Differences

Chapter 26 - Alaina

New Chapter!!!

Guys, thank you so much for your continued love for tho story. I have had many questions asking me when the next chapter will be posted and I have been positively overwhelmed with how much interest and love you have for this story. To answer your questions, I will continue to strive to post a chapter or two every week!!!

Again thank you so much for your support. 😘💗❤️

Also, a little heads up, if you have seen my TikTok's you may already know that I am going to start uploading a new story along with Differences.

It is called 'Separated' and I'm planning to post this story sometime in the next two weeks!!!! (It is still a mafia story - mafia x yakuza)

Don't worry, like I said before I'll still continue to upload this story regularly and as much as I can!!!

Anyway, this chapter. A rival that can't be dismissed? Or just a game? 🤔🤔

Enjoy your reading time!!❤️💖

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These past few days, have been . . . odd. Everyone, was overly cautious around me.

Not in an annoying or rude kind of way, they have always been respectful towards me.

Just, yea, overly cautious. with how they communicate with me, and with how they place themselves when they're around me. And when I meant everyone, I meant everyone. Not just directly the Taylors, or Luke's friends like Will, and Josh, and Sofia, or Rei, it was also including all the other men and women who worked under the Taylors.

They could be yelling at each other one moment (playfully I imagine, or I at least hope), but as soon as I enter, they would look at me with huge eyes and begin to speak in soft tones. They would start refraining from saying overly inappropriate language. And they would all immediately sit or crouch down if they were standing.

What was also odd, was that Sofia and Rei would give me those sad looking smiles. The ones that make me feel pitiful. I wasn't sure if I liked it. No, I didn't like it. But there wouldn't be much of a point noting that aloud.

I doubt anyone would've known what had happened to me over a week ago since Luke promised me he would talk about it with the exception of Ash and his parents which I have given my consent. Ash, was well, still like Ash, he never really liked me, I could tell, but he was never rude. I guess he has become a little more, soft? Easier? Nicer? I have no idea. And Luke's mother, Juliet became all the more protective of me, while his father subtly looked after me in his own discreet ways.

I imagined countless time what it would be like to have parents that cared. Parents that actually look after you, sit with you, talk to you, listen to you. Sometimes I could envision it being something that was way too bothersome. Too bothersome to talk about how you feel. Too bothersome to talk about your experiences or your emotions. But other times, I imagined it to be something more, comforting. Comfort in knowing that your feelings and emotions are valid. Comfort in knowing that they would put in the effort to understand even if they couldn't comprehend it entirely. Comfort in knowing that, I, was valid.

Luke's parents were just like that.

They wouldn't know what it had felt like to go through what had happened to me, but they know well enough to know that their maternal and paternal instincts were activated.

But the oddest thing was that Luke was, distant. It wasn't that he avoided me. It wasn't that he ignored me or anything like that. It's just. . . it's just he hasn't been connecting with me. It's foolish on my part, thinking that he would put more time for me. I know. But I did. Expectations are really something to disregard entirely. That was taught to me since I was six, nine when I had fully come to the realisation that expectations got you nowhere.