strawberries and smoke~

~chapter 4~

Fiorella trudged into the kitchen of Camilla and Niccolo's house, tossing her shoes into a corner with a frustrated sigh. She had come to help Niccolo with his homework, but, surprise surprise, Virginia had shown up without telling him. Now it seemed he needed her more than tutoring for his painfully low math grade.

"They'll kick him out after a month," Fabio said, shaking his head, his voice loud enough to grab Fiorella's attention. She leaned against the wall, eavesdropping, although she already had a keen feeling that they were talking about the less than kind new kid she gave a real warm welcome to this morning. Not that he had made it easy for her, or anyone else to be nice to him. He had been a dick. So whatever Fabio was ranting about, she couldn't help but agree. Damiano certainly wasn't doing himself any favors.

"My father says he was problematic in public school too," Fabio continued, doubt in his tone.

"Annoyed he tried to steal your seat?" Chiara laughed, the sound light but teasing.

"You're the problematic one," Camilla tells him, lightly poking his arm with a fork. "Do you need this?" She gestures it to him. Fiorella walks over, silently hoping to add her own two cents into the conversation about Damiano. Not necessarily gossip. She had seen a similar glint in the two girls' eyes while Fabio was talking about him, and Fiorella wondered if there was some silent competition to win over the heart of the mysterious new kid. If that was the case for Chiara, it was shaping up to be a great day for Virginia. But for Niccolo? It wasn't looking too good.

"Mind if I sit? I was supposed to tutor your brother but," Fiorella clarifies, finishing her sentence with a glance over her shoulder at Virginia, who was busy recording a video with Niccolo on the couch.

"This is the third time this week. Go ahead," Camilla replied, clearly not pleased with her brother's guest. Fiorella settled into an empty chair, tucking her knees to her chest when the constant cold of Niccolo's house caught up to her. She turned to Chiara and smiled. "Hey, America."

"Hey, Collodi witch," 

"We have extras," Fabio gives her a kind smile, nodding to a bunch of sushi containers. Fiorella laughed a little, wondering what family of ten they were attempting to feed. "Sushi, fancy. California rolls?" she asked, curious and very hungry since for lunch her mom gave her all that boring protein stuff. Green smoothies should be a considered a form of torture. Fabio placed one on a napkin and offered her more if she wanted.

"You're a sweetie," she said, sliding the paper towel toward her. "You should give Cami's brother some etiquette classes. He makes me come all the way here and then spends all his time with his girlfriend." Fiorella shook her head, a little irritated with Niccolo's distraction. Camilla laughed and shrugged, acknowledging that her brother had his priorities, even if they were usually misplaced.

"But laugh all you like. If this school turns into another San Basilio, you'll see," Fabio warned, pointing at the two girls. He was talking about Damiano's old public school, filled with dealers and fights that occurred on an alarmingly regular schedule. Calling it a school was more than generous.

"Well, I think he's cute," Camilla spoke up, suddenly seeming more sincere.

Fiorella missed the comment entirely, her excitement winning her over as she leaned forward to tell a story about the old school. "I heard about a fight at Basilio where a girl got a locker to the face. Or was it a face to the locker? How does that even work?" She tilted her head in confusion.

"That sounds painful," Chiara remarked, scrunching her face.

"She lost both her front teeth," Fiorella continued, laughing and mimicking a lisp. "Could othly drink thoothies." The four of them laughed, the sound echoing through the room, momentarily drowning out the distant chatter of Virginia and Niccolo.