Angel's Lie (Mafia)

Home

I'm glad to finally be back home. It feels...odd. It never had a "homey feeling", but it was home. When I walk in the first thing I see is a huge sparkly yellow banner.

'Happy Birthday Angelica!'

Then I hear confetti poppers. First, I see Bruno and Carlo so I run to them and wrap my arms around them. I haven't seen them since last Christmas. They are huge, basically all muscle. Looking at them both I notice Bruno is larger than Carlo, which I'm sure drives him insane considering Carlo's older. Sylvia once told me they go to the gym every morning and have a strict diet. Father used to do the same thing when I was younger. Every morning he would wake up at 5:30 a.m and goes straight to the gym. Before I can express how much I've missed them I hear a voice clearing from behind me.

"Don't you think your Father should get a hug before these two?"

I turn around and see him in his perfectly tailored suit. I was told to never run in the house so I quickly walk over to him and throw my arms around his neck.

"How can I give you a hug when you were nowhere to be seen?" I playfully ask.

"Well, Sylvia was picking you up, so I was trying to figure out how to not burn a cake." He said with his eyes full of joy.

We spend the rest of the night catching up. I never have much to say but Bruno keeps the conversation rolling by updating me on where they've traveled to since they've last seen me. It's crazy to me, the last time I saw them was five months ago and it seems like they've traveled halfway across the world for business trips in such little time. Father explains that they are there strictly for business. Wherever they go, they don't have time for a vacation. They are in and they are out. Carlo tells me about a girl he likes. Her name is Riley. Dad loves the idea of him finding a wife soon, I'm guessing so he can pass the family business down to him. Sylvia tells us about Nicolo, the guy she has been seeing. He's one of Father's business partners. She tells me they met when he came over for dinner. A classic cliche love story, she tripped and drinks went flying. He helped her up and as they looked each other in the eyes "they fell in love instantly." Bruno tells us how he's more of an "open option type man" which means he's a man whore. When it comes to me I blush. I haven't been around a man that wasn't family since I first moved to California. I know they knew that, they just wanted to embarrass me. Some days I do wish I had a boyfriend. A lot of the girls who attended the all-girls school had boyfriends they saw outside of school, but Grandmother barely let me leave the house. She told me it was for my safety which I never understood.

"O.K. It's been a long day and Carlo and I have a few things to finish up in the study. Sylvia help Angelica unpack her bags, please. The rest of her stuff will be here tomorrow. On Friday we have a wedding to attend and Angelica you will be attending with us. Many of our acquaintances haven't seen you in nearly a decade. I've heard rumors that some think you're dead. With that being said this is your time to show everyone including me what you've learned in the past ten years. I will have a dress tailored for you the day before." He walks over to me and plants a kiss on my forehead.

"Goodnight Angel, welcome back."

I can tell Syliva was tired from the exciting day so I told her she could go to bed and I could start unpacking by myself. When I walk in the room I chuckle from it being exactly how I left it before I left. Princess themed from the days I was daddy's little princess. All of that changed when he shipped me off. The first time he visited me he insisted I stop calling him daddy and for now on calling him, father. It destroyed me. 'Daddy' was my first word and that's what I always called him. It was as if the last bit of childhood I had inside of me was stripped away.

I walk over to the soft bed and notice the picture of my mother I keep on my nightstand. Father always says I look just like her but I have never truly noticed until now. Same wavy black hair, light brown eyes, even the same smile. I always wonder what life would be like if she was here with me. Sylvia always told me that she would've treated, Carlo, Bruno, and me equally. I would've attended a real school. I would've gotten to play with other children, children that liked to get dirty. One time when Carlo and Bruno were visiting me I asked them if they considered us to have a normal childhood. They never understood what I meant when I said a normal childhood. They considered their childhoods normal, but it wasn't. Normal children didnt have personal drivers. Normal children were allowed to go out and play whenever they wanted and with whom they wanted. I know deep inside if Mother was still alive, we would've had a normal childhood.

Next to the picture frame, I notice a necklace with angel wings on it. I pick it up and inspect it. Where did this come from? That's when all of the memories come racing back. Grayson. My one and only friend that I forced myself to forget. I've only seen him once since I was sent to California. He visited me two months after I moved there. Honestly, I think it was the first time I was truly happy since moving to California. I knew we weren't going to be able to play like we used to but just thinking about seeing him put the biggest smile on my face. Grandmother thought it would be a good idea for us to have a picnic in the backyard, so while she set it up I waited impatiently by the door. When he got there I couldn't let him out of my arms. He was my savior in a way. I used to imagine he would come and rescue me out of that house, but instead, he left me with a bigger heartbreak. He told me he was never to come back to see me again and that I was lucky I got to see him this one time. His father insisted on writing a letter but he was determined to see me one last time. I told him I didn't understand but he said it was for the best. He was going to start the same type of training Carlo and Bruno were doing at his age. He was only allowed to stay for thirty minutes. During that thirty minutes, I barely said a word. What was there to say? Resist your father and visit me without him knowing. Right, because a ten-year-old could fly halfway across the country without his father knowing. After he left I was heartbroken. The only best friend I have ever had was taken away. I was mad. I was mad at the world, my Grandparents, and especially my Father. That was the first time I had a real conversation with Grandmother. She wasn't as scary as I thought she was, but she was strict. At the end of the day, she was all I had. After a couple of months went by I was still upset over Grayson, but as time grew I forced myself to forget about him. I told myself that forgetting him would make me feel better. I haven't thought about him in almost six years. I wonder what he's doing these days. Grayson would be twenty years old now. He could've reached out a long time ago f he wanted to, but I guess he didn't desire to. He's the one that left me when I needed him the most.

I pick up the necklace and walk over to the trashcan to throw it away but when I look at it one more time I can't do it. Why can't I throw it away? I haven't seen him in over ten years. The little voice inside my head reminds me that he was my first and one of two best friends. Why should I care? The only thing that I can remember of him was the day I was kicked out of my own home. If I would've never met him I would've still lived in New York.

After staring at the necklace I decide I can't throw it away. after all, he was my best friend and did get this for me as a gift. I walk over to my jewelry box and set it in one of the drawers.

That night, I go to bed with a constant thought of the boy I used to call my best friend.