Ties of Blood (Book One)

Chapter 49 ~ Gianna

Gianna Rostova

Today was the official day that me and Matteo were going on our milkshake date. I figured that if we were going to try this again we would have to take it like every other relationship, slow and steady.

I tied my hair up in a bun and smiled at my reflection, it was a causal outfit yes but that's what it was, a casual date.

Just then, the door sounded with knocks coming off the other end of the door. I smile, put down my hair brush and rush to the door.

To no one's surprise it was Matteo in his all too charming glory, a white t-shirt that stretched across his broad muscles and blue jeans. It was casual, well, as casual as you were going to get from Matteo.

"Good afternoon, Gianna," he greeted softly.

Matteo had stuck to calling me by my full name, I hadn't asked him to change yet although I knew I would at some point, I just still needed more time.

"Good afternoon, Matteo." I smile, and he smiles back.

My eyes drift down to his arms where had a bouquet of flowers, Matteo had given me so many flowers over the past couple of weeks, I was sure I could open my own floral shop. He notices my attention had drifted to his arms he snapped out of what ever daze he was in.

"Here, these are for you," he says, he pushed the flowers towards me.

They looked so beautiful, I could help but grin and the small but thoughtful gesture, "Thank you," I say, I take them from him from him and hold them to my nose for a quick smell. If I thought they looked good, they smelled even better.

"I'll go out these away and then we can go," I say, looking back at him.

"Okay, take your time," he says, he said, his hands retreated to his jeans points shoving his hands in them.

I quickly turn around, walking over to my table where I kept all the other gifts I had received, cards from patients at the hospital however a majority of the presents came from Matteo.

I place the orchids down and turn to where Matteo is, he stood nervously at the door his kind eyes, relaxed.

"Are you ready?" He says when he notices me looking at him.

"Yeah, I am," I say.

I walk over to him and we go side by side to the milkshake parlor. As we stepped out into the sunlight, the warmth of the day was gentle, matching the laid-back atmosphere of our "milkshake date."

Matteo and I walked side by side, our strides in sync, though there was still a comfortable distance between us. It felt good to be taking things slow, like we were both relearning how to be around each other without the weight of the past pressing down too heavily.

We reached the milkshake parlor a few minutes later, a charming little place tucked into the corner of the street. It hadn't changed much since the last time we'd been here. It was almost nostalgic, standing in front of it again with Matteo, like stepping back into a memory, but with a clearer sense of who we both were now.

The little bell above the door jingled as we walked in, and the smell of sweet ice cream and freshly made waffles hit me immediately.

It was comforting, like everything about this day was designed to make me feel safe, secure, and unhurried.

Matteo went up to the counter first, glancing back at me with a boyish smile. "Still strawberry?"

I nodded, returning the smile. "Still strawberry."

He ordered for both of us, just like old times, and soon we found a booth by the window, the sunlight streaming through in soft patches across the table.

As we sat, there was a quiet moment between us, not awkward but full of the unspoken things we both knew we had to eventually talk about. But not today. Today was for milkshakes.

Matteo came back with two strawberry milkshakes in his hands, he placed them on the table and slid one closer to me.

"I thought I'd try strawberry too, since you think it's amazing," he says, his tone playful and lighthearted.

Although, things aren't exactly the same as before, it was as close as they were gonna get, for now, anyways.

"You should, and it is," I tease, I pull my milkshake closer to me and place it between my lips taking a sip of the sweet liquid.

I was grateful we could still tease each other, it was one of the many things things I loved about our relationship.

I smiled at him over the rim of my straw, watching as he took his first sip of the strawberry milkshake. His expression shifted slightly, a mix of curiosity and amusement, before he nodded approvingly.

"Not bad," he admitted, setting the glass down. "You might be onto something."

"See? I told you," I said, leaning back against the booth. "Sometimes, you just have to trust me."

Matteo chuckled softly, a sound that felt so familiar yet slightly foreign after everything we'd been through. It was nice hearing it again, like the melody of an old song you hadn't realized you'd missed.

We sat in comfortable silence for a moment, the clinking of glasses and the low hum of conversation from the other patrons filling the air. It wasn't like before, when every pause between us felt like the weight of something unsaid. Now, it felt like we were both taking the time to breathe, to just exist in the moment.

"So," he finally said, looking at me, "how's work been? You've been at the hospital more than usual lately."

I nodded, swirling the milkshake with my straw. "Yeah, it's been busy. A lot of late shifts, but I don't mind. Keeps me occupied."

Matteo's eyes softened a bit as he watched me, and I could tell he wanted to say something more, but he held back. Instead, he just nodded and took another sip of his milkshake.

"And you? How's everything going with you and your mom?" I asked, genuinely curious. We hadn't talked about his mom much lately, not that I needed to know, of course, it's just that I really care about Matteo despite my efforts and I want him to be happy.

"Well, I called her," he starts and my face lights up a bit.

"Really? That's great, how did it go?" I ask, I take another sip of my drink awaiting the good new.

"Um, it went," he said, and my smile faded a bit, I take it, it didn't go well, "I called Nico to speak to her but he didn't exactly take her reappearance well," Matteo says.

Matteo had been answering all my questions recently, despite what they meant to him, it made me feel warm inside to know what he didn't want to lie to me anymore. Despite all that though, I didn't want him to feel uncomfortable or for him to revisit bad memories.

If we were going to get together again, I would have to be equally as vulnerable to him, as he was being to me.