My stepbrothers seduction

Adria Collins stood in the center of her room, a sanctuary turned battleground.

Sunlight filtered through her sheer curtains, illuminating the dust motes that danced in the air.

She was surrounded by remnants of her past: posters of her favorite bands plastered on the walls, sketches pinned above her desk, and the faint scent of vanilla lingering from the candles she often burned.

Yet today, the familiar comfort of her space felt stifling.

At 18, Adria was strikingly beautiful, a blend of resilience and vulnerability. Standing at 5'6", her slender yet curvy figure hinted at a dancer's grace.

Long, wavy chestnut hair fell to her mid-back, catching the light in shimmering strands.

Her vibrant green eyes, often bright with passion, now reflected a storm of emotions-anger, betrayal, and confusion.

High cheekbones accentuated her heart-shaped face, while a light dusting of freckles across her nose added a touch of youthful innocence.

Adria was no stranger to attention, but today she wished to fade into the shadows.

As she gazed out her window, the sight of a moving truck parked in the driveway filled her with dread.

This was it-the moment she had been dreading since her father announced his engagement to Claire.

Her father, once her unwavering protector, had chosen to move on, leaving Adria feeling abandoned and resentful.

The laughter and chatter of unfamiliar voices outside pierced through her thoughts, echoing in her mind like an unwelcome reminder of her new reality.

Her father's new family arrived in a flurry of activity.

Claire, radiating warmth, was busy directing the movers with a cheerful energy that made Adria's stomach churn.

Claire was everything Adria felt she wasn't: poised, outgoing, and effortlessly kind.

Adria's resentment bubbled beneath the surface as she observed her father smiling, clearly enamored by Claire's presence.

It was a smile that had become all too familiar, one she hadn't seen since her mother passed away two years prior.

Then there was Nathan, Claire's son, who stepped out of the truck with an air of casual confidence that made Adria's blood boil.

At 22, he was tall-6'2"-with an athletic build that spoke of hours spent in the gym.

His dark hair was tousled just enough to appear effortlessly handsome, and his piercing blue eyes held a glint of mischief that made him seem both alluring and infuriating.

Adria couldn't help but notice the way he carried himself, exuding an undeniable charm that drew others in, but to her, it felt like an insult.

He caught her gaze and smirked, the expression a mix of amusement and challenge, as if he knew the negative effect he had on her.

"Welcome to our home!" Claire called, her voice bright and inviting, as she gestured for Nathan to help with the boxes.

Adria could hardly bear to watch, her heart clenching at the sight of her father blending seamlessly into this new family dynamic.

The thought of sharing her home-and her father-with these strangers sent a wave of nausea through her.

"Dad, do you really think this is a good idea?" She could give them space.

Adria's voice was laced with bitterness as she stepped into the living room, where the chaos of boxes and unfamiliar faces overwhelmed her. She crossed her arms, her stance defiant as she faced her father.

He turned to her, his expression a mix of surprise and concern. "Adria, this is a fresh start for all of us. We need to-"

"I don't need a fresh start," she interrupted, her voice rising. "I need you to remember what we had! What you're throwing away." The words hung in the air, heavy with grief and frustration. She hated how easily he seemed to forget the past, how easily he was moving on.

She didn't want to move on, even though her mom died years ago.

She didn't want to stay there, she even thought to pack out of the house.

Good thing she lived in her own apartment close to school, so a few days after this pleasantries,

She'd go back.

Now, the new family reached where she was standing.

Just Nathan, Claire was right behind him.

Nathan leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, watching the exchange with an amused smirk.

"Hello, sister." His tone dripped with sarcasm, igniting a fire within her. Who did he think he was, strolling into her life and acting like he owned the place? This was the second time she'd seen him; their first encounter hadn't ended well, with tears streaming down her face and her screaming at her dad.

"I am not your sister," she snapped, her eyes narrowing. "I'm never going to be." She muttered the last part under her breath.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he replied, feigning innocence. "I didn't mean to offend you..."

His friends' laughter echoed in her ears, fueling her anger. Adria's heart raced as she turned to her father, desperate for him to choose her side.

"See, you're letting this woman and her children come in and change everything. Don't you care about what I want?"

Her father's expression softened, but his resolve remained firm. "Adria, Claire is here to help us heal. We all need to give this a chance."

