"Remember to water the cordyline enough to make the soil moist!" I smiled as I waved goodbye to my last customer of the day.
"Sure, will do!" The young woman replied with bright eyes and returned the smile as she pushed open the door with her back and got outside - leaving me alone with all the green plants in the store.
I exhaled through my nose and stepped away from behind the counter with the smile still resting on my face.
My eyes took in the sight of all the green plants - the beautiful leaves, the dynamic branches going in different directions and the stunning flowers that were blossoming.
I closed my eyes and inhaled, scenting the the soil and sweet scents caused by the flowers.
This was my vibe and the level of energy I craved every single day. It was peaceful and offered my soul the calmness it needed.
I've always loved nature so much that I'm almost sure I’ve been a tree in a previous life.
I've been working at the flower shop for about three years, ever since I graduated high school.
Mrs. Grace was in need of someone to manage the store as she and her husband was retiring, but didn't want to close down the store yet. Our interview didn't last long as she just smiled adoringly at me while I talked about my abilities with plants. She stopped my talking and told me I got the job, claiming I was special.
That was the most excited I had been in a long time.
I truly did adore old people and their kindness. They are the most sweetest people out there. Especially Mrs. Grace with her kind heart. She often comes into work and drops of lunch for me and sits down to chat. I've grown to love her very much.
I was already done with taking care of the plants by giving the water and nutrition they needed. It was afternoon and time for me to lock up.
With a sigh, I grabbed the shining gold keys from the counter and pulled them with me along with my purse and quickly left the store.
The afternoon sun heated the back of my exposed neck as I twisted the key inside the key hole and locked up the store. When I felt the lock click, I tugged at the handle to make sure it was truly closed.
I walked away from the store and left for my little brother's kindergarten.
His name is Leon and he's five years old. He's a loving boy who loves to play with toy cars and pretend to fix them. Maybe it's a sign he'll be a mechanic one day, who knows.
I always picked him up on my way home from work. It had become my responsibility.
I quickly reached the kindergarten as it was only a five minute walk away from the flower shop. Leon was playing outside with his friends and came running when he saw me.
I couldn't help but smile and feel happy about how joyful he was - just by the sight of me. It made me feel important to him.
Mom and dad are pack doctors and don't take as much care of Leon as I've done these past years. They're really busy with all the patients coming in - considering we're a big pack after all.
Leon and I walked home and immediately got onto the cooking.
"How was your day in the kindergarten?" I asked him as I put on some music from the radio resting on the kitchen isle.
"It was fun - I caught Lisa looking at me a few times!" he exclaimed. His voice was so cute and I giggled by his words.
Soft music played from the speaker and I turned around to face him, squating down to his height.
"Really? Do you think this confirms she's into you?" I raised a brow and smiled amusingly at him.
Lisa was a girl in his kindergarten. She was attempting to become friends with Leon and she's giving him these 'special' looks he was sure meant she was in love with him.
"A hundred percent!" he replied sure of himself, making me let out a short laugh.
We made some beef along with potatoes and green beans with some sauce to have on the side. Leon was the perfect little helper one could ask for. He really loved making dinners along with me and I didn't mind the extra fun of it.
We fooled around to the music and had fun cooking up the dinner.
The clock was soon turning six and we had made the dinner table inside the living room ready, decorating it with plates and the tasty food.
The room smelled deliciously, almost making my stomach grumble out of hunger.
The entrance door suddenly opened loudly and I heard loud chattering erupt. My attention turned away from the table.
"Damn," I cursed under my breath and walked out of the living room to check on what's going on.
"Hi, sis!" I heard one of them say as my eye twitched in irritation.
One brother after another strolled in along with some mates.
I've got two older brothers, Shawn is twenty-five and Michael is twenty-seven. They're both mated with beautiful girls. Shawn is mated to Janine, while Michael is mated to Naika.
Then I've got one younger brother who's three years younger than me and is not mated yet. He's eighteen and named Lucas.
After my brothers walked in, my parents stepped in hand in hand.
