I stood waiting for Carlo to get ready to go to his game. I was going to support him, while Alessandro was still missing in action. Not only was he not returning our calls, but his phone was switched off. “Why the hell is he so fucking dramatic!” I blurted. Carlo rolled his eyes, not even needing to ask who I was talking about. “Who cares. I have a hot date tonight, and neither you nor big brother are going to stand in my way.”“Bianca?”He nodded. “Uh-huh, and after the hungry text she just sent me, don’t expect me back later. If I do come back, don’t even think about knocking on my door.”“Please, as if I would. I’ll most likely be out with one of the girls from my fan club.”He shook his head. “Don’t you get tired of messing around, playing games with girls? Don’t you want a woman?”“What, like Bianca?”“Exactly!” he said, pointing to me. “I think she’s something special, not like these little spoiled brats you love hanging around. She’s someone who has been through so much shit
I stood like a little girl inside one of the lockers in the locker room, my heart was beating out of control. I was worried that I would be caught, worried that someone would find me. Erika had practically pushed me in here, leaving the door a little ajar so I could breathe. I hoped her plan would work, because if not, it would be too embarrassing. “Man, you sure you don’t want to come with us?” one of the guys asked as I heard Carlo reach the entrance. He sighed. “Nah, I need to talk to my brother. He’s coming down to have a quick word.”“Alessandro still missing?”“Exactly, so I need to figure out what we’re going to do. He hasn’t been to practice or anything. At this rate, he’s going to get kicked out.”“Shit, man. You should be celebrating, not babysitting.”“Go start celebrating without me. I’ll be there soon.”“Laters!”On that note, I could hear footsteps walking towards me, and I could only hope that they were Carlo’s. The idea of one of his football friends finding me woul
There was a knock on the door. Fuck! Did they find me already? I hadn’t told them where I was staying, let alone my name. Fear took over me as the thumps on the door started to get louder. Why the fuck did I get mixed up in all this shit?I had exactly two hours until I was due to meet them, and I was trying to catch some sleep but failing miserably. “Aless, it’s me!” a voice said from the other side of the door. I knew exactly who it was, and relief took over. I was staying in some cheap motel, something I wasn’t used to. We always stayed in luxury hotels. I came in, not waving my usual gold card, making sure no one knew I had money. I stopped at the local Walmart beforehand and bought clothes that usually I wouldn’t be caught dead in, but this felt like the best thing to do. I was caught up in shit, a world I had no clue about, and my thoughts were with Bianca all the time. She’d lived a life of fear, a life on the run, and here I was experiencing a slice of it, and my desire fo
This weekend with Carlo had been magical, but it was Monday morning and time to get back to reality. I had to get to class and work on my paper. I had finally figured out a thesis—way past the deadline, but better late than never. It came to me on a whim, and when I thought about my topic, I couldn’t help but flash my mind to Alessandro. Everything about him wasn’t logical, from the way he kissed me to the way he was completely different from his brothers. My phone chimed, and I expected it to be Carlo wishing me well this morning like he did every morning. Who would have thought he would end up being such a romantic? Well, I didn’t, and I realized the saying don’t judge a book by its cover was true when it came to him. It was a text from Adolfo, which was weird, because ever since we went to dinner that night, I hadn’t spoken to, let alone seen, him. I didn’t get why he was sending a message to me.Adolfo: I’m free this afternoon. Me: Ok, but why are you telling me this?Adolfo: B
I was tired. It’d been a long day, and Carlo was chilling with me in the living room. That was when all hell broke loose. Alessandro walked in, looking like shit and smelling like it too. Carlo rolled his eyes and stood up to leave. He wanted to go to his room to be as far away from Alessandro as possible. “Wait!” I said as I grabbed his arm.My worst fear—us falling apart again—was staring me in the eye. I didn’t want the past to repeat itself, so I did the only thing I knew how. I made sure that they both got over whatever was bugging them. “Alessandro, glad to see you’re alive,” I said as I stood up. I was shocked by my brother’s clothes—he was wearing black joggers, a puffer jacket, and a black t-shirt. Nothing was designer, and I’d used my last dime on my credit card to make sure that he came home safe. “I have nothing to say to him!” Carlo pointed at Alessandro as if he was a stranger. “I get it. He took your money without permission.”“He went and accused Paul of stealing
In the few days I’d been back, I’d cooked for Carlo, cleaned up after him… but no matter what I did, he still didn’t want to talk to me. I’d crossed a line, but I could only apologize so many times. They never even asked what I used the money for or why I’d been gone for so long. They weren’t interested. Adolfo just wanted us to be a family like we used to be, and Carlo was too busy spending time with Bianca to care about trying to fix the bridge that I’d broken. I wanted us to go back to being the way that we were, or even better than that. It was as if seeing the damage that I’d done made me realize that having my brothers by my side was what I should have been focused on from the start. I should have told them what was really going on and asked for their help instead of pushing them away.I held my phone in my hand as I found myself restless and unclear how to get some concentration to train this morning or at least get some studying in. I was already on a thin line, seeing as I’d
What was up with this guy?He asked me up here to talk, and so far he’d done anything but. He’d offered to cook, but I knew the only thing he drank on a regular basis was his smoothies. Something Carlo told me Alessandro drank on a regular basis.“You sure you don’t want a drink?” he asked for the third time in the space of the fifteen minutes we’d been here. “No. Why did you ask me here?” I could tell I had touched a nerve as he sank down on the sofa. I looked around, realizing I’d never really sat in the living room, not like this. The first time I came here, I was swept into Carlo’s room, as he only had one thing on his mind. Not just him, but me too. I couldn’t think of what to say to Alessandro, and I wasn’t good at small talk. He nodded his head and said, “There’s no easy way to say this, but your dad’s in trouble.”“And?”I didn’t understand why he was telling me this or why he was all of sudden worried about Dad when he’d made it clear that he thought we were after nothing
I smiled as my phone chimed. I didn’t have one boyfriend, but three. What more could a girl ask for? The hot studs that I used to avoid were now my men. I had them in the palm of my hand, ready to do anything that I asked, any time of the day.“Which one of them is texting you now?” Erika asked as she crept nearer to me. “Alessandro, he’s so sweet. But I need to take a break or my pussy is going to fall off.” I smiled at her, thinking about how much Alessandro had changed within the past few weeks.“Listen to you! A few months ago, you hadn’t done the deed, and now you’re getting too much action. Oh, my pussy is too tired.” She giggled and laughed while fanning her private parts and battering her eyes. I shoved her gently out of the way, trying to get out of the bed. “Don’t make fun.”She shook her head. “I’m not. I’m happy for you. I can’t remember the last time I saw you smile the way you’ve been doing lately… even if I haven’t seen you much lately.”I moved closer to her and took