The disappointment in his voice struck her like a physical blow. She sighed, her face darkening. For months, seeing her dad with Claire – sharing laughter they'd once shared – felt like betrayal.

Nathan walked past; his mother followed. Adria didn't understand why Claire stood there, receiving them as if she owned the place.

"Hi, Adria, you beautiful girl. You look stunning as always," Claire said with a bright smile, holding Adria's chin in her hand.

Adria felt irritated, almost jolting back at the touch. She smiled awkwardly. "Hello."

"Let's go in," Claire said, pulling Adria into the house.

"Is that her?" a little girl's voice asked from behind.

Before Adria could turn, she felt the girl tugging at her sundress. She turned and looked down at Lily, Claire's youngest child, 14 years old.

Adria couldn't bring herself to be mean to Lily. She smiled. "Hi, Lily."

This was their second meeting, and Adria had grown to like Lily's accent and playful demeanor. She was obviously like her mother, but Adria didn't find her behavior repulsive.

"We meet again. I wanted to say I didn't recognize you, but I could never forget your beautiful face, even if I were in a 60-year coma," Lily said with certainty.

Adria couldn't help but laugh. "Come on, you're just a baby but You sure have a sweet mouth."

Lily leaned in and hugged Adria. When Adria stiffened, Lily pulled back, looking worried. "I'm sorry. Does it make you uncomfortable?"

Adria felt bad. "No, not at all. I just... didn't expect you to... hug me."

Lily's face lit up. "Oh, then I'll hug you more often so you'll get used to it. I like to hug people I like. That's why I don't hug Nathan." She said in a serious tone, but her desire to provoke her brother wasn't missed.

Everyone laughed. Adria thought Lily was good with words, even for a 14-year-old.

Nathan rejoined them in the living room as the maids carried in the remaining boxes.

Noticing his return, a scowl grew on Adria's face. She didn't know why, but out of all of them, she disliked him the most. And she knew why – he didn't regard her father, just like she didn't regard his mother. But there was a way he seemed cool with everything, even though she could see through the wall he was hanging; he didn't want a new family either. And most especially, he didn't want a new sister. He made that pretty obvious.

She hated that she'd lived her entire life being the only child, treated like a princess by both her parents, and now... this man comes in and becomes the second "man" of the house. She hated that in the dad's quest of building a happy home, he would allow him with all the leverages she was supposed to have because he was a man.

She hated that at some point, she'd have to listen to this stranger as an "older brother." Just the thought of it made her feel like dirt was crawling on her skin.

"What?" She heard a voice that she barely knew say; she jolted back to reality. She saw it was Nathan who spoke, and he was looking at her with pinched lips and furrowed brows, totally irritated.

She hadn't realized that her gaze had been fixed on him as she thought about numerous ways to kill him. See? That was exactly the reason she didn't like him. He was so arrogant and persistently annoying. How could she live with that?

"What?" She shot back, sneering at him and eyeing him with disgust and equal irritation.

He chuckled in total amazement, wondering how she had the nerve to be rude to him when he just saw her forcing herself to be nice to his mother and sister. It's not as if he cared if she was nice to him or not; he just felt like making her uncomfortable about it.

Lily had pulled her to a chair that was far from where the others were, since the sitting room was so large, there could be a safe distance. Taking advantage, Nathan walked to them and stood right in front of them with a stern face and his hands in his pockets.

He arched his brows as he looked down at her. Adria swallowed, not because she felt intimidated but because she didn't understand how a man that annoying could possess his figure; he was fucking tall. Not in a bad way but in a way that women died for.

She frowned, because she disliked him, she wanted to be able to badmouth him to her friends. To be able to tell them he was ugly and short as a penguin.

"You were looking at me? Smitten or hating?" He said with confidence.

She looked at his face with total disbelief and disgust. Smitten? She would never be smitten by a person who had piercing on his brow and a cut in it. He was obviously an attention seeker. And for a man, that was irritating.

"If you actually saw the way I was looking at you, you'd notice that I don't like you one bit."

He flinched at her words, but his lips curved to a full-blown smile. "If you say so, Nut."

Her brows furrowed; Nut? He smirked as he looked at her hair. Oh. He was calling her nut because of her chestnut hair? How typical of a 22-year-old boy. Everything about him irritated her, including the right frame of his face.

She snarled, but before she could say anything, her father's voice rang out.

"Aria" – she recognized that voice; it was him trying to call her back. He noticed that the argument would turn into a heated one if he didn't intervene.

