[Luca fanfiction] Love in Portorosso

Chapter 10

"Oh, there you are. I made your favorite, trenette al pesto," Massimo said, holding a large pot full of pasta.

Eimi and the others entered the dining room. After Alberto left, they felt miserable. The young girl could not help thinking about Alberto. He looked awfully different than the humans: fish like, reptilian, ocean like, monstrous, but also lonely.

"Where's Alberto?" Massimo asked.

"Uh, he left, Signor Marcovaldo," Luca said, sadly.

Massimo set the pot down and walked over to grab his hat and coat. "Do you know where he went?"

"No," Eimi replied, nervously.  "But I don't think he wants anyone looking for him."

 "Maybe not," Massimo said. "But just in case."

Massimo left the house, leaving the kids to sit there in stunned silence.

"Okay. Well, the three of us can still do the race. You'll swim, you'll eat, you've done both before..." Luca babbled, trying to fill the awkward silence.

"Luca, I..." Giulia began.

"...and I'll do the ride. I mean, that's allowed, right?"

"Luca. Luca?"

"It should be fine, we're still okay..."

"Luca!"

But Luca kept babbling. Finally, Giulia grabbed a glass of water from the table and splash it onto Luca's hands. They transformed. Eimi stood in shock and saw what had happened to Luca. Luca's a sea monster, too, only that his hands are green.

"What the?"

"Ugh... Sleeping under the fish. Now I get it," Giulia groaned, gritting her teeth.

"Luca..." Eimi whispered approaching the strange human boy. "You're...a sea monster?"

The boy stammered. "Uh, I can explain."

"Of all the places for sea monsters to visit, Portorosso? Have you seen this town?" Giulia pointed at the harpoons on the walls. "My father hunts sea monsters! Luca, you have to get out of here." Giulia pushed Luca toward the door.

"But I thought we were underdogs," he said.

"Do you think I want you to leave?" Giulia replied, anguish in her voice.  "This is the happiest I've... Look, it's just not worth it!"

"You don't understand."

"No, I don't," Giulia said. "Risking your life for a Vespa?"

"My parents were gonna send me away," Luca said, near tears. "That's why we did all of this."

"What?" Eimi realized.

"But it's over now."

He went to the door. "Goodbye, Eimi, Giulia. I'm sorry."

Then he was gone.

As Luca walked along the shore, he knew there was at least one thing he could do right. He could try and talk to Alberto. Eimi held out her lantern and found him.  She was wearing her coat and her hat.

"You're searching for Alberto?" Eimi asked.

"Of course. My friend's out there," Luca said.

Eimi suggested that the boat would get them there. They rode the boat to the nearest island and they found an old castle nestled at the top. Luca was shocked to find this place had been completely trashed. The cool human stuff that the sea monster spent all the time collecting. That had been ripped from the shelves and stern around the floor broken. Eimi has never seen this place. They looked over and saw him on top of the stairs.