I Am Keeley

Chapter 29: I'll Gladly Play the Devil

Luca's POV

"Food's here!" I hear Fergus shout from the other room with his thick Scottish accent.

Me, Diangelo, and Emile all make our way off the balcony and into the kitchen where the pizzas we had ordered were being laid out. The four of us began to fill our plates before heading to the living room of my room to watch whatever was on TV.

Keeley and I would leave tomorrow, and she insisted that I get some guy time before we leave. The past few days had been well-needed. We hadn't had any work obligations, no brothers or fathers bossing us around and keeping their eyes on us, it had just been us. Keeley had fit in better with my friends than what I could have hoped for. 

She and Fergus, I've realized, have the same smart-ass attitude and have been ganging up on me every chance they can get. Like the other day, Ilaria had the great idea to all cook together. It sounded fun, but then I felt Keeley's hands rest on the bare skin of my back under my t-shirt. Before I could even register the sly grin on her face and the trouble in her eyes, Fergus had completely covered my head in lukewarm nacho cheese and sent Keeley and everyone else into a fit of laughter. I still have to get her back for that.

Emile insists on working out with Keeley every morning, even though he can not keep up. He's still sore after his loss during the fight he and Keeley had the first day we were here. Or, really, Keeley just knocked him around until he cried. So to make up for that and in his effort to convince Keeley he's not weak, he gets up every morning to partake in Keeley's workout routine. He's a stupid fuck for that, considering I've done it and it's brutal, but he's a good stupid fuck. 

I've had a hard time getting an idea of how the relationship is between Diangelo and Keeley. They talk, a lot actually, but never loud enough for people to hear. She talks timidly to him, but the truth in her eyes, while she does, makes me believe she's not holding anything back. Keeley is talking freely, and Diangelo absorbs everything she has to say before responding. He listens to her intently, determined to get the whole story before he asks his own questions. I asked Keeley what they talk about, and a meek smile tugged at her mouth as she shook her head. She just said "life."

And then there's Ilaria. It's been hard to get any alone time with Keeley because Ilaria insists on taking all of her time. Of course, that's just my jealousy talking, but it feels like that sometimes. Those two cackle louder than any two people I've ever met. When they're together, Keeley doesn't seem so tense, nor does she seem like she's got a thousand burdens weighing her down. She seems free. She laughs freely, and I've even seen her and Ilaria have an impromptu dance party at three in the morning. I know Keeley has Aubrey, but if I'm being honest, Ilaria will take that place in a heartbeat.

And then during the early mornings and late nights, it's just me and Keeley. We sit on the balcony, or on the couch, in the bed, or at the counter,  and just talk. I don't think I've ever gotten to truly talk to Keeley as much as we have since being here. Yes, we talk every day, as we do live together, but not like this. We talk about life and the things that scare us. Our favorite memories and the ones that make us cry. The burdens we have to carry because of the life we've been born into. And then Keeley surprises me. The other night she opened up about her old friends from not so long ago, and how she and Brady met. She laughs when she reminisces, and sometimes she tears up to, but I take it all in. I take in everything she's willing to give me, and she does the same for me.

My mother called the other night, and after a terrible conversation with the woman, I told Keeley about her. I told her how she got tired of the life she lived and left us. I told her about my childhood and the memories I have growing up. I told her about meeting my friends and how we bonded. I even spoke of the things I've had to do because of being in the family I'm in, the things that haunt my days and my nights. She doesn't interrupt me and she doesn't give me advice on what to do or how to feel. Keeley doesn't try to change my view, she just listens. It's been a long time since somebody just listened to me and let me get things off my chest.