Chapter 03

She woke up feeling completely refreshed, as if the nap had restored both her body and mind.

The room was now enveloped in the calm of night, with the last traces of evening light giving way to darkness. She reached over to turn on the side lamp, the soft glow casting a gentle light across the room.

As she stretched, a sense of clarity washed over her, pushing aside the lingering exhaustion. The silence of the night felt comforting, almost peaceful, like a pause before the world picked up again.

Now feeling hungry, she quickly washed up, refreshed herself, and headed downstairs for dinner.

She approached the dining room. Her cousins were already there, as soon as she entered, all eyes turned to her, their attention shifting in an instant and the sound of laughter and clinking dishes stopped for a while.

The scent of her grandmother's famous roasted chicken and warm bread filled the air, pulling a smile to her lips.

Sara was the first to address her.

" There you are! " Sara exclaimed, springing up from her chair and rushing over to envelope her in a bear hug.

" We thought you'd fallen into another coma or something."

Gabriella laughed, hugging her back.

" It was just a nap, not a coma, you drama queen and I needed it after, all the tiredness of travelling."

Elena smirked from her seat, resting her chin in her palm.

" Oh, trust me, You'll need more rest. We've got whole evening ahead of us, Gabby."

Gabriella rolled her eyes but smiled, her heart full at being surrounded by them again.

Mateo, sitting at the end of the table with Sandra and baby Olivia, grinned teasingly after gesturing her to join them.

" You're not getting special treatment tonight from us, Mariya."

Gabriella shot him a playful look as she sat down rolling her eyes dramatically.

" Bread," Elena offered her which she gladly accepted.

" You know, I've got my eyes on the dessert tray Grandma's been hiding in the kitchen. That's where the real deal is." Elena told her like she has found out the road to treasure.

" Not if Sara gets to it first, " Gabriella teased, nudging her cousin.

" We all know, she's always been, the professional dessert stealer."

Sara pointed her fork at Gabriella with a mischievous grin, narrowing her eyes dramatically.

" You better take back your accusations, Mariya, " she warned with a mock-seriousness.

" I know more of your secrets than you can imagine." She winked at her.

" You know, stuff that could make things very interesting around here." She smirked afterwards.

Gabriella raised an eyebrow, her lips twitching in amusement.

" Secrets, huh? Like what, exactly?

Are we talking embarrassing dance moves or that story from your date last summer?" She shotback laughing at her reaction.

Sara smirked, leaning closer.

" Like that one friend in Seoul who's texting you nonstop."

Gabriella's cheeks flushed, and she let out a nervous laugh

" We're not doing this again." She said, trying to brush it off

" I told you he is just a friend."

Sara's smirk widened, enjoying her reaction.

" Oh, it's a he?" she teased, raising an eyebrow.

Gabriella groaned, feeling the heat rise to her cheeks.

" she laughed nervously, trying to change the subject.

Sandra leaned forward, practically bouncing in her seat.

" Ooooo.... a HE friend, huh? " she repeated, eyes twinkling with mischief.

" Now, I'm really curious. Who is he? "

Mateo chuckled as he poured himself some water, a playful glint in his eye.

" Is it the same 'friend' Elena was talking about earlier, when we were at the park with Olie after lunch? " he asked Sara with a smirk on his face which Sara nodded with the same face.

" I overheard a little conversation this afternoon. Apparently, he's just a 'friend' who's very concerned about her well-being." Mateo continued.

Elena chimed in, grinning wickedly.

" A friend who's been sending her messages

like,

" Hope Madrid is treating you well " &

" Everyone's missing you."

Oh, and let's not forget the latest one,

" Our group feels incomplete without you."

Gabriella groaned, burying her face in her hands.

" He's just checking in! Can't a person care without it meaning something?"

Sara gasped, her hand over her heart.

" Oh, absolutely. Purely platonic. That's why your cheeks are as red as Grandma's tomato soup right now."

" Yeah, and you are making it absolutely believable that he is JUST A FRIEND " Elena said while smirking emphasizing the words making Gabriella laugh nervously.

The whole table erupted into laughter, even Sandra shaking her head with a knowing smile.

Gabriella glared at Sara and Elena, though her lips twitched with the hint of a smile, she said

" I can't believe I'm friends with you sometimes."

Mateo leaned forward, his expression mock-serious.

" Gabby, I don't know much about this guy, but I'm telling you, if he's sending texts like that, he's either likes you or keeping tabs on you for some secret spy mission. Either way, I think we should investigate."

" Stop it! Not you too Matt." Gabriella said, laughing as she tossed her napkin at Mateo.

" I'm not discussing this with you."

Sandra winked at her.

" It's okay, Gabby. Just let us know when we're meeting him so we can do the usual family interrogation."

" Oh, yes," Sara said, grinning.