He knew she would adjust to Claire and Lily with time; they were nice people, and Claire was just lovable. But he didn't understand the fuel between the two – Adria and Nathan.

Aria was pissed; why wouldn't he scold Nathan for provoking her?

With a furious shake of her head, Adria turned on her heel and fled up the stairs, leaving the chaos behind. She slammed her bedroom door shut, the sound reverberating through the house. Her heart pounded in her chest, and tears of anger blurred her vision. Actually, she had been needing to cry for a while now. Today was the perfect time.

Adria pressed her forehead against the cool surface of the door, willing herself to breathe. She felt like a stranger in her own home, watching her father's love for another woman grow while hers felt neglected. The thought of sharing her space with Nathan and Claire's younger sister, Lily, was unbearable.

As she glanced out her window once more, allowing the cold breeze to flow through her, she knew she needed to calm down. But she needed to let out her sorrow first. Just as she thought she could escape the noise below, her phone buzzed with a message from one of her friends.

"You okay? Heard about your dad's wedding." Adria's heart sank further. She had hoped to keep this from her peers, to avoid talking about it. But her best friend Tiffany had already found out since she had missed school for a while, and it wasn't normal.

She sighed as she threw her phone onto the bed. She wasn't doing this anymore; she would go to school tomorrow. Staying at home would only drive her crazy.

Just then, she saw Nathan walking to the car from the window. He opened it and picked up a tiny bag. His confident demeanor was evident, even when he knew no one was watching.

She would have frowned, but she didn't. She just watched him flatly. Just when she thought she'd look away, he looked up straight at her, as if she'd called him. How did he know anyone was there?

She almost stepped back as her cheeks flushed. He didn't think she was ogling him, did he? Like he knew what she was thinking, he smirked.

It was very early in the morning. But Adria was already dressed for school and ready to sneak out. She didn't want to say anything to anyone. She wanted to leave like she was invincible. She stood in front of the mirror, looking at her swollen eyes.

She hadn't been sleeping much lately, and she hated that her face showed any discomfort she was having.

She also didn't want to step out of her room, fearing she might meet one of her new family members outside.

But the only way to get outside was to go through the door, unless she'd jump through the window – she wasn't ready to get a broken leg. She sighed, pushing her long, wavy chestnut hair behind her ears and forcing herself to step out.

Dragging her feet, she headed toward the door, hoping she would make it out fine.

However, the sound of cheerful chatter filling the air stopped her.

Claire, her new stepmother, was bustling around, humming a tune while preparing breakfast. Adria's brow wrinkled as she checked her time again.

Why was she awake so early? Didn't she know students needed sleep?

"Good morning, Adria!" Claire called, her voice bright and eager. "I made pancakes! Come join us!"

Adria forced a smile but didn't respond. Instead, she poured herself a glass of water, wishing she could disappear into the floor.

The warmth radiating from Claire's kindness felt suffocating, like a weight pressing down on her chest.

"Thank you, but I need to go to school now," she said, looking around. She sighed with relief when she noticed that her stepbrother wasn't up yet. She wanted to take it as an opportunity to run out before he did; she didn't want to have another fight with him.

She didn't want her dad thinking she was trying to provoke him.

"You could pack some to school," Claire said with a frown.

Adria knew Claire was trying hard to get in her good graces, but Adria wasn't ready yet.

And she wished she could say that.

"Good morning, Adria," Lily called out gingerly from the other side of the kitchen.

Adria smiled. "Good morning. Aren't you going to school?"

"Oh, no. Not yet. Mom asked for a full week's leave for me, so I'll be home till next week," Lily answered excitedly.

Adria couldn't help but chuckle. She quite understood; when she was younger, she didn't like school either.

She wanted to stay at home and help her mom out in the kitchen.

But now, her safe haven was her books; she wanted to study hard and become the doctor she had promised her mom she'd become.

"Well, okay," she said, almost getting comfortable.

But that was until she heard the sound of whistling coming from the stairs.

Nathan was awake and coming downstairs.

"Uhmmm, I need to go. Bye," she said quickly, desperate to avoid crossing paths with that annoying, egoistic creature.

Before they could answer, she picked up her bag and turned on her heel.

Before she reached the door, Nathan was already down, having jogged downstairs. Their eyes locked when she turned back to take a look at where he had reached.

He stopped, looking at her, then at her bag, his brows arching.

