Luca.I wasn’t even sure how I got home. The sidewalk bent and curved like a snake, and the streetlights flared and flickered like firecrackers, and I was just stumbling through it all like I didn’t belong in the world anymore. My keys missed the lock three times before the door gave way under my weight. The house was too quiet. Like it knew something I didn’t.My head buzzed like a goddamn beehive. My stomach was a pit. Everything in me was too full, too much whiskey, too many thoughts, too many years of things I never said out loud.I didn’t mean to go to her room.I didn’t even think. My feet just carried me there. Like they remembered something I had forgotten.Lila’s door was open. That soft glow of her bedside lamp leaked into the hallway, golden and warm. She was curled up on her bed, legs folded, book in hand, glasses perched low on her nose like they always were when she got serious about something. Her eyes flicked up when I leaned against the doorframe like I was trying to
Lila. We all sit down on the floor, our legs crossed facing each other, the letter in his hand. I nudge him to go ahead and open it. It's now or never. Luca’s fingers tremble as he breaks the seal on the letter. I watch his knuckles, turn white against the yellowed paper, and my heart is a fist punching inside my ribs.He doesn’t say anything. Doesn’t look at me. Just starts reading.I feel useless. Like I’m standing at the edge of a cliff watching someone I love tumble off it in slow motion and there’s nothing I can do to catch him. Nothing I can say to soften the crash.The silence is unbearable. I move closer to him. “Luca?” I say softly, His eyes scan line after line, but it’s like the words are dragging him under. His jaw is clenched so tight I swear I can hear the tension grinding in his teeth. When he finally speaks, it’s a whisper, brittle and sharp like glass underfoot.“She says she left because of him. My dad. She says... she wanted to come back. But he threatened her.”
Lila"What does he mean by this Jenny? What did you say to him? Where did he go?" My legs nearly give out. I stagger to the couch, the letter fluttering in my trembling hands. The paper is warm from my grip, but his words cut through me like ice.Gone where, Luca? None of this was making an sense, I had only stepped out for a few minutes, waht could she have possibly said to him. I read faster, eyes blurring from more than just the tears building behind them. As if trying to find an hidden message behind the message. But there was no hidden message, it was just as plain as it read. I was about to get up, when I saw another note, a little hidden like he didn't want someone to find it. He had placed it below the fruit bowl, neatly folded. I picked the note, careful not to seem suspicious to Jenny who seemed unfazed by any of this. 'Lila, I couldn’t stay. I know you’ll hate me for this, and I deserve that. But after hearing her, hearing what she said, it wasn’t enough. There is mo
Chapter One. The scandal Luca. The notifications on my phone were going crazy, forcing me to wake up and actually pick up my phone. I had over ten missed calls from my father. What on earth was going on? He had sent me a link which I immediately clicked on.'MAFIA BOSS LUCA DELUCA SPOTTED LEAVING HOTEL WITH A FAMOUS POLITICIAN' S WIFE'For a second, I thought I was reading wrong when the headline popped up on my phone. I quickly scrolled through different blogs and my face was all over the blogs. "Have you looked at your phone today?" my friend Tony said walking into my room with his iPad in his hand. Tony was my personal advisor and best friend, he was the one persona that knew all my secrets, the good and the bad. Our relationship dated way back to college which is where we met, freshman year. I threw my phone at him, as I quickly got up and started dressing up. "This is bad Luca, especially with us in the middle of this acquisition." "I know, I will take care of it." "How
Chapter Two. The arrangement. Lila. I sat in the sterile hospital room, the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor the only sound that filled the space between me and the frail figure of my mother, laying unconscious in the bed. My mother needed chemo, immediately, her condition was getting worse and if they didn't do anything she was going to die. Chemo needed money, alot of money. Money that I don't have. My phone buzzed on the table beside me. My flicked over to the screen, a name I didn't want to hear, especially after last night. A chill ran through me, and for a moment, I considered ignoring it. But something gnawed at me, the promise of something that could change everything. I hesitated before answering.“Lila,” Luca’s voice came through, smooth and cold, like polished stone. “I know you have seen your mother and the doctors have explained to you her condition,"He paused, as if to give me time to process everything he had just said. "You can save your mother, all you hav
