Chapter 173

♡ Amelia's pov ♡

"So this is your room. It's not much but I think it's good for your size. If there's anything you need, I'll be downstairs." My father mumbled while scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

The father I only just got to know a couple of hours ago existed.

I nodded, barely. I was still so numb after what happened two days ago. I still couldn't fathom how it happened.

I never saw the signs....

My mom was always so happy. So carefree. I never thought that my mom would leave me in this way.

"Thank you," I murmured softly in an awkward tone. I didn't know how to regard my 'father'. Should I say dad, father or call him by his given name Giovanni?

My father nod, looking around the tasteless room. I had an inkling it had been a storage room. And I had a feeling only a few hours ago was switched into a room.The room was tiny, not suffocating but tiny nonetheless.

But I was tiny too, standing at just five inches with a slim built and too much hips and a tiny waist. I didn't have much boobs to fill a cup but I did have cushion on my bottom. My mom called me tinker because of my short height. I blinked back the tears. I would never hear that nickname again.

"I can go at Green's and buy a bucket of paint or those sticky paint walls thingy if you want?" My dad suggested while wincing at the old chipping paint on the walls.

I forced out a smile. I nearly cringed by how awkward my face felt while doing that. " No. It's fine. I'll just settle in and think about decorating later."

Gosh, this was really awkward. How can I interact with a man I only knew existed hours ago? Even the long drive here was silent, so she knew nothing about him but him sharing her DNA.

My father smiled, more like winced before nodding and then stepped out of the room. When the door closed behind him, I could finally breathe. I let out a gush of air and walked further into the tiny room. The bed looked new, perhaps the only thing new around here.

I set my duffel bag on the light pink covers and groaned.I had been counting down the minutes until I let that heavy thing down. Moving away from the bed, I strut over to the only window in the room. It brought in a lot of light and also showed the beauty of the endless green foliage.

Even with the beautiful greenery beaming at me in all its thickness, I couldn't smile like I would've done if the circumstances were different. How can I ever smile again when my mom was not here to smile with me?

I felt my heart shred into pieces as I opened the window and let the cool air beat my cheeks and whip my hair back. Mom would've loved this place. She was always fascinated with anything foresty. Living here would've been a dream come true for her. If only.....

I hauled in another breath, this time holding it longer in my lungs until it burned. When I let it go, my breath only gets caught in my throat again as I witness a shift in the bushes down below. My fingers grip the edge of the windowsill as I watched the huge shadow shift through the bushes.

Brown fur......

Was that a bear?

My heart somersaulted. A growl emerges out of the creatures throat and I wanted nothing more than to go beneath that small bed and hide, because I swore I just saw a wolf. The animal run back into the darkest of the green, disappearing from my sight and easing my beating heart.

The house was surrounded by trees, in fact the entire town was surrounded by luscious trees, so I should've expected that there were wolves in the forest. Shaking my head I backed away from the window and walked back to the bed. I slowly sat down on the mattress and skimmed my eyes around the tiny room.

This was going to be my home now. I fell back on the bed, my hair spreading beneath me as I stared at the white ceiling. A tear leaked out from my eye and trailed down slowly until disappearing into my brown hair. "I miss you mom."

It hadn't been four days since the passing of my mother, and the pain was still raw. I didn't think it would ease up anytime soon. Suddenly the door burst open again. My father walks in, this time with a plate in his hand. The aroma of what was in the plate reaches my nose. My belly growled a little.