Obviously, he knew she was avoiding him, having heard her speaking before she ran.

Without a word, Adria opened the door and stormed out.

He watched her through the glass door as she made her way to the car.

"Wow," he said to himself.

************************************

Adria arrived at school way too early. Only a few students were present at that time.

She liked it that way, so she wouldn't have to smile back at strangers who just wanted to talk to her or explain why she hadn't been in school the last week.

She went to her locker to pick up some books and put away her bag.

She noticed a small note inside and rose. It said: "A rose for a beautiful girl like you."

Adria sighed.

She had been receiving these random notes and roses since the day after she had gotten into college.

Obviously, it was a secret admirer. She just didn't understand why the person hadn't gotten the courage yet to approach her.

Even though she didn't know if she would reciprocate their feelings or not, she thought it was cute.

She kept the note amongst the stacked ones before locking up.

She almost jumped when she saw Jordan leaning against one of the lockers, waiting for her to notice him.

Jordan was her male best friend. He was nice, very interesting, and fun to talk to.

He wore his usual bright smile as he looked at her scared face.

She frowned as he slapped his arm lightly. "Why would you scare me like that?" she said, letting out a breath of relief.

"I didn't mean to scare you. I mean, it's not my fault you didn't notice me come in," he said, laughing now.

"Well, you did. And I'll get you back for it," she said, glaring at him but also smiling lightly.

"Ouch. Is that what I get for missing you?" He feigned a pained expression.

She laughed. "In fact, you deserve worse!"

"I forgive you. So, can you tell me why you disappeared on us? You didn't pick up any of our calls. I and Molly were worried!" He complained furiously.

Her face fell; she knew she had ignored their calls several times.

At some point, she had put her phone on "Do Not Disturb" because she didn't want to talk. She felt overwhelmed.

"I'm so sorry about that," she said with a sigh. "But, dang, you missed me so bad, didn't you?"

"Of course, I missed you. But please, next time, tell us before you go missing," Jordan said with a growing smile. "And also, what happened?"

Adria sighed; he wasn't about to let this go, was he? "Can we talk about it after class?" She offered.

She meant it because she knew that with Tiffany knowing, it would be totally unfair not to let him in on what's happening.

Tif would tell him anyway, and it would definitely hurt him that she kept it away from him.

"After school?" He asked with a hopeful look.

Adria gave him a slight smile. "Yes, after school."

They walked with his arms around her shoulders to where her class would hold.

A lot of students turned to look at her – not them, her.

She was beautiful, ethereally beautiful, and that made her the subject of attention wherever she went.

Jordan had gotten used to the eyes whenever he was around her, but he never failed to tease her about it.

"Well, the beauty queen is back," he said after taking a deep breath.

Adria rolled her eyes at him. "Look who's talking. I was nearly beaten because someone thought I was dating their 'crush'." She shook her head as she remembered that day.

The girls surrounded her when she was alone and threatened to beat her up if she didn't break up with 'their' Jordan.

"Wow, that was once, Ria. I'm not the one receiving random notes from shy lovers," Jordan joked.

Adria sighed and shook her head. Well, there was that.

They reached her classroom, and he stopped at the door. "Thank you for walking me," she said with her book clutched to her chest.

"We are doing thank-yous now?" He joked. "See you later."

She nodded and walked into her class.

Biology was her favorite subject, so she was glad that the first class was Bio 101.

Later in the day, they had finished their classes. She would have run away immediately after, but Tiffany had texted her to wait for her after school.

So she did.

"Hi, girl! Gosh, I miss you!" Tiffany shouted from the other side of the hall as she ran to her friend to give her the warmest hug.

Adria smiled, her most genuine smile since she heard about her father's new lover.

She hugged her best friend back. "I've missed you too. Sorry I missed your calls.

I just needed alone time to get through my feelings."

Tiffany pulled back with a frown. "Oh, baby, how are you really? Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. Of course, she knew Adria wasn't okay, but she still had to ask.

She knew how her father's love was what kept her going through those hard times, since her mother had died.

She could imagine the pain of feeling like that love was being shared.

It was even harder for her to watch her dad loving a woman who wasn't her mother.

"I'm not okay. But I'll be," Adria said with a confident smile.

Tiffany smiled. "That's my bestie. Now, if you want to rant about anything concerning your new family, I'd listen.

In fact, you know I'll bad-mouth them even better," she said with certainty.

