Find me

Chapter 27

Aria POV

I was really a part of their family.

I was really Gabriel’s twin.

I couldn’t believe it. A part of me still doubted it. How could I be so lucky? What have I done to deserve it? What have I done to deserve two wonderful people like them?

The answer was nothing. I’ve done nothing.

How could it be true, then?

How would I make peace with the fact that my life could have been spent in a loving family? How would I deal with the fact that my life was a complete lie?

For the first time in my life, I felt anger.

If those people didn’t take me away, I would have had a loving father. I would have had a mother. I would have had a brother who would love and protect me. I would have had a real family.

How would I deal with this anger? What should I do about it?

How would I accept this?

“Eat a little bit more.” Gabriel said as he kissed the top of my head.

Gabriel let me go, and I took the fork back into my hand.

The scrambled eggs were really tasty, but I couldn’t eat much more.

“Just a few more bites, baby.” Gabriel’s dad said.

Well, my dad as well, I guess.

But I couldn’t call him that yet. I wanted to. I really did. I’ve never said the word ‘dad’ and loved it. I’ve never associated that word with warmth and safety. Now I could, but something was still stopping me.

“You did an amazing job eating your breakfast.” Gabriel’s dad continued. “Try to eat just a few more bites, and you are done, okay?”

I nodded, looked down at my plate, and continued eating my breakfast.

“We will bring your stuff up to your room when you are done eating.” Gabriel said. “I will help you put them away.”

I tensed up.

I completely forgot about the bags in the living room.

How could I accept that? How could I pay them back? I could clean or cook. Or maybe I could find a job and give them the money back.

Gabriel’s dad said that I didn’t have to pay them back, but I would. I would find a way. I couldn’t just take free stuff.

“What can I do to repay you?” I asked quietly. “I could clean or cook. I can find a job and give you the money back.”

I looked up at Gabriel’s dad. He had a sad expression on his face.

“You don’t have to do anything, Aria.” Gabriel said, making me look at him. “You don’t have to pay dad back.”

“But I can’t just take free stuff.” I mumbled, furrowing my eyebrows. “I didn’t earn that. I haven’t done anything to earn new shoes or new clothes.”

Gabriel’s jaw tightened.

I heard a chair scrape against the floor, and I looked at Gabriel’s dad.

He stood up and walked over to me. He picked me up, sat down on my chair, and placed me on his lap.

“Listen to me very carefully, love.” he said, caressing my cheek softly. “You will never owe me anything. You will never have to pay me back for anything. You will never have to earn or deserve basic things like clothes, shoes, food, or a roof over your head. I am your dad and it is my job and my privilege to provide you with that.”

A tear fell on my cheek. Gabriel reached out and wiped it away.

“The only things that you will have to deserve will be things that you don’t really need, but I agree to buy them for you.” his dad continued. “For example, your brother is a huge gamer, and he has both a PS5 and an Xbox. He doesn’t need it, but he deserved it by bringing home good report cards and doing his chores around the house. Do you understand the difference?”

I nodded and looked at Gabriel.

“I studied my ass off to earn that Xbox.” he grinned, making me chuckle.

“He did.” his dad smiled. “So I bought it for him. But I would never make him study his ass off or do chores to deserve clothes, shoes, or food.”

I gulped and looked down at my hands. This was very different than I was used to, and it would take me awhile to get used to it.

“Speaking of chores, you will have them too.” Gabriel’s dad continued, making me look back up at him. “Right now your only chore will be to rest and let us spoil you a little.”

He smiled and kissed my temple.

“When you heal and when you reach a healthier weight, we will talk about your other chores.” Gabriel’s dad said. “They will probably be similar to Gabriel’s chores. You will need to keep your room clean, you will need to clean up after yourself, and you will need to help set the table before dinner.”

That was it? What about laundry? Or cooking?

“If there is anything else that you would like to do, you are free to do it.” Gabriel’s dad continued softly. “This is your home, and you are free to do absolutely anything as long as you don’t endanger yourself or us.”

“For example, I tried to make pancakes once, and I was definitely endangering myself and dad.” Gabriel chuckled.

“Yes.” his dad nodded. “We are keeping him away from the stove.”

Gabriel’s dad winked at me, and I chuckled.

“I would like to give you an example of what I said earlier.” his dad said, caressing my cheek again. “You will have a few chores, but if there is anything that you would like to do around the house, you are free to do it. For example, Gabriel always does the laundry because he says that I don’t know how to make his clothes soft and fluffy.”

“Because you don’t.” Gabriel interrupted him. “You might as well take the clothes to the river and beat them with a rock.”

His dad rolled his eyes and I chuckled.

“As I was saying, you can do what you want to do.” Gabriel’s dad continued. “If you love to cook, you can cook. If you love to bake, you can bake. You can do what you love and want to do, but you don’t have to do anything other than your chores, baby. You don’t have to do stuff around the house to deserve clothes and food. Okay?”

I nodded and felt a few more tears fall on my cheek.

How did I get so lucky?

Gabriel’s dad pulled me into a hug. I wrapped my arms around his neck and squeezed him as tightly as I could.

I was so thankful to him.

“I love you so much, baby.” he said, kissing the top of my head.

Gabriel rubbed my back soothingly. I turned my head and gave him a small smile.

“Okay, sis, let’s go get your stuff to your room.” Gabriel said as he stood up.

“Yes, go do that.” Gabriel’s dad said as he let me go. “I am going to go call your uncle.”

My heartbeat quickened.

Uncle.

I completely forgot about that.