Meeting Brother-in-law

Gianna stared into his obsidian eyes, sharp and cold, like ice on bare skin—numbing.

She had never seen that look in his eyes before, never, and it reminded her of his elder brother. He was always like this too. But she always felt lucky—lucky to be able to talk to him, lucky to have his attention, lucky to be the one standing before him. And as time passed, she stopped caring about how cold his gaze was, how numbing it felt—until that incident, of course. The incident that opened her eyes.

"Are you deaf?"

Gianna calmly averted her gaze, saying the lie she had just thought of. "I'm the cleaner here."

"Cleaner?" He released her jaw, leaving a lingering numbness, a sign of how much strength he had used.

"Yeah." Gianna nodded calmly, meeting his gaze so he wouldn't find her suspicious.

"You clean at night too?" he questioned, raising a brow as he assessed her.

Gianna pursed her lips, trying to come up with an excuse.

However, she really couldn't think of one. After a few seconds of silence, she switched their positions.

"Then what are you doing here? I've never seen your face before."

"You're asking me now, huh?" he said, amusement lacing his voice.

Gianna stood her ground. She had to know why he was here. Was her death not enough for their family? Was her property next? Her grandma's house?

She needed to know.

"I'm the owner's boyfriend. What's wrong with me coming into her house?" he replied lazily, spewing lies in a calm tone.

Gianna's eyes widened, shock flashing in them, followed by confusion.

Was Lucas okay in the head?

What was he saying?

When did she ever date him?

And how come she had no idea?

"Mmm... You don't seem like her… man," she muttered softly, feeling his gaze suddenly snap onto her. "I knew her husband, and he's nothing like you. So, sir, who are you, and what. are. you. doing. here?"

He smirked, holding her gaze for a whole minute. Gianna held her breath, patiently waiting for an answer. But all she got after a whole minute was a chuckle.

"Oh yeah, no wonder I found you familiar. You're that girl from the store, aren't you?"

Gianna rolled her eyes but wasn't ready to back down.

She needed an answer so she would carefully plan her next steps! She would never allow them to spoil the things she left behind. They already messed with her when she was alive, she wouldn't allow them to continue after her death.

Lucas didn't mind either. Instead, he stood up abruptly, heading in the direction of her room when she was still Brianne. Her brows furrowed in confusion, her mind racing with countless thoughts.

Everything was so strange. She couldn't understand at all.

"I'll be waiting for you tomorrow morning. Goodnight."

She bit her lip as he shut the door, her hand slowly forming into a fist. She took a deep breath then walked outside, grabbed her bicycle, and pedaled away, the chilly air making her resolve firmer than ever.

When she reached home, she expected everyone to be asleep. It was already 10:45 PM, after all.

But the house couldn't have been any noisier.

"Are you guys fucking mad? Why the fuck are you so slow?!"

"Behind you, No. 3!"

"Damn it, you're a bot!"

"We already lost this—fuck you!"

Well, that explained the noise.

In the living room, everyone was gathered.

Sophia had already returned. She sat on the couch, engaged in a video call with another man, seemingly having a great conversation.

Aurora sat on the floor, hunched over her textbook, fingers gripping her pen so tightly her knuckles turned white. Her brows were furrowed in deep concentration, but the way she repeatedly tapped her pen against the page showed her impatience and frustration.

Raising her head slightly, Gianna pinpointed the source of the chaos.

Andrea.

And he had no idea how much noise he was making.

Gianna rolled her eyes. She didn't like this much noise. More than that, Aurora couldn't focus on her assignment properly. And Sophia…

"Yes, baby, I can't wait for us to fuck like never before. You know, like this morning—hahahaha."

Gianna's expression darkened.

The exhaustion from the whole day—dealing with Kaye, the confrontation with Lucas, and now this fucking nonsense.

Did everyone have a death wish?

She stepped inside, shutting the door with more force than necessary. The sound was loud enough to momentarily disrupt the chaos in the room.

Aurora looked up from her textbook, relief flashing in her tired eyes. She smiled at Gianna, waving her little hand and Gianna returned the gesture by patting the girl on the head. Sophia, however, barely spared her a glance, too caught up in her conversation as she laughed at whatever her lover was saying.

Andrea, still engrossed in his game, simply cursed at his screen, unfazed.

Gianna exhaled sharply, rubbing her temple.

"Turn it down," she said, her voice firm as she approached Andrea's desk.

Andrea barely reacted, only grumbling something under his breath. He was too engrossed.

"I said, turn it down."

This time, her voice carried more weight.

Aurora tensed, as if expecting Gianna to kick Andrea off his seat at any moment.

"I'm busy right now, sis," Andrea muttered with a hint of annoyance, expecting Gianna to back off like usual.