Mrs. Starling bared her teeth in what was supposed to be a smile as she opened the door and saw us. "Oh my God! Be-a-trice!" The forty-nine-year-old redhead exclaimed, hugging my aunt. "I'm so glad you could make it!"

"The one who should be glad is me," Aunt Beatrice gushed, smiling (which looked more like a grimace). "Your barbecue is simply delicious."

Mrs. Starling laughed, thanking my aunt.

The only sincerity in that exchange was the barbecue's compliment.

Uncle Charlie smiled. "Hello, Anna. How are you doing?"

"Good, thank you," Mrs. Starling answered politely.

Mrs. Starling proceeded to inspect us all, her eyes scrutinizing Natalie's way-too-stylish cable knit sweater dress, Reagan's colorful leggings, tutu, and dotted shirt (that week her style was some sort of funky), and my simple polo and shorts before waving us off as a circus show. She didn't even glance at Aunt Beatrice's blinding red summer dress, at Dan's wide green eyes trying to spot the food, or at Uncle Charlie's clearly bored expression. Who she settled on was Nellie, the only one who she thought worthy of competition for her daughter. Sinead was considered the prettiest in the whole neighborhood, so she shouldn't have trouble to get one of the Kabras's attention. But Nellie usually took the first place as the prettiest everywhere she went. And with her cardigan and humble yet cute summer dress, sweet look about her face, sincere smile, and beautiful personality... it was no wonder Mrs. Starling's plastered smile faltered.

Nellie slightly bowed her head in a salutation, smiling. "Thank you for inviting us, Mrs. Starling."

None of us did any other thing, so it was no wonder Aunt Beatrice pinched my arm.

I held back a cry of pain.

'Respectable ladies always greet others.'

"Yeah, thanks," I said, not knowing what else to add. It was not a respectful greeting, so Aunt Beatrice glared at me.

My siblings caught the menacing gaze and greeted Mrs. Starling.

"Oh, how lovely!" she exclaimed. She opened the door wider. "Please, do come in."

We all murmured our thanks, except Aunt Beatrice (who exclaimed it) and Nellie, who just smiled. Once we were inside, it was easy to spot the brand new neighbors.

They were good-looking.

I did not know which was whom, but one of them was talking and laughing with a group of people, and the other looked bitter to be there.

I felt Aunt Beatrice's arm around my shoulder, and through gritted teeth she reminded me of my mission. "Do not even dare to wander off anywhere that's five centimeter's away from one of the brothers. Do not even think of being your sarcastic self around them, and do not even dream of eating around them." Then she shoved a plate toward me. "Serve food and offer it to one."

I grabbed the plate, and watched my aunt disappear into the crowd. After making sure she was gone, the first thing I did was serve a plate for myself and search for Uncle Charlie. He was already chatting with this friends, playing cards. I gladly noted there was a stack reserved for me.

"Amy!" Uncle Charlie exclaimed.

"You're already twenty-three and still growing. I'm sure last time I saw you you were inches shorter," Alistair, my uncle's best friend, told me.

"Last time you saw me was last week," I told him, sitting next to my uncle. I grabbed my stack of cards and began to play with them.

"I see you've been practicing your tricks," Fiske, my former math teacher, noticed, nodding in approval. "Now, that's something worth watching. Everyone is fawning over those Kabras."

"Wasn't that the purpose of this party, though?" Alistair asked, putting a start to our card game.

"I only came for the food and because of Beatrice," Charlie informed his friends.

"I actually did come to welcome them," Alistair explained. "I will never forget how happy I felt when you people warmly welcomed me."

And so, they dove into old but funny memories. I laughed along with them, always having enjoyed their company. Until I spotted Aunt Beatrice's red hair.

I automatically stood up. "Gotta go."

"Hide," Uncle Charlie told me, sensing the threat.

I quickly spotted my friend, Madeleine, walking in with her mother. Grabbing the now empty plate, I ran toward her.

"Amy!" Madeleine exclaimed.

"You're late," I told her. "You missed my awesome skills with cards."

"I see them nearly everyday," Madeleine replied, laughing.

I wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Now, tell me the truth... why did you come here?"

Madeleine smiled, a glint of laughter in her brown eyes. "I was actually curious. The Kabras have been Pinewood's hot topic for a month, I think."

I shook my head. "At my house, it's been for more than a month. You know how Aunt Beatrice is. She found out some guys our age were moving here, and things went crazy."

"The Kabras are actually not that bad," Madeleine told me. "My mom and I didn't come in until now because we were talking to Mrs. Kabra and her daughter, Cheyenne. They seem like cold people at first, but they're actually quite nice. Sinead is currently harassing them into paying her attention, which is why I decided to come here. Your aunt was also there, but she left."

"I see," I replied, suddenly feeling as if Aunt Beatrice would appear behind me any second and roar at me for not following the mission. But her red hair was nowhere in sight.

"Looks like your sister has already caught some attention," Madeleine commented, pointing somewhere.

I followed her finger, and my eyes widened. One of the Kabra boys, the friendlier one, was smiling and talking to her. Nellie had always been shy, so her slight blush and the shy downward cast of her eyes was comprehensible.

"Wow... that's Nellie beauty to you," I said, still surprised. "Which one's him?"

"The oldest one, Theo," Madeleine informed me. "He's some kind of doctor, don't remember what. The thing is, he's already got a job at the clinic where my mom works. She says he is really nice and respectful, and always tries his best. Actually, the only bad thing she's got to say about him is that he's too nice. He can't say no to anyone, plus, he's too innocent. I bet he thinks all the girls have been approaching him to actually welcome him."

I laughed, still inspecting my sister with Theo. "I'd ship them."

The comment made Madeleine laugh. "I would, too. What'd be their couple name?"

"Hmm... Thellie?" I answered, garnering giggles from both of us.

And then I spotted Aunt Beatrice's enraged face. She was as red as her dress and hair, so it all matched. But I had no time to laugh.

"Gotta go," I told Madeleine.

I quickly grabbed a plate and began to serve food as quick as possible. I was supposed to give it to one of the Kabras.

And I had to do it fast. She was striding toward me, her eyes narrowed into a murderous glare.

I began to search for the forks, still keeping my eye on Aunt Beatrice. Thinking that they were probably at the small round table behind me, I turned around, when —clash!

Meat went flying everywhere, and I got barbecue sauce all over my shirt...

and on the other Kabra's shirt.

Woo! So glad many people like Pride and Prejudice, because it's one of my favorite books :) Thanks for all the reviews by the way, hahaha. Well, I'll try to update soon. For now, bye!