In "Family Ties," the Moretti family is everything, or so they thought. But beneath the surface of loyalty lies a web of betrayal and lies. In the heart of this tangled mess, the Morettis struggle to find their footing, torn apart by secrets and dec...
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15 years old
I hate it here. This can't be my life, bouncing from home to home. All I ever wanted was to feel important, matter to someone. I was longing for a life I could never have, a life my father could never give me. I hated it here and I hated him.
"Hurry the hell up Harvey will be here any minute to collect" my father said pushing me out the door.
This was becoming a routine, Harvey coming by the shop to collect and my father never having the money. I could never understand how my father could give up everything to pay a man who's sole purchase was to watch others suffer while he made a profit. But was it bad I wanted to be that man...the man that Harvey was. My father would give anything to pay men like Harvey...even my mother, till one day she couldn't take it anymore and killed herself. I didn't even get to say goodbye...but today felt different this time my father was trying to run, like he bit off more than he could chew.
My father's hand connects with the back of my head, a hard smack that sends a jolt through my spine."You don't hear me talking to you" my father yelled taking me out of my thoughts
"I'm tired of always running, you can't face him like a man" I said and my father grabbed me. I don't flinch, don't react. I've learned that much. I meet his gaze, and there's nothing there. No remorse, no apology, just a cold, hard stare.
"What the hell did you say to me" he said pulling me and I pushed him off making him drop his drugs
"What have you done" he said dropping to the ground and I start to back up till I bumped into someone. I turned around and it was Harvey and his goons.
"Valentino I hope you weren't leaving before paying me" he said
"Harvey I don't have it today, I need another extension" my father said starting to panic
"Valentino I should kill you where you stand for even asking me that, I'm gonna ask you one more time for my payment or its gonna be paid in blood" he said taking out his gun
"Please Harvey I beg of you ...here take the boy, I'm sure he could be useful to you just like my wife was" my father said pushing me towards them and I felt my heart drop
I see one of Harvey's goons try to grab me and I dodge him running the opposite way, My father's shout echoes in my ears, a harsh, discordant note against the chaos. I'm running, my feet pounding the pavement, my lungs burning. Behind me, he shouts again, but the words are indistinct. It doesn't matter what he's saying. The only thing that matters is getting away, escaping this suffocating life.
Across the street, a Greyhound bus looms into view. It's an unlikely savior, a beacon of possibility amidst the chaos. I stumble towards it, my body moving on autopilot. The door swings open, and I'm engulfed by a rush of noise and movement. There are people already on board, a motley crew of travelers, each lost in their own world. I don't belong, but I don't care. I need to keep moving. I scramble up the steps, my heart hammering in my chest. The interior is cramped, the air heavy with the scent of stale sweat and cheap cologne. But it doesn't matter.
I collapse into a seat, my body wracked with shuddering breaths.I could see my father begging for his life from here, I never knew if I was ready for what came next. Harvey placed the gun to my father's head and pulled the trigger. That was the day my life changed forever, Apart of me was happy because I was free, but the other part of me missed how thing were before my father turned to drugs. Now here I am sitting on a bus with nowhere to go. All I could do was sit back and enjoy the ride ,I was truly alone .
The bus lurches forward, jolting me awake. My head thumps against the window, and for a moment, everything spins. I'm disoriented, my mind blurry. The driver turns, and I'm met with the unexpected sight of an old man. His eyes are kind, his face lined with years of hard living. He regards me with a gentle scrutiny, and I realize I look as disheveled as I feel.
"This is last stop for night kid" his voice gravelly but warm. "You fell asleep, you know."
"I'm sorry where am I" I asked
"The Heights" he said and I got up
"Here take this" he said handing me $40, He gives me a sad smile, and I see years of hardship reflected in his eyes.
I take the money, my hand shaking. "Thank you," I whisper, my voice raw. Tears prick my eyes, and I blink hard, trying to keep them at bay. This stranger, this old man, is offering me a lifeline.
"Take care of yourself kid" he said and I got off the bus
Growing up we never had much but the one thing my mother taught me was to make money stretch. I knew $40 wasn't much but it was all I had and I planned on making it last for as long as I could.
2 Months Later
I was getting use to being alone and I liked it, never having to depend on nobody. I would use my skateboard to get around and my guitar for tips here and there. Living on streets taught me alot. Always be observant, you see things that a lot of people don't and that's how I was able to get by day to day. I was able to steal things that people didn't see, I was basically invisible until I wasn't.
"Hey you little bastard you don't think I saw what you did" The guy said grabbing me
"I don't know what you talking about" I said trying to push him off
"Let's see if this could jog your memory" he said taking out a knife and cutting my hand
"Stefan let the kid go" An older man said walking up to us
"You can have back the wallet ok" I said taking it out my pocket
"Elias" the older man said
"Do I know you or something" I asked holding my bleeding hand
"You don't but I know you, your Amelia's boy" he said
"How do you know my mother" I asked
"She was my baby sister" he said
Having Uncle Bruno take me in was the best worst day of my life. Finally I was given the life I always wanted. But that life came with the devil living in the next room. Stefan Moretti, the only child of Bruno Moretti born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Stefan was chosen to be the next Don till I came along and I always knew he hated me for it. Bruno would always make Stefan look out for me, if I got in trouble Stefan got it worse. He was responsible for keeping me in line. Even as a child I never knew what that intelled, till I met her. It's crazy how they say love at first sight, I never believed in love till I met her. Mostly because I never knew what love felt like, I didn't know how to give or receive it. But she taught me to let my guard down and trust again, it felt like everything Stefan was telling me to be, she was telling me not to be...but I always followed her.
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I might do 2 more chapters about their back stories so you can get a better idea about the characters.
