ANASTASIAThe sunlight seeped into the room, waking me up from the deep slumber I was in. I quickly got up and shut the curtains before crawling back into bed, grumbling as I did. I wanted to be swallowed up in a pit of darkness while allowing my depressing thoughts to roam free.It didn’t seem to last long as the door opened up and a woman walked in. It was the same blonde-haired woman I had seen that one night when Mr. Romano had requested me to join him for a meeting. She smiled kindly at me before beckoning me to follow her.“Can’t I just stay in here?” I groaned.Her features fell slightly, along with her shoulders. I noticed the way her smile was still there, but there was desperation in her eyes.“Mr. Romano ordered me to get you something to eat. Please, come with me,” she requested.“I’m not hungry,” I grumbled childishly before throwing off the blanket. I then bent down and picked up my shoes, sliding them onto my feet. “I’ll just leave.”“You can leave, but maybe after brea
After my shower, I wrapped myself in a towel. Walking over to my reflection, I used my hand to push away some of the water droplets from the mirror. I tried to smile. It shouldn’t hurt to smile, but it did.“Nana, you know what makes me happy?” Aria asked with a smile playing on her lips. She was lying down on her bed while I was across the room on mine. I turned over to look at her and saw that she was already gawking at me.“What?” I asked. Her gaze strayed over to look out the window, where the moon was brightening up the room, even with the dark sky trying so hard to keep the light away.“Knowing that I have power…even if it’s just the power I have over myself. That’s powerful,” she said, bewildered.I thought about her words, allowing a smile to come to my face. She’s right, controlling our bodies, emotions, and actions is very powerful.“You know what makes me happy?” I questioned. Her eyebrows rose as if she were asking me ‘what?’ without saying the actual words. “When you shut
I remembered all my clothes were locked away in my car. Not only that, but I’d moved out of my mother’s apartment and was currently homeless. My plans were to ask Janice or Liliana for a place to stay for a while, but after last night, my shots at that were probably gone.“However long you want me to,” I responded seductively.“Something is off about you,” he said slowly. He was looking at me like I was a puzzle he needed to solve. The desire I had pooling between my legs slowly vanished as I wondered if he could see the sorrow brewing within me.“What?” I asked stupidly.He shook his head just before unwrapping his arms from around me. I thought he was about to exit the room, but he managed to take me by surprise when he settled on the bed.My legs were rooted to the ground while I observed him taking off his suit jacket. I wasn’t sure if it happened slowly, or if it was just my mind playing tricks on me. His eyes never left mine as he placed his suit jacket on top of the nightstand.
VALENTINOWhat the hell was wrong with me?Anastasia was all I could think about. From the day I saw her glowing blonde hair on the pole and her plump fuckable lips, I couldn’t get rid of the thought of her. She had a way of burning herself into my mind and being too damn stubborn to get out. Even when one of my men handed me a note, written by Dmitri, explaining how he was coming for his daughter, she still heavily occupied my mind. I should have worried more about how close Alex had been getting with the girl, but I couldn’t. The whole plan was going to shit, but all I could think about was one blonde girl in particular.As soon as Valerio notified me of Anastasia at the club on her day off, I knew things weren’t good. I didn’t completely know her, but I knew her well enough to understand she was not the kind of person to party.There was a sadness that lurked in her eyes, and I knew it all too well. Never in my life would I openly invite a girl to live in my home? It was rare that
If I did, I’m sure I would’ve acted out in more ways than you did. I’m only looking out for what’s best for you because I see you, and I see someone who’s lost, but once they’re found, the world better prepares for the amount of shit they can do.” I smiled at her words before pulling her in for a hug. She immediately responded by laughing as she wrapped her arms around me. Once I pulled away, I walked over to the job schedule to see that I was going to be on the floor today while Janice would take the stage. I hated being on the floor, where I had to keep the people who weren’t watching the show entertained. Sometimes, that meant lap dances, other times, that meant private dances. “Looks like you’re the star of the night.” I winked at her. “Yeah, yeah.” She playfully rolled her eyes. Together, we exited the back room, ready to do what we had to do. When we got to the entrance of the stage, we bid our goodbyes
A sob ripped out of my throat, followed by another until I found myself just breaking down. I couldn’t stand feeling this unfathomable pain, but it was the only way my heart seemed to know how to survive. My heart hurt, and there was no escaping that. No alcohol, no boy, no person could ever heal me in the way Aria could.“I should be ashamed of myself,” I whispered pathetically.Careful not to ruin my makeup, I used the pad of my fingertips to wipe away the mascara running down my cheeks. I had to take many calming breaths to rid myself of the need to cry again.Suddenly, my phone began to ring out of nowhere, leaving me to jump in fright. I quickly unzipped my boot and pulled my cell phone out. Just before pressing accept, I made sure that I had sobered up all my tears before putting my phone against my ear.“Nana,” my mum cried into the phone.Running a hand through my hair, I already knew what was going to happen. She was preparing to
“Is she alive? Is she okay?” I pleaded, hating myself for how much I even cared. “I’m not sure, I wasn’t allowed to see her. He was in a rush, but all he said was that she had a high dosage of cocaine in her system,” he explained. I was trying my best not to break down again. Tears were something that became part of my everyday ritual. I was so tired of crying my eyes out. “This is the challenge, huh? How many more challenges do I have to go through just to be left alone? Why do I have to be the strong one?” I protested. “She should be the strong one! She is my mother!” I didn’t bother to wait for a reaction. Everyone in that hospital probably thought I was insane, and maybe I was. So, I got up and walked out of the hospital, ready to just disappear like my mother had done many times. When I arrived at my car, I was grabbed by the wrist. Tension enveloped my body, but it was quick to ease when I saw it was Dr. Flores. “Don’t do anything stupid, okay? Look, none of this is fai
ANASTASIA “Good morning!” I chirped. “I made you some breakfast.” I was carrying a tray full of food that I had prepared for my mother. It was finally the day everything would change in a positive way for once. My mother had finally accepted that she needed help. That was the first step to recovery, and today would be the next since she would officially be going to rehab. Her eyes were still shut, and the blanket was slightly pulled down, resting at her waist. Sitting the tray of food down on the nightstand, I began to shake her until her body began to shake wildly of its own accord. “Mum!” I shouted frightenedly. She just wouldn’t stop and I quickly realized that she was having a seizure. After moving her onto her side, I grabbed my phone and frantically dialed 911. My hands were shaking as I spoke to the operator. The lady was speaking but it sounded like gibberish as I was trying my best not to panic because I knew she needed me to be strong. As we waited for an ambulance