Loving Marcello

Chapter Thirteen

I peek out the window, my eyes meeting clear roads. I wonder at what point I'll leave. The roads are good to drive on, but I already told Uncle Benny I was staying somewhere else. Now I don't have a hotel room. Which means I have to tell Uncle Benny I need the room again, or I'm just stuck here for the rest of my stay.

The storm just had to make everything so complicated.

No, it wasn't the storm, it was Marcello.

My mind refocuses on what he'd told me.

You belong to me now.

The words echo through my head.

After he'd said that, he left me standing in the hall, completely speechless and unable to move.

What does he mean by that?

Why would I 'belong to him'?

The hell if I do!

He can't just own me.

I'm my own person, I have my rights and freedoms! I glare at the wall in front of me, my arms crossed over my chest as I pout.

This is complete bullshit.

I wanna hunt his sorry ass down and yell at him for making that claim, but he'd disappeared, no where to be found.

Damn him.

He's an asshole that doesn't deserve a second thought from me.

..so why am I still thinking about him. And why the hell do I get these damn butterflies in my belly?!

My reactions to that idiot makes me mad. Why do I act like that?

I don't understand, which infuriates me further.

"Why do you look like you're about to beat that wall up?" A soft voice asks from behind me.

I turn around excitedly, barreling into my closest friend here, "Marie!"

"Hiya, Brimmy." She hugs me before letting go.

"Long time no see." I chirp.

She laughs lightly, "I've only been gone for a couple hours." She points out, "Boss let me go early tonight, he seemed to be in a good mood this afternoon." She muses.

"Wonder why.." I trail off.

"So, how's your day been?" She asks, seeming cheery again.

"Chipper. Would've been better with you there, though. Antonio made me sit down for an hour to watch this boring cowboy movie." I mutter grimly, overexaggerating.

"You picked the movie out, and only sat down for ten minutes before running off, claiming you had to go to the bathroom." A voice grunts from behind me.

"Lies!" I exclaim, spinning around to face Antonio, glaring at him.

"I think we both know who the liar is." He narrows his eyes at me, then his eyes catch something behind me, changing his whole demeaner. His face lifts and a grin plants itself on his face, "Hi, Marie!" He beams.

"Hey." Marie says, taking on a tone of shyness.

I snicker, "Yeah, I have to use the restroom now, be right back."

Before anything else can be said, I dash off, leaving the two of them behind, hoping one of them will grow a pair and tell eachother how they feel.

It's too obvious that they both like eachother, but it's too bad neither of them can see it. I sigh thinking of all the scenarios I could try to get them two together. So many possibilities...

I halt to a stop when I catch sight of a familiar figure walking out of a room.

He hasn't seen me yet, maybe if I make a run for it, I can-

"Brimmy." His voice speaks up authoritatively, stopping me in my tracks.

I stop, taking a moment to glare at him, but my eyes catch another figure coming from behind him. It looks exactly like what I'd imagine he'd look like in 25 to 30 years.

Same hairline, jaw, cheekbones, skin tone, the only difference are their
eyes.

Marcello has an intense dark shade of a green so dark, it looks almost like a muddled brown, the other man sports eyes the color of milk chocolate.

Yum, chocolate. Now I'm hungry. Hmm, what am I gonna have for dinner tonight? I had pizza last night, so I refuse to eat that again, so maybe some-

"Ah, is this your chosen bride?" The older man speaks up and squints at me.

"Dad." Marcello bites harshly, sending a warning look to the older man.

His dad gives him an innocent look, "What?" He asks, looking as precious as an angel.

I immediately decide that I like him, despite what he'd just said a couple seconds ago.

"His what now?" I ask curiously, not knowing if I've heard him all that correctly.

"His bri-"

"Silence!" Marcello roars, causing both his father and I to close our mouths and stare at him.

He simply rubs his temples, "I believe you were leaving?"

His dad perks up, "Oh, I was, but I think I'll stay for dinner now." He begins walking in the opposite direction of both Marcello and I, "Your house looks different, did you redecorate it?" His voice fades as he continues to walk farther away from us.

A silence surrounds us.

The sound of something hard dropping on the floor startles me, but Marcello only sighs in annoyance.

"I'm okay!" His dad shouts from another side of the house, causing me to snicker.

Yep, I definitely like him.

If only Marcello were more like his father. Such a shame.

Speaking of Marcello, when did he get so close to me? How did I not realize that he's walked the far distance between us and is only a few feet away?

I take a couple steps back, but find my back up against a wall.

What the flip. This seriously has gotta stop happening.

I shake my head to myself, only looking up once I feel Marcello inching closer to me.

"Why're you still infesting my house?" He asks, trapping me with his eyes.

"Why haven't you kicked me out yet?" I reply back quickly.

"Do you want me to kick you out?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Not really, no." I admit chewing on my lip.

"And why is that?" He continues questioning, but I lose my train of thought when his face is so close to mine.

"U-uh..." I say, not really processing what he'd said.

"Hm?" He prods, causing to snap out of my trance a bit.

"Wait, what?" I mentally shake my head, trying to clear my foggy mind.

"Why're you still here? In my house?" He asks once again.

"I...I-Marie. Antonio. Dante. Luc-" I start off, but my breath hitches once again when his nose touches mine. "Uhh..."

I hear a gasp sound from behind me. My head turns, and I ignore when my nose brushes against his as I spot Marie standing frozen, staring at us with a look of horror on her face.

"I-I'm sorry for interrupting." She stutters, dashing off, and I duck underneath Marcello's arm to run after her.