Oblivion ✓

B| Interrogation

highschool

THIRD PERSON

The conference room was dimly lit, with only the faint glow of the overhead lights casting long shadows across the sleek, glass table in the center. The air was thick with anticipation, as if the very walls were holding their breath. Vito Marini sat at one end, his fingers lightly tapping on the table, his gaze fixed intently on the door, as though expecting someone. Domenico Marini sat across from him, his posture rigid, arms crossed over his chest. His expression remained a mask—unreadable, detached. Vito glanced at his brother, sensing the familiar coolness that seemed to always hang in the air between them. Domenico had no tolerance for uncertainty.

"Why am I here, Vito?" Domenico's voice was even, flat—almost mechanical, as though his patience had long since worn thin. "I've got better things to do than sit in some conference room with no explanation."

"I can't tell you much, Emma only said the 3 p.m. meeting would be here. Do you know a Mr. Johnson?" Vito responded.

"If you don't know him, why would I?" Domenico shot back, his tone edged with irritation.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't take your mood out on me, brother. And—oh, he seems to be here."

The door to the conference room creaked open, and to their surprise, it wasn't Mr. Johnson who entered. It was Luke Hastings. They had never seen him in a bottem up shirt, and he looked visibly nervous. Domenico's eyes briefly flicked to his nose, which seemed to have healed well. Luke cleared his throat.

"Mr. Marini and Mr. Marini, thank you for your time. I apologize for registering under a false name, but I was worried you might reject the meeting if you'd heard mine," Luke said, his voice betraying a hint of unease.

The two brothers leaned back simultaneously, their arms crossed. Their cold stares made Luke swallow hard, and for a fleeting moment, he questioned whether he was sure about what he was doing.

"What can we do for you?" Vito asked, his voice low, controlled.

Luke's throat tightened, his nervousness almost palpable. He had imagined this meeting countless times in his mind, yet now that he was actually standing before the two Marini brothers, everything felt far more threatening. The silence in the room was suffocating, and the brothers were like two stone figures, cold and unyielding.

He cleared his throat again, his hands fidgeting nervously with the edge of his shirt. "Well... I wanted to talk to you about something very personal," Luke began, his voice wavering slightly. "It's about your sister, Josephine."

Vito's gaze didn't change, but a subtle flicker of interest passed through his eyes. "Josephine?" he asked, as if weighing the name carefully, as though testing the weight of the words in the air.

Domenico remained silent, his eyes sharp and calculating, though his gaze had grown more intense. "Speak," he commanded, his voice like ice slicing through the tension.

Luke looked briefly at the floor before meeting their eyes once more. "We've gotten to know each other a little," he said, "and I'd like to know if it's okay for me to ask her out on a date."

The words seemed to hang in the air, suspended in the charged silence, and for a moment, it felt as though the very room itself was shrinking. Luke could almost feel the invisible pressure building between him and the two brothers, an oppressive force that threatened to overwhelm him.

Domenico placed his hands on the table, his fingers interlacing. "So, you want to date our sister?" he repeated, as if confirming that he hadn't misheard. "And you think you have the right to ask us that?" His voice was chillingly calm, a stillness that only made Luke's anxiety worse.