If She Knew

Chapter-11

Jonas took a deep breath before continuing, "Mumma passed away when I was a little younger than you. I was seven. My dad single parented me for five years, after which he remarried."

I was shocked, to say the least. I definitely had not seen this coming.

"The one you heard me talking to just now is my stepmother. She always cared for me like a real mother though. But you know, it's never really the same." He let out a sigh of agony.

"Remember I told you about my little sister Amy? She's my step sister."

I didn't know what to say, so I just patted his shoulders the way he did to comfort me. He gave a weak smile.

"My heart hurts thinking about Xav Bro though," he whispered while glancing over to make sure Xaviers was not present.

That reminded me of the incident that took place in the other room a while bacm. The new blow had overpowered it from my mind. I confided in Jonas about the whole thing.

"You touched his parents' picture?"

I nodded.

He let out a breath of woe before saying, "Xav Bro lost both of his parents in a car accident when he was thirteen, you know."

No, I didn't know, and in no way I had expected this.

"Xav Bro didn't have a great childhood. He was sent to a boarding school after his parents' deaths, where he spent years all alone. Calling it 'Miserable' would be an understatement."

How many more 440 volts blows were left?

In a sense, I lost both my parents too. But maybe my pain was nowhere near his. Who could have possibly seen the thirteen year old broken child behind that strict, firm face that he shows to the world?

"How did you two meet?" I asked in an attempt to divert the topic.

Jonas started the story from the point when he was in his last year of high school- two years back. His father wanted to get him a private tutor, and that was when Mrs. Amberson suggested about Xaviers. Xaviers was really bright when it came to teaching, but due to financial issues, he could not continue his final year of detective training. Mr. Amberson helped Xaviers financially while he continued teaching Jonas. With time, however, Jonas became more interested in joining Xaviers in his detective training than normal universities. Mr. Amberson wanted his son to pursue whatever he liked, so he didn't object.

"Xav Bro was already an official detective when I graduated. There he made me his assistant, and I came all the way here from Venice to live with him around last year since the best detective training is provided in Rome. And if you're wondering, then yes, I'm still doing my bachelors on criminology," Jonas narrated the story with his usual eagerness.

"Honestly saying, Xav Bro feels closer than my own family now. I can be more of myself with him," he added as a conclusion.

"I'm pretty sure your Xav Bro feels a lot less lonely after having you too," I smiled thinking about the inimitable beautiful bond they shared.

"So, you're a year older than me?" I asked after calculating it in my mind.

"Yep, I'm twenty. I miss teenage years."

"Ah, Brian says that too. He's twenty-one," I recalled.

"Miss Amyra," a call sliced from the back.

I looked back; it was Xaviers.

"You can go to your room now," he said in a normal tone. I noticed the photo frame in his hands.