I felt an annoyance within me as they all stepped into the house.
My mated brothers did not live at home and they eat so goddamn much food. I hated when they'd arrive unexpectedly and I hadn't prepared enough dinner for them all.
It was much easier to cook up food for the ones living currently at home and not the extra company. It takes much longer to prepare food for my entire family, especially when they're literally as much hungry as wolves.
I was the one who made dinners almost everyday with the exception of one to two days. Of course I was annoyed. I have the responsiblity of working, taking care of my little brother and making dinners for us all.
After my parents had walked in and everyone was undressing, taking of their shoes and jackets, another person walked in.
My uncle.
I swallowed hard and quickly turned away, walking back to the living room.
"Is mom and dad home?" Leon asked with excitement, his eyes shining.
"Yes," I shortly nodded my head at him and gulped.
He quickly ran out of the living room as I gripped the edge of the dining table.
--
"Have you all heard what's going around?" Naika asked everyone around the dinner table. She really loved to make conversations.
Her deep blue eyes reached everyone of us, patiently waiting for a response.
"No? What's going around sweetie?" Mom asked as she cut into her beef steak, the knife digging through the meat.
"A rumour," Janine replied, chewing loudly on the food. She was really one to eat a lot, a girl with a huge appetite. This was her second plate.
"Rumour?" Leon asked curiously from the seat beside me.
It sparked my interest too, making me frown. I hadn't heard about a rumour inside the pack. But then again, I’m not the kind of girl interested in gossip like Naika.
"Our Alpha is in a shit ton of debt to another pack. He's been receiving death threats and a pay day. He can't pay back the money on his own so he's taking money from the pack. I talked with Coleen and she told me her sister had a cut in her salary. They took seven hundred and fifty dollars out of her salary to finance his debt!" Naika revealed.
"What?" Michael dropped his fork, it let out a loud noise when it hit the plate.
"They're supposedly going to have to take a cut from every salary in the pack this month" Naika added.
"They already took a cut from our salary," mom informed calmly and tilted her head at dad, making my eyes widened.
This was only confirming the rumour was true.
"How much did they take?" I asked my mom and looked at her sitting from across me.
"One thousand and five hundred dollars over all," she revealed, making us all gasp loudly.
"That's robbery!" Shawn claimed next to Janine.
"Unfortunately, you'll have to pay the bills this month, Ilaria. Our Alpha doesn't know you actually work. And your salary isn't much so I wouldn't think he'd mind taking any money from you," mom stated, looking into my eyes and being dead serious.
My brows raised and I was surprised by her statement. I was also becoming aggravated by every minute I was sitting there.
"Why can't we use our savings? It's not like I earn enough, as you say, to buy food everyday for all of us!" I protested, not agreeing with me being the provider - especially not with all my brothers, their mates and my uncle showing up without a notice. I already payed half of my salary to my parents for staying at home - and now they wanted me to provide too.
"You know we're saving the money for Lucas so he can go to college next," my father replied on behalf of mom.
I shook my head and let out an annoyed breath of air while keeping my eyes locked on my mom.
They didn't even do that for me - save enough money so I could study and graduate from a college. Instead I was sent out to work right after finishing high school. Lucas was the next one to earn an education.
Michael and Shawn both got their educations. I was skipped. Mom and dad told me to find work and do something else. I was literally the runt in my family. They wanted everything from me while I got nothing in return. I was basically taking care of my family in every way. Then I was recieving the short end of it all.
It wasn't fair.
"Why is our Alpha even stupid enough to make a deal with him?" Naika continued to gossip, breaking the silence.
"Right. He's literally a loan shark. If you don't pay back the double amount he offered back in cash, you're paying back with death and now he's putting all of the lives in the pack on line!" Janine replied back to her, completely engaged in the conversation.
I lost my appetite and broke my gaze away from my mom.
I dropped my knife and fork onto the plate and stood up to leave.
"Thanks for the delightful food, Ilaria," my uncle called out to me.
I ignored him and walked out of the living room, finding my way to my bedroom.