" I can already picture it. So, Mike, what are your intentions with our sweet little Gabby?"

Elena added,

" And then Grandma will bring out the photo albums to really, Seal the Deal."

Gabriella threw her hands up in defeat.

" You're all insane. I'm never bringing anyone home at this rate."

Her grandmother, who had just walked in with a tray of desserts, chuckled softly.

" Don't mind them, Mariya. They're just jealous because they know no one will ever write them messages as sweet as the ones you're getting."

The laughter doubled as Gabriella's cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red.

The teasing didn't stop even after dessert was served.

Sara, the one to never let an opportunity go, leaned over and whispered loud enough for everyone to hear,

" Gabby, I bet your friend in Seoul is pacing his room right now, wondering if you've had dinner yet."

Gabriella gave her cousin a flat look as she sliced into her pie.

" You're ridiculous."

" Oh, come on! " Elena chimed in, winking.

" Isn't it sweet? The poor guy is probably staring at his phone, waiting for you to reply. Maybe he's writing a heartfelt poem about you."

Mateo raised an eyebrow, playing along.

" A poem? That's serious business. Gabriella, does he write you love poems?"

" Absolutely not," Gabriella said firmly, but her flushed face betrayed her.

Sandra tilted her head, pretending to think deeply.

" Hmmm, let me guess," she said, a mischievous smile spreading across her face.

" He's the type who'll stay up late thinking about you, but won't admit it? Or maybe he's already planning the two of you getting married and picking out baby names? "

Gabriella's eyes went wide, and before she could stop herself, she blurted out,

" Mike is not like that! "

The room fell silent for a moment , before everyone burst into laughter at her outburst.

" Oh-ho! She said his name! " Sara clapped her hands, grinning like she'd just uncovered a deep secret.

" Mike! That's his name everyone! Why didn't you tell us the name sooner?"

"It slipped," Gabriella mumbled, wishing she could disappear into thin air.

Elena leaned back in her chair, a smug expression on her face.

" You know, for someone who's just a friend, he surely has an impact of making you blush just by his name."

" Exactly! " Mateo added, pointing his fork at Gabriella sarcastically.

" Look at her. She's blushing again. This is more than just friendship."

Gabriella threw her napkin at Mateo with a fake-angry expression that made him laugh.

" Will you all stop? He's just...."

" Yeah! A FRIEND, we know! " Sara interrupted, mimicking her and rolling her eyes mockingly

" But tell me, if he is just a friend then why does your friend call you Reina Mariya Or is that just a friendly thing we are unfamiliar with?

I saw that message girl! You can't deny. "

Gabriella froze for a second, her heart skipping a beat at the mention of that nickname.

She could literally hear Mike's voice saying those words echoed in her mind, and for a moment, her cousins' teasing faded into the background.

Sandra, noticing her expression, smirked.

" Oh, really? does he call you that?"

Gabriella tried to shake it off, putting on her best poker face.

" No, he doesn't. And even if he did, it doesn't mean anything serious. It's just a name you also call me that. Don't you?"

" Doesn't mean anything serious... Really? " Elena said, pretending to be shocked.

" He calls you a queen, Gabriella. That's a declaration that he doesn't think, you are an ordinary girl in his eyes."

" Maybe he's just being polite,"

Gabriella argued weakly, trying to keep her voice steady.

Mateo laughed, leaning forward on the table looking at her in disbelief.

" Polite? Gabby, no guy texts a girl this much, calls her a queen, and asks if she's okay every hour, just to be polite.

Trust me, he's really into you.

You know just telling you from a guy's perspective."

She knew all of them were right, but she didn't want to admit it yet, even though she had started enjoying his presence more than she'd expected.

Still, she feared that if she did, she'd risk losing him. She wasn't ready to take the risk of where they lose each other.

She couldn't shake the thought, that they'd end up like her parents, caught in the same situation they were in, which she was desperately trying to avoid. She didn't want to go down that path.

Gabriella groaned, hiding her face in her hands.

" Why do I even talk to you people? "

" Because you love us," Sara said, grinning.

" And deep down, you know we're right."

Her grandmother, who had been quietly watching the banter from the other side of the table, finally chimed in with a gentle smile.

" Let her be, children." Grandma said calmly.

" If there's something there, she'll figure it out in her own time."

The others exchanged amused glances.

"Ah, Grandma to the great fairy rescue! " they teased, but with affection, not being disrespectful, but that comment only made their grandmother laugh along.

Gabriella looked at her grandmother a grateful look, but her relief was short-lived as Elena added one last jab.

" Fine, we'll stop for now. But if we see Mike's name pop up on your phone during our stay, don't expect us to hold back."

The table erupted into laughter again, and though Gabriella rolled her eyes, she couldn't help but smile.

Even if their teasing drove her crazy, there was no denying how much she had missed this.