The Masked Gentleman

Burst Bubble

"But I don't want to gooo!" Isabella complains for the seventh time as she hides her face in her plush pillow, muffling her voice. "Isa, it's for your own good! You're stressed! After everything that happened yesterday, we're both exhausted mentally and physically. School just ended last week and you turned 18 2 weeks ago! You're an adult, now! Live your life before they cut your wings!" Mary tries to convince her best friend. "But I'm tirreeed. I don't want to go to a cafe or the park or take a walk. My feet hurt." She pleads but Mary was having none of it. A hand on her hip and pointing a finger at the girl, she threatens. "If you do get up right this instant and get ready so we can outside and have fun, I WILL destroy that beautiful dress I made for you, which you haven't seen yet! Get up! We're gonna have fun!" Getting up from her bed defeated, Isabella finally agrees to go out into the world of people she did not want to see, and made her way to her walk-in closet. Mary yells. "And wear that cute butterfly blue dress! I'll wear the pink one!" "Okay!" Isabella yells back from the closet. The girls decided to go to the Duomo of Milan, just because they didn't find anything else interesting. They didn't bother taking pictures of the actual building, since both of them had been there multiple times. They went straight to the shopping malls. They brought lots of clothes and accessories. "Isa, go try this dress on" Mary says once again. Isabella's response is: "But why do I need so many dresses? I'm getting tired" to which Mary says: "Because you're an engaged woman now! Are you gonna wear crop tops when he's around? I mean, you can but could lead to something else - she winks to the frustrated woman- but we've been here for just an hour! How can you be tired already? Okay, try this one on and then we'll eat something" Isabella takes a deep breath and takes the dress from Mary's hand. "Last time and then we eat." They pay and the girls leave with 3 bags full of clothes, shoes and accessories in each hand. "So, what are you craving? Where should we eat?" Mary asks Bella as they exit the shop. Isa thinks about it and then says, with pure excitement on her face. "Pasta! I want pasta! I'm also craving cake or ice cream or, even better, Tiramisu! Or i could take a nice spicy burger or a shawarma or a panini kebab. Hmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about it." Isa's excitement makes the fashion designer smile. "Sorry, I'm just hungry" she says with a giggle. "It's fine, let's get some pasta and then tiramisu for desert, what kind of pasta? Your favorite, right?" She says. "Yep, pasta al pesto." They search the mall but can't find a restaurant. "Hold on, let me check Google Maps," Isa says, taking out her phone. After some searching, she finds a Thai restaurant nearby interesting and suggests it, but Mary makes a disgusted face. Isa laughs and suggests a steakhouse next, which earns her a dramatic fake gag from Mary.

"How about McDonald's?" Mary teases.

This time, Isa makes a show of pretending to vomit. After some more back-and-forth, they finally settle on an Italian place on the other side of the mall. Just as they're about to step inside the restaurant, Isabella suddenly stops Mary. "Wait, I want to call Carlo, I want to eat with him." "Okay, let's wait, then" Isa calls Carlo, the boy who she trusts the most, waiting as the ringing echoes in her ear. When he finally picks up, she smiles.

"Ciao, Bianco. Che fai? Vuoi venire a mangiare con me e Maria oggi? Siamo al Duomo." she asks, her tone light but with a hint of hopefulness.

