Hidden

Chapter Twenty-One

"All right, I take it back. He is impressive. I mean, shit," Veronica says, as the curtains close and the audience begins to chatter loudly, filing through the halls. "The music is something, of course but I'd come just to watch him, to be honest."

"He's a genius," I reply, proudly.

"I had heard that he brought emotion to it but damn, I mean, he looked like he was about to break down into tears in some parts."

I had noticed, and it kept my mind preoccupied for the rest of the performance. Watching him before was different- easier. Now, I know he goes someplace dark, really dark when he conducts and it's not as easy to watch anymore.

"Em?"

"Yeah?" I say, blinking. She's staring at me.

"You okay?"

I smile, reassuringly. "Yeah, I'm good. A bit tired."

I catch a glimpse of something at the door and turn just as Matteo walks in. He's lost his coat jacket, only in his dress pants and white shirt.

"Hi," he says, gently.

"You were wonderful... everyone was but you were phenomenal. Wow," Veronica exclaims, smiling wide. He returns it, kindly, coming up beside me. He presses his hand to my back, rubbing gently.

"Thank you. I'm glad you liked it."

"Mom has to come see him! She would die!"

What? My eyes go wide and I clear my throat awkwardly. "Um, no, V."

"Why? I'm sure she'd love to meet your new beau."

I glare at her, pressing my lips together. "We'll talk about it later."

"Alright, alright... Well, I have a hot date to get to."

"Wait, what?" I chuckle. "You got a date in a day?"

"Yep, I have to rebound to forget the asshole. This guy looks promising though. He works down the street in insurance."

"Bet Dad would approve," I hum, looking at Matteo. He's so quiet.

"Yeah, I'll have to call him on the way there for pointers." She chuckles, leaning forward to kiss my cheek. I smile softly as she kisses Matteo's cheek, smiling.

"I'll see you soon, I'm sure. Thanks for this."

"Thank you for coming," he replies, warmly. She grabs her clutch and waves awkwardly, disappearing behind the curtain.

"This is rather revealing," Matteo says immediately, turning to me. I feel his hand drift further down my back and with a shiver, I glance back towards the seats that are now empty, the theatre vacant.

"Is it too much?" I whisper, dazzled by how close his mouth is to mine.

"It's stunning. You're stunning."

I smile, running my hand down over his chest. "Are you alright? This performance... it seemed to take a bit from you."

"It's just a difficult set, an audience favorite though." He's well aware I'm not referring to the difficulty of Mozart's compositions.

"So, you're okay?" I repeat, gently.

"You're here, Em," he says, as if that were the answer to the question I asked. I'm still staring at him, confused when his lips meet mine, softly at first. However, within a mere couple moments, my hands are gripping his shirt, my body pressed up tightly against his. Our lips part slowly and I immediately wish there were a way to shut these curtains. He presses his forehead to mine.