Mila's Reckoning

Chapter 18

Mila

Spring break had come and gone, and while I didn't get to spend the entire week in Boston, Gino and I were still able to salvage some time for the two of us while Claire and Margaret covered shifts watching Papa and George.
Papa hated that we had to cut our trip short on account of him, but he enjoyed looking at the pictures that we had taken while we were there. His knee wasn't causing him too much pain, but he was beyond ready to get the surgery over with on Thursday.
Gino and I had finished up our lab last night, so tonight we are planning on having a relaxing night at his house before the chaos of surgery recovery began at my house. Papa wasn't ever a burden, but I knew that these next few days would be tough for him because he hated sitting in the house all day.
As I was walking in to Gino's, I couldn't help but laugh at everything that he has had to put up with over the past few months. Any normal guy would have headed for the door, but it seems like the more things that happen, the closer Gino gets to us.
I grabbed my key from my purse, and let myself into his apartment. Surprisingly, a delicious smell of chocolate hit me as I opened the door.
"Babe, what is that smell," I said, throwing my jacket onto the couch. I turned to look in the kitchen and saw Gino standing there wearing oven mitts.
"Well, I'm trying to make brownies for our sundaes tonight, but I can't tell whether or not they're done," he said, furrowing his eyebrows as he peeked into the oven.
I walked over the silverware drawer, and pulled out a butter knife. "You just stick this in the middle of the pan," I said, as I put the knife in the brownies, "and, voila! If it comes out with nothing on it, they're ready to be pulled out!"
"Look at you, little Miss Betty Crocker," he chuckled, putting the brownies on the top of the oven. He pulled off his mitts and pulled me in for a kiss.
"Alright, so while you've been playing Top Chef, I was trying to figure out how you could steal me away for a little bit this weekend," I said, grabbing my phone to read off the movie times for Saturday night. "I know that Papa will need me a lot, but I think I can guilt trip my way out of there for a quick movie," I said, plopping myself down on the barstool at the kitchen.
"Babe, I'd love to, but I have to take care of some work stuff this weekend," Gino said, avoiding eye contact while he was getting cups out of the cabinet.
"Oh, right. Okay, no big deal," I said, putting my phone back in my purse. Gino walked over to me and put his hands on my cheeks.
"I promise when I get done, it's just you and me for the week, okay?" he said, with the sweetest tone.
"Fine," I said, trying not to demonstrate how much pouting I was doing in my head.
Gino had done so much these last few weeks that I'm sure his work/family life was piling up with things to do. So, I can't very well be mad at him for it. But it just gets me that he disappears every other weekend with no explanation other than going home or working. He had tried hard to let me in ever since our fight, but I still feel like there's just so much he's holding back.

***
Gino

"Alright babe, I will see you on Monday," I said, leaning down and kissing her. I shut her car door, and watched her drive out of the parking lot at the U.
Lenny called me right before class had started to inform me that the guys were all getting together for breakfast, and that Paap was requesting my presence. With the way things had been going lately, I was hoping that this was a social visit. If not, I knew that I needed to prepare myself for another argument with good old Paap.
I hopped in the Audi, and headed for the coffee shop.
To my surprise, I walked into a boisterous room full of Italian men. At the table were all the players: Paap, Uncle Fil, Lenny, Matty, Nico, and a few others. Their faces were flushed, and their laughs were coming from the bottom of their bellies. For a second, I felt like I was a kid all over again, spying on the big boys while they did their business. I wanted so badly to be a part of their conversations then, but now, I just wanted out.
Lenny jumped up and bear-hugged me as I approached the table.
"Cousin, it's about time! You've been hitting those books too hard if you're showing up late for coffee," he said, looking back to see if Sal was watching. "He's in a good mood - don't ruin it," he whispered in my ear. I nodded, understanding the message.
"Fil," I exclaimed, my face tensing up as I greeted my favorite uncle. "It's good to see you again so soon," I said. Usually, I would only see Fil every couple of months. But, with the incident at the beginning of this month, this would make two visits pretty close together. I couldn't help but look at him in a whole new light today in this coffee shop. Uncle Fil, the murderer. Hell, this whole room was full of murderers.
"It's good to be back among the living, Gino. Feels good to be with the family for a while," he said, patting Lenny's shoulder. I felt a pang of jealousy rush through my body, but I brushed it off.
"So, what's new," Fil asked, "I feel like I've missed so much while doing the footwork for the family."
"Well, I'll be graduating in May," I started, but Paap took over quickly.
"Yes, and then he's planning on coming home and opening up a nightclub - isn't that right, Gino?"
My face flushed, "It is just an idea, nothing set in stone."
"Has anyone heard from my younger brother," Fil questioned, referring to my old man. On that note, I got up and made my way to the counter. I told the barista to give me the blackest coffee they had - I knew I would need it to get through this morning.
I ran my hands through my hair, wishing that I could be at home with Mila instead of here getting my balls busted for the next few hours.
"He was that hard on me, ya know," Uncle Fil said, joining me at the counter. For as long as I could remember, Fil had always had his black hair slicked back. Most of the time, he was wearing black, and today was no exception. His arms were stacked, nothing like those of my father who refused to do any sort of physical activity whatsoever.
"Yeah, right," I scoffed.
"I'm serious, he's toughest on the ones he loves the most. You'll see."
"I just wish I could figure him out. One minute he's my biggest supporter, the next my arch nemesis. He treats Lenny like he can't do a thing in the world wrong, but if I take a day off, I'm betraying the family. I'm just doing what I thought he asked me to do."
Fil sighed, taking a sip of his coffee. "I know it's tough, but you need to see it from his point of view. Lenny has a dad, and a pretty badass one at that," he said, complimenting himself. "So he gets to be Lenny's grandpa. But for you, he has to be a dad. He feels guilty that he didn't raise your Ricky right, and now he's trying to make up for it. Just hang in there, and know I'm always here for a good talk. Or shooting, ya know, whichever one suits your fancy." Fil had always been a jokester, able to lighten the mood in any room. I usually loved that about him, but that joke was too soon.
"Come on, let's go back. Chin up, nephew."
I followed him to the table like a good little soldier boy ready for duty.