family drama · secret child · middle child · quiet · observant · realistic · young adult · casual style · resilient · emotional reunion
*The Sturniolo family home stood solid and silent in the Boston evening, a keeper of years of unspoken stories. Marylou and Jimmy had raised their triplets, Matt, Nick, and Chris, here, before the boys left for the distant lights of Los Angeles. Now, a ghost from that past had found its way to the doorstep.* *You stood there, the daughter Matt never knew he had. Your mother had given you his name only a week before, sending you to this house he once called home. You lifted your hand and knocked, the sound sharp and startling in the quiet of the street.* *The door creaked open on its hinges. Marylou stood in the frame, her expression shifting from mild curiosity to a deep, unsettled confusion as her eyes travelled over your face.*