Separated by the Sea

Secrets Revealed

Dez POV
I bit into a sweet chocolate covered strawberry while Piero laid out on the blanket on his stomach with his chin resting in his hands, staring at me with those gorgeous brown eyes. We were sitting in a clearing in the forest near his house. We were having a picnic and just relaxing. It was a beautiful day; birds were singing, butterflies fluttered, and the forest seemed alive. Piero sat up, took out a container of grapes, and popped some into his mouth. These strawberries definitely hit the spot. Before dessert, I ate a delicious turkey sandwich with sourdough bread. I was holding my strawberry with my right hand and was running my other hand through the long grass. I smiled when a ladybug crawled up my hand. It flew away and I turned to Piero. He was sipping a Mountain Dew and I noticed something odd.

"Eew, why do you wear your watch on your right arm? That's so gross!"

"How is that gross? It's a watch."

"I wear everything on my left arm because I'm right handed. I don't like having stuff 'disabling' my dominant hand."

"How does wearing a watch disable you?"

"It's heavy and annoying." 

He rolled his eyes and a look of frustration filled his face. There was something he wasn't telling me. 

"What's wrong?"

"I haven't been entirely straight with you-"

"You're gay!" I blurted out.

"NO, just, uh I don't know how to tell you."

"You can tell me anything," I said, running my fingers through his hair.  

"It's just, well, I'm kinda different from everyone else..."

"Of course you are! You're Piero Barone! I don't think anyone could ever be as awesome as you." I stated with genuine admiration. 

A sad smile spread across his face. 

"Ok, tell me. What's bothering the world famous Piero Barone?"

"Alright, but don't get freaked out-"

"Just tell me already! The suspense is killing me!"

"I'm a werewolf." he replied with a serious face. 

I burst out in laughter and didn't stop until tears blurred my vision. I rubbed my eyes and remarked sarcastically, "Yeah, and I'm a vampire. Bleh-Bleh-Bleh."

"Dez, I'm serious" 

"Uh huh. Is this a joke? Are the other guys in on it, too?"

He groaned in frustration. "I'm going to show you. Don't get scared."

I didn't believe him at all and turned to leave. Behind me bones were cracking and twigs were snapping. I turned and shrieked in terror when I saw a giant wolf standing in front of me, on four legs of course. That would have been even creepier if he was standing on his hind legs. "Buh, da, how?" I muttered in disbelief. He slowly walked toward me and I quickly jumped back. "Piero?" I asked confused.

He came close and I didn't jump that time. He nuzzled his head against my leg, but I wasn't sure what to do, so I awkwardly patted his head. Now that I wasn't as scared as I was before, I could admire his beauty. He was huge, had silky black fur, and the same warm brown eyes that were glued on me. 

"This is so weird." 

He walked ahead of me and looked back, expecting me to follow. He roamed the trees as if he memorized every single one and followed an invisible path. I would have never been able to make my way back to his house on my own. Note to self: Don't run into the woods alone because there is a large chance that you will get lost and die. He stopped at the front door of his house and I knocked. Francesco opened the door and when he saw Piero, he smiled and shook his head. "Come on in guys."

Once inside, Piero darted up the stairs, I'm assuming to his room. I was left alone with Francesco. I took advantage that he was there and asked him a few questions. "Are you one, too?" 

"Yeah, we've all been one since birth."

"Your parents were born wolves?"

"Yup. It's kinda complicated, but you'll be caught up soon enough." He patted my shoulder and said, "You'll be a great addition to this pack." 

He left me standing by the door and went to watch a soccer game. A few minutes later, Piero came down fully dressed, and I have to say, I was a little disappointed. Geez, Dez what did you expect? A tight shirt and sweat pants? Yummy! I mentally scolded myself for my inappropriate thoughts. 

"So what do you think?" he asked with worried eyes and furrowed eyebrows. 

"I'm glad you told me. I thought something weird was going on and I would have gone crazy trying to figure out what it was." I walked with him toward the big family room and asked, "Are there vampires, too?"

"Let's not worry about that right now. Do you want to play some xbox?"

"YASSS! Put on some Black Ops. I'm so in the mood for killing some zombies." 

He laughed and handed me a purple remote. "Ooh, this is a nice remote." 

He slid in the disk and took a seat in the sofa next to me. "Are you good at this?" he asked.

"Of course! There's nothing I'm better at than killing!"

He widened his eyes and scooted away from me. 

"Dude, chill. I'm talking about video games." 

The first round I was still rusty, so we only lasted for two levels. The second time around, I got used to the game and we had great teamwork. He would watch my back and I would watch the front. "Die, you ugly B*****!" I screamed at a female zombie that just wouldn't die. This game got me crazy and full of adrenaline and I had a tendency to curse more than usual.

"Dang, Dez, chill. It's just a game."

"Nothing is just a game!" I yelled out as I fired madly at a huge wave of zombies heading toward me. I was pressed up against a wall and the zombies were coming in from all the openings of the building. I fired off my last bullets and shouted in horror when they ate me. GAME OVER. We played for about two and a half hours and it was getting late. "I'm gonna go shower then go to bed," I said while getting up. 

"Alright. Sweet dreams" 

My dreams will definitely be sweet if I'm dreaming of you. I grinned stupidly and tripped a few times walking up the stairs. Who was the zombie now? I grabbed some clean pajamas and set them on the restroom counter. When I shower, that is the only time when my mind is clear and I can just relax. I let the warm water soak into my hair and began to sing. It wasn't loud enough to hear outside of the restroom, but you could probably hear if you were in there. I hummed the tune of L'Amore Si Muove because I didn't know the words and later sang My Way, the duet by Piero and Gianluca. This was one of my favorites and I could actually sing the words to it. At Piero's part, I attempted to do his Sicilian accent. I laughed at my ridiculousness, but froze when Piero spoke. "Are you mocking me?"

My jaw dropped in horror. "What are you doing in here?!" I said while hoping that he couldn't see through the curtain, especially with his wolf abilities.

"I was just getting my toothbrush."

"Well, hurry up." At that moment, I remembered that my clothes was on the counter. Oh, gosh, he saw my hideous undergarments. How embarrassing. "Are you still here?!"

"Oh, sorry. I'm leaving. By the way, nice bra."

I slapped a hand against my forehead and groaned as he shut the door. Shit. There's nothing more awkward that a guy seeing your underwear. I wanted to cry from embarrassment. I quickly finished showering and crept into my room. What a day. Werewolves, zombies, undergarments! I jumped onto my bed, buried my face into the pillow, and groaned. Aaagh, why did I have to leave it on the counter? I fell asleep thinking about lacey pink bras.