Going back downstairs, Ande introduces herself again and drags me to the kitchen island. She proceeds, rapidly, to ask me if I want a snack, what they have, and then she fixes a plate for me. A guy with dark blond hair comes bouncing over to me. He's about half a foot taller than me with a slim yet athletic build.

"You're one of the two remaining females to be coming to the cabin," he states.

"Yes."

"What is your birth parents' name?"

"Westlin."

"I knew it, you had to be one of my cousins. Since I have two, and there were only two more girls left to join our happy little group, I knew you had to be one," he says.

"You must be Tanner. I'm..."

"Tallulah," he says for me, and he then bounces over and wraps me in a big hug - very friendly hug. I don't mind the hug since he is my cousin. One of the last three of the Westlin legacy.

"You can also call me Tally, if you want."

"How about Lulu?"

I can feel my blood heat. It's one of the nicknames the girls cheered when they were bullying me.

My face hardens. "No! Do not use that name ever!"

"Okay, okay." He gulps and backs up a step or two - or three. His face changes and a smile begins. "We are going to go downstairs to play pool. Do you want to come? We could get to know each other there. "

"I guess..." I stutter. What? Back to uncertain again?

His smile broadens. "I want to get to know my cousin. I had a big family, but it seems different to meet someone I have blood relations with. This is so exciting."

"Yes it is," I agree. Usually I shy away from personal interactions with strangers, but his enthusiasm is contagious.

We gather our drinks and snacks to go downstairs, but not before a new girl comes in the door. She looks at all of us and bolts for the rooms upstairs. Tanner nudges me, but I shake my head. Convinced it is the same look I had when I first entered the cabin, I'm going to give her time to adjust before going to talk with her.

When we get downstairs, everyone settles around the rec room. Ande immediately heads for where I'm standing.

She whistles getting everyone's attention. She isn't going to...

"Everyone, this is Tally." Heat creeps up my cheeks. This girl went there, but I can't stop her now. "Tally, this is Dominic." She points to a tall, well-built guy with black hair and green eyes. "His cousin, Jonah." She points to a guy who is almost a carbon copy of the first. "Next is Carleigh, Jonah's girlfriend." She points at a beautiful girl with caramel-colored skin and curly black hair. "And you already know that fool." She points at Tanner. "Since you are unfortunately related to him."

Tanner gasps, placing a hand over his heart.

"Don't, Tanner. I'm not wounding your ego with such a little slight."

His face deflates. "Fine." He pouts.

Everyone starts talking, but I'm not able to understand Dominic, Jonah and Carleigh's conversation. Since I want to know more about Tanner, I turn to him.

"I heard you're from Florida?"

He smiles. "Yeah, a small town south of Tampa, named Sage."

"I guess that must be very different from the tree covered hills I'm from."

"It sounds like it is. There is lots of sand where I'm from." He pauses."Yeah, lots of sand."

"Why such a face? It must be nice to be near the ocean."

"It's nice, but I suppose I'm just used to the scenery so much it doesn't excite me anymore. The sand is a pain to get out of any carpet. However, it is nice to be able to relax on the beach when I want to."

Garlic sifts into the rec room, and my stomach rumbles. Before I can ask anymore questions, we are called to dinner.

Entering into the kitchen, a woman with graying blond hair is pulling bread out of the oven.

"What did you cook tonight, gorgeous?" Dominic says pecking this woman on the cheek and helping set the food out.

"Ängeli, you're so sweet to this old woman." She looks past Dominic. "And who is this?"

"This is Tallulah or Tally." Ande jumps in.

She looks at Ande. "Thank you, sunneschii." Her smile broadens, which I didn't think that it could. She hugs me. "I am Mia, honigbienli."

"Nice to meet you, Mia."

"Now shoo. Go sit at the table with everyone."

I sit beside Ande and lean in. "What's with the nicknames?"

She giggles. "Mia loves to give everyone nicknames. I can't keep up with them all since they are Swiss German, but you'll get used to them. I can't even pronounce most of them. All I know is mine means sunshine, since I asked her."

Tanner sits on my other side, and the dishes of pasta are passed around. He starts off by talking about his adoptive parents and his six siblings. Most of the table is in shock with the number of siblings he has.

Dominic and I have the next highest sibling count at only two. Not sure how I would feel about that large of a family, a small smile is forced out of me because of his enthusiasm. He says it is a loving home where everyone has their parts to play and no one complains about what they have to do. This helps me to understand where he's coming from. The only thing he says he wishes he had is privacy, and I can imagine why. Having only two siblings became tiresome at times when we were fighting over who would get into the bathroom first and how much time the person was spending in the bathroom, before the house was remodeled. Spencer was just as bad as me and Kaitlyn when it came to getting ready in the morning.

The new girl, whom I'm assuming is Michaela, does not come down for dinner.

I really should make an effort to get to know her since she's my cousin.  It sounds like she's had a rough life, and I want her to feel as comfortable as possible.  I'd like a chance to get to know her. 

