AZALEA

Chapter 15

A Z A L E A ' S    P O V

It's been almost 2 weeks since I arrived in Spain. I have gotten a little more relaxed around my family, especially Maya, she's been so gentle and patient with me. My burns are close to healed and I no longer need to keep them wrapped now. My back is still quite bad but it's a lot better than a couple of weeks ago.

I've been given time to adjust to the way of life here and their regular schedule, and to all the different activities that the boys partake in. I haven't really left the grounds of the house yet, but I have spent a lot of time in the garden, enjoying the freedom, and Mateo has promised he'll teach me how to swim when I'm ready.

Now is the day when I'm finally meeting some of the García's. I think Mu- Maya mentioned it was Arianna, Romeo, and three of their children but I'm not sure which three yet. I'm selfishly hoping it's their daughters because I'm still getting used to the men I live with, I really don't want to meet more on top of that.

There's a knock at the door, cutting me out of my thoughts, and after I say 'Come in' Maya's head pokes through the gap.

"Hey darling, they're on their way just to let you know. How're you feeling?" She walks over to me and sits on the bed near when I'm sitting on the window seat.

"I'm feeling okay." I lie straight through my teeth.

"You can tell me the truth now." She says in a sterner tone which actually isn't stern at all compared to others.

"Okay, I'm a little nervous to meet them all. What if they don't like me? They're your closest friends." My voice sounds pathetically weak, but I am proud of myself for being honest with her.

"That's alright, you're allowed to be nervous because they're strangers to you. And because they are our closest friends, I can tell you right now that they're going to love you. Ari has not stopped talking about how you're such a sweet girl and she can't wait to meet you in person, and Romeo has mentioned that the kids are so ecstatic to either see you again or meet you for the first time. You have nothing to worry about in that sense darling." Maya's words honestly make me feel so much better and I'm sure she has no idea.

"Thank you, Mu-Maya, that means a lot to me." I reply.

"Of course, my baby," She reaches her hand out as if she wants to touch me but hesitates and drops it, "should we head downstairs now? They don't live far away." I nod and we walk into the hallway when I make a huge decision and turn to Maya and hug her.

When she freezes, I think I've made the wrong decision but before I can remove myself from her, she wraps her arms around me and holds me to her.

"Thank you." I whisper.

"For what, darling?" She whispers back, almost as if to not break the atmosphere around us.

"For not being mean to me." She squeezes me tighter at my words.

"Why would you ever think we would be mean to you, Azzy?"

I just shake my head in reply, knowing I said too much but not caring all that much. I tighten my arms a little and then start to release her. When I take a step back, Maya has tears in her eyes and I immediately feel guilty for making her cry.

"Sorry, I just wasn't expecting that." Her accompanying laugh is watery and sad and I hate it. She wipes her eyes just as we hear the front door open, voices and laughter drifting up the stairs. "Come on, let's go say hi."

***

Okay, don't panic. They're just people. There's no need to worry.

My steps slow as we reach the living room in the back of the house, the big one. I take a deep breath and follow Maya through the doorway. The chatter stops almost immediately and I look around to see who I know is Arianna and Romeo, a girl around my age, a young boy and a little girl sitting in between Adrian and Romeo.