Chapter 14
1449words
"Here, eat this," Her mother passed the bowl containing chopped cucumbers, mushrooms and carrots.
Aurora mumbled a thank you and begrudgingly accepted the mini bowl, pouring a little of the content on her salad.
Her mother smiled tightly, before returning to her meal. Aurora longingly stared at the items on the table, there were plates of sandwiches, pancakes with syrup dribbling from them, a large jar of Apple juice, some bacon and a large sugar cream pie sitting in the centre of it all.
She looked back at her miserable leafy greens and a lump knotted in her throat. Aurora sighed as she poked around the vegetables, the urge to eat suddenly gone.
"So honey, Maria Claire invited both of us to the golf course later this evening." Her mother piped up, staring fixedly at her father.
Aurora watched them silently, chewing in small bites. Evan on the other hand was preoccupied with his breakfast, stuffing his face with pancakes and pie. Her mother glowered at him with disgust before returning the glare to her father.
"I'm busy," He said simply, eyes focused on the phone in his hold. "You can go alone." He brought the small china to his lips and took a sip from the cup.
Her mother bristled slightly, "She wants us to come, honey. Two of us, didn't you want us to be a happy family?" The last sentence was said with an intonation that implied it had a hidden meaning.
Harry Rochester blew out a deep breath and dragged a palm across his face. He looked at his wife and then at Aurora who was now fully interested in them. Aurora watched as the corner of her father's mouth twitched, a sign that he was becoming irritated, before nodding slowly,
"Fine, I'll be there."
Her mother grinned brightly, "Excellent! I'll call you when it's time."
He didn't respond, his eyes glued to the screen of his phone. Aurora decided that this was her cue so she jumped to her feet.
"I gotta go, time is almost up." She grabbed the bag that was sitting on the chair beside her and placed a kiss on her mom's cheek before doing the same to her father.
"Wait up!" Evan yelled and she frowned, shooting him a glare. "I'm going to the office too, might as well drop you off."
Her father nodded in agreement and she scowled at him, "That's a wonderful id-"
"The institute is nowhere near your office," She interjected sharply, then added, "Wherever that is."
If he noticed her slight dig, he didn't show it because his smile widened, "On the contrary, it's just a few blocks from my office."
Her eyes narrowed as she racked her brain for what to say but her mother luckily intervened, "Aurora already has a personal driver and we're not looking for a replacement."
His smile abruptly fell at the snide comment and a part of her felt bad for him but she honestly did not want to be stuck in a car with Evan. She didn't want to be anywhere near him.
"Miriam, that's enough," Her father's voice boomed loudly, "Aurora, your brother will drive you to school and that is it."
"But Dad!"
"Harry, you can't be serious."
He gave them both a hard glare, "This family has been broken for far too long. Evan is a part of it too and we must treat him as such. Is that clear?"
Aurora was mad that she wanted to break something. She wanted to tell her father that it was too late for that. With or without Evan, their family was already broken.
She walked out without another word, the heels of her sandals thumping against the floor. She heard him running after her but didn't look back as she continued stalking forward. His car was already parked out front, it was a silver model and it looked expensive. Aurora wondered if this was another birthday gift from their beloved father.
"So I was thinking of grabbing a coffee before hitting the main road-"
She swivelled to face him, eyes narrowed in anger. "You had no right!"
"What-" He raised his hand in surrender, "What do you mean?" She wasn't buying his innocent look at all. Aurora had witnessed firsthand the cruelty behind his eyes.
She jabbed a finger at his chest and snarled at him, "You had no fucking right to intervene in my life. I have a driver and he takes me to the institute just fine. I don't need you sticking your nose in my business."
His hands were still raised in the air but there was a sly smirk forming on his lips now. "Why? Afraid I'll find out who your little secret is?"
"Fuck you," She hissed with venom but his eyes only flashed with more excitement.
His hand dropped to his side and he took a step forward, "I wonder if your mother knows how much her little princess curses."
That made her freeze up instantly. A victorious smirk lit his features and he chuckled, walking past her to the driver's side.
"Get in, you don't want to be late, remember?"
Aurora clenched and unclenched her fist. The muscle in her jaw ticking furiously as she turned to open the passenger's side before slipping in. Sooner or later, one of them was going to kill the other.
The rest of the ride was fairly silent and she appreciated it. Her thumbs tapped against the screen of her phone, her Insta was flooding with pictures and videos of the gala from last night. Surprisingly enough, there was nothing about her supposed drunken behaviour, she assumed one of her parents had a hand in it and it wasn't hard to guess who.
"So are you still in for the coffee stop or-"
She shot him a hard glare to pass her message and he chuckled softly, raising a hand from the wheel to indicate his surrender.
Aurora noticed that they were close to the institute and a relieved breath escaped her, she pointed to the road, "Take the left there. That route is easier." He gave her a look and she rolled her eyes, "I know this place better than you do."
Although there was still an air of disbelief in his features, he did take the road and soon they were driving into the familiar road. Evan parked directly in front of the large building and she watched as people strolled in and out of the institute. She chucked her phone into her tote bag and unhooked the seatbelt.
"When do you close?" Evan suddenly some up, halting her movements, "I can come pick you up."
She looked over her shoulder, eyes narrowed at him, "What did you just say?"
His green eyes sparkled in the way that they did whenever he knew he was pissing her off. "You heard me, sis. I'm the boss and I can close whenever I want to, so tell me when you do."
Aurora scoffed, amusement tickling the base of her throat. He wasn't being serious, was he?
The look on his face told her the opposite. The douchebag truly wanted to pick her up after school.
"You're crazy." She muttered, pushing the door open to step out. She moved to slam the door but he was quick, his hand held it put,
"You're making it difficult for both of us, Aurora. I'll be staying a long time, don't you wanna coexist?"
A muscle in her jaw twitched and she arched a brow at him, "Coexist? Did you just say that?"
He nodded and her eyes flashed dangerously. She leaned into the car, her face now close to his before whispering,
"If you really wanted us to coexist then you wouldn't be snooping around my life and using what you found to threaten me."
He shook his head slowly, a conniving look in his eyes, "Oh, but I never threatened you, dearest sister. I'm only telling you what I know."
She scoffed, her narrowed eyes boring holes into his face. She wished at that moment that they could. Evan's victorious expression only further heightened and she sighed before pulling back,
There was no use talking back to him. He had the upper hand now but that won't be for long.
She smiled sweetly at him before leaving away, "Goodbye...brother." The last part was said hesitantly. She flipped her hair backwards before sauntering away from him and his devilish smile.
