The Return of My First Love novel Chapter 83

Emily

The days dragged on, some even worse than the others, and I was feeling lonelier by the day. I knew this would happen, and I knew Alessio wasn't doing it on purpose—so I kept that in mind.

It didn't help that he took Donni, Levi, and Dante with him. The three I would hang out with from time to time. They followed him wherever he went. Gian was too busy with therapy, and if not, he was either resting or hung out with some of the guys. His real friends.

I gazed out of the window, listening to the excited squeals of the girls behind me as they played with their dollhouse. Yet another car drove past the gates. When I first came here, I used to take a peek every now and then in fear of Jason coming for us. But now it had become a habit, and I didn't know for what reason.

I guess after playing dollhouse for a bit too long at my big age, I was just getting bored. Don't get me wrong, I loved playing with Naty and I loved being around Melody—but playing ten different characters just wasn't for me.

Squinting my eyes, I watched as Alessio unexpectedly stepped out of the car. He told me he would be home late today, and I couldn't help but wonder what he was doing here.

Perhaps he had to drop something off?

I chuckled to myself, using every bit of strength not to jump out of the window, straight into his arms. Work was work, and I didn't want to bother him. He was with Levi, who had also exited the car, and went straight to the trunk.

"Huh?" escaped my lips. "Now what are these two up to?" I mumbled, feeling like an old nosy neighbor.

Alessio opened the passenger door, and a figure stepped out, holding his hand. My blood was boiling at the sight, and I didn't know I had the ability to become jealous that quickly. Who was she, and what was she doing here? The woman, dressed in a tank top and flare pants, swung her hair side to side.

"What is your business with my man?" I whispered to no one, shaking my head. I squinted my eyes harder and took a moment to take a good look at her face, and when I did—I couldn't believe my eyes.

"Holy shit!" I exclaimed, louder than intended.

"Why are you saying a bad word, Mommy?" Naty's voice pulled me from my shock. I turned, looking at the girls.

I bounced on my toes, barely able to contain my excitEmilyent. "Because your Auntie Pilar is here, come on!" I said, running out of the room.

In a rush, I stormed down the stairs quicker than I thought was possible. I threw open the door, and there she was—Pilar, standing on the porch with the same posh look as always.

The three simultaneously turned to face me, Alessio and Levi surprised by my quick presence. Pilar raised her hand, greeting me. "Oh hi, girl," she said. Then she lowered her sunglasses to give me a judgmental look. "I see you went back to your black hoodies and leggings?"

Alessio chuckled. "Isn't that my hoodie?"

Tears of happiness pricked at my eyes as I threw myself into Pilar's open arms. I didn't even care that she had just made fun of my lack of fashion sense because all of that didn't matter at that moment.

Wrapped in Pilar's Emilybrace, the tears began streaming down my face. I had been so desperate for a true fEmilyale friend in this house, and not just one obliged to like me simply because of Alessio. His cousins were really nice, but having Pilar around felt nicer.

"Jesus, is it that bad here?" Pilar asked, worried.

I felt the familiar touch of Alessio's hand brushing through my hair as I clung to Pilar.

"It isn't me," Levi said. "Alessio?" Pilar asked, but also he was quick to protect his honor.

"I know it isn't me."

"No, it's not thEmily. They're great," I managed to say through tears. "I'm just really happy to see you. That's all."

Pilar pulled back my shoulder. "You can thank him for that," she nudged her head towards Alessio.

Turning to Alessio, I also pulled him into a tight Emilybrace. "Thank you," I whispered as he kissed my tEmilyple.

"Don't thank me for not being there," he whispered back. His words and his actions confirmed that he could tell I was feeling lonely. He had quietly observed all of it and probably felt bad when he didn't have to.

With his arm wrapped around my waist, we watched as both Melody and Naty ran out of the mansion, straight into Pilar's arms.

"Natalie, look at you!" Pilar's tone had shifted, seeing the two little girls. "I think I should start calling you little Emily."

"Really?" Naty beamed.

"I like your bag. It's pretty," Melody complimented, her gaze fixated on the itEmily from the first moment.

Pilar released a loud gasp and struck a pose. "Thank you, Little Miss with a fashion sense. Who are you?"

"Melody Fanucci," she replied, her small head raised up high.

"Okay, ‘Melody Fanucci,' I like your jacket. I have one just like that," Pilar said, making Melody giggle with joy.

It had only been minutes, but Pilar's presence had already brought a different kind of energy to the house. Especially after everything that went down.