Desired by Two brothers

My mom passed away. I stood by my mom's gravestone, trembling, unable to hold back the tears. My dad's hand rested on my shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze. I could feel his pain too, even though he didn't say a word. The sky above us was like a broken mirror, and the raindrops fell in sharp little shards. It felt like my body was pierced by the shards, leaving me in immense pain, just like my broken heart. "Don't cry, Nora," my dad said in a thick voice, his eyes red and raw. He didn't try to offer any comforting words but just repeated it over and over, "Don't cry, my dear." We both lost the most important woman in our lives—the one whose love could make everything better. Now she was gone, and it felt like our souls had gone with her. The funeral was quiet, much quieter than it should've been. Only a few people showed up. It felt like the complete opposite of the birthday party I had last year, the one when I turned fifteen. That day, our huge yard was full of people. The air was thick with the smell of cake and the sound of laughter. I felt like a princess, bathed in love and warmth from my family and friends. The warmth in my heart made me completely forget the winter chill. But everything changed after that. It started when Dad's business went under. Then Mom got sick, really sick, and all our savings were used to pay her medical bills. It felt like, from the end of summer, Dad started to borrow money from others. But our relatives started avoiding us. The only people who knocked on our door were the creditors with serious faces. They'd look at my dad, then at me. We had sold our big house with a lawn. In those creditors' eyes, we were nothing more than two rats, who would disappear at any second once the debts caught up to us. When the last words of the eulogy drifted into the damp air, I watched as the fine dirt settled onto my mom's casket. It formed a thick, brown blanket, burying her for good. She was gone, and her spirit was at peace now. My tears kept falling, pooling into the grave. My knees gave way beneath me, and I nearly collapsed right there. But then, a hand caught me. I looked up and saw Declan's worried face. Declan was my neighbor, the eldest son of the Adams family. He was two years older than me and always looked after me like an older brother. We grew up together, and the closeness between us made me break down in his arms. I started to wail uncontrollably. His hand gently rubbed my back, sending a quiet warmth to me in this cold world. "Nora," my dad called my name, snapping me out of the comfort of Declan's arms. I could hear Declan's mother calling out to him too. He wiped my tears away with his hand and walked over to his parents. But Dylan, his younger brother, came back toward me. He was my age, but somehow, he was now a head taller than me and could easily look down at me with that typical, mischievous grin. I wasn't sure what he was up to this time. To be honest, even though I'd grown up with both Dylan and Declan, Dylan was still a mystery to me. He was like some wild animal, unpredictable and always doing things that left me confused. "I heard you're gonna be living with us now," Dylan said, his voice practically buzzing with excitement. "I'll take good care of you." I had no idea what he meant, and I turned to look at my dad, hoping for some kind of explanation, but he was silent. And that silence crushed me. "Dad, what does that mean? Why will I live with the Adams?" I tugged at his sleeve while tears poured down my face. "Where are you going? Am I just a burden to you now? Don't you want me anymore?" "Nora, listen," my dad said, his tone serious, almost sorrowful. "Mr. Adams became my guarantor for the debts." Hearing that, I froze. It didn't really hit me right away, but I could barely process it. The Adams family had always been wealthy, but I never imagined they'd be willing to do something like this for us. The thought of Mr. Adams and his family—Declan, who I liked, and Dylan, who I couldn't stand—becoming my creditors was like a punch to the gut. I became a burden they were now stuck with, some poor guy who needed to live off them. But I also understood that Mr. Adams had done this to save whatever dignity we had left. My dad looked at me, his eyes filled with a kind of sadness I'd never seen before. "Do you understand? This isn't a free ride. We'll have to pay something back. Nora... I'm leaving you. Someone offered me a business opportunity far away, across the ocean. I don't know how it'll turn out, but I hope you'll be able to keep going with your life in their family. Whether it's school or whatever else... I just want you to be okay." I couldn't even process what my dad was saying anymore. All I could think about was that after losing my mom, I was about to lose him too. Dylan stood beside me the whole time, his presence like a shadow. He cleared his throat, trying to grab my attention. He then said in a cold voice, "Nora, don't even think about running away." "I'm not running away. I'll help Dad pay back your money," I snapped, not wanting to look weak in front of him. In the past, showing weakness only made Dylan laugh at me, but today, he was quieter than usual. For a moment, I thought maybe he actually understood what I was going through, but I was wrong. "That's great," he said with a shrug, then turned around and walked off. My fists clenched so tight that my nails dug into my palms. The anger slowly pushed my tears away, and I stood there, fighting the knot in my throat. Later, I stood at the dock, watching my dad's boat slowly sail away. The cries of the seagulls filled the air, almost like a warning. "Nora, your carefree days are over." The Adams' car was parked by the dock. Sitting inside, Declan looked at me and asked in a soft voice, "You okay, Nora?" I forced a smile and nodded. He got out of the car, opened the door for me, and stood there, blocking the top frame to shield me. His warm hand seemed to soak up some of the sadness I was feeling. I had feelings for Declan. He had those captivating blue eyes, a handsome face, and a friendly personality. I'd dreamed of marrying him one day and even imagined giving him my first kiss on my sixteenth birthday. But now, all of that felt impossible. It was like the gap between us had widened so much that it was hard to cross. The space between us was filled with debts and burdens. Even though we were sitting next to each other in the backseat, I couldn't bring myself to lean in like I used to. I wouldn't ask him to help with little things like I used to do. Declan still seemed like the prince, while I was no longer the princess.