𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐀

42. Christmas and Crime

enjoy!

Guys we hit 32k reads!!

p.s I love reading and replying to your comments it makes me so happy 😁

also I'm SO sorry for the late post I've been in a bit of a slump lately and haven't been able to think of a way to write this chap 😭

nonetheless i tried

song: 'Chit Chat' by Beach Weather

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It was the night before Christmas.

The previous day had passed in a blur of decorations, Christmas themed baked goods and everyone attempting to hide their presents from others.

Key word, attempted.

Luca and I had already managed to figure out what most of our brothers had gotten us, due to their lack of imagination.

Take Matteo, as an example, who had hidden them under the bed.

I, however, was sure I had the best hiding place, hiding each small gift along with my own gadgets beneath the loose floorboard.

The larger ones were harder to hide, which is why I payed one of the guards to store them at his house before bringing them back the morning of Christmas, which was tomorrow.

The whole house was now covered in decorations, most of which Azalea, Luca and I had teamed up for, before we all went our separate ways, with Azalea having to go home for her own family time.

My family, however, just kept getting bigger.

Just this morning all of my aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins had arrived, arms clad with prepared foods and wrapped gifts.

I smiled, remembering my first encounter with my many cousins.

I was standing beside the fireplace, arms crossed as I stare into the flames. I tried to steady my breathing as the door opened, and they started pouring in like a flood of overly cheerful giants. Seriously—giants.

One of them came straight up to me, grinning ear to ear, his bright green eyes warm and his light brown hair a mess of curls as if he had just rolled out of bed. "Hey! I'm Theodore, or Theo for short" he said, immediately pulling me into a bear hug, "Sorry we didn't meet sooner, but better late than never, right?" He had that big-brother energy, the kind that made me feel like we'd known each other for years instead of five seconds, and I realised that my cousins were not the shy type.

At all.

Before I could respond, another one stepped up. This guy was huge—tall, broad-shouldered, and clean-shaven, with blonde hair and striking blue eyes. He looked like he could bench-press the house if he wanted to. "Lawrence," he said, giving me a firm handshake like we were sealing a contract.

"Glad you're here. We should've met ages ago, but, well, here we are." His smile was warm, but I could tell he was trying not to squeeze my hand too hard. Probably afraid he'd crush it.

And then came another one. He was a bit shorter than the others but just as stocky, with dark brown hair and a mischievous grin. "I'm Pierre," he said, waggling his eyebrows. "You've been missing out on all the fun, but don't worry—we'll catch you up real fast." He winked, his hazel eyes full of trouble.