Chasing Stars - A Midnight Mafia Novel

Chapter Nineteen

A heavy silence fell on our shoulders. So quiet you could have heard a pin drop. I don't believe I even let out a breath. He continued to watch me looking thoroughly baffled by my question and I was suddenly wondering if this talk was going to turn to the talk. The break up talk. I knew there was a possibility it might have taken this turn, the break up turn talk, and I had thought I was prepared but I was wrong. I was not prepared for this.

Why would he.

"Katherine?"

I blinked, had I even blinked in the last minute?

"You wouldn't have?" I finally said in a faint voice. He watched me cautiously. Several long and silence moments elapsed. This was unreal. Finally I mustered up a weak voice. "I said no."

He stared at me seeming to be uncomprehensive. His blank face revealing nothing for long enough that I was beginning to wonder if I had said it so softly that he hadn't heard.

Suddenly he sprung up to his feet and took several steps backwards. Why was he the one who looked stunned? He took another few steps away as if he couldn't bear to be so close to me. "Y-you but I, and then, you..." I had never, ever, ever heard Alessio stammer or stumble over his words. Both hands went to his head and he began pacing.

I watched him go back and forth across the room for several seconds. "Alessio. You're scaring me."

"Fȕck."

"Please tell me I'm not going to have to get up and comfort you right now."

He stopped pacing and turned to face me. "You said don't stop!"

"I said don't and stop." I said slowly and he burst into a pace again muttering too lowly for me to hear. "I - uh, I've had a long night to think about this and you obviously need a minute so I'm just gonna go-"

He stopped and turned to face me again. "B-but you...you came."

I tensed and color rose to my cheeks immediately.

He watched me for several seconds, even after I turned my attention to the floor he still watched me. Eventually he cursed loudly and began pacing again. I glanced up again, wondering suddenly if Pietro was watching us through the security system, if Alessio was about to lose it would he come back to save me again?

He turned to face me, opened his mouth, closed it, and began pacing again. He did this several times before my panic began subsiding and impatience rose.

"You have nothing to say?" I finally questioned. "Honestly Alessio? I don't deserve any answers?" I demanded my voice cracking.

"After what I've done?" He yelled and stopped though didn't turn to face me. "Christ Katherine, why did you just...if you didn't want to why did you just stand there?"

"So what? This is my fault now?"

"No." He turned to face me. "No fȕck no. Fȕck. I wasn't trying to imply that I just...why would you just stay there, do you have any idea what I was going to do to you? Christ." He turned and walked back into the closet.

The room was oddly silent as I sat alone on the bed, hands on lap. I didn't know what to do or say, I didn't want to follow him right now so I just sat on the bed in silence. Even when I heard a crash, loud cursing, and several more crashes from the closet.

He was throwing another temper tantrum. I listened to his cursing and destruction and drummed my fingers on my knee. He needed a minute. I had had all night to think about this, he needed a minute. I would give him a minute. I counted to sixty, and he hadn't calmed down. Maybe he needed two minutes. I counted to 120, when this didn't seem to calm him I went to 180 and then decided I might as well make it to 200. After counting to 200, rather slowly at that too, over three minutes, I decided to call it quits. I stood up and brushed the invisible crumbs off of my lap.