Betrayal's Embrace ~ Guido Mista x Reader

Chapter 5: Tears When He's Tearless

__.—♥️ Howdy Fiction Fiends! ♥️—.__

Sometimes, and only sometimes, writing in silence works best for me. But most often, it's a good Lofi playlist that helps me to concentrate and get my work done! Whether it's for school or a personal project, I love having Lofi playing softly in the background of my study space. By the Lofi magic, I feel twice as productive!

As I continue to work on this story and my very first novel, I'm exploring a whole bunch of different Lofi playlists and songs that will fuel my brain power and writing productivity during the school year! Currently, Lofi Girl's "Halloween Lofi Radio" and Chillhop Music's "Chillhop Essentials-Fall 2024" playlists on YouTube are my FAVS! Do you have any favourite Lofi songs or playlists? Let me know what you think!

This chapter of Betrayal's Embrace was written alongside Lofi Girl, as she hung out with me on my TV while I transformed a collection of spontaneous ideas into a fanfiction chapter.

Ciao, for now, Fiction Fiends!

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"You're sure there's nothing we can do to make you feel better?"

Y/N rolled over in her bed and pushed aside the ocean of blankets that fell across her face to peer up at her Aunt. Aunt Olivia wore pity in the creases of her forehead as she stared down hesitantly at her niece. Y/N pulled the warm blankets up to her chin as she sighed and said a very soft, "No."

Aunt Olivia pouted down at her, worried at the grumbled mess that was fine only an hour ago. "You're one hundred percent sure," She asked Y/N softly from the doorway. Her shoulders slumped in defeat before Y/N gave her an answer.

"Yeah. I'm okay but thank you."

Aunt Olivia and Uncle Pedro felt something was off about Y/N the second she walked back into their home. What had seemed like a fun evening of bus trips and going back and forth to the mall turned into something sour as she sauntered back into the house. Her eyes couldn't meet theirs, her shoulders fell in on themselves, and when Aunt Olivia offered to take her on a trip to the night market for a late snack of gelato or cannolis, Y/N politely refused. "I'm ok, but thanks," she'd said. "Just tired from a long day."

Y/N kicked off her shoes and marched directly to her room, leaving her phone and wallet on the kitchen's marble counter. Her relatives shared a worried glance at one another from the sofa where they'd been sitting, and as Pedro was about to stand—or attempt to stand on his shaking, still-healing legs—his wife waved for him to sit down and rest. She would go see what was going on. When Aunt Olivia came to Y/N's room, curious to hear all about her trip to the mall but more importantly to inquire about her mood, YN explained that she was simply homesick.

"I love it here," she said from beneath the covers. "But I miss home."

Y/N had a tendency to lie when the truth got caught up in her throat. Sure, she missed home. But that wasn't what was really bothering her. For the rest of the night, Aunt Olivia and Uncle Pedro kept to themselves in the living room, watching movies at an intentionally low volume. Y/N knew they were trying to keep quiet for her sake, but she really wished they'd turned up the TV. With nothing but her thoughts to keep her company, all Y/N could think about was him and she hated it. A part of her wanted to walk down the stairs and curl up next to her family, casting all of her worries aside to focus on the romcom that was probably being watched in the family room. She'd ask Aunt Olivia to make popcorn. And she'd ask Uncle Pedro to share his blanket with her. But she was embarrassed and ashamed of how stupid she was. Cruel and malicious thoughts swam in her mind, latching all of her attention on the fact that over a year of friendship had led to her being blocked.

How pathetic. He probably saw her and knew that he couldn't be seen with someone so pitiful. Or at least, that's the only reason Y/N could fathom as to why he blocked her so quickly. She couldn't think straight, nor could she muster up enough tiredness to fall asleep. So instead of joining her family or resting her eyes, she cried that night. Hard. And she slept even harder.

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"She saw you?" His boss asked. Slender fingers massaged the bridge of his nose as he slowly paced the room, clearly surprised and slightly irritated to hear this news.

"Yeah," Echo replied solemnly. His eyes were pointed to the floor. He couldn't muster the courage to look up at his boss.

"You know what that means, don't you? We made a deal."

"I know, I know," Echo said with a sigh. Dark bags accompanied the sad look in his eyes. He felt like crying, but would never do that in front of his boss. "I already blocked her contact." He said quietly.

"Good," his boss said. His boss—a pristine man with eyes as blue as the ocean—stared at Echo, sending his gaze searching up and down his employee's exhausted features. Echo's emotions were draining him of the typical lively attitude that he often met his boss with. He couldn't even meet his eyes. His boss pulled down at his already neat suit jacket, straightening an invisible wrinkle as he stepped toward Echo. His boss laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, urging him to look up as he said, "The last thing either of us wants is for an innocent bystander to get caught in the crossfire of our job, right?"

Echo nodded.

"It's for her safety," his boss said again.

Echo nodded again.

His boss waited a moment to see if he would say more, but when Echo said nothing, the boss pointed to the door. And just like that, Echo was dismissed.

"Get some rest," his boss told him as he walked toward the office room's door. "You'll need it."

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To be continued...

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