Valentina Russo already knew the kind of family she had. She knew that there was usually no peace in her family, and even if there was peace, it never lasted for long.

It is a beautiful morning; the air feels cool, and the sun shone beautifully. Valentina had just woken up. She goes to meet her parents and greets them.

“Good morning, Mother,” she said.

Rosa gave a faint smile.

Rosa couldn’t look at her daughter and smile happily. Valentina knew something was wrong already and that it’s a really serious deal.

“Mom, are you okay?” she asked.

“I’m fine, Tina,” Rosa said.

Before Valentina could ask anything else, she heard her father’s footsteps approaching the living room. He wasn’t smiling either, and his expression looked serious.

“Good morning, Dad,” she said with a forced smile across her face.

“Come here, Tina. I have something important to tell you,” he said with a calm voice.

Valentina hesitated. She already knew that something had happened and it involved her, but she didn’t think it would be something so serious because of all that has happened lately in her family. Still, she felt scared as she walked up to him.

Carlo requested for her to sit, but she remained standing.

Carlo began to speak.

“Tina, it’s about the family business,” he said.

He hesitated a little, trying to find the right words. His wife stared across the room in despair.

“What happened, Dad? Is everything okay?” she whispered.

“I made an arrangement tha—”

Just as he was about to complete what he was saying, Valentina’s sisters walked down the stairs while talking loudly. They didn’t notice that a serious conversation was going on.

They suddenly filled the room with happiness, and the conversation had to end at that moment because he wasn’t ready to let his other children know what he was about to say to Valentina. So everyone had to put on a smile and act like nothing happened.

Valentina was a bit relieved that she didn’t have to hear what her dad was about to say, but was still a bit worried because he would definitely tell her soon.

“Good morning, Papa. Good morning, Mama!” Alessia and Camila said excitedly as they walked into the living room.

Her father smiled. “Come here, my girls,” he said, reaching out his hands for a hug.

“Dad, I’m not a kid anymore,” Camila said with a faint smile.

Everyone laughed while Alessia ran to his arms and gave him a big hug and a kiss on his cheek. As Valentina watched them, she realized that no matter the circumstances, her family would always be happy when together. This made Valentina smile softly.

“What’s so funny?” Camila asked, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s nothing,” Valentina said, ceasing the smile abruptly.

“It’s time for breakfast, everyone,” Rosa announced.

While they walked to the dining room, the aroma of the delicious food filled the air before it was served.

“Camila, come help me set up the plates,” Rosa said. “Tina, you help serve the food.”

“Okay, Mama,” they both said immediately.

After serving breakfast, they ate the food quickly. The one thing Rosa was sure she’s good at is cooking, and she loved it when her family praised her for it.

“The spaghetti is so delicious, Mama,” Alessia said happily.

“It’s really good,” Valentina said with her dad.

“You did your big one right here today,” Camila said.

“Is it really that good, everyone?” Rosa said with a big smile.

“Yes, it is!” everyone said with a slightly loud voice.

Just as Rosa was about to reply, Alessia suddenly blurted out a few words.

“Mama, Papa, I want to go to see Mia today,” she said.

Both parents looked at each other, wondering if they should let their child leave the house with the problem at hand. They weren’t sure if it was a good idea. Then Carlo thought that it would be a good chance to talk to Valentina if the other kids were away.

“Okay, my little princess, you can go see Mia today,” Carlo said.

Rosa looked at him, confused as to why he accepted this, but she didn’t say anything yet.

Carlo waited for Camila to say she had plans during breakfast, but she didn’t. This made him stressed. While the dishes were taken care of by Rosa, Valentina cleared up the floor.

“Camila, aren’t you going out today?” Carlo asked.

“No, I’m not,” she said immediately. “I want to rest today. It’s the weekend, it’s been a really tough week at school.”

Carlo quickly realized things weren’t going as planned. He gasped for breath and thought of a plan.

“Camila, you’ll go drop your sister off at Mia’s,” he said softly.

“Why me? Mom said she’s going to shop for groceries today. Why can’t she drop Alessia off?” she said angrily.

“Don’t worry, honey, I can drop her off,” Rosa said.

“No! Your mom is tired from cooking. She needs to rest today. You’ll take your sister to Mia’s and do the grocery shopping, and that’s final,” he said loudly.

Carlo’s expression changed; he wasn’t angry, but desperate because it was important.

“I can help her out, Dad. It’s not like I have anything else to do today anyway,” Valentina said.

“No. I have something else for you to handle for me,” he said.

This became suspicious. Valentina realized that it might be because of the unfinished conversation. She suddenly felt sweat rolling down her cheek because she wasn’t ready to hear what her father had to tell her.

“Dad, you’re so annoying,” Camila said, slamming the door as she left her room.

It was finally time to go drop Alessia off at Mia’s. Camila’s expression was angry. She took her sister and the grocery list and left without saying a word to her parents. Alessia ran to both of her parents.

“Goodbye, Mama. Goodbye, Papa,” she said, giving them both a peck on their cheek. “Bye, Tina!”

Tina waved back and put on a fake smile because she knew once her sister left that door, it would be time for the conversation she feared.

Just as they left, Camila suspected something was going on but didn’t stress too much about it because she was angry at her dad.

Back at the house, her parents’ expressions changed, and they both became serious once again. Carlo called out to Tina softly.

“Come sit, Tina,” he said.

Valentina sat this time and put on a strong face. Rosa averted her eyes from her daughter because she didn’t want to look at her while Carlo told her.

“I’m in debt, Tina,” Carlo said.

Valentina looked at him and laughed inside because to her, it wasn’t a new thing and she felt relieved.

“Okay, Dad, we can find a way to pay it. I’ll work more and make some cal—”

While she was talking, Carlo interrupted her.

“No, Tina. This is different,” he said.

“What did you do this time, Dad? Are we losing the house? Is someone dying?” she said loudly.

“It’s about you, Tina. I don’t think you should leave the house for now. It’s not safe for you,” he said.

“What? Why?” Tina said angrily.

“I used you as a coll—”

Just as he was about to tell her, they heard the door open as Camila came back in, and everyone paused for a moment. There was a huge silence.