𝐓𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐙𝐄𝐃 | 𝟏𝟖+

seventy; talk

A U R O R A

"Cause I've stopped listening. I'm just waiting for an answer to a question that I already know, I'll let you down. Words are so cheap."

. . .

"Go!" mom shoos, urging me to go into dad's office. With a frown, I walk down the hallway, with my heart beating a tad bit faster.

I reach his door and inhale, wrapping my fingers around the cold metal and pushing it down, entering.

I don't know how long this is going to take. Riccardo and I agreed to meet up in the afternoon. It's only been yesterday since I last saw him and me long to feel his arms around me again.

Dad is seated on the couch in his office, the one that looks out at the city. He turns his head to look at me, and I see the frown edged between his eyebrows.

"Hey," he says softly.

"Hey," I reply and close the door behind me, walking further into the room. I take a seat on the couch he's sitting on, at a good distance since I don't know what to expect.

He breathes out and shakes his head, leaning back. "Your mother was telling me some shit about being open and accepting everything," he mutters.

I roll my eyes. "Maybe you should take her advice into consideration," I reply, earning a sharp glare from him.

"You... you were attracted to him from the beginning?" he asks. I nod. "Yeah," I whisper.

He clenches his jaw, focusing his eyes at a random spot in the room. "He had a girlfriend," he notices.

"I was aware of that," I reply. He snorts and shakes his head.

"I hate that we are so alike," he says.

I don't know what to say to that, so I just keep quiet. It's silent between us. He's processing all of this, even though he had a night of sleep to think about this.

"Just so you know, I don't plan to stop seeing him," I whisper. Dad casts me a glance. "But it'd be easier if you were to accept it," I add.

"Do you love him?"

I nod. "Yes," I whisper.

He clenches his jaw and nods. "Does he treat you right?"

I nod once again. "Like I'm the only woman in the world," I answer.

"Aurora... you must understand what it feels like for me," he says with furrowed brows and rakes a hand through his hair.

"Dad... I know it's hard for you to accept but please... you can't take this away from me," I frown. "I'm nineteen and know what I'm doing – sort of. I know I love Riccardo and right now, I'm dying to be with him. And I know nothing would've stopped you from being with mom, even if it was her father saying that he'd kill you if you saw her again, you would risk it."

It's quiet again. "I hate it when you're right," he says eventually.

I can't help but chuckle at that and open my mouth to say something but he beats me to it. "Did Riccardo ever... touch you without consent?" he asks.

I shake my head immediately. "Everything was consensual," I whisper. He nods. "Okay, good. You'd tell me if something happened to you, right?"

My breath hitches in my throat, and I feel guilt consume me. It hurts me that I kept so much from dad, that I didn't tell him about everything he deserved to know.

He deserved to know about Riccardo, and he deserves to know about Jack. Though it's all my decision if I want to tell him, I feel like as my dad, he should know since he's always been there for me my entire life.