So far, after living with the Fuentes family for two weeks, I have learned a couple things about them. For one, Santiago sleeps basically all day on weekends, the reason being that he can't sleep at night. He also smokes. A lot. Yasmin drinks a lot, too, but has never smoked a cigarette in her life. Val has had four girls over in these past two weeks, and on those nights Santiago sleeps in Yasmin's room. Ray is hard for me to understand. We have spoken a couple of times but he is very closed off, and... lonely? I think that's what he is. I played games with Marco on his ps4 and actually saw him laugh and smile.

Carlos seems to be the only one not in pain, or maybe he is and he's just really good at hiding it. He doesn't smoke or drink; he's just happy with his girlfriend. I met their other brother, Enrico who lives with his girlfriend. He brought Val home two nights last week when he was completely out his head on drugs.

'We all have our ways of dealing with things', Max told me when Val was stumbling in the door. It's sad. It's sad how happy he always is but inside he's so sad. I want to talk to him. I want to talk to them all but I never know what to say and they never want to talk. I wish I knew exactly why their Dad is in prison; maybe I'd understand it more that way.

And Alex... Well, Alex and I haven't spoken since the argument we had in the kitchen. But it doesn't stop me from noticing that he sneaks out in the middle of the night sometimes, and the next day his fits will have cuts on them.

I really worry for the Fuentes family.

"Have fun you guys," Mom says to us. Dad kisses my forehead and them and Isabella say goodbye before walking to the front door and leaving.

Val jumps up from the couch, standing in front of Yamin, Max, Santiago, Carlos and I. "Okay, parents gone for the night – Enrico is getting us the beautiful substance called alcohol, and I invited people over."

Yasmin cheers and starts kicking her legs with excitement. Max groans.

"Not again," Carlos mumbles.

"Oh yes, again!" Val jumps onto the coffee table. "'Tiago, you can take Diego's room because he's partying with his lame college friends."

Santiago rolls his eyes in response."Great." He gets up walks out the front door, probably going to smoke.

"C'mon, Amelia," Yasmin takes my hand and pulls me to the stairs.

"Where are we going?"

"To make ourselves look sexy, duh."

Oh, goodie.

Yasmin looks through my dresser for an outfit up to her standards of sexy, which would be hard to find because her style is hot. Eventually she takes out a white cropped sweater with lace going down the middle, which shows my cleavage, along with white shorts.

"Love it," she smirks and looks a lot like Santiago in doing so.

"Why do you want me to wear something like this anyway?" I question, my suspicious nature taking over.

"I'm just looking out for you," she smiles and I can tell that's just an excuse. I pull my t-shirt over my head but before I can replace it with the sweater, Yasmin throws my white lace bra at me. "While you're at it, put this on."

"Okay, Yasmin. What the heck are you up to?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, why are you getting me to wear my most revealing sweater and my sexiest and most see through bra I have?"

She sighs. "Alex is gonna see you-"

"Oh hell no." I throw the bra back and pull the sweater on. "Alex hates me so don't get any ideas."

She throws it back. "Maybe he does now but he won't when he sees you like this."

I snort. "If it only took seeing me in revealing clothes for him to like me; then he would love me."

Yasmin frowns and tilts her head. "What do you mean?"

"He's already seen me naked."

Her mouth falls open. "Shut up. Are you serious?"

"Yes, sadly I am. And he didn't care at all, so obviously he is not attracted to me and never will be."

"You don't get it, Amelia. He's been different since you got here."

"So before he was nice and now he's a dickwad? Oh it must be true love."

"No, he was so much worse before you got here. He wouldn't talk to anyone after what happened with mi papa. He's been talking to people again, and coming out of his room more – he has to, or else our Mom will say he's being disrespectful to the guests. I actually get to see my brother more now."

"Well trust me, it's not because he likes me or anything. We've barely even spoke since I got here."

She sits down on the bed. "Maybe. I just want things to go back to how they were."

I feel bad for her. She has the weight of the world on her shoulders, with having to make dinner for everyone and looking after her brothers, and trying to help Alex. "Want me to sleep with him to make him feel better?" I joke.

"Sí."

I push her with a laugh and she goes to get ready. There is a knock on my door just as I finish doing my makeup, when I open it, Max is stood there wearing jeans and a t-shirt with some band on it I don't know.

"Would you like me to escort you downstairs, ma'am," he holds out his hand. I laugh and take it and we walk downstairs together. Music blares through the house and there is already like seventy people in the room. Some of the guys look at me with gawking eyes and I silently curse at myself for agreeing to wear this.

My eyes find Alex's in the crowd of people. There is a girl dancing against him but his eyes are on me.

