The Marriage Proposal (Tokyo Revengers FanFic)

70.

The cold night air bit against their skin as Den, Guini, Emma, and Gio moved cautiously through the Lombardi estate's outer perimeter. Their breaths were shallow, their hearts pounding in unison as the realization of their escape set in. Every step forward was a risk, but they had no choice.

Gio led the way, his grip firm on the small pistol tucked into his waistband. The estate's security had been tight, but Donatello had arranged just enough of a distraction to give them this window of opportunity.

As they reached the car Gio had hidden earlier, Den hesitated for a moment, glancing back at the towering mansion in the distance. This was the place where she had grown up, where her grandfather had built his empire. And now, it was the place she needed to run from.

"Get in," Gio urged, yanking the door open. "We don't have much time."

Den quickly secured Emma in the backseat while Guini slid in beside her. The car roared to life, and Gio sped off into the dark roads beyond the estate.

For a while, there was only silence, the occasional hum of the tires against the pavement the only sound filling the cabin. But Den couldn't ignore the tension lingering in the air.

"Gio," she finally spoke. "Why are you helping us?"

Gio's hands tightened around the wheel, his expression unreadable. "Because I want to," he said simply. "And... I know that I should have done something earlier."

Den studied him carefully. "That's not the answer I'm hoping for."

Gio exhaled heavily. "I know what the Capo thinks of Manjiro Sano. Every time they met, he'd take jabs at him, making it clear that he believed Sano wasn't worthy of you."

Den clenched her jaw. "I know."

"And I never said anything." Gio's voice was tight with guilt. "I just stood there and let him run his mouth. I watched as he tried to push you toward me instead. He never said it outright, but it was clear that in his mind, I was the more acceptable choice."

Guini scoffed. "Sometimes, grandfather never sees people as people—only as pieces in his game."

Gio nodded, his fingers drumming against the wheel. "And I played along. Not because I agreed with him, but because he's the only family we had after our parents died." He said as he looked at Guini.  "He raised us, gave us a home, a future. Speaking against him felt... impossible."

Den's anger softened slightly. She understood that weight—the weight of owing something to the man who had shaped their lives. "And now?"

Gio let out a humourless laugh. "And now, I'm sick of it. Watching him forge those divorce papers... watching you suffer through it silently... I realized I can't keep being the silent, obedient Giovanni you referred me to before."