Proposal

"Don't push the coffee over the guy, it's a good thing someone wants you in the first place."

"You're just jealous I got a guy, but what can I say, I'm too pretty to be single."

"Ya, ya, trick yourself all you like."

"Girls, what took you guys so long? I had to leave the guests! Come on Sofia bring the coffee!" The mother interrupted.

"Good luck!" Azalea excitedly added as Sofia left the kitchen.

"Break a leg, literally." Gabriella began again.

"Oh come on, you know she's excited! Can't you just be happy for her?" Azalea asked as she started washing the dishes.

"I am happy for her, so happy that she's gonna be miserable." Gabriella defended.

"Miserable? She's getting married, to the love of her life! Maybe you're just jealous?"

"Seriously Azalea? I'm telling you that she's gonna be miserable with that guy, what are they gonna do? Lock her as a princess in their huge hunted castle, and then we will never see her again."

"You are watching too many movies, and if you are worried that we won't be able to see her that much then go ahead and ask them." Azalea challenged.

"Ask them about what?"

"Go out to Mr. Jacob and ask him if he will lock her in his huge haunted castle where you won't be able to see her again the second she marries his son."

"You know I won't do that."

"Then stop nagging."

Gabriella stood up from her seat and stared at Azalea, "What?" Azalea questioned. But instead, all she got was a wink and a smirk as Gabriella left the room.

"Oh no." Azalea followed her.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Welcome girls." Their mother introduced them as they sat next to their sister Sofia.

"These are my younger daughters, Gabriella and Azalea." She pointed.

They sweetly greeted the gentlemen as Gabriella suddenly coughed getting people's attention.

"So Mr. John?" Gabriella asked looking at the oldest man in the room who seems in his late fifties.

"Jacob..." He corrected.

"Ah yes, Mr. Jacob. I understand your son's straight intentions towards my sister and the pearl of our eyes Sofia however I have some... concerns, let us say." Gabriella starts.

"Gabby please don't," Sofia said quietly as she pulled at Gabriella's skirt a bit.

"What concerns?" Mr. Jacob asked surprised.

"I assume she's messing around," Elanor laughed it off slightly as she burned her daughter with her eyes, "she messes a lot," she added softly.

"You don't have any concerns regarding me do you?" Austin asked.

"I'm giving my sister away to you, please how can I have concerns regarding you? My concerns are regarding the house, if I will be able to see my sister, my sister's freedom..." Gabriella looked back at Mr. Jacob.

"Gabriella honey I think I know what I'm doing, I won't give your sister away to someone I don't find perfectly suitable." Elanor glared at Gabriella once again shutting her up.

"No, it's okay, I like her. It's a good thing to make sure your family is safe. So don't worry little lady, everything will be alright, and you may visit her whenever, I will make sure to even send you our private chauffeur to drive you. And she may come as well but obviously with certain limits, as she is building herself a new home." Mr. Jacob explained.

"I can drive myself Mr. John," Gabriella answered as her mom glared again.

"Jacob." The man corrected again. "I like your little daughter," Mr. Jacob added.

"Oh, she isn't the youngest, Azalea is the youngest. Azalea is an amazing daughter, she finished her studies and even got a scholarship to a college in the city." Elanor praised.

"Oh, and how old is she?" Mr. Jacob asked.

"18."

"God bless her," Mr. Jacob said as he changed the topic. "So when is the wedding?"

"Whenever you like," Elanor replied happily.

"How about you leave it to Austin and Sofia?" Gabriella asked.

"Gabriella honey how about you take the coffee cups off the table?" Elanor said.

Gabriella stood up and started gathering the coffee off the little tables in front of the guests.

"Where is the bathroom?" Austin's brother asked.

"Down the hall to the left," Gabriella answered as he thanked her, then excused himself from the room.

As Gabriella went back to the kitchen, she overheard the brother's talk.

"It's silly in here... what am I supposed to do?... I said I'll see you tonight."

"And that guy's a player," Gabriella murmured under her breath.

Suddenly footsteps made their way to the kitchen,

"Can I have some water please?" The brother asked.

Gabriella got a cup and went to the refrigerator to get the water.

"I'm Alaric," The guy introduced himself.

"And you are Gabriella," he continued.

Gabriella laughed as she was pouring his water into the cup and asked, "Are you introducing me to myself?"

