Truth or shot

Santi was excited to meet so many pleasant people. At first, he felt uncomfortable, but he was getting used to it. The guests were impressed when they saw the painting of him and his father; they looked exactly alike.

After a couple of months, Nicole finally reunited with her parents. Of course, they didn't invite Sondra; she could keep her poison far away from Nicole.

The other guests were intrigued by the fact that she had two mothers and two fathers. They wanted to know and didn't hesitate to ask her. She avoided those people; she couldn't go around explaining everything to everyone.

Dante, Sophie, and Máx arrived shortly after. Máx approached Nicole, greeting her warmly with a kiss on the cheek and a tight hug. Bruno was leaning against the railing of the spacious terrace, observing the scene. A deep furrow appeared on his forehead, a sign of his displeasure. He couldn't help it; he could contain his words, but his gestures spoke for themselves.

He was surprised to see Alizza and her father arrive. The girl headed straight towards him, her face showing annoyance as she didn't like the girl.

"Good morning, Mr. Leone. I hope our presence doesn't bother you; your parents invited us," she said, offering a timid smile.

"Don't worry, you're welcome," Bruno replied.

"He had no other choice but to be polite; they were his parents' guests."

Later, Bruno and his father took charge of the grill. The food was simple, just meats and burgers accompanied by salads.

Nicole noticed that their son was the only child at the gathering.

"Well, a party for a child without any other children," she remarked.

"My parents' friends mostly have teenagers or adult children, and some of them chose not to have kids," Dante replied.

As usual, the friends joked and laughed while enjoying each other's company. Bruno felt excluded, and Santi was having a great time with his grandparents, who had set up a bonfire to roast marshmallows, and all the proud grandparents were gathered around him.

As the evening approached, another guest arrived, greeted warmly by Bruno's father.

"You have no idea how glad I am to see you after all these years. Seeing you feels like seeing your father," he exclaimed.

"The pleasure is mine, Mr. Leone. My father always spoke to me about the great friendship they had."

"Even though he had to return to his country, we kept in touch and visited each other from time to time."

They walked over to where Bruno was, who greeted the guest coldly and then turned and walked away.

"Apologies, my son can be unfriendly," Bruno's father said apologetically. "He'll never understand."

"I've noticed," the guest replied.

Max turned towards where Bruno's father and the newcomer were. The drink he had just taken shot out of his mouth, causing Nicole to give him small pats on the back to help him catch his breath. The commotion drew the attention of the newcomer, who approached to greet Nicole.

"Hello, Nicole. Nice to see you," he said.

"Hello," she replied.

She extended her hand to shake his, and he took it, leaning in to kiss her on the cheek.

At that moment, he noticed the boy standing in front of him. A myriad of colors crossed his face, leaving him as pale as paper.

Nicole looked back and forth between them, sensing tension and rigidity in the air.

"Do you two know each other?" she asked, curious.

"NO!" they both replied in unison.

"This is my friend Maximilian, and this is Amadeus," she said, addressing each of them.

Amadeus was the first to react. After silently cursing, he greeted Max politely.

"Pleasure to meet you."

Max extended his hand to return the greeting, but when Amadeus squeezed his hand, he couldn't help but feel a strong electric shock running through his body. He quickly pulled his hand away, unable to believe that this was happening to him. It couldn't be possible.

Amadeus had the same dilemma. What the hell was happening every time he was near this boy? He had never experienced anything like it before. He still liked women, so he couldn't understand what was going on.

Nicole introduced the Russian to Dante and Sophie, who greeted him warmly. Dante was a guy with an excellent temperament, and he immediately started chatting with Amadeus. Amadeus noticed that Dante was very different from his brother.

Later, Bruno's mother approached Nicole to let her know that Santi had fallen asleep. She assured Nicole not to worry and that she would take him up to the bedroom and stay by his side.

Dante served drinks to everyone except Sophie, who was served cranberry juice instead. Sophie accepted the drink while rolling her eyes. Her pregnancy wasn't showing yet, but the restrictions had already begun.

Amadeus and Max avoided eye contact at all costs. They were extremely uncomfortable. Nicole knew that something was wrong with her friend. She knew him too well, and suddenly he had become quiet, which was unusual for his outgoing personality.