Aria laughed, but before she could say there was no need for that, Jordan's voice rang from behind her.

"New family? Hey, did I miss a chapter?" He said with confusion as he walked up to them, facing the two women.

Aria sighed. "Well, that's why I haven't been in school. My dad remarried." Saying it was more painful than she thought it would be.

She knew it would hurt to actually admit that to other people, and that's why she didn't want to meet anyone.

"Shit," he said, instant worry etched on his face. "I didn't know. I'm so sorry."

Yes, how come everyone knew how uncomfortable it would be to watch him move on, except the person in question?

"Hey, it's fine, really. See, I'm already doing better," she forced a smile to her lips.

He wanted to say more, but he knew he couldn't force her to say she wasn't fine.

"Don't worry, I get it – the family isn't all that. You're still the favorite, I'm sure," Tiffany said, locking her arms with Adria's and starting to walk out of the school.

Aria smiled at her friend's attempt to make her smile.

"Well, I know," she said entertainingly.

"Of course, and do you have a sister now? Brother?" Tiffany went on, about to continue her bad-mouthing.

"Both. I like the sister, just okay. But the brother? He is just annoying and full of himself. He is a scumbag!"

Suddenly, there was a change in Adria's facade of being cool with the whole thing.

"You have a stepbrother?" Jordan voiced out beside her.

"Yes," she almost screamed. "And he is the worst human being I've ever met.

Like, who comes into someone's house and behaves like he owns it? He is no one."

"Wow, I don't like him already," Tiffany said as they reached the parking lot.

"Oh, I hate him," Adria added.

"I bet he is ugly, he feels ugly," Tiffany added, mocking.

"Oh, I think he is a goblin – a goblin in human form. I mean, who wears a ring in their brow?" she said, totally disgusted at the thought

But her voice hooked in her throat as she caught a glimpse of someone through the corner of her eyes.

She stopped in her tracks. Her gaze fixed on the frame leaning on a car right in front of them, legs crossed.

"What?" Tiffany asked as they stopped too.

She followed Adria's gaze to see what she was looking at – or who.

Tiffany literally gasped as she saw the guy: perfectly chiseled facial structure, sculpted physique, thick, stylishly cut and well-groomed hair.

His presence was commanding, and Tiffany had easily melted away.

"Who. The hell. Is that?" she said, eyes widened, mouth hung open.

Adria swallowed hard. "My stepbrother."

Adria untangled herself from her friends hurriedly and quickly ran to him. She opened the door and literally pushed him inside.

But his eyes had been fixed on the two beside her, especially the handsome boy who looked like a model standing at her left.

Rushing to her own side of the car, she screamed, "See y'all tomorrow!"

She got in, but before she could shut the door, she heard Tiffany say, "You said he was ugly!"

When the door was locked, she turned to look at him, wondering if he'd heard that.

His surprised face said he did.

"Why the hell are you here?" She scowled at him, her gaze hateful and furrowed with embarrassment.

"Your dad asked me to pick you up. Why? Are you embarrassed of me? Come on, I'm your stepbrother, and I think I'm quite appealing to the eye," he said mockingly as he started the car, not failing to look at her face and body.

Her hair was surprisingly still intact.

His eyes fell on her clothes; was that how they dressed?

Why was her skirt so short? It revealed a good amount of skin.

"It's not my fault that I feel like you're an attention-seeking jerk," she said as she sat back into her chair and folded her arms.

He smiled; none of her harsh words ever got to him, she realized.

She turned to look at the smirk on his face, then down at what he was wearing – a black leather jacket with a vest inside and jeans that she was sure were tight on his ass, making them sumptuous to look at.

Not for her, though, but for others who didn't find him repulsive.

How was that not an attention-seeking outfit?

"Who was that beside you? You've got a boyfriend?" He asked suddenly in a deep, dark tone, looking at her expression through the mirror.

But he didn't have to look; he could feel the irritation at his question.

"I didn't know I had to give you details about my personal life, brother," she snapped.

He smiled casually, returning his eyes to the road.

He didn't know he could ever find his match – someone who could be constantly annoyed and unbearable like him.

That intrigued him.

"I was just asking. I mean, I don't think anyone at your level can handle your attitude," he said with a shrug.

She turned slowly to look at him; if she was glaring at him before, now she was looking at him like her eyes could kill.

