chapter two

Chapter two

Alessandro is sitting on a bench in the children park. The cold rush of air blew sharply past the tip of his nose. He pulled his gloves off gently and rubbed them slightly.

 His eyes are fixed at the kids laughing and playing in the park.

One would think he was having fun watching children play but that wasn’t the case for Alessandro. For the sake of his mission, he has to do things he wouldn’t normally find himself doing. He has had to disguise himself a good number of times as different persons with different personalities. Women the greater victims of his guise. They always lead him to his prey.  This time he would be using a kid. It was his best option and easiest route.

One of the kids fell while running and that caused one of the lady instructors to rush towards the kid.

“Leo, are you alright? Where did you hurt yourself…let me see…”  She lifted the child from the ground while carefully scrutinizing his feet looking for where he had hurt himself.

“is it here?” she asked again feeling a reddened spot. That made the child to wince in pain.

“oh so sorry, Leo. It seems you fractured a bone. Come, I will take you to the clinic.”

Alessandro looked closely. The child in pain is his target. He became alert at once.

The next minute the lady instructor lifted the child into her arms and started to take him away.

“Camilla watch out for the kids while I take Leo to the clinic!” the lady instructor bellowed to the other one as she carried Leo away.

Alessandro followed after her making sure to keep his distance and presence unnoticeable.

They walked into a convenience shop where she lowered the child down.

“Please can I get some first aid for a child?” she asked the lady behind the counter.

“of course.”

Soon the lady brought the first aid and it was applied to the kid.

Alessandro stood behind the displayed goods looking at everything but nothing. The corner of his eyes monitored the child while he pretended to be looking for something to buy.

As the aid was being applied, the lady instructor started to walk towards the section where Alessandro was to pick something. Alessandro saw her coming and dipped his face, he quickly grabbed the closest good before him.

“oh, that is the last chips…” she blurted sadly seeing the guy before her holding the last of the chips. Alessandro looked in his hand and at the display. Shit! He truly had grabbed the last of the chips.

“Ciao…” she called out to him with an Italian accent.

Alessandro didn’t bulge. He expected that she left if he ignored her.

“Hello mister? Excuse me…are you getting the chips or do you have any intentions of dropping it back?” she called again, this time touching his shoulder slightly.

Shit! Why can’t she just leave already…Alessandro grumbled within him not willing to let her see his face.

“Mister…excuse me…”

Alessandro turned sharply before she could say another word.  “Here have it.” He extended the chips to her forcing a short smile.

“uh? Really? I can have it?” Her face broke out into a big smile. An infectious smile. Her eyes twinkled with happiness. Alessandro was hooked. He had never seen one smile so beautifully in his entire life.

“Yes…you can have it if you want…” he found himself stuttering. And then looked away.

The next spilt second, in a flash, she jumped and landed on Alessandro’s body excitedly.

Alessandro froze and his eyes bulged out. He had hugged several ladies in the past especially for work but none had made him feel so different and… strange before.

“Oh my gosh! thank you! Thank you so much! I thought you would say no and I really, really wanted to have chips today…theirs is the best of all shops…”

She ranted on and on nonstop.

When she realized what she had just done, she jumped down shyly. “I’m sorry… I got a little excited and…urhm… yeah I know I can be a little extra sometimes…” she added with a quirky chuckle while gaping at the chips in her hands. Now in her possession.

Her laughter rang in his ears again. Alessandro couldn’t stop starring at the face before him. It was doing strange things to him. Strange things he was trained to never feel.

“So, to thank you for letting me have your chips, what would you like for me to get you in return…just tell me anything…anything at all…go on…”

Alessandro frowned. What could she possibly offer him…

“forget it.” He said with a shrug and made to walk away. But surprisingly she held him back. Alessandro’s jaw dropped in total bewilderment. Such tiny human gripping his arm. He was going to shoot her one of the fearful glares which he shoots ladies that wouldn’t let him be and ask her if she wanted to die but swallowed them back.

She pouted her lips. “Please don’t say no…please…please…just say anything okay…”

Seeing her pout her tiny lips caused Alessandro’s heart to flip.

“What are you doing?” Lorenzo’s voice boomed behind him jolting him back to the moment. Alessandro snapped his hand away from the lady’s hold and shot her glare. “I said you should forget it.”

“I’m sorry, did I do something wrong?” the lady, surprised asked seeing the drastic change in Alessandro’s reaction.

‘I am not allowed to feel this way. Never!  Lorenzo can never find me in this manner’ He was going to say that to her but instead said, “You have done nothing wrong. Keep the chips. It’s just chips anyway.”

“I’m sorry…it’s just that I am grateful you…I mean you let me have your chips… and sorry, it isn’t just chips to me and besides I hate to owe someone. So, go on and say what you want in exchange for your chips. I can sing for you or dance or…erm…”

“Just forget it!” he snapped at her. He couldn’t afford to give Lorenzo the wrong impression about them. He shifted away from her and went over the other side.

“what…is he angry at me? Did I do something wrong?” the lady wondered.

“Excuse me miss, come have a look. It’s all done now.” The lady applying the aid for Leo called out to her.

She hurried back to them.

“There! Do you feel better?” She flashed a warm smile at the Leo.

“Yes aunty Isabella.” the child returned the smile.

‘Isabella…hmmm, that’s her name.’ Alessandro murmured to himself with a soft chuckle. His eyes met with Lorenzo and darted out of the shop afterwards. When Isabella turned much later to catch a glimpse of the strange man, he was gone. She scoffed. What sort of a man refuses to accept a harmless thank you? She shook her head wondering what type of man he really could be. Then she took Leo and they started to leave the convenience shop.