Chapter Three. Lila. We stood at the entrance of the grand ballroom, the sound of laughter and conversation swirling around them. The glittering chandeliers above cast a soft glow on the elegant crowd, their expensive gowns and tailored tuxedos reflecting the extravagance of the gala. Luca, dressed in a sharp black suit, adjusted his cufflinks, a look of mild disdain crossing his face as he surveyed the room. Beside him, I fidgeted, my red dress clinging to me like a second skin, my lips painted a perfect shade of crimson. Neither of us looked particularly happy to be here. In fact, we couldn't stand each other.I hated him and everything he stood for. "Smile wifey." Luca said, squeezing my hand a little bit. “I can’t believe you dragged me here,” I muttered under my breath, as I scanned through the room with distaste. I loathed these events, the forced pleasantries and empty conversations. They were the last thing I wanted to attend. But Luca had insisted, of course. He had made
Chapter Four. Luca We had been sitting in silence for a few minutes, now.I looked over at Lila who seemed to be focused on my dad. “So, what do you think?” I asked dryly, already knowing her answer. I hated these gatherings, hated the way my father dominated every interaction. He had summoned me here without notice and when he called, I showed up. When I told her we were coming to see my dad, she didn't oppose me, which made me wonder if she had her own agendas. My father was furious that I had married her knowing our history with her family. But she had been great so far, only speaking when she had been spoken to. She shrugged slightly but didn’t turn away from watching my father who was on the phone . “It’s a lot,” she said, her voice soft, almost hesitant. “He seems... intense.” she added. I chuckled bitterly, rubbing the back of my neck. “You have no idea.” I gave a half smile, but it didn’t quite reach my eyes. “It’s like being a pawn in a game where you don’t know the r
Chapter Five. Lila. His eyes never left mine, and I stared hypnotized into those truly strange and exciting eyes. I was trembling and my heart was pounding so hard in my chest my blood roared in my ears. I remained frozen even when his hand touched my cheek. It felt like hot coals on my skin. I inhaled deeply and breathed in his scent. It was unbelievable the effect this man had on me. Or maybe it was the too many glasses of wine that were settling in. I tried my hardest to act unaffected but failed miserably when he curled his hand till his knuckles replaced his palm and brushed them gently across my cheeks. I could feel the flush spread across my face like a burn.Then his hand reached my bottom lip and his gaze dropped to the quivering flesh. Using the smooth pad of his thumb he pulled my bottom lip down, let it go, then watched it bounce back into place with a curious expression on his face. The only way I could describe the look in his eyes was the way a cat plays with a mouse
Lila"What does he mean by this Jenny? What did you say to him? Where did he go?" My legs nearly give out. I stagger to the couch, the letter fluttering in my trembling hands. The paper is warm from my grip, but his words cut through me like ice.Gone where, Luca? None of this was making an sense, I had only stepped out for a few minutes, waht could she have possibly said to him. I read faster, eyes blurring from more than just the tears building behind them. As if trying to find an hidden message behind the message. But there was no hidden message, it was just as plain as it read. I was about to get up, when I saw another note, a little hidden like he didn't want someone to find it. He had placed it below the fruit bowl, neatly folded. I picked the note, careful not to seem suspicious to Jenny who seemed unfazed by any of this. 'Lila, I couldn’t stay. I know you’ll hate me for this, and I deserve that. But after hearing her, hearing what she said, it wasn’t enough. There is mo
Lila. We all sit down on the floor, our legs crossed facing each other, the letter in his hand. I nudge him to go ahead and open it. It's now or never. Luca’s fingers tremble as he breaks the seal on the letter. I watch his knuckles, turn white against the yellowed paper, and my heart is a fist punching inside my ribs.He doesn’t say anything. Doesn’t look at me. Just starts reading.I feel useless. Like I’m standing at the edge of a cliff watching someone I love tumble off it in slow motion and there’s nothing I can do to catch him. Nothing I can say to soften the crash.The silence is unbearable. I move closer to him. “Luca?” I say softly, His eyes scan line after line, but it’s like the words are dragging him under. His jaw is clenched so tight I swear I can hear the tension grinding in his teeth. When he finally speaks, it’s a whisper, brittle and sharp like glass underfoot.“She says she left because of him. My dad. She says... she wanted to come back. But he threatened her.”
