suddenly stopped on the top stair. Stopping in my tracks, I looked at her sideways. "What's wrong?" Instead of answering, she called out, "Alessio." My head snapped in the opposite direction,

was true, so it worked with my fabricated lie. "We can go shopping another time. No worries. We can shop online today, if you want," she suggested. "Okay," I replied with a smile. That sounded better, even though I didn't know we could shop online. How much did I actually miss while living with my father and Alberto? "I'll be right back. Let me get my laptop." Maddie left the room quickly. I walked back to my bed and sat down. Rubbing my hands over the satin comforter, I found the softness calming. Closing my eyes, I tried to get rid of the negative, painful thoughts. I needed to stop thinking about the past. "I'm back!" Maddie announced as she came back into the room. "Okay. Let's shop!" She placed the laptop between us. I couldn't help but laugh at her enthusiasm. She knew how to make a situation lighter. Most importantly, she knew how to make me laugh, and that was exactly what I needed. We shopped for a while. Okay, it was definitely hours. Maddie was a beast at shopping. She was definitely possessed. "Shop till you drop," she muttered, finally shutting her laptop. "How much was that? You paid for me," I asked quickly. Maddie shrugged and turned on her side to look at me. "It's okay. You can use your salary the next time we go shopping." "But how much was that? We bought a lot, Maddie. And that blue dress was expensive," I argued. "I don't know. It was two thousand something," she mumbled under her breath. "And before you start, I have the money. I might be a maid," she stressed the word maid while rolling her eyes, "but Alessio pays me a lot. Allowance and all." "Sister benefits?" She nodded with a laugh. "Damn, that makes me sound like a horrible person." "No. He loves you like a sister and Lena like a mother. It's very obvious. I'm sure the other men feel the same way," I said, lying down on my back beside Maddie. They all respected Maddie and Lena. The bonding of this family always left me speechless. They were the true definition of family. Not by blood, but by choice. Something I never had with my own blood, but with the Ivanshovs, I found a family. Maddie and I were both silent for some time, both staring at the ceiling, lost in our thoughts. When she finally broke the silence, it wasn't something I ever expected her to say. "Ayla?" "Hmm...yeah?" "I'm weird, aren't I?" At the question, I grew confused. Turning on my side, I pushed myself on my elbows, facing her as she continued to stare at the ceiling. "No. Not at all. Why are you asking this?" I questioned. "They always say that I'm weird. I should be more mature and blah blah blah." "Who says that? That's horrible." I was outraged at the thought. She was the sweetest person I knew. "My friends," she quoted again, still staring at the ceilings. "I don't have a lot of friends. I lost a lot of them over the years." "What do you mean?" I asked, my heart growing tighter at the forlorn, distant expression on her face. She was silent for a few minutes, the tension around us growing thicker, as if a dark cloud had settled over us. "I was sick," she admitted finally. It was a quiet admission, and I stared at her, confused. "Sick? As in badly sick?" I questioned, moving closer to her. Maddie nodded. "I had Hepatitis C when I was nineteen. After I was cured, I got Leukemia a year after. It's now two years since I have been cancer free." Her admission left me shell shocked. I didn't know what to say. Not once would I have guessed that she had been deathly sick. "You know sometimes when you come close to death, you realize what you're missing and what you have been taking for granted. And I was taking my life for granted. After I was cured, I decided that I was going to live my life as if it was my last day. I was going to be happy so that I didn't have any regrets later on." She paused, a tear slipping down from the corner of her eyes. Bringing my hand up, I swiped it away. Before I could pull away, she grabbed my hand. "But when I got out of the hospital, after years of fighting to stay alive, I found that I had lost my friends. They'd moved on. I tried to get back into my life, trying to fit in again, but you just know when someone doesn't want you anymore. That's how I felt. Unwanted. I was unhappy." My fingers tightened around hers, giving her strength to continue. Her words brought tears to my eyes. I knew what it was like to feel unwanted. To feel unhappy. So I lent her a tiny bit of strength from me. "So I left school. I always wanted a degree. Wanted to be a lawyer. That was always my plan, but I couldn't do it anymore. I was already twenty-five, lost with no goal for my life. It felt suffocating. I felt weak and not needed. So I came back to live here with Mum and the others." Maddie let out a small laugh before turning on her side to face me. "I didn't know I would find happiness here, but I did." She shrugged before continuing. "This is my life now, but I don't want to live it maturely. I want to live it freely." "I'm glad you were able to move on," I whispered, swiping away the tears on her face. "I don't think you're weird. I think you're the best." "Truthfully, you are my first friend in so long. That sounds pretty pathetic, doesn't it?" Letting out a laugh, I shook my head. "No. Because you're my first friend, too." "Wow," she whispered. "Yeah." "Your turn now," Maddie said, pointing at my chest. "Huh?" I asked confused. "I shared something. It's your turn." I let go of her hand and laid down on my back again. Share something? What did I have to share? My truth...they were all messed up. And I couldn't even tell her the whole truth. But maybe some of it... "I'm engaged," I whispered to the ceiling. Maddie was silent beside me. Then she sat up quickly. "Wha-what?" she sputtered. The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them. I was in a daze, my mind lost as I went back into my past. Images after images, memories after memories flashed in front of my eyes. "He wasn't a good man. He beat me up. I was raped-lots of times. I don't know anything about others because he never let me go outside. He was really controlling. When I couldn't take it anymore, I ran away, and that was how I found Alessio. I hid in his car to escape him." "Ayla," Maddie gasped, her hands folding over mine. "He said he loved me. He loved me too much. His love became his obsession." "That wasn't love, Ayla," Maddie said, her hands squeezing mine in comfort. "I know," I whispered. Now that I thought of it, I knew Maddie was right. Alberto never loved me. To him, I was just an item to be possessed. Not a human...not someone he loved. Alberto played a big part in my undoing. I was his obsession, and he was my downfall. My nightmare. Now, I knew what love really meant. Love meant soft kisses, gentle caresses, sweet words, and loving eyes. And Alberto was none of that... But I found it here. "Who is he? Alessio is going to kill that little shit of a human being. God, I don't even know what to call him. I can't wait for Alessio to get his hands on him. He will wish he never laid eyes on you," Maddie growled angrily, her hands tightening around mine. When I was silent, Maddie came closer, placing a hand over my shoulder. "Ayla, does Alessio know? Did you tell him?" I shook my head mutely, my