It was rather late, when 16-year-old Jane Rizzoli opened the door to her parents' home. She cursed when stumbling over a huge suitcase that was placed right in the middle of the small hallway. On its sides were smaller bags and Jane scrunched up her nose when she recognized that the luggage was designed by Louis Vuitton. Her eyes then narrowed to slits.
"What the hell?" she mumbled, thinking that none of her relatives – not even the most distant ones – were either into that stuff or able to buy it. Laughter emerged from the kitchen, telling Jane where to find the owner of this ugliness. A light voice drifted to her ear, underling her assumption that her mother had finally done it: she had opened their home to an exchange student.
Jane wasn't sure if this was the best idea, seeing as to how her parents were constantly fighting and her brothers… well, they were idiots. Not to mention that Jane preferred to live her life in solitude. She was only 16 years old, but life had already taught her plenty, like that people could be cruel. Especially to persons who weren't like others. Jane was one of them and had had her fair share of bullying because of it.
Hence, a posh and probably very popular student was the last thing she needed in her life. Someone who would bully her in her own home and call her names was the last thing she needed.
"Janie, there you are!" Her mother exclaimed, holding a pot with steaming pasta. "How often do I have to tell you not to stay out late." Her mother continued in a scolding tone, yet politer than usual. Probably because of the petite blonde that was standing behind her, eyeing her curiously.
"Come in and meet Maura. She is going to live with us for the next 3 months." Her mother chirped. "Maura, this is my daughter Jane." Angela said while Jane unwillingly climbed over the luggage with a grumble.
The petite blonde was watching her, plates and cutlery in hand while Angela gave Jane a warning glance. It was funny how the matriarch could put entire monologues into just one single glance. Jane blushed slightly when she almost tripped over Murphy the cat who had been sniffing the girls' luggage with interest.
He hissed at Jane, obviously not happy about being disturbed by the clumsy human. Well, this was off to a good start, Jane mused. Not that she cared what their guest thought of her but annoyed about herself. Her long limbs were sometimes more hindering than anything else.
The petite gave her a friendly and almost excited smile as she greeted Jane with a "Hi".
"HI" Jane replied, cautious not to sound too friendly. To her it seemed to be important to set boundaries right away. It was clear that her mother wanted them to be friends. How often had the matriarch thrown her hands into the air, complaining about Janes social life and Jane had just huffed her ignorance about her mothers' wishes.
Her mothers' solution had obviously been to bring Janes social life into their house, knowing that it would be hard for Jane to ignore the other student that would – at least at the beginning – depend on her.
Jane felt utterly angry and seriously considered running away. Sometimes life was just too much she thought, wondering if her mother would ever realize that despite doing all that stuff out of care and love, it hurt and pressured Jane.
The teenager just wanted to be left alone, listen to some music and follow her passion of drawing. She didn't need her mothers' help because she was old enough. She despised the blonde just because her mother had brought her into their home to force her on Jane.
"You can sit here, honey." The matriarch said to the petite after putting the pot onto the table. "Janie, please go and wash your hands. And call your brothers." Her mum said in an ordering tone that made Jane roll her eyes.
When in the bathroom and washing her hands, she glanced at the reflection in the mirror. She looked tired and her hair was a total mess. It had been raining when she rode her bike home after a long day on the outdoors. It was out of protest that she didn't even try to make herself look like a human being now.
It wouldn't matter anyways. Maura like all the others would make fun of her because she was different. No matter how much effort Jane would put into a decent appearance or being polite. It never mattered at the end.
She left the bathroom and met her bickering brothers at the bottom of the stairs. She quickly realized that her mother had forced them to share a room for the time of Mauras stay. Of course, their guest needed a room to herself. This hadn't occurred to Jane yet.
Giving them a warning glare was enough to make them walk away and she followed them as they stepped into the dining room where their mother and Maura were sitting and chatting at the table.
Frank sr. wasn't there which sadly had become an all too familiar sight over the past months. None of the siblings commented to their mothers' explanation that he was still stuck at work due to an emergency.
Instead, they all dug into their food, avoiding eye contact with the matriarch or Maura, who showed first signs of discomfort.
The siblings shoveled the food into their mouths, which in earlier times, when their family life had still been fun had been sort of a game. The one who had finished first, had gotten to skip the chores and was allowed to pass them over to the loser.
Nowadays it was just a matter of getting back into their rooms before their father got home. No one wanted to cross his path as he was always malicious and grumpy. He didn't hit them, no, there was never any physical abuse. But he knew how to use words to hurt them. Jane usually tried to attract his attention in these situations to shield her brothers from him.
It was easy anyways, because he blamed her for everything anyways. If she wouldn't have been…. She hitched a breath… his life would have been so much easier…. That's what Frank sr. always told her. It was all her fault and Jane sometimes wondered if it was true.
Her brown eyes lifted to meet hazel ones. Maura had gone silent and was watching her over the table. Jane gave her a shrug before pushing the empty plate away. Tommy burped and Frankie jr. laughed. Their mother scolded them.
"You two immediately stop that nonsense! Especially in front of our guest." She hissed before shooting the petite an apologetic smile. Maura waved it off. "I always wanted to know what its' like to have brothers." She calmly said and Jane almost told her that she could have hers. But she loved them, even if they were evil brats.
The matriarch stood and ordered Jane to do the dishes and clean the kitchen. The brunette stood and began shuffling the dirty dishes together. Knowing that her mother would be off to work at a bar in one hour she didn't want to protest. Her mother was annoying in many ways, but she also loved them and made sure that they had everything they needed.
Jane was joined by Maura who offered to help.
"You don't have to." The matriarch said, pointing out that she was a guest but Maura waved it off again. "I want to Mrs. Rizzoli. It's the least I can do to thank you for letting me stay with you for the next three months." The blonde stated with a smile that made Frankie jr. do a gagging sound.
Maura became insecurer by the moment as Jane could tell. "That's fine. I'm glad to have some help." She stated, giving the boys her glare again. They giggled and ran off to shower and clean their teeth, leaving Jane and Maura behind.
The brunette sighed and rolled her eyes. "Im sorry. They can be very unnerving." Jane apologized to the blonde who seemed to gather her wits quickly.
"Oh, it's all right." She said with a small smile that made Jane feel sorry for her. But just for the fraction of a moment until she remembered that she was mad at her mother for bringing mother in.
"Let's do the dishes quickly. I have stuff to do." Jane mumbled and walked off into the kitchen.