give him a side hug.
"Mom adores Xav Bro a lot," Jonas purred.
Should I be delighted about that? Well, you're supposed to be happy knowing that your mom and your potential crush share a good bonding...
Was he my crush though?
"I'll take your leave then, got a call from the bureau," Kelvin apprised after finishing the last slice.
"You never stay," mom complained.
"Some other day," he smiled.
"She has been hearing about your some other day since the past two years and it never comes," Jonas chortled.
Kelvin jabbed him in the back before preparing to depart, to which Jonas produced a high pitched 'Ouch'.
"That hurts, you damn bastard!" he scoffed.
"Jonas!" mom's threatening voice boomed.
"I mean........dear brother," he corrected helplessly.
I let out a chuckle, not being able to suppress it.
"Do I need to come along?" Jonas enquired while eyeing the triumphant Kelvin, probably in an attempt to divert mom's mind.
"You can come tomorrow," Kelvin replied.
"What about me?" I asked.
"Won't you stay here, Amyra?" mom dreaded.
I wasn't sure if I should sojourn in my mom's new husband's house. Mr. Amberson might not like it. Nevertheless, I agreed to bide here till the next day.
"Can I take Bruno with me then?" Kelvin proposed, to which I didn't deny.
He would get some company if Bruno stayed with him.
Kelvin had already set off when mom asked Jonas to show me the way to little Amy's room.
"Amy dear, she's your elder sister," mom introduced, although it seemed a bit too late for the introduction.
I could see the tension written over mom's face regarding how her second daughter might react to the discovery of the existence of an elder sister out of nowhere.
"Reallyyyyy? I have an elder sistah?" Amy squealed in amazement, almost jumping.
"So that's why we share the same name," she predicted, prodding her forehead with her finger to express serious thinking.
"Yes dear," Mom smiled.
She seemed relieved to receive a positive reaction from Amy.
"But if she is my sister, then why did I never see her before?" her innocent voice asked.
"That's because-" Mom tried to find a way to explain the complicated matter to the little child.
"She was studying in Rome, like your Brother Jonas. But her teachers are stricter, you know, that's why she couldn't come to visit in the past few years."
"And munchkin, you were too little when she came to visit, that's why you don't remember," Jonas added with a grin to make the thing seem more normal.
Little Amy seemed pretty convinced; let's not forget to mention, too happy too on getting a new sister.
"Will you share your room with her tonight?" Mom asked with a smile.
"I'll share my teddies with her too," little Amy replied with zeal.
When Jonas proceeded to take the lead, Amy interrupted.
"I'll show the way," she insisted.
"Okay madam, as you say," he joked, following her order.
They seemed to share a good bonding.
"Come sissy!"
She heaved my hand with her little one, urging me to follow her. We entered a room painted in sky blue on the second floor; the bed was inundated with teddies, fairy white curtains and glowing star accessories dangling from the top. Even though we were stepsisters, it turned out that we shared the same taste. She looked a lot like me too, except the blue eyes though; hers were amber, like Jonas.
"Let me introduce you to my teddies!"
She consumed more time in introducing me to all her teddies than it took her to get introduced to her newly discovered sister.
"You can sleep with this teddy tonight," she said, handing me a giant fluffy white teddy bear with a hat on its head.
"Her name is Gucchi, but she's not from Gucci," she giggled.
"Huh, she never lets me touch her teddies," Jonas snorted.
"I win everyone's heart, you see," I chuckled.
"Won't argue on that," he winked.
"I'll have a tour around dad's room then," he informed before disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Mom approached shortly, Lizelle at her heels, bringing in a tea trolley full of scrumptious meals.
"So, did Arabella satisfy your stomach with her delicious meals these days?" Mom asked when we had finished lunch.
There was not an inch of space left in my stomach to gulp down a bite more, even though I would have loved to.
"She cooks really tasty food, just like you," I replied.
We spent the whole afternoon, in fact the evening as well, chatting about the things we had stored in our hearts for the past ten years to share with each other. Time seemed too short; there were so many things I wanted to tell her. My head was resting on her lap, her fingers running through my hair.
Just like ten years back.
"You didn't have a tour around our house yet, did you?" Mom asked when it was already past twilight.
I shook my head.
"Let me ask Jonas to show you around," she proposed. "I'll go and have a check on the dinner in the meantime."
She placed a small kiss on my forehead before leaving the room. Thank god Amy's focus was on her homework, or else she would have definitely demanded her share again.
Jonas soon made his entry, and we set out for a walk about the house. Amberson House was of course not as vast as Valdez Mansion, nevertheless, there was an aura of grandiosity. Starting from the exquisite choice of lamps and curtains to the intricate design of the staircase, everything was gorgeous. There was no swimming pool along the house as in ours, rather the lawn was mowed into a garden with sporadic benches that gave a touch of sophistication. The tour was filled with June's usual chattering, which somehow never felt mundane.
We were returning back to Amy's room when we passed by a chamber with an ajar door. The door stood out among all the others, it must be Mr. Amberson's room. Mom's room too.
I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but Mr. Ambersons's voice was clearly perceptible.
"What makes you think that I'll help you, Nicholas?" he bawled over the phone.
"We might be friends, but I can't assist you in something related to Arnold Valdez. So it will be better if you don't remind me that you are my wife's ex-husband's brother."
Mr. Amberson was talking to Uncle Nick? They were friends? And what help-?
He disconnected the call shortly afterward and lurched in our direction to get out of the room, halting only when he noticed me.
"You must be Amyra," he whispered after an awkward silence.
I nodded, not knowing if I should say something more. He lingered for a minute more, probably facing the same hesitation about whether to talk a bit more or not. He eventually made his way past us, deciding not to say anything further. He clearly didn't take a shine to my presence here.
Well, it was quite clear from his conversation that he despised anything related to Arnold Valdez, and I was probably the greatest mark that reminded him of my father. So, not taking a liking to me was natural. It did seem like he loved mom though, something my father failed to do.
Jonas opened his mouth to say something, but I didn't want any consolation now.
"Why was he talking to Uncle Nick?" I inquired.
It was more important now.
"No idea, I'll go and ask him."
Jonas scooted after his father, leaving me there alone to wonder about the possibilities.
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