With these thoughts in mind,  I decide to take her a plate when everyone else goes back down to the rec room. At first, she won't open her door, but eventually she relents when I tell her I honestly want to get to know her. I guess her curiosity and stomach wins out over her stubbornness. She is wearing black ripped jeans and a gray worn out hoodie. Her light auburn hair is pulled back into a ponytail, and she seems to have an "I don't care" attitude. I can only imagine why, but I will not push the subject until we get to know each other better.

She finally takes the tray from me and sits on her bed.

I start the conversation by asking, "Where are you from?"

She swallows a bite of bread. "Texas."

"That's a big state."

"Yeah." She responds around a mouth of food.

Okay, this is starting out harder than I thought it would.

"I'm Tally. I guess you're Michaela."

She takes a drink of her soda. "Yeah, but call me Mick."

I nod. "Okay. Let's try this. I'll talk a little and then maybe you could tell me more about you."

She shrugs.

"I just turned nineteen. I'm from a rural east Tennessee town named Applewine."

She smiles.

"Yeah, I know a strange name. Apparently the founder of the town had a fondness for apple wine, and when he couldn't think of a suitable name for the town, he just chose Applewine."

She smiles again.

"I was adopted by Robert and Nicole James. My dad's a doctor and mom stays at home. I have an older brother, Spencer, who is twenty-two and a younger sister, Kaitlyn, who is fifteen."

Looking up from her plate, she actually asks a question. "Are they adopted too?"

"No. Long story short, my parents had Spencer right after they married, but they had trouble having another child. I showed up on their doorstep, and they decided to adopt me. A year after I was adopted, mom got pregnant with Kaitlyn. They never told me I was adopted." A tear escapes.

Mick sucks in a deep breath, then exhales. "I know about that."

"You didn't know either?"

Sadness passes over her face, before she clenches her fist. She gets off the bed. "Nah. The day my parents - well, adoptive parents - were buried my aunt told me I wasn't her responsibility since I wasn't blood. Pinche puta. I was twelve for god's sake." She punches the wall, making me jump.

When she turns, she must see my face, and her face softens. "I'm sorry, really. I don't know why I just told you that. I don't tell anybody anything about me."

"I know you don't know me, so I'm not going to say, 'You can trust me.' But I hope to earn your trust. From what I understand you are also my cousin, along with Tanner."

She sits back down. "I'm guessing your biological father was one of the Westlin brothers?"

"Yeah. Tanner and I had Westlin as a last name at birth, so you must be the daughter of our fathers' sister."

"That's what I was told." She shrugs.

She sure shrugs a lot, and keeps her face mostly void of emotions. What has happened to her? Maybe I'll ask after she trusts me more.

"Okay, let's talk about favorites. It's easy enough," I say.

We begin a conversation, where Mick is actually conversing, but I keep to the simple things, such as favorites, likes and dislikes, friends, and even what type of pet we would like to have. Eventually I am able to convince her to come downstairs and meet Tanner. I hope this wasn't a mistake.

Through the open door, I search the rec room to find Tanner. He is off to the side talking with some stranger. Tanner looks up, and a broad smile erupts when he sees me.

"Hey cuz, come over here and meet the new guy."

The new guy turns around and shame fills me at my first thought. I didn't think I was prejudiced, but I'm not so sure now. When I hear the word "oriental" or any other word referring to a person from a country in Asia, I have a set picture in my head of what the person might look like. This guy doesn't fit that picture. His looks indicate that he might have some ancestors from Asia, but his looks are set off by unusual blue eyes.

"Tally. Tally, are you there?" Tanner asks, waving a hand in front of my face.

"Sorry, it's been a long few days." I smile sheepishly. I turn to the new guy. "Hi, I'm Tally."

"Hunter."

Okay, so we have another "talkative" one in our group? I don't like to meet new people and talk to them either, but I'm not this closed off - I don't think.

Something clicks in my brain, and I turn around to find Mick. She's not there. Oh my lord! What an idiot I am.

"Sorry to interrupt, but can I talk to you in private, Tanner?"

"Ah, okay. I'll check in with you later, Hunter," he says to Hunter, who only nods in response.

"Well...well, I..." Inhale. Exhale. "I brought Mick down to meet you, but she left before I could introduce the two of you."

He grins. "What's she like?"

"I'll let you draw your own conclusions, but you need to go slow with her. Keep things simpler and not so...so...enthusiastic." I cough out.

He gasps, and places a hand over his heart. "You don't like my enthusiasm?" he asks, as he brushes away a fake tear.

I laugh softly. "Are you always this melodramatic?"

"What's the point in living life if we can't have fun?"

I shake my head at him. "What are we going to do with you? No. No, don't answer that. Let's go up to Mick's room and see if she will talk with you. Maybe we can form a small family bond." I pause. "As long as you stay chill," I say before rushing up the stairs.

Once we get to Mick's room, she lets us in, although reluctance etches her face. However, the fact that I can get her to agree to meet and talk with Tanner is a step forward. It just might be the beginning of good things between the three of us. Even if I know there is much trouble ahead.

----------------------------------------------------

[A/N]: Sage, Florida, is a fictitious coastal town south of Tampa, Florida.

Ängeli  (Swiss German) - little angel

Honigbienli (Swiss German) - little honey bee

Sunneschii  (Swiss German) - sunshine

Pinche puta (Spanish) - fucking whore

La vache (French) - holy cow! damn!