"Well, you aren't introducing yourself to me,"

"I'm sure you heard my name a lot back outside," Gabriella handed him the cup.

"Well only when you entered the room, before that I didn't even know about you and Azalea."

"Mhm," She hummed back as she went back to doing the dishes.

"Cute names, Sofia, Gabriella, Azalea." The guy added as he roamed around the kitchen still holding his cup of water in his hand.

"Shouldn't you be outside?" Gabriella said annoyed.

"Did I annoy you?" Alaric questioned her sillily.

"No, but I'll tell you something that will be annoying," Gabriella said.

Alaric gave her a questioning look.

"Your dad finding out who you will be meeting tonight,"

His eyebrows rose and his eyes widened as his tongue was moving between his mouth.

"Were you eavesdropping?" He asked.

He put the glass on the counter as he said "I'll forgive you and I'll take care of your sister when she's at ours."

She closed the tap, dried her hands then patted his shoulder. "Nuh-ah, you shouldn't worry. Because I will personally make sure that she will take care of you." Gabriella said as she left the kitchen and made her way back to the salon hearing his footsteps follow.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"What took you two so long?" Mr. Jacob asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry Mr. James but your son was thirsty," Gabriella answered.

"Jacob," Mr. Jacob corrected.

"Oh, let the kids be Mr. Jacob, who knows two brides may leave from here then?" Elanor said jokingly hinting at something.

"Maybe," Alaric said as they both took their seats.

"So, what do you do in your time, little lady?" Mr. Jacob asked.

"I work at a company, a writing company,"

"Oh, what about college?"

As Gabriella went silent her mom answered.

"Well Gabriella didn't have that chance, she finished school however her dream job is just a dream so she deals with the consequences," Elanor said.

"Mom!" Sofia interrupted in a whispering voice.

"What dream job?" Austin questioned.

"I like to draw, create, things like that," Gabriella answered.

"They're kids you know, what can we do? They'll grow up and understand the truth later on." Elanor said laughingly.

"Oh, and so what do you work at that company?" Mr. Jacob asked.

Gabriella opened her mouth to answer but Elanor interrupted.

"She's the boss's assistant, she also writes there. Her boss is a great man, Liam Anderson, I don't know if you heard of him,"

"Oh, yeah I heard of Liam, he's close friends with my younger son, Alaric, amazing man for sure."

"And that's what I have been telling this daughter of mine for so long, she's pretty and has great potential for work, but who is there to listen," Elanor complains as she side-eyes Gabriella.

"Excuse me," Gabriella makes her way out of the room to answer her ringing phone.

"I bet it's Liam," Elanor whispers to the men.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Yes, Mr. Liam, the papers are with me at home, I'll make sure to finish them and get them tomorrow to the office," Gabriella says as she closes the line and then goes back to the salon.

"My apologies, I have to excuse myself for the rest of the night, I have a bit of work to finish."

"Of course little lady, good night." Mr. Jacob smilingly says.

Alaric stands up and asks her, "Where's the bathroom?"

"Diarrhea?" Gabriella asks which leaves Mr. Jacob and his sons shocked while the girls laugh and Mrs. Elanor corrects once again her daughter.

"Haha, don't mind her she's a jokester, like that since she was a kid," Elanor fakes a laugh as Alaric and Gabriella leave the room.

"So what work do you have to do?" Alaric asks as they walk through the hallway.

"Work, personal non of your business work."

"Interesting, need any help?" Alaric continues.

"If you can help yourself," Gabriella says as she points to the bathroom door that they are now facing.

"I will," Alaric jokes as Gabriella starts leaving.

"Hey!" Alaric calls.

Gabriella turns around, "What?"

"It's diarrhea, just so you know," Alaric 'corrects'.

Gabriella laughs him off and goes to her room, she opens the laptop and sits down to finish the story that she has to give Liam by tomorrow morning. Liam might be the sweetest guy, but when it comes to work, he's a workaholic.

As Gabriella taps her fingers on the table thinking about the plot twist that her story should contain a door interrupts her open door.

"What now?" Gabriella asks.

"I was leaving when I heard the tapping, came to see if you needed any help," Alaric explains as he takes a seat on her bed.

"Get out of my bed right now!" Gabriella almost screams.

"Woh-woh! I'm up, relax!" Alaric clearly says in panic mode.

She sits back on her chair and stares back at her laptop.

"So what are we doing?" Alaric asks with pure excitement.

