Lottie, or Lottie Havens is her name, who was born on the day her mother died during her birth. This tragedy left her family heartbroken. While her father cared for her lovingly, her five brothers blamed her for their mother's death and treated her...
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I kept my head down as usual, quietly scraping the edge of the fork at my plate as I finish my dinner. It was quiet but unusual for my family to eat together, even Eli is here to eat with us.
It could've been better if we didn't have tension with each other, but my brothers seriously hate me and I don't know how to change that. Maybe I just have to wait until they calm down?
They'll probably hold a grudge at me for the entire life, when I get a boyfriend, when I get married, when I'm pregnant and have babies, and when I die, they'll still hate me.
I shook the thought at my head. Why am I thinking this? Am I ever gonna get married anyway? I sighed at myself, swallowing the last portion of the ham with rice.
Eli and papa are at the opposite sides of the table, basically the head table.
It was getting a little bit uncomfortable. Maybe I should have eaten inside my room. Their eyes kept glancing towards me as if I was their prey. I kept my head down when I drank water, almost choking. That was not ethical.
But I guess, it's always like this. My family and I don't eat breakfast together because they have different school and work schedules. I eat lunch alone because they're not home. And dinner.. it's very unusual for us to be together, since we don't eat at the same time.
I wanted to get out of here because it's suffocating, but every movement I make, they stare at me, or is it just inside of my head? When I was about to get up, my papa cleared his throat to get our attention. All eyes were at his.
Not this time...
"I have an announcement to make," he began, his voice low but firm, although he just always talks like that. "Your sister will be starting school next week."
I froze at my seat. Okay, that was a little bit embarrassing. I didn't know that he would tell them about it to my brothers.
Until now, I couldn't believe that I'm actually starting school next week. And I'm always wondering if I'm gonna make friends, except for papa and my things inside my room.
The thought terrified me, but at the same time I was excited, like really excited that I'll probably explode from happiness. Anyways..
I heard Leo speak first. "Wait, what?? Why now?" His tone was filled with obvious disapproval. I wonder why.
"You've kept her hidden all this time," Ivan scoffed. "Why send her to school? She's already grown up. She can probably work as a waitress now."
The twins snickered at his response and I mentally frowned. They really don't want me to go outside.
Eli who rarely speaks, well, he spoke. "Why now?" Our eyes met him.
Papa put his spoon down at his plate before speaking. "Lottie's already sixteen. She needs to start experiencing what it feels like to live, not just inside this house, but also outside. She will go to school, whether you like it or not."
