"And you couldn't be bothered to tell us all this before", a fuming voice screamed and my poor ears saw heaven and hell for a narrow second before being pulled into the conversation again.

"Four days Bekah!", another voice screeched and this time I almost peed my pants a little. Just a little. "Four days again, just when we had a talk and you promised to never do this again. You promised Rebekah!" The heartbreak in Lexi's voice shattered my soul a little bit more than Theo's voice shattered my eardrums.

"So you mean to tell me", Alex's disbelieving voice sounded over Lexi and Theo's argument, "That you're living with the Costas right now? Like right this second?"

"Yeah", came my answer. The first time I talked in almost seven minutes ever since I gave my friends an abridged version of the events in my life. I don't know why I didn't bother replying to the texts I constantly received even when I lay doing nothing on the unfamiliar bed. I loved them dearly. They were all my soulmates in a non-fantasy, having fantastic friends kind of way. But the stress and overwhelming thoughts ate away at my brain every second I was alone in the room and my various futures haunted my mind every other second. I couldn't for some reason mount up the energy required to talk to them before this.

It was like everything around me was grey and I was just a part of that grey.

Today was the first time I had enough courage to pick up my phone and call them to explain my absence.

"Rebekah? Or are you Fiorenza now or something?", Alex's voice continued and I couldn't, I couldn't let go of that one statement.

"Of course I'm Rebekah! What the hell Alex?"

Because the day I let go of my name was the day I sacrifice my future and all its bearings surely. Because that would be the day I'd accept that mom's never ever coming back. I couldn't accept that piece of information yet. They'd find her.

"Sheesh", came Alex's cautious voice and I realized that I'd burst on him a little too hard, "just asking babe. But are you okay though?"

"Yeah", I sighed tired tiredly leaning back onto the bed from my position on the floor and absently looking up at the ceiling, "Yeah I guess it's okay for now."

"You know about the rumours and everything right?", Michael's cautious voice, voiced what we all were thinking, "You have to be careful Bekah, just try to go along until it's all over Yeah?"

"Yeah", was my only response because Mike had voiced what was on my thoughts each day, every day. Federico's hands on my cheeks suddenly flashed through my mind and I chose not to tell them about this morning.

"I'm coming over", a weirdly quiet Sandy spoke up for the first time in minutes and my eyes immediately went wide.

"What do you mean you're coming over?", I panicked, "I've seen all these guards around and I've never seen anybody except them and the house help here. They're dangerous Sandy, you can't just come over."

"My brother is friends witht the assholes remember?", Sandy reminded us, "I'll figure something out but you need actual people you trust right now."

A miserable sob broke through my facade but I couldn't give up, "Sandy I can't let you do this for me- I-"

"Stop - it's fine babe. Just leave it to me, I'll figure it out", her tone was final.

"Thank you", I miserably whispered. I really did need to talk to someone and not think twice before every sentence I uttered.

"Just be okay Bekah, that's all we want", Theo's soothing voice allowed me the time I needed to cool off.

"We'll see you at school on Tuesday hon", Lexi chirped trying to bring back the positivity she always holds onto. It sounds weak.

"Yeah and try to see if Luke Pierŕe comes around", Theo dreamily muttered dreamily causing us all to laugh. But everyone knew he was just trying to distract us from the daunting realization about my uncertain future, "If he's ever shirtless and you don't get a picture consider this friendship null and void."

"Oh now I have to run around trying to find a shirtless Luke Pierŕe for the rest of my life. Gotta go start now", I exaggerated with a laugh.

Soon everyone said their goodbyes and as I stared at my blank phone I realized I'd lost the momentary distraction of my life. I'd much rather be in the comfort of my own room than roam around in the common space for all aka the rest of the house. But boredom insisted I do something other than lay on my bed and listen to Reputation on repeat.

I didn't.

It was a few minutes later that a knock sounded at the door and I muttered a soft come in. There stood Gabrielé with his signature smile on his face.

"Good news tesoro, I finally finished your room. Well, I guess Nic and Cole helped too but come on", he motioned to my still form on the bed, "Check it out. And you'll be moving into today if you like it honey."

A part of me really didn't want this room to be complete as long as I was here. I did not want to have something of mine in this house. I don't want to call any space in this house as my own. But denying Gabrielé was never an option for me anyway.

As he led me down up hallways to the third floor of the mansion, we stopped in front of a long hallway.

"This is the hall with everyone's rooms. Yours is the one at the beginning on the left side since every room is arranged according to the age group. Yours is opposite to Federico's and somewhat to mine, and beside Ercole's. If you need anything, absolutely anything, you can call any one of us."

I absently nodded as he guided me into my room and my jaw dropped at once.

It was beautiful.

Dark pastel shades, minimum furniture, humongous bed, was that a walk-in closet?, carpet over one half of the floor, a giant bay window with a loveseat- my room was literally something I would cook up in my imagination while watching Princess Diaries. I don't know how a room can feel warm and snug at the same time but this one just did.

Usually, any place outside of my small bedroom back home would feel too foreign for me to sleep in. But this room for some reason just felt like mine and on one hand my mind knew that this was not good but it also just did not want to care for once.

"It's beautiful Gabrielé", a slow smile spread over my face as I walked around observing every little corner of the magnificent room, "It's honestly the best room I could ever imagine."

"Hey what about me?", a voice spoke from the general direction of the door and I looked up to see all the brothers standing there except Declan and Federico. The voice in question belonged to Ercole though.

"Thank you", I said to all of them in general even though I'm pretty sure Eraldo doesn't deserve any gratitude of mine. Yes, I still held a grudge against him. No, I would never voice it because he still scares me within every inch of my life.

"It's all yours bambina", Niccoló smiled at me, "I hope you like it."

"I do. I really do", even though it was excessive to the boot, I couldn't do the life of me insist that they take it back. Though I probably should have.

"I'll call you down for dinner later. You can rest now if you want to", Gabrielé said ushering everyone out of the door and closing it behind him.

I plopped down on my bed releasing a heavy sigh.

How does ones life become so complicated in under a week?