fervor

ＸＸＸＩ － ＯＮＥ ＭＯＮＴＨ．

ＸＸＸＩ － ＯＮＥ ＭＯＮＴＨ．

A month had passed since I had been kidnapped, again. I've been really depressed for the past few weeks, and I know Ramiro..and Lorenzo can tell.

Ramiro snuggled into me, and I played with his messy hair. He was sound asleep, murmuring in his dreams. His breathing pattern was off, resulting from the cold he received when he was playing out in the snow with Lorenzo.

I pulled the blanket over us a bit more, and I moved Ramiro so he was laying on my chest. He seemed to like that position much more, as a little smile appeared on his face. I rubbed his back, sighing.

Normally, on cold nights like these, Ramiro would sleep right in between Romelo and I.

It would feel like a real family, something we were, until I got kidnapped.

I missed him, a lot.

I've had plenty of sleepless nights so far, wishing Romelo was beside me, his strong, but gentle arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer into him.

I absolutely hated this feeling.

I felt lost.

Lorenzo had me wondering which one of them was the bad twin, who really wanted to kill me..

Ramiro sniffled and coughed, and I rubbed his back.

There was a knock at the door, and I adjusted Ramiro one more time to get up.

He whined, and I kissed his temple.

"Mommy's going to be right back, honey."

I pulled a blanket around myself, opening the door. Lorenzo greeted me with a smile, and I smiled back at him.

"Good morning."

"Morning.."

"How's Ramiro feeling?" He asked, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

"He's asleep still, I don't want to wake him up.."

"Well come on, I'll make you breakfast."

I went back in the get Ro, and I wrapped him up in his blue blanket. I closed the door gently behind myself, following Lorenzo down the hall and down the steps. Most of Lorenzo's maids and butlers weren't here, as he said he sent them home for the holidays to be with their family.

Their absence gave the home an eerie, quiet feeling.

Now it was only the three of us, and over ten rooms to ourselves..

Lorenzo made breakfast as I adjusted Ramiro on the couch, tucking a deep brown throw pillow under his head. I kissed his forehead, going over to sit at the counter.

Over the course of a month, I had gotten to know Lorenzo a little better, but that still didn't mean that he didn't have anything to hide.

But he was really quiet and observant.

"You really love him, don't you?"

I smiled, nodding. "Ramiro's my pride and joy."

Lorenzo smiled, briefly looking at me. "Was Romelo your first?"

I shook my head, looking at the wall. "I didn't get to choose who my first was," I sighed, thinking back to the incident that happened at Terrell's. I wonder how Terrell's doing..

"Romelo saved you, didn't he?"

I nodded.

"Shit.."

Turning my attention back to Lorenzo, he had cut his finger, and he was about to put his finger in his mouth.

"Don't do that!"

He looked at me, and I came around the counter. "If you do that it might get infected."

I looked for the peroxide, and got a paper towel. Getting a drop on the paper towel, I cleaned his cut, while he watched me intently. I found a small bandaid in the counter, and wrapped it around his finger.

"There you go..all better."

Lorenzo smiled at me, leaning in. Before I could object, I felt his lips pressed to mine gently, initiating a small kiss.

I felt his arm slip around my waist, and he pulled away. "Thanks, Aaliyah.."

I pushed him away, tears welling up in my eyes.

"D-Don't..don't do that.."

I was faithful to Romelo, and only Romelo. Lorenzo didn't feel right, and I didn't want him to either.

I took a deep breath, wishing that Romelo was by my side.

It was as if I was going through withdrawal from him. Romelo was my drug and drug dealer, and I was his Princess, the junkie. I mean, I depended on him for practically everything, and now I'm in a situation where I don't have him to depend on, and I had to trust my instincts about Lorenzo and protect Ramiro as well.

I wasn't going to let my guard down with Lorenzo, no matter how much he tries to get me to let it down.

Lorenzo had bit his lip, and I went over to check on Ramiro.

I could hear Ramiro sniffing through the door, and I sighed, gathering myself together. I wasn't going to cry in front of him, I couldn't let him see my tears. I had to be strong for Ramiro.

I opened the door, and Ramiro hugged my legs. "What do you need, little boy?"

He grinned, looking up at me.

"Food!"

I scooped him up, kissing his somewhat chubby cheeks. He started sucking on his pinkie, an abnormal habit his father had. I've seen Romelo do it a couple of times, even though he denies it when I point it out.

Ramiro coughed, and I patted his back. "Cover your mouth, baby.."

I headed back downstairs, and Lorenzo was fixing two plates. I sat Ramiro in his chair, and kissed the top of his head. Lorenzo placed a plate in front of me, and sat down across from me.

"I no like totoes."

Lorenzo had made an omelet this morning, and I had forgotten to tell him that Ramiro didn't like tomatoes.

I scooped his tomatoes away with my fork, and Ramiro happily started to eat. We ate in silence, and it felt creepy..simply uncomfortable..

When we were finished, I took it upon myself to wash the plates, and the few dishes that were in the sink. I felt a presence behind me, and I looked up to see Lorenzo. He, like Romelo, had good height over me. I was only about 5'4" or 5'5", and they seemed to be close to 6'0".

"I'm..sorry about earlier," he said, leaning on the counter, and I could see him watching me wash dishes out of the corner of my eye.

"It's okay.." I mumbled.

"I mean, you're in love with my brother. You're..off limits."

I fully looked at him, raising my eyebrows.

"What do you mean by that?"

He shook his head, "Nothing..nothing..do you need some help with the dishes?"

I nodded, and handed him a wet plate. "You can dry them for me."

"Alright."

I found several of Ramiro's toys in the hall, and I started to bring them to his room, but stopped when I heard Lorenzo's voice.

"What's that?" Lorenzo asked.

"Doggie!" Ramiro cried.

"Okay, now what's this?"

"Kitty!"

I peeked inside the room, and shook my head gently. Lorenzo was sitting in the chair, Ramiro in his lap. They were looking through one of Ramiro's picture books, Ro pointing out the animals to Lorenzo.

"If that's a doggie, and that's a kitty, then what's this?" Lorenzo raised his eyebrow.

"That's a piggie!" Ramiro screeched, earning a chuckle from Lorenzo.

Lorenzo closed the book, and Ramiro stood up in his lap. "It's time for you to go to bed, little one."

"No wanna sleep.."

"But you have to, or you won't become a big, big, boy."

After watching them for a while, I entered the room. "Oh! Aaliyah..I was just putting him to bed.."

I nodded, placing his toys in the toy box. "I heard."

"You were listening to us?"

Lorenzo placed him in the crib, and Ramiro fidgeted. He managed to cover him up, and Ramiro started crying.

"Yes, I was watching you. Just to make sure you're safe around my son."

I kissed Ramiro's forehead, and Lorenzo sighed. "Did I do something wrong putting him to bed?"

I uncovered Ramiro's feet, pointing at the socks. "He doesn't like socks," I grinned, slipping them off his feet.

"Sorry, I'll remember next time.."

Ramiro calmed down, and was going off into dream land, so I turned on his mobile, and Lorenzo and I left the room, closing the door.

"Lorenzo," I called as he walked the opposite way.

He stopped, turning to me.

"Hm?"

I bit my lip, "Can we talk?"

He walked closer to me, smiling.

"Talk about what?"

"Romelo."