"Ciao, Isa. No, purtroppo non posso. Ho gli allenamenti oggi. Posso uscire domani, se ti va." his voice is apologetic. "Ah, vabbè. Non è un problema. Usciamo domani, allora. In bocca al lupo con gli allenamenti" She says. "Grazie, grazie mille. A domani. Ciao!" he seems in a hurry. "Ciao" With that, he cut the call. "What did he say?" Mary immediately asks a disappointed-looking Bella. "He's busy but he's free tomorrow. Let's go, I'm hungry." "Hey, it's fine. We can have lunch together tomorrow." Mary tries comforting Bella, who averts her gaze. They enter the restaurant and sit at a table near the window. Mary calls the waitress and they check the menu. A teenage and tired-looking waitress approaches their table. "Buon pomeriggio. Io sono Paola. Cosa posso portarvi?" She asks in a friendly tone and a practiced smile. "What are you gonna order?" Isa asks Mary, who quickly scans the menu. "I'll take n. 5 and a coke" Isabella checks the menu and then turns to Paola. "Cara, lei vuole l'hamburger e una coca cola. Fallo fare un po' piccante, per favore. Io, invece, vorrei la pasta al pesto e un po' di acqua naturale. Grazie." She says with a smile, while the waitress quickly writes it down on her pad. "Va bene, i vostri piatti arrivano fra un po'" and she quickly leaves. Isabella turns to Mary. "Really? You're gonna have a burger and a coke in a restaurant?" Mary puts a hand on her chest, acting offended. "Excuse moi?! I can have anything I want! I am hungry and want to eat a spicy burger and everybody knows you can't have a burger without a coke. So that's just what I'm doing. Are you judging me?! That is so Gemini of you." She says with making an exaggerated disgusted face, which makes Isabella laugh out loud. "Oh, really? What sign are you? I never asked you that, I didn't think you were into horoscope." Isabella asks, with a huge smile on her face. "Take a guess" Mary says with a mischievous smile. "Oh, I suck at these things, I don't know anything about horoscope, so don't come at me. My guess is that you're a .... wait, when's your birthday?" Mary proceeds to complain. "Wait, no, that's cheating. You may not know anything about this but you can still figure it out!" "Oh, c'mon. Give me something to work with, how could I possibly figure it out? You've never told me your birthday, you travel so much and you haven't posted your birthday pictures. How could I know?" Isabella tries to convince her friend. "Okay, fine. I'll tell you but only if you let me taste your pasta." Mary tries making a deal. Isabella thinks about it. "Hmm, okay, fine. What is it?" "I'm a Sagittarius" Mary reveals. "And what are the main traits of a Sagittarius? The name sounds very mean, to be honest. Sounds like someone with a temper." Isabella gives her true opinion, which earns her a hearty laugh from Mary. "No, no, no. That's not really us—or at least, not me. Sagittarius people are generally more funny, outgoing and always up for an adventure. We've got tons of energy. Take me, for example—I've got so much energy, I probably burn you out just being around me." Mary explains but is confused when Isabella bursts out laughing and covers her mouth. "That's very humble of you. Like 'We, people who embody a ray of sunshine and make other people happy just by existing, are generally funnier than all of mankind, we're superior'. That's what you're saying." Isabella couldn't stop laughing and Mary just smiled, seeing her best friend happy for the first time in a long time. Even Isabella's eyes smile, her beautiful laugh is contagious. She truly is a ray of sunshine. How can someone treat this magnificent young lady like trash? What sort of human being are they? She covers her mouth when laughing. And the sad part is that it's all because of them. "Humble, indeed. That I am." Mary just smiles. Paola returns with their meal and politely leaves. "Want to take a bite? Here." Isabella offers some of her pasta to Mary,-as promised- who takes a bite with her fork but not before examining the green pasta. "Why are you doing an entire postmortem? It's pasta, it's delicious. It's my favorite, have some faith. Gosh, Mary. Now who's the one judging? That's so un-Sagittarius of you." Bella snaps, causing Mary to laugh. "You dare use my own spells against me, Potter?" Mary snaps back in an exaggerated imitation of a familiar character. Both of the girls laugh their heart out, since they're both potterheads. Mary takes a bite of the pasta and after tasting, looks at Isa. "This stuff is delicious. Why didn't I discover it earlier?" She says, while taking a hold of her burger. "You want to take a bite?" She offers. "Sure, I told the waitress to make it extra spicy, just so you know." She takes a bite and a firework of flavors explode in her mouth. "The chicken is soo crispy and the level of spiciness is perfect. The sauce is a bit sweet, perfectly balancing the spiciness of the chicken. The lettuce adds crunchiness and the cheese is just *chef's kiss*." She says while kissing the gathered tips of her fingers, in a very Italian way. "What the heck are you? A food critic? Who the hell tastes food and then describes it like that? I get it, it's delicious so just say so. " Mary makes fun of Isabella, who doesn't back down. "Yeah, obviously you would say that. All the french care about is croissants and macrons and the Eiffel tower. What would you know about the diversity and appreciation of different flavors?" She says sarcastically and eats her pasta, leaving Mary shocked and amused. "I'll get you back" Mary promises, while continuing her meal. "Can't wait for it."