Dante wanted to announce his upcoming wedding and the news of his child, but his parents had already retired to rest, along with most of the guests. So, he decided to save the announcement for the next day.

"Sophie was feeling bored. The others were already a bit tipsy, and she couldn't drink. Bruno approached and sat across from Nicole, and when Alizza saw him, she joined them and sat beside them. The seven people around the table looked at each other.

"Guys, this is getting boring. How about we play 'Truth or Shot'?" Sophie suggested.

"But you can't drink alcohol," Dante replied.

"I know, I'll drink juice. Come on, don't be boring," Sophie insisted.

"Yeah, guys, let's play. Come on," Dante exclaimed.

The group agreed to the game, not so much out of excitement but to avoid appearing bored. Sophie placed an empty bottle in the center of the table, which happened to be round, and she took out a notebook and a pen, writing several notes that she folded and placed inside a container.

"The bottle will spin, and whoever it points to will have to put their hand in this container and pull out a note with a question. If they don't want to answer, they take a shot. They can only drink once, though. The next time, they have to answer truthfully. We'll take turns spinning it, starting with the person on the left. The person who answers will spin it for the next turn," Sophie explained.

Everyone nodded, signaling that they understood the rules. Alizza was the first to spin the bottle, which spun several times before pointing at Dante. She handed the little piece of paper to Sophie, who read it aloud.

"Have you ever been in a relationship with more than one person at the same time?"

Blonde felt everyone's eyes fixed on him, waiting for an answer. Shots had been placed in front of each of them. He thought about taking the shot, but he could only do it once, and he was certain that Sophie had written stronger questions than that. So, he decided to answer."

"Yes, there have been times when I have done that," Bruno replied.

Sophie tilted her head as she observed him closely. He leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"But not in your year," he added. Upon hearing this, the blonde smiled. There was no point in arguing about the past. After all, she had her own experiences.

The others grew nervous upon hearing the type of questions the blonde had written. Undoubtedly, this would be an interesting and intense game.

Dante spun the bottle, and now it was Bruno's turn to answer. He pulled out the note and handed it to Sophie.

"Have you had erotic fantasies about any of the people here right now? If so, say who," Sophie read aloud.

Bruno immediately locked eyes with Nicole. Everyone already knew what his answer would be. He didn't hesitate to respond, indirectly making his intentions clear to the Russian.

"Yes, about Nicole," he admitted. Nicole blushed immediately and lowered her head in embarrassment. She didn't expect Bruno to have the courage to answer. Such behavior was unlike him.

Alizza felt uncomfortable, already sensing that the game was going beyond her tolerance level.

Bruno spun the bottle, and it landed on Sophie. She pulled out the note and handed it to Dante.

"Have you made love in public places?" Dante read the question, and the couple couldn't help but laugh. Remembering how and in how many places they had done it made them blush.

"Yes, we have," Dante replied, fanning himself with both hands. The others observed them and laughed at the couple's great complicity.

Sophie spun the bottle, and now it was Amadeus' turn. Like the others, he handed the note he drew to Sophie.

"With whom in this room would you like to have sex, other than your partner?" Sophie suspected whom he would choose. It was more than obvious that the Russian was attracted to her friend. Now she just wanted to see if he would admit it. Her gaze shifted between the Russian and Bruno.

The Russian turned as red as a burning coal. There were two people in that room he undoubtedly wanted to be with, but he had no intention of revealing it. He nervously smiled and took a shot, while Bruno scrutinized him with his gaze. The others laughed, and Max swore that when Amadeus heard the question, he had directed his gaze at him for a few seconds, which made him feel embarrassed. He even felt as if gravity weighed him down, anchoring him to the ground.

Amadeus spun the bottle, and as if by some twist of fate, it landed on Max. For the first time all evening, their gazes met. Nervously, Max pulled out the note and handed it to Sophie.

"Have you wanted to sleep with someone of the same gender?" Sophie asked playfully, her gaze fixed on Máx.

At that moment, Max cursed his luck. If he took the shot, it would be equivalent to admitting that he had had such thoughts. How on earth did he end up with that question? He looked at everyone without knowing how to answer, fearing that his flushed face would give him away. He was undoubtedly facing a great dilemma.