"I." Gabriella corrects him.

"I am trying to find a plot twist for this story to satisfy my boss that wants it by tomorrow," Gabriella adds.

"Let me help,"

"You? Please, what can you do? Talk to your dear friend and tell him how I can't finish it by tomorrow?"

"Yea?"

"No, thanks."

"Then let me help you write it," Alaric says as he sits on the other chair at the table.

Gabriella raises her eyebrows and laughs.

"Seriously, what's the story about?" Alaric seriously asks.

"About two random strangers who fell in love, but their parents were against it. And now I'm in the place where they are dating but we need a plot twist,"

"They're siblings!"

"Oh my!"Gabriella gasped. "Not that much!"

"They... they are cousins!" Alaric struck again with a wonderful idea.

"Alaric! What kind of incredible ideas do you have!"

"I know, I'm talented!" Alaric fixed his pose and plastered a huge smiley face on.

"It's horrible!" Gabriella exclaimed.

"Oh, I have one! They kissed and the first thing he said was 'your breath stinks'."

"Ouch! Imagine if that happens in real life, I feel bad for the girl!"

"I can imagine it," Alaric smirks.

"Not to us smartypants!" Gabriella exclaims as she punches his shoulder.

"Ouch, I'm trying to help here!" Alaric explains.

"Well, Mr. you aren't so helpful,"

"How about someone in their family dies,"

"And so they mistreat the other," Gabriella continues.

"And the other gets so intense,"

"He becomes physically abusive!" Gabriella exclaims as she quickly starts typing on her laptop.

"And I am not the helpful one here, "Alaric smirks.

"Thank you, Mr. Alaric, now please stop being a show-off."

Alaric roams around in her room until she's done and helps her more in writing the story.

"Alaric!" Sofia exclaims as she stands there clueless at the door.

"Oh, Sofia!" Alaric directly gets her into the room and closes the door behind her.

"What are you doing?" Gabriella directly stands up.

"I'm just trying to shush your sister right here,"

"Watch your language, you're talking about my sister here," Gabriella starts.

"Okay, little one,"

"What are you doing here?! Didn't you leave an hour ago?" Sofia questions.

"Wait what?" Gabriella asks.

"Oopsies, hah, a funny thing happened here, real funny." Alaric starts laughing uncontrollably.

"Alaric, stop laughing and talk," Gabriella demands.

"So I might've told everyone that I was going and then came here,"

"What!" The sisters both exclaimed at the same time.

"Surprise! But now you have to help me get out of here before they see me," Alaric explains.

"Well, I just came in to tell Gabriella to say goodbye to our guests, so you do you and disappear before we return," Sofia says as she leaves with Gabriella closing the door at him.

"What will we do?" Gabriella whispers to Sofia as they walk down the hallway almost reaching the salon.

"Act normal, and don't think you got away with this, we will have a long talk," Sofia whispers back as they arrive at the salon.

"Ah there you are little lady, good luck in your work," Mr. Jacob says as he and Austin leave the house.

Gabriella rushes to her room and finds no one, she then slowly closes the door and goes back to help in the kitchen.

"Is he gone?" Sofia whispers.

"Gone," Gabriella answers.

"What are you two whispering about in there?" Elanor asks.

"Nothing, I'm just telling her to watch her manners next time next to the guests," Sofia says.

"Yes, about what happened next to the guests... come with me Gabriella let's have a talk," Elanor says as they go to Gabriella's room.

They both sit on the bed as Elanor holds Gabriella's hand.

"Look, Gabby, I know that you're trying to make everything work for your siblings, and sustain our household, however, you have a life in front of you... I don't want that to be taken away from you, don't do that to yourself. Look you're still 19, you're pretty, and you're talented, do something useful, do what you like..."

"I like to draw,"

"Not that... don't you wanna be a teacher, an author, a publicist, a doctor, an engineer?"

"No, Mom I like to draw,"

"Look, Gabriella, look where those paintings and drawings did to your dad, he flew all the way there for a painting, a painting that you liked!" Elanor cried.

"You do know it's your fault, right?" Elanor said as she swept her tears away from her cheeks.

Gabriella swallowed, lost for words, looking at the ground.

"Not even a single tear? How did I raise you this heartless?" Elanor said as she left the room slamming the door behind her.

Gabriella got up and opened her closet to get her sketchbook, only to find a Peterson, Alaric Peterson.