Their Princess

Ch. 7- Her Voice: Part 2 (Edited)

Jeremiah's POV:

The audience's cheers were a mix of hope and displeasure as the ref held up two chubby fingers, blowing his screeching whistle.

Two shots.

If I don't make both, we don't qualify for Nationals.

I stood at the foul line, wiping the bottoms of my shoes before abruptly dropping my legs to hear the satisfying squeak against the court floor.

I tune out my teammate's encouragement and the whispers from the audience as the ref passes me the ball.

Confidently, I eye the basket as I shoot the ball listening to the swish of the net before the audience erupts into roars once more.

Make it count, Jeremiah. I could still hear my mother's voice.

Even though she had left when I was just 4 years old, it was my strongest memory of her that I kept to myself.

Make it count.

Taking a deep breath in, I shot it once more making it count like she always told me.

The ball dances around the rim as everything around me slows. I held my breath but could only see the ball tip into the net before my teammates began jumping onto me in celebration.

I made it count.

After many pictures and congratulations, I began packing up my bag and texted Dad how it went. Dad loves my games and comes whenever he can despite his work life. That's what I love about him, he puts his family first over anything.

But he couldn't make it today because of Aria.

"Nice one, Hart." I could hear someone say, slapping my shoulder but they were gone before I knew it.

My hand digs through my pocket in the search for my keys as I head my way to the car. Opening my car up, I hop into my car before lazily throwing my bag into the passenger's side and buckling myself up.

Make it count.

I've never told anybody about her voice. Not my father or my brothers.

The day she left was the day I saw my family in one of its worst states and I tried everything to forget about her. I hated her for leaving but her voice always rang through my ears.

I've always wanted to tell someone but everybody suffered from her disappearance and it seemed unfair to push everybody back because of me. It took everybody years of healing and we're still trying to heal today.

Crazy how one person can ruin many lives with a choice.

But the moment Aria came through those doors, I had no idea how to feel. She looked exactly like her from her feet to the highest curl on her head.

And I hated it.

We all did.

All those years it took for us to even move an inch forward from the past came crumbling down the moment our eyes laid on her.

But I also was hurt. Not for myself but for her.

Mom's eyes used to be so full and bright. But Aria's?

They were... empty. Too empty.

Even a dead person's eyes would have more life in theirs than her.

I know she had seen some shit she wasn't supposed to. She walks around the house with this look on her face as if she was wandering aimlessly.

Because of my mixed feelings about our sister's arrival, I always steered clear. I didn't want anything to do with her. Not until I remembered where my priorities lie again.

And that's with my family that stayed by my side no matter what. 

Yeah, we were a little messed up but I know for a fact that they always got my back.

It's not her fault but I didn't know who else to put the blame on. It's petty, I know. But I was suddenly that confused 4-year-old again wondering what was going on and why everybody was shutting everybody else out.

Parking my car, I grabbed my bag and slid out of my seat as I headed into the house. My eyes began thinking on their own as they became heavy.

I threw my bag somewhere on the couch as I slugged over to my room, ready to pass out and not caring about dinner or not. I'll probably just wake up in the middle of the night if I get too hungry.

But I stopped dead in my tracks when I heard it.

My eyes scanned all the doors before they landed on one specific one. My feet began betraying me, taking slow small steps as the sound became more and more clear.

They were cries. She was crying.

I peeked into the crack of the door only to confirm my suspicions and it felt like a stab to my heart.

Aria's head was hung low, letting her curls fall over her face as she let out heartbroken sobs. She hastily wiped the never-ending flow of tears at her cheeks all while stuffing herself with her dinner.

The feelings of pity had slowly morphed into shame and guilt as my face burned. 

I was really about to let her take the fall for my own problems. The same person who was already dealing with enough. The same person who was still a kid.

I had my family. I had my brothers, my father, Jaden, and friends. But Aria was alone and had no one by her side. She had unknowingly become the scapegoat for our family issues. The same family she never even knew about.

If no one is willing to side with her, why don't I start?

I placed my hand on the doorknob and began pushing in only to be stopped by a hand on my shoulder.

I looked over to find a familiar gentle face. "Ellie?"

"I get you want to comfort your little sister," She said in a quiet tone, shaking her head. "But I think she needs to be alone for a little while."

"But I need to make things right."

"You need to make things right the right way." She says with a calm look. "As of now, Aria is all alone in this house."

"But we're here." My voice raised slightly, turning around to face her. "We're under the same roof."

"Physically, yes," Ellie said. "But you and your brothers have blocked her out the whole time, what makes you think she trusts you?"

"We... we're just confused," I said in a little voice.

"And so was she, Jeremiah," Ellie said before lightly tapping my shoulder and walking off down the hall, leaving me all alone as Aria's cries slowly quieted.

What reason have I given her to trust us? I looked into the room to see her curled up into a ball as she quietly sniffled.

Aria had lost her only family and despite it being the same person who walked out on us, she was a good mother. But that was Aria's whole life. Her mother. And it was taken from her and she was dumped here, in a new country, in a random house full of strangers.

And we didn't even try to make her feel welcome. We glared at her. Talked shit about her. We despised her when she didn't even know half the things going on around her.

I softly shut the door in an attempt to not wake her up as I headed to my own room. I might've won my game today but I've never felt at such a loss before.

Maybe if I gave Aria a few days to sort of settle down, I can try to build a bond that I should have done the moment she came.

Maybe.

--------------------------------------------