Chapter 56: Spilling The Truth

“About your step-siblings?” Amy’s brows furrowed in confusion and then her eyes lit up when it dawned on her. “Oh! Right, Isabella did mention that Gabriel had twins. So they’ve been giving you a hard time, huh?”

I scoffed with a scowl on my lips. “Ha, fuck. That’s a nice way of putting it. Those pieces of shit– that fucking…!!” I gripped my baggy jeans tightly as my frustration was triggered but Amy gently placed her pale hands on top of my caramel fists.

Amy’s smile was sweet as she looked up at me. “Start from the beginning.”

“The beginning?” I hesitated at the thought. To be honest, the beginning sounded worse than the end.

*It’ll make it sound like I started to problem… fuck, maybe I did.*

“Shit. I mean, look at me, Amy. I was never going to fit in there. In that rich, fancy, mansion life. I was an outsider since day one.” I frowned bitterly. “And Grace reminded me that every second I was under that roof.” I gave a shrug of my shoulders before they sagged and I hung my head. “She was a piece of shit that I wish I could’ve tossed into a burning dumpster fire but… I already knew she was right.” my voice turned quieter as I admitted my feelings. “I *always* knew.”

“I’m assuming that Grace is your step-sister then?” Amy’s deep brown eyes saddened as she watched me. In a way, I could tell that she wasn’t surprised by the outcome but still pitied my experience. Nonetheless, she still encouraged me. “You stayed for your mother, Suki. You pushed through it all just for her, remember? That’s what mattered.”

“...Yeah…” I murmured with a cracked smile. “Yeah. That really was the only thing that mattered right? Mom…” I stared off into space, the image of the beautiful woman crossing my mind. From her freckled cheeks to her bright ginger hair that blazed under the sunlight. Without realizing it, I began to talk my thoughts out loud. “All I ever wanted to do was to protect her. To make up for abandoning her back then. Fuck. Maybe in a way, I thought I was redeeming myself… even though I know I don’t deserve such a noble thing as *redemption*. What a waste of a word. A promise I couldn’t keep.”

Amy could tell that I was talking without realizing it and took the chance to wring the truth out of me while she could. “You made a promise to stay with her? Does the fire have to do with why you left?”

I began to scratch my scalp as I felt my anxiety grow. “I had to make her and Gabriel hate me so I burned down their rose garden. Mom was in love with the god-forsaken thing. Gabriel was proud of how well he had kept it.”

“To make them hate you…?” Amy sounded perplexed now as if all the dots she was connecting had just scattered into a mess she couldn’t piece together. “But you love your mom, Suki! And by the sounds of it, you didn’t exactly dislike Gabriel either. Why would you do such a thing to them?”

“So that Gabriel could kick me out,” I grumbled a sigh while rubbing my temples. The anxiety was starting to give me a headache as I got closer and closer to spilling the dark truth.

“So that Gabriel could…” Amy’s eyes widened with shock. “Wait, did Grace make you do that!? She would actually go that far??”

“The pampered, petty, princess is bout just as crazy as I am. I never thought the spoiled piece of shit had it in her… I underestimated her. And *fuck* am I gonna make her pay. Somehow… someday. I don’t know. I really don’t fucking know, Amy.”

Amy ran her fingers through her hair as if she were pondering on how this whole mess could’ve happened in the first place. “You’re the most stubborn woman I have ever met, Suki. The only way she could’ve forced you to break a promise to your mom is by blackmail, right?” I didn’t answer her but my swiftness when looking away from her was the only answer she needed. Her brows furrowed again as she looked up at me intensely. “Just what in the world did she have against you!?”

“I…” I bit my velvet lip as I summoned all of my strength.

*Fuck my life and fuck everything that I am. He goes nothing.*

“Grace recorded a video of me… and Julian fucking.”

Amy’s cheeks darkened a little bit over the topic. Unlike me, she was far from the word of being ‘crude’ and she would get flustered easily over topics like that but still she tried to figure out what was wrong with the situation. “O– oh, um, wow… you don’t mention Julian anymore so I thought that you two broke up. Was Grace an ex of his?”

The best friend a person could ever have waited patiently for my response since she could tell this was hard for me to say. But I needed to confide in somebody about this. It was becoming too much for me to carry on my shoulders alone.

“No… Julian is Grace’s twin.” Amy was silent for a moment but her expression changed when everything sunk in. “Yeah, that’s right. Julian isn’t my boyfriend. He’s my step-brother.”

Amy’s jaw dropped as if she were still trying to process what I had just said. “Oh… um…” as I expected, the woman still forced a smile for my sake. “You know, that’s not as bizarre as it sounds. I’ve heard about plenty of relationships like that between step-siblings. Some even get married and have children. Now that I think about it, I have a friend who’s friend’s cousin has a sister married to her step-brother. In fact I think they have their own little family. So it’s ok–”

“No, it’s not fucking ok!” I unintentionally snapped at her, making her jump. “What would my MOM think, huh?? To hear that her kids, blood or not, are fucking behind her back? Shit– if Gabriel’s wealthy bastard neighbors found out about this then they’ll be the laughingstock of the neighborhood! Fuck, probably the whole goddamn east-side! I’d be humiliating my mom and…” I huffed and shook my head. “Ah, who am I kidding? Yeah, I’d feel pretty shitty for getting Gabriel involved too. The naive fucker has been nothing but nice to me. It’s not often I come across somebody *that* genuine despite our differences. I… fuck. I’d feel like I was betraying his trust.” when I looked at Amy I realized that my outburst may have shaken her. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to shout like that…”

Amy stood up and sat next to me on the sofa, wrapping her arms around me and pulling me into a tight embrace. “I understand, Suki. It’s ok.” with a shaky sigh I leaned into her and pressed my face into her neck. Even now, no tears would come and release the turmoil within me. “Listen, Suki.” she stroked my hair as she spoke. “I understand where you’re coming from. Honestly, I wouldn’t know what to do either. If something like that got out then it could ruin Gabriel’s reputation, from what I hear high society can be very judgemental. Still, your mom needs you. Not just for protection either. You have to find a way to get back there. It’s obvious that you can’t take Isabella away from there, she’s in love with Gabriel and needs him too. So going back is your only option. Besides…” when Amy trailed off so I looked at her right as she gave me one of the sweet smiles. “Isabella and Gabriel will forgive you. In the end, that’s all that matters. And if the truth is exposed? Then they’ll still love you no matter what. I know it.”

My lips pursed and I gave a little nod of my head. Even if no tears came, I could still feel my chest throb as if I were about to sob. “Thanks, Amy… I needed that.”

Our moment of peace and calm came to a loud stop when a certain device in my pocket began to vibrate.

“What was that? Your new phone?”

“Yeahhh. Julian gave me this one.” I mumbled with a hint of a grudge in my tone. In the beginning, I was beyond grateful. But now? Just touching it made me sick to my stomach. When I pulled it out and looked at who was calling me, I was expecting it to be my mom but instead, the name made my stomach shiver like a cold rock had just been dropped inside of it.

Amy looked at me concernedly. “I think you should answer that…”