The Brightest Stars

Julia

I fidget with my fingers as I wait in the cold living room. My parents wanted to talk to me. I can guess why it is. I've missed several important business meetings, and the one we attended to at the Padre Hotel was a mess. I roll my eyes at the memory. Their cold looks at me for not paying attention, and just admiring the beautiful furniture and decorations.

I saw this coming.

The doors of my father's office opens and my stone-faced mother gestures for me to enter. I gulp and stand up. I make my way past her, and into the cold room with a straight back and face.

"Father?" I quietly say.

"Julia. Sit down." He doesn't even look up from the folders on his wooden desk.

I do as he asks and keep my eyes on his dark hair as I wait for him to speak to me. I can feel my mother's cold eyes burn through me. But just as I've been taught, never look away from the adult that has called you.

Finally, he looks up and it's like I'm seeing an older version of my brother. The same shining blue eyes. The same perfect face that any girl stops to take a quick look at. The same straight hair parted to one side.

There's only one difference: the ice in his look. An apathetic look. Even for his children.

He leans back in his chair and puts a finger on his chin. As much as I want to look away, my eyes stay glued on his thoughtful posture.

"Julia," he firmly says. "I'm just going to go straight to the point. Have you been seeing someone?"

I furrow my brows and hide the fear deep down.

Sebastian. Diego...

"Answer your father, Julia." I clear my throat at the sound of my mother's voice and look for the right words.

"I...I'm not sure what you mean by--"

"Don't lie to me!" I jump as my father yells this. I close my eyes for a moment and fight the urge to strike back. But I keep my chin up as he says, "You have been going out late at night and you know that the only reason we go out at that time is for business matters only." That authoritative voice sends chills down my spine.

I move a little in the leather seat and say, "H-how did you--"

My father interrupts me with a sinister laugh. "Darling. You should know by now that I have eyes everywhere in this town, so you can't come lying to me. I'm not an idiot."

Those last words hiss at me and my heart shrinks. Tears threaten to fall out, but I push them back. For a second, his eyes soften as he says, "I don't understand you kids. You have everything. Everything! And you still can't conform to your status." He stands up and takes a sip from his glass cup. I wonder if that glass cup cost more than all of my friends' clothing altogether. "You still haven't answered my question, Julia. Are you seeing someone?"

I gulp and look down. He's not looking at me so I have a moment to look down at the shiny floor. "If you're asking if I have a boyfriend, then no."

"Is it your brother?" These few words from my mother's mouth stab my heart and I catch my breath. I sit up straighter and shake my head. My mother does not look away as she reads through me. Scans my every move and chuckles. "I knew it," she says. "That boy wants to keep infecting our business." Hurt crosses my heart as my mother sees me as another business project.

My father looks back at me and I have to look up. The hardest fights I have are those where I have to push back my tears. I take steady breaths as his devious smile make my hands tremble. "I prohibit you from getting near your brother." His voice is quiet, but it still carries authority as he says, "Do you understand, Julia?"