Chapter Four

Present-day (New York City July 8th, 2022)

Aubrey Monroe looked up as her mother walked past her, as she did so she immediately regretted it because their eyes locked.

"What are you looking at?" her mother asked, giving her a spiteful look.

"Nothing–ah, I just wanted to take peanut butter from the other end of the table, can you pass it to me?"

She eyed her, then she sighed. "If you want something, get up and take it, you don't have problems with your legs, or do you?"

Aubrey sighed, her mother likes making issues out of irrelevant things. She got up and walked around the dining table, took the peanut butter, rubbed it on her bread just how she likes it, and made her way back to her seat.

"Where is Liam?"

"I don't know, in his room probably," she replied, munching on her sandwich.

"Go upstairs and call him, he'll be late for school,"

"But Ana– I'm eating!" she whined.

"Go and call him this instant, you can eat on your way there. Now go,"

She came down from her chair and walked up the stairs grudgingly.

When she was halfway gone, she stood and shouted. " Amata!" (Amata is an Italian word for Loved one)

"Bambina! What is it? You are disturbing my beauty sleep. Get out," Liam's sleepy voice could be heard from miles.

"Don't tell me you haven't had your bath up till now. It's our first day of school for crying out loud, we don't have to make a terrible impression in every school we go to, get dressed and come down here this instance, I can't wait for you for more than 30 minutes. So me fast, I can't let you waste my time,"

"Hold your horses I'm coming!" he yelled. I shook my head and walked back downstairs, this isn't the first time he gets lazy on our first day at school and it certainly won't be the last.

"What did he say?" her mother asked immediately after she showed up.

"He is still in bed, can you believe that? I thought he'd do it differently this time after the talk I had the other night with him but no, he did what he does every first day in every new school, wake up late and make me go to school late but he won't succeed this time, I'm leaving him. He better finds his way to school by himself," she said,

"You do no such thing, you will wait until he is done then you both can go together."

She stared at the woman in front of her like she just spoke balderdash.

"And why will I wait for him? You were there when I told him to sleep early but he refused and stayed up all night watching Netflix, you said nothing to him then. Now I slept early and got dressed early now you're telling me to wait for him to get dressed! Come on, judge this yourself, is it fair?"

"I sacrificed the time I would have used to watch Tv, I forced myself to sleep so that I can make a good impression on my first day at school now you want to ruin my hard work, excellent. I didn't expect more from you." she spat out angrily.

"What did you just say to me, Aubrey? In case you haven't noticed you live under my roof, eat my food and I pay your goddamned school fees and other bills, so mind the fucking talk to me. You slept early and won't up early huh? What stopped you from going to his room to wake him up when you did–" she started.

The sounds of boots cut her short, no doubt Liam was going down the stairs.

"Hey mom," he said and sent to hug her and kiss her.

After that he went to where Aubrey stood, he pinched her cheeks and kissed both her cheeks. "You don't seem happy to see me this morning,"

Aubrey said nothing, the anger she felt from what her mother just said was still fresh.

"I heard a noise, was anyone quarreling?" he asked all of a sudden, turning to face his mother as he circled his hands around her neck.

"Oh no. Now one is quarreling, I was just cautioning Aubrey here, it's nothing serious,"

"Is that right sis?" he asked, staring right at her.

She nodded stiffly, it's easier to act like nothing is going on than having to explain to Liam that their mother is acting bitchy towards her.

"Yes, everything is okay. Can we leave now?"

"Yes, let me grab my breakfast. Mom, are you dropping us?"

"No honey, I have to get to work by 10:00 AM and it's already–" she checked the time on her wristwatch. "It's already past 9, I'll drop you some other day,"

"But mom! Public transport? Seriously?"

"It isn't –"

"Amata," Aubrey cut in.

"In New York City they use subways, we can easily take the subway. No big deal."

"Oh right, I'm so forgetful. Years and years of traveling from one place to another made it easy for me to forget what is peculiar to each place. Well, I'm glad you could keep up, let's go. Have a nice day at work mom,"

"I will son, goodbye. Mommy loves you!"

Aubrey quietly went to the sitting room and took her bag from the couch, she was already used to her mother's excessive attention on only her brother.

"Mom, you forgot to tell Bambina goodbye," she heard Liam say from the dining table.

"Oh that's right," she heard her mother's pretentious voice that often irks her.

"Goodbye Aubrey, now you too go and Liam make sure you greet Mr. Greygory for me, he is the one who helped with your registration and all,"

"I will mom, bye."

"Bambina, where are you? Let's go,"

"I'm right here, I went to get my bag, I'll pass through the front door, you can pass through the back door. I'll meet you outside."

~~

"You suck at lying, you know that right?"

"Liam, can you drop this already? Nothing happened and I'm fine just leave me alone,"

"Look, you are calling me by my name and you do that only when you are annoyed or angry,"

"I know I wronged you and I'm sorry, I woke up late and wasted your time, I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you I swear,"

"Hmm–okay. Apology accepted, no would you leave me alone, I don't want us to miss our way,"

"That isn't all that is wrong right? Mom said things to you again huh?"

Silence.

"You don't have to tell me, I figured it out by your tight expression and mom's tight face, the noise, the way you were responding. I apologize on her behalf, she is just shaken by dad's disappearance, that's all."

Aubrey stopped in her tracks and faced her brother with a tight expression.

"Don't ever give me that silly excuse, dad has been gone for more than nine years. When will she ever get a grip on herself? When? She blames me for his disappearance when I know nothing about it, she treats me like I'm not her daughter and I wish I wasn't. She is over dad's disappearance faze years ago, whatever she is doing now is conscious and deliberate so don't give me that crap!"

"Calm down sis, I understand how you feel. Do you know why I was awake last night? You both thought I was up watching Netflix and yes I was but I wasn't just watching any random show, I was watching Grey's Anatomy. It is helping me with my emotional and mental health. In one of the seasons I learned that by encouraging someone you love and making them happy in their current state of unhappiness, you are one step away from achieving your own happiness. I want to be happy Aubie, I really want to."

Aubrey stared at the only person who understands her more than herself, the only person she loved in this world.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you,"

"I know you are. Someone as brainless as couldn't have done that one purpose," he teased.

"Wait? What? I am even more 'brainful' than you!"

"You just proved how brainless you are by using the word 'brainful' in a sentence," he said with a laugh

"In what dictionary did you find that word," he giggled.

"Illiterate!" he said in between laughter.

She pretended to be angry, "let's see how illiterate I will be when I get it," she said and ran after him ready to give him a well-deserving beating once he was within her grasp.