Aurora stayed frozen in place, watching how her mother walked forward, pointing a shaky finger at Evan and then at her father.

"What is he doing here?" It was obvious that the woman was trying to rein in her temper, "Why is he in my HOME!?"


Her father placed a hand on her shoulder and she flinched slightly, "Miriam, calm down and listen to me."

Aurora stepped away from him and he turned to look at her but she looked away. Her eyes fell on her brother instead, he still stood there, smirking at all of them.

"Listen to you!?" Her mother whipped around to face him, "You want me to listen to you? Okay, I'm listening. Tell me what this-this," She gestured to Evan with disdain, "Thing is doing here."


Evan scoffed, shaking his head although there was amusement in his features, the dark kind. Aurora looked at her father too, she was also interested in what he had to say.

He nervously rubbed his hands together, giving each of them a small smile, "Evan here is going to be staying with us for a while."


Aurora made a surprised sound at the back of her throat. Her mother's eyes popped wide open, and her jaw hung slack,

"Wha-What are you even saying?" Her mother sputtered helplessly.

Aurora shook her head slowly, "What are you talking about, Dad? Why does he have to stay with us?" Her voice sounded strangled even to her ears.

His eyes flickered towards hers and there was a slight bob to his throat, "His house is getting renovated and he doesn't have a place to stay so he'll be living here until his house is finished."

"No, no, no, no! He has other choices, you could send him to a hotel or even buy a fucking house for him!" Her mother screamed, waving her hands wildly in the air, "I don't care what you do but you will not bring your bastard into my house!"

"Our house!" Her father screamed back, then swivelled to face Aurora and Evan, "You two go to your rooms. Evan, yours is the one next to your sister's."

Evan gave him a thumbs-up and began trudging towards the stairs but she remained in her spot. What was her father even saying?

She remembered when she was little and how much she'd begged him to let her baby brother come live with them. She remembered how he always refused, obliging to her mother's requests and now he wanted Evan to stay with them.

She gave the little devil a harsh glare but he returned the gesture with a sneer.

"Aurora!" She jumped when her father yelled her name, "Go to your room." He repeated, sternly this time.

She looked between her parents, at her mother's blazing eyes and her father's narrowed ones. With a sharp intake of breath, she spun on her heels and sprinted for the stairs. She slammed the door behind her and jumped on her bed, her eyes trained on the white ceiling. She could still hear the faint shouts from her parent's voices, something like glass crashed and she shut her eyes.

The side of her face hurt and she winced when she poked a finger at the area. Aurora exhaled softly, rising to her feet and shuffled to the vanity mirror.

"Fuck," She whispered on seeing her reflection. "Fuck, that hurts," She grimaced as she poked the blooming red spot, her thumb wiping the dried blood below her lips.

"I hope to god that Dad didn't do that to you."

Her head snapped up at his voice, eyes narrowing as he walked further into the room and settled on the bed. "Or was it your mother?"

She watched him through the mirror, her fingers curling into fists. She recalled the last time he was in this room and how he'd subtly threatened her and now he has the urge to waltz into their lives as he pleased.

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop coming into my room without knocking?"

Her shrugged carelessly, green eyes sparkling with mischief, "Not enough times apparently."

Her cheeks flamed with heat, there were so many smartass replies she would've loved to give him at the moment but she decided that he wasn't worth it so she chose to ignore him, instead returning her focus to the mirror. She applied ointment to the throbbing spot, her eyes flickered to his and was surprised to see that he was silently watching her.

"What's your problem? Do you have something to say to me or another threat to make?" She shifted so that she was facing him.

He didn't respond, rather he rose to his feet and dusted his palms on the side of his jeans. "I think I'll enjoy my stay here."

A brow arched at that, "You're delusional if you think my mother is going to make feel any sort of joy in this house."

His lips curled slightly, "Is that why you always have this dead look in your eyes?"

She was taken aback by his comment, her mouth opened and closed several times but no word came out. He looked victorious at her reaction and rose to his feet,

"Aurora, your life is even more miserable than mine," The back of his fingers stroked her cheek and she stiffened, "It's understandable why you have a fuckboy but what I don't get is, why him?"

Her throat seized up instantly, eyes widening in shock. Aurora had always prided herself in being careful, she took every step and every decision with sharp precision and cautiousness. So how in the world did Evan know?

His smirk deepened and he leaned forward. "Is that a kink of some sort?" From their proximity, she was able to see her reflection in his pale green eyes, "Fucking dirt poor degenerates?"

She slapped his hand away from her face, jumping to her feet as she gave him the best death glare she had. "Fuck you." She spat venomously, her body tingled with fury.

Evan threw his head back and barked out a short, mocking laugh, "Take it easy, sister. I was only kidding."

She didn't back down, her fingers were curled into a fist as she glared darkly at him. "Get out of my room."

For a moment, they stood still. Neither of them moved an inch, their eyes locked in a heated stare. Then all of a sudden, Evan broke into a huge grin,

"Good night, sister." He winked, sashaying towards the door. She watched until he was out of the room and rushed to lock the door.

Aurora turned and rested her back on the wood, her head leaning against the frame of the door. Her eyes fluttered shut and she mumbled quietly to no one in particular,

"Breathe in. Breathe out." She repeated this a couple of times, inhaling and exhaling until her thumping heart had fallen into a steady rhythm.

Evan's words reiterated in her ears and her fingers clenched tightly. She wasn't going to end her relationship with Ryan, she was in too deep already. There was only one thing she could do,

And that was to find an equally grueling dirt on her brother.