Luca.I wasn’t even sure how I got home. The sidewalk bent and curved like a snake, and the streetlights flared and flickered like firecrackers, and I was just stumbling through it all like I didn’t belong in the world anymore. My keys missed the lock three times before the door gave way under my weight. The house was too quiet. Like it knew something I didn’t.My head buzzed like a goddamn beehive. My stomach was a pit. Everything in me was too full, too much whiskey, too many thoughts, too many years of things I never said out loud.I didn’t mean to go to her room.I didn’t even think. My feet just carried me there. Like they remembered something I had forgotten.Lila’s door was open. That soft glow of her bedside lamp leaked into the hallway, golden and warm. She was curled up on her bed, legs folded, book in hand, glasses perched low on her nose like they always were when she got serious about something. Her eyes flicked up when I leaned against the doorframe like I was trying to
Richard. The air suddenly becomes cold and I can tell something is definitely wrong by how Jenny is acting and so quiet. I shut the door behind the detectives and follow them into the living room like I’m in a dream. Jenny’s already sitting on the edge of the couch, hands in her lap, eyes locked on the floor like a kid caught shoplifting.“What’s going on?” I ask as I sit across from Jenny and the two detectives. The taller one, introduces himself as, Detective Harlan before he glances at his partner, then back at me.“We are looking into a cold case,” he says. “A missing person from 1999. You knew a man named Marcus Wynn?”The name hits like a slap. He was the reason me and Jenny fought so much in our marriage. "Yeah. I knew Marcus." He was Jenny’s friend. Or so she said. A musician. Used to crash on our couch sometimes in the months before she left. The kind of guy who always had a half smile and a cigarette behind his ear. After she disappeared, so did he.“Why are you asking
Richard. I shut the door behind the detectives and follow them into the living room like I’m in a dream. Jenny’s already sitting on the edge of the couch, hands in her lap, eyes locked on the floor like a kid caught shoplifting.“What’s going on?” I ask.The taller one, Detective Harlan glances at his partner, then back at me.“We’re looking into a cold case,” he says. “A missing person from 1999. You knew a man named Marcus Wynn?”The name hits like a slap.Yeah. I knew Marcus.He was Jenny’s friend. Or so she said. A musician. Used to crash on our couch sometimes in the months before she left. The kind of guy who always had a half smile and a cigarette behind his ear. After she disappeared, so did he.“Why are you asking about him now?” I say carefully.“He never resurfaced,” Harlan says. “No employment, no ID activity, nothing. It’s like he vanished off the face of the earth.”“And what does that have to do with Jenny?” My voice is sharp now. Protective. Angry even Harlan looks
Richard. Every scenario that I come up with leads me to just doing the right thing no matter how bad I didn't want to. I know if I don't Luca about his mother and she dies without making things right with him, he will never forgive me if he found out she tried to reach out and I didn't tell him. It’s Sunday afternoon when I finally decide to do it. Two days since Jenny left again. Two days staring at the folded letter like it’s a bomb waiting to go off. Because it is. Luca texts me that he’s stopping by to help with the gutters, like I’m too old to hold a damn ladder. I tell him sure, come by. Bring that wrench you stole from my garage five years ago. He laughs in a text. Says he might.I make coffee. Black. Strong. The kind that punches you awake. I sit at the kitchen table and place the letter dead center between us.It’s cloudy outside. A fitting day for the news I was about to drop in his laps. I appreciated the fact that his wife Lila had not mentioned anything to him yet, h
Richard. It’s been four days.Four long, dragging, claustrophobic days since Jenny stood in my living room and detonated twenty five years of silence with three words: I have cancer and I am dying. And now every time I pass the mirror in the hallway, I catch my own reflection and flinch, because I don’t recognize the man looking back. He’s waiting. Holding his breath. Listening for a knock that may never come.I wanted to tell Luca about his mother, that she was back and she was dying. Anothet part of me hates her and Saw this is her karma, she did not deserve to see the amazing man Luca had turned out to become. She didn't deserve to say goodbye to him. But why was I feeling so much guilt over it. Luca came by last night, as he does every Thursday. Same routine. He brings dinner some overpriced vegan thing Lila cooks and we sit in awkward silence, pretending we’re just two men, not a father and son still sutured together by old wounds.He doesn’t know she was here.I don’t tell h
Richard. I still remember the last time I saw her, I replayed it so many times in my head that at some point it just stuck. I used to make up scenarios in my head about what would happen if I ever saw her again, but over the years I gave up.I didn't think she would ever come back, I did not even know if she was still alive. I had hired some of the best private investigators, but none was ever successful in finding her. As soon as she left, her trail went cold. It was like looking for a ghost, it was like she never existed at all. So I let it go and over the years accepted that I might never see her again or find out what happened to her. Clearly I was wrong, because she was back in the flesh and she still looked the same, but age had catched up. "Richard." she said, My name. That voice. I hadn’t heard it in twenty five years, and still, it hit like a freight train. I didn’t move right away. Thought maybe it was a ghost, a trick of the old walls. "Jenny." I managed to say, T
Lila. I could not believe this was actually happening to me. I took another test and the results were the same. I was pregnant. I stared at the stick. Still. Two pink lines. Still.It had been five minutes. Ten maybe. Or an hour? I couldn’t tell anymore. My hands were cold and shaking . My heartbeat pounded in my ears like a bass drum in an empty hall. I tried to breathe. In. Out. Slow. Steady.Pregnant.The word looped in my brain like a song I hated but couldn’t stop humming. I sat on the edge of the bathtub, knees pressed to my chest, the test trembling in my fingers. A thousand thoughts crashed together in my head like a demolition site how? Well, obviously how. But... now what? What the hell was I supposed to do now?We hadn't even had a real conversation with Luca for over a week now, and I was supposed to just casually tell him that now I was pregnant. I bit down on my lip so hard I tasted metal. I’d rehearsed it a dozen ways in my head soft, careful, maybe over dinner, o