#FreakshowFriday

Chapter 7: The Electric Fence (2)

October 13, 2023

Above all else, Stella's face is priceless when she strolls into Campo dei Fiori with the rest of her family in tow. Her expression could've been as sour as the receptionist's if she wasn't working so hard to hide it. Nathan's enough of a dick to be tempted to ask her if maybe she's experiencing a sudden bout of travellers' constipation, but he's trying to be the gentlest version of himself for this first impression and refrains. Stella's expression softens when Jamie moves in for an enthusiastic greeting, anyway, so he suspects she'll get over her initial shock fast.

He makes sure to greet Gino first, for based on Jamie's descriptions, he's the least scary of the bunch. Nathan shakes the man's hand and concludes there's indeed nothing scary about this mild-mannered Italian with his dark hair, somewhat dorky glasses and short beard groomed far more meticulously than whatever the lower half of Nathan's own face has going on. Gino radiates calm and reliability; he's the kind of guy a parent would consider their ideal son-in-law, the kind of guy who'd never fall in with men like Derek McLaren no matter what because he's just above that kind of shit somehow. "Pleasure to meet you," he tells Nathan, and unlike his fiancée a few months back, he actually seems to mean those words.

Jamie's father soon approaches them, too. He still has a lot of hair for a man in his late fifties, though it seems to be rapidly greying. There's a serious intensity in the brown of his eyes. "If you could help out with the language barrier at the reception, Gino, we can–" he begins, stopping mid-sentence to take note of Nathan. Nathan wonders how much Jamie told her parents about him and what exactly she may have said.

He doesn't even want to know if maybe Stella's been talking, too.

"So you're Jamie's friend," Emilio Carrera says, plucking at his moustache while appearing to size Nathan up. He thrusts out his hand. "Nice to make your acquaintance. Emilio Carrera. What might your name be?"

The sudden introduction catches Nathan off-guard. He panics, and all he can still hear in his head is Jamie telling him to talk about car facts when in doubt. "Most people in California drive Toyotas," he replies, instantly panicking even more.

"I know that." Emilio lowers his hand. "And I don't think that's your name."

The man isn't smiling, but he doesn't look angry, either, so Nathan has no idea if he should let out a polite laugh or not. He settles for simply turning bright red and blurting out his name as requested.

So much for good first impressions.

"You wanted me to help you check in, Emilio?" Gino asks, gesturing at the reception and effectively shifting Jamie's father's focus away from Nathan, who considers his ass saved for now.

"Right, right," Emilio replies, making for the reception with an absent-minded shake of his head. He engages their lovely receptionist in conversation, trying his luck with a peculiar mixture of Italian and Spanish, but even with Gino's help, he doesn't get much further with her than Jamie did before. Nathan watches it all play out, wondering if how quickly he seems to have faded into obscurity for them is a good thing or not.

They must've seen him in Jamie's video about the book, he realises. There's no way they wouldn't remember his role in that footage that's been a thorn in their side from the very start.

Maybe they're just not mentioning it because they've been asked to behave.

"So you're the lucky guy Jamie invited along," Nathan hears an unfamiliar voice to his left say. A female voice, cheerful and a little haughty. He turns to face the woman who must be Jamie's mother. She's slight and a bit bony, but she carries herself with grace. Her hair is long like Stella's, but its brown colour has to be artificial these days.