"And whatever you mean by that? Who do you suggest can handle me, then?" She asked him, interested in whatever stupid answer he had to give.

"Someone way older, more mature. Someone like-"

"You?" She laughed. Hopefully, he didn't mean to say that.

He smiled back, "Not exactly what I wanted to say, but I'm not so bad, am I?" Was it her, or had the smirk graduated to a seductive smile?

This guy enjoyed mind games.

She would play back, but she had to get over what was happening first.

She even wondered why he was still home. He had a place to stay; he didn't stay with his mom before she got married.

Just like Aria, who was staying in her own apartment for school, he was made to come back home for a few weeks for the wedding.

She couldn't wait to go back; him, on the other hand, seemed to be having fun.

So she shook her head and reached for the radio. It was playing a song by Lana Del Rey.

She smiled at her luck and leaned towards the window, allowing the cool breeze to blow through her hair.

He wanted to say more, but he left his words for later. Instead, he increased the volume.

*************************************

They pulled up at the parking lot, and Adria was the first to get out.

She didn't even look back as she went straight to the house.

She could hear him chuckling as she reached the door.

She badly wanted to turn and give him a piece of her mind, but she could hear her dad's voice in the living room, with her stepmother.

"Hey, Dad, hey Claire," she said to them, walking past them to head for the stairs, for her room.

"Not so fast," Collins called behind her, making her stop in her tracks.

She turned her head. "Do you want something, Dad?" She asked with the fakest smile she could muster.

She heard Nathan come in behind her.

"Come, sit with us," he said softly.

She knew what he was trying to do – he wanted her to loosen up to the family – but he didn't understand, did he?

What she needed was time. Anything other than that now would seem forceful.

What's worse was that she could see Claire was a good person, so she knew her facade wouldn't last long.

She would melt towards this sweet woman.

"I'd rather not. I want to rest. I was up too early," she lied. She just wanted to run in and sleep.

She heard her stepbrother cough in response. She turned and glared at him; he raised his hands in surrender.

"Just for a moment, I want to talk to you," her father said.

She could see Claire's hopeful face; she knew she would feel bad if she destroyed that woman's hope.

She nodded as she retreated, coming to sit on the couch across from them.

Nathan wanted to leave when he heard his mother say, "You too, come sit."

She gestured at the space next to Adria.

Aria looked at the woman narrowly, wondering why she was telling her son to sit next to her.

He nearly objected, but one warning glare from his mom and he walked up to the couch, sitting close-too close-to Adria, as if there was no space.

The slight smile on his face made it obvious that it was intentional.

Both parents looked at each other, a silent conversation going on about who should go first. Collins cleared his throat. "We need to improve the relationship between us," he began.

Nathan was pleasantly surprised. "If we're talking family, why is Lily not included?" he asked, obviously growing uncomfortable.

"Because Lily gets along with everyone just fine. You and your stepsister, on the other hand..." she trailed off, rubbing her head as if taming a growing headache.

"All you do is bicker and fight!" She said with a unsatisfied tone.

"Well, that's because all he wants to do is provoke me," Aria muttered softly.

"Really now? You don't want anyone in your space!" He retorted.

"Exactly! My space, Nathan. MY SPACE," she stressed the last part.

"You-" He wanted to say, but was cut off by his mom.

"Nathan!" She yelled, "Are you not old enough to understand that the person who would be affected the most by this is her?" Her voice softened.

He didn't say a word; he just looked ahead. Adria bent her head, looking down with guilt.

That was the reason she knew she wouldn't be able to push Claire away for long.

The woman was just nice.

"And you, Adria," the father finally spoke. "I know it's hard; it's an adjustment for all of us.

So I want all of us to make efforts to make this work. How about that?" He spoke softly.

She realized that, no matter how angry she became about this matter, her dad always tried to talk to her calmly.

So she gave him a slight smile and a nod.

Everyone turned to look at Nathan for a response.

"Why? I didn't have a problem with that. Let's get along, family," he said with a bright smile-too bright.

"Great," Claire clapped her hands together gingerly. She looked so happy.

They both stood up to leave for their rooms, but the father called out.

"Both of you can only leave for your apartments when we notice that you two get along. For now, get comfortable, buddies."

Adria and Nathan turned to look at each other.

His mother's voice came after, "And there will be a family movie night today. So come down for dinner early." Her voice was joyful.

Adria thought it was time to run into their rooms before their parents dropped another bomb.