"I need a drink," I shout to Max and slip my hand out of his. He nods and I walk away into the kitchen and pour myself a vodka and coke, making it extra strong. The disgusting liquid flows down my throat, burning it, and I try not to gag.

"Ayyye, new girl!" Red-head calls to me. I still don't know his name and he probably does know mine but still calls me new girl.

"Sup, Red."

"You're lookin' cute today. Trying to get some male attention?"

"Oh definitely. Especially from you," I wink and he fans his face with his hand.

"Oh stop. I'm blushing."

I drink the rest of my coke then pour myself another. Red and I sit at the kitchen table having a thumb war while his friends watch. Some of them are high and find it much too amusing.

"Soooooo," Red starts, smiling. "You're friends with Yasmin Fuentes," he says her last name in a spanish accent. "Can you hook me up?"

"So that's what you're being my friend for."

"Nooooo, see I actually like you more than some of my guy friends." Some of them hear and shoot him fake hurt looks.

"Let's go find Yasmin then!" I stand up from my chair, almost falling over since i've had four drinks.

"Woop woop!" Red shouts and we run to the door, but we both go through at the same time and get stuck in the doorway. I fall to my knees in fits of laughter.

"Fuck sake, we're too fat!" I say through my laughter. Red laughs and lifts me up to my feet.

"Aren't you two a cute couple."

"Aren't we just!" I put my arms around Red's neck, then realise it was Alex who said that. "Wait... Are you actually talking to me?"

"First it was Max, and now it's this dude. Make up your mind before you break my brothers heart."

I squint my eyes to see him better. "What are you talking about?"

"You know what? I'll just leave you guys to talk. Yasmin seems a little busy anyway," Red says and walks back to the kitchen.

"Why do you scare people so much? I was trying to get my friend a girlfriend."

"Él no es digno de tu amistad."

"I don't know what that means!" I yell and walk over to the seating area. Yasmin is sitting on a guys lap, making out with him and Val is sitting with a pretty girl with silver and purple hair in a ponytail with bangs. She is wearing a short skirt and crop top, with hoop earrings and a nose piercing. She seems very original, which I like.

"Hola, Amelia! Meet mi amiga, Montana," Val says.

"Hello!" I sit beside Val. "Are you guys novio y novia?"

Val gasps. "You spoke español!"

"I learned it in class. Impressive right?"

"Let me go!" Yasmin squeals as Alex lifts her off of the guy she was kissing.

"Beat it," Alex tells the guy. He doesn't hesitate to get up and leave.

Later I see Alex walk upstairs, holding the girls hand he was dancing with earlier. It makes me feel nauseous seeing him going up there with that beautiful girl, knowing what they're about to do. I wonder how he even gets girls. He's such a jerk.

"I need air," I tell Val and Montana then go straight into the kitchen and out the patio doors into the garden. Santiago is sitting on one of the benches, smoking. What a surprise.

"Having fun?" He asks when I sit down.

I sigh. "Define 'fun'."

He thinks. "Hmm. I'd say, whenever you feel most numb. But you're better off looking that up."

He takes a draw of his cigarette and I watch carefully. "When did you start smoking?"

"When I was fourteen." He looks at me with his grey-blue eyes.

"Are you not drinking tonight?" He shakes his head. "Why?"

"Pain killers mixed with alcohol can be lethal. If I end up in a coma my Mom will have to pay medical bills which would be an awful inconvenience," he smiles, putting his cigarette to his lips.

"I'm sure she'd care more about you being in a coma than the bills. Aren't you guys like loaded anyway? I mean, not to be rude, but."

He laughs, looking away. "Eventually money will run out. My Dad isn't here to work anymore, and my Mom's waitressing job won't exactly cut it, no matter how many hours she works."

I furrow my eyebrows. I didn't think about that. "Why did you take pain killers anyway? Are you okay?"

"I am now."

There is a moment of silence. "Why does Alex go out in the middle of the night?"

Santiago tenses, his jaw clenching and doing the little bobbing thing that guys' jaws do when they're being all serious. He covers it with a smile, looking at me again. "You ask a lot of questions when you're drunk."

"Don't change the subject. And I'm barely drunk anymore."

"Why don't you ask him yourself."

"Pffft. Like he'd tell me."

"You'd be surprised."

"Oh fine, I'll just walk into his room right now where he's having sex with some girl and ask him," I groan and lean on my hand.

Santiago chuckles. "Careful, you might start to come across as jealous."

"Am not!"

"Hmm. Thanks for telling me you like my brother."

"I didn't! Ugh, Santiago don't tell him. I don't but still don't tell him."

"Don't worry, I'm just fuckin' with you."

+++

teaser: the sexual tension rises between alexia

vote, comment, follow

ly

-e