Hidden Sister

Twenty-Two

Gianna

"Hello?" I spoke, picking up the phone. Around me, people were typing on laptops and discussing things about a new house that was being built. Since I was at work, I couldn't talk for that long and I've already taken too many breaks. Considering Damien had supported me when I needed him, I could at least work to repay him.

"Is this Gianna?" A male voice from the other side of the phone said. The voice was a little scratchy so I couldn't tell who it was.

"Yes, who is this?" I questioned. If this was another call from the school about Max or Aspen, I would literally give no fucks and storm down there.

"It's Shay," The voice from the other side of the phone spoke. My blood stop as I held the phone with sweaty hands. What could my brother want? The last time I saw him was Christmas, and even then, I had crashed his party unaware that I would run into my family again.

"Shay? H-how did you get my number?" I stuttered. At that moment, I looked around the room and walked out, stepping to the side of the wall so no one could hear me.

"Your daughter, Aspen gave it to me. She said that you allowed her to come over so she could play with Emmi, my youngest daughter. I just wanted to make sure it was alright," Shay explained.

Aspen never mentioned her making friends with Shay's daughter Emmi. Everyone's been so busy with school and work that we haven't been paying attention to-

Oh, that's her new friend. Ever since last week, she hasn't been able to stop talking about her new friend but never mentioned her name. She knew that if she told me it was her cousin, I wouldn't let her go. Not because I have anything against Emmi but because I don't want any of my siblings to take any burdens of watching my children.

I didn't give her permission but knowing my daughter, she went anyways. At least my brother had the sense to call me and make sure it was alright with me.

"Uh yeah, that's fine. Are you sure you want her there? You don't have to watch Aspen if you don't want to," I spoke, as Shay let out a small laugh through the phone.

"Gianna, it's alright. She's perfectly fine here and besides, she is my niece." Shay explained, as I smiled. Even though Casey was secretly my closest brother, Shay was still my brother too.

"Look Shay, I'm sorry about Christmas and dad. I didn't mean to come home again and show up unexpected. If I had known it was you I-"

"Gianna, shut up. I haven't seen you in fourteen years and I don't care what dad thinks, the rest of us were happy to see you. Even though it was a surprise, you're always welcomed back." He said, which made me tear up a little. Blinking away the tears, I told him I would pick up Aspen later and hung up.

A few months past since then. Ever since, I had been speaking to my siblings more and more and Aspen had been going over to Shay's, Casey's, and even Carlie's house too. Sometimes, their kids would come over my house. When Casey found out who I was living with and now dating (yes, we had made it official a few weeks after Christmas), he had almost beat up Damien but then calmed down afterwords.

During that time, I didn't see my father at all. He didn't want to be around me but he did speak to my children. My mother welcomed me back with open arms, opposite of my father.

"Mom, your phone is ringing!" Blake yelled, coming down to the living room where Damien and I were making dinner. More like Damien was cooking because he was an amazing cook and I barely could cook anything without setting it on fire.

"Answer it, Blake! Who is it?" I yelled as the ringing stopped. It was silent for a few seconds but I could hear Blake's footsteps coming towards me.

"Blake, who is it?" I yelled after a few seconds of silence.

Walking into the kitchen, my son's face was pale. His fingers were shaking and right away I knew something was wrong. His blue eyes were filled with fear and his hands sweaty.

"Blake, what's wrong? Who is it?" I asked him.

Damien turned around and stopped cooking as Blake shakily handed me the phone. He pulled a chair and sat down, seeming to be in a trance and not paying attention to me.

"Hello? Who the-"

"Ah sweetheart, so good to hear your voice," A groggy voice came out through the phone. My blood pressure spiked as Damien gave me a concerned looked while standing next to Blake.

"What do you want?" I spat, as I could hear my ex-husband's laugh croak through the phone.

"Oh me, nothing? The only thing a father wants to do is see his children." He told me as I sarcastically laughed. My eyes turned cold as I walked out of the room.

"You will never see your children again. And since you are in jail, you will never lay a finger on them again, do you understand?" I exclaimed through the phone.

"Oh honey, I'm out of jail, got out on good behavior. And since I'm out, I'm coming for that prick you call a boyfriend and my children."

And with that, he hung up.

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Just a few more chapters to go! I'm still on vacation, so updates are slow. Hopefully they should pick up soon!

Question: last day of school?

Ily guys 💓💓

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