Oh mon Dieu! - Damiano David

11｡◕‿◕｡

June, 2018

     All of them had already showered and changed in their spare clothing that they brought. It was time to make their pizzas. The band was sitting on the isle chairs as they were waiting for Margot to finish kneading the dough for the last time. Her wet curls were up in a bun as she wore a baby blue short sleeved smock with an apron that said "Mr Good looking is cooking" that belonged to her father. Thomas was nurturing a bad sunburn and was smothering himself in aloe vera gel that Margot had lying around. He was shirtless with some linen pants. Next to him sat Vic, she wore a black romper that she took from Margot's closet. The two girls fancied each other's closets. Vic liked Margot's soft style while Margot admired Vic's edginess. Next to Vic was Ethan, who was on his phone scrolling through his friends' Instagram stories. He wore a red Hawaiian shirt and some shorts. On the end of the isle was Damiano that wore an unbuttoned shirt and some shorts. Chilli was sitting on his lap having a small nap exhausted from being out all day and running around the group.

Small talk was going around, they collectively decided to stop drinking due to them consuming enough during the day. Somehow, they fell on the topic of growing up. Even though they were so similar right now, all of them had a different upbringing. "My sister cut my hair a couple of times. She wanted to be a hairdresser." – Thomas told them. "Is she one right now?" – Margot asked. "Yeah, she is! She lives in Milan and has a salon over there." – he confirmed, with pride in his voice about his sister. "I used to cut my own hair when I was little. I think my mum was going to kill me when I cut whole chunk of the front of my hair!" – Vic laughed, making the group chuckle. "I did the same thing. My mum was so pissed when she saw me. It was right before the school photos at the end of the year." – Damiano giggled. Margot found that so adorable, the way he tried hiding his giggle as his eyes were wide open in surprised that he even giggled.

"My mum never let me cut my hair. My sisters loved my long hair. They were braiding it all the time!" – Ethan chimed in. "Do you have siblings Margot?" – Thomas asked her. "No, my dad never remarried. The closest to siblings are my cousins, but most of them are way older than me." – she informed them. "Well, now you have us. We can be your siblings!" – Vic clapped. "My cool, rockstar siblings!" – Margot laughed showing she liked the idea of Vic, Thomas and Ethan being her new siblings, but not Damiano. Damiano was more than a brother to her, at least she hoped for him to be. "I hope I will see you more than my actual cousins. I only saw them for Christmas and Easter. When I was younger, they studied all around Europe and now they live all around Europe, as well!" - she told them, as she cut the dough in 5 pieces.

"All right, lets get cooking good lookings!" – she told them. Damiano moved Chilli on the breakfast nook as he got up to wash his hands. Vic excitedly started raiding the fridge for pizza toppings. The tomato base was perfectly seasoned. Even though they were fully Italian, or quarter Italian, all of them had funky preferences for pizza toppings. Ethan and Margot could not help themselves to stop snacking on the toppings. Some grated cheese here, some slices of prosciutto there, both were almost full before they even finished topping their pizzas. Earlier, Damiano and Thomas sorted the masonry oven, so it was ready for them to plot the pizza in and wait for it to be done. Also, they were both responsible for the pizza to be baked to perfection, while Margot, Ethan and Vic prepared the living room for their movie marathon. They agreed on a couple of movies to fill out the rest of the night with.

"I have a free day tomorrow. Would you like to come with me to Rome so we can do a little shopping and have some girl time? I am fed up with the boys already!" – Vic asked Margot. They all had a free day the next day. "Hey, I am right here! You could not wait for me to go to the kitchen to say that?" – Ethan protested in a playful way. The girls just gave him a playful stare. "Yeah, I would love to. I need to get some new swimwear and shoes." – Margot agreed excitedly. The girls agreed on a time and once finished with their set up of endless number of blankets and pillows, all three went outside to check on the boys. Chilli was in Margot's arms snuggled, snoring away. Thomas was placing the last pizza in the oven and Damiano was sitting on a chair with his legs propped on Thomas' chair. Once finished, they all went inside and took their places on the sofas. Ethan and Vic on one, Thomas on a cosy armchair and Damiano and Margot with Chilli on a loveseat, all of them munching on their pizza. The group started the night light with a comedy, and continued all the way to a horror that was not enjoyed by Thomas and Vic. On the other hand, Ethan and Margot were quite neutral with the horror movie, both criticising the movie and how they could have made it better. Damiano often flinched and when he did, he noticed that Margot would put her hand on his tight to comfort him, so he started flinching more often just to feel her hand on his skin.

By the end of the fourth movie, everyone was asleep except for Damiano and Margot. As the end credits rolled, Margot quietly got up to clean the plates form the coffee table with Damiano on her trail gathering their glasses. This felt so domestic to Margot, she would often see her grandfather doing the same this with her grandmother. It was like they were picking up after their kids that crashed after a movie night, and they were tidying up. Once again, the two found themselves in each other's embrace in the kitchen, no words uttered, just bodies acting on what they need. Margot guided him to the garden where they could enjoy the moonlight, just like the other night.

They sat on the swing that was her grandparents' favourite spot on the whole property. It was located right under her grandfather's family tree that has been on the property for generations. The initials her grandparents were carved on the tree, as well as her parents initials. Damiano noticed all those small initials, and he realised that this was the perfect place to ask what he wanted to ask since that night on the beach. "I know that we have not known each other for a long time, but I would really like to ask you on a date. A proper one!" – he asked, his voice slightly trembling from his nerves that were all over the place. He already envisioned their whole official first date in his head. All it was missing was her answer. Margot looked at him surprised and before she could answer his nerves got the better of him. "I just feel this connection to you, like I have known you my whole life. Yet, I want to meet you even better, in every possible way. I completely understand if you say no because it is a big thing to just agree to go on a date with a person that you have known for a week, but at the same time..." – Damiano's rambling was interrupted by Margot's lips. She knew what she was doing.

Her hand was on his cheek, thumb slowly caressing the slight stubble that was peaking on the sides of his face. His lips took a second to process what was happening, but they eventually caught up, just in time for her to tear them apart from each other. Her forehead stayed on his with her eyes closed as she inhaled the perfect early summer night's scent mixed with Damiano's homely scent. She opened her eyes and looked into his dough ones that she noticed that first day at the coffee shop. "I would like to go on a date with you, Damiano. A proper one!" – she told him in a whisper and chuckled lightly at the last statement, copying his declaration of it. Damiano laughed at her answer while letting a breath of relief, glad that she agreed to his proposition. "Shall we go inside?" – she asked him. She did not get a verbal answer back but was picked up bridal style by Damiano and carried to the living room where their friends were in a deep slumber. Both positioning themselves on the sofa so that their bodies are touching and providing comfort to each other. It took them five minutes to fall asleep. Damiano was thinking about how perfect their date will be, having everything mapped out in his head, while Margot's mind went to the tree outside.

Ever since she was a young girl spending her summers in Italy, her grandmother told her how it was a tradition for the man of the family to propose to their significant others there, cementing their love by carving their initials on the tree. Her great grandfather did it, her grandfather and of course her father did it. She was wondering if Damiano read her mind and chose that spot to ask her on a date, or if it was pure coincidence that he decided to ask her there. Either way she was happy that she came to Italy to spend her time. Half of the night she was dreaming in Damiano's arms. Around sunrise, she was woken up by Chilli that was impatiently waiting to go the bathroom, and she was the only one that heard the poor dog, she got up and grabbed her lyrics notebook deciding it was a good time to write some of her thought about the question previously asked.

"Sunrise with you on my chest

No blinds, in the place where I live

Daybreak, open your eyes

So close with you on my lips

Touch noses, feeling your breath

Push your heart and pull away,

Be my summer in a winter day, love..."

A/N

The lyrics are a song from Shawn Mendes called "Fallin' all in you"