𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗼𝘄 ━━━━ roman kemp

━━━━ twenty one

Mesmerising.

That is the only word that comes to mind when Mathilda Holland thinks about the Palazzo Versace Hotel she has been exploring for the last twenty minutes. Well, exploring is one word for it, but she's pretty sure in this context 'lost' would be a more appropriate term. She is trailing after Tom with a look of astounded shock, not even realising that they have passed some of the monuments three or four times before. Every water feature and intrinsic window design captures her attention and she yearns for her mobile phone to keep the images ingrained in her memory for all time.

"Thomas, just admit that you made a terrible mistake and call Sam to beg for forgiveness," Mathilda bemoans dramatically as they approach the thirty minute mark of their exploration. "I need a shower and a meat feast pizza right now."

Tom only shakes his head and strides ahead with renewed determination. "I definitely know the short-cut back to the room, okay?" He looks from left to right a few times as they approach the end of the corridor before deciding that left is the best option. "Come on!"

"Doesn't it defeat the object of a short-cut if it's taken us this long to find it?" Roman pipes up, looking highly amused as he alternates between admiring the view and pulling silly faces to amuse a sleepy Darcy.

The group almost trip over one another as Tom suddenly halts, pivoting to face Roman at an alarming speed. His lips are curved into a smile but his eyes are narrowed and his posture is rigid. "You are not allowed to have an opinion on anything until we've had a serious conversation about what's going on here," he claims as he gestures wildly between Roman and Mathilda.

Mathilda rolls her eyes as Roman raises an eyebrow to appear defiant but the nervous bobbing of his Adam's apple as he gulps gives away his discomfort. "Right. Okay. I am picking up what you're laying down - reading you loud and clear."

"Boys," Mathilda mutters under her breath as Darcy giggles tiredly.

It is only after a further five minutes when Mathilda becomes too irritated by Tom's stubbornness and she offers no warning as she deposits Darcy into a reluctant Roman's arms and tackles Tom to the ground to steal his phone.

"Woah! Watch it, Tilly!"

"This is what you get for being a dumbass - oh, hey, Sammy!" Mathilda speaks into the phone, leaping away from Tom's feeble attempts to grasp the phone. "Yeah, of course Thomas got us lost. Nope, I'm not surprised either. Totally. You can? Awesome! See you soon, little bro."

Thankfully Sam had been taking a call in the corridor when he'd heard the raucous his siblings had caused. He rounds the corner a second later, grinning at the sight of Mathilda smiling smugly as Tom peels himself off the ground with an indignant huff.

"You suck," he claims petulantly as he glares at his sister. When he hears the snickers of Sam and Roman, he turns his attention to them. "You all suck! I've never felt so bloody betrayed in all my life!"

"That's a lie and we all know it," Sam shoots back. "There was the great prank war of oh-nine and you cried like a bitch in the corner for hours when we recruited Paddy to be our spy."

Mathilda giggles at the memory. "I thought we'd broken him."

"Is it possible to divorce your family? If it is, I'm gonna apply."

"Stop being so melodramatic," Sam says, hauling him to his feet and dusting off his jacket. "At least you weren't too far off, bro. The room is just down the hall. Eight-two-three."

If Mathilda had been keen to arrive at her designated room, then she definitely regrets the giddiness by now. All she had wanted was a shower and a meat feast pizza but it seems that she'll have to settle for option number two: an awkward conversation with her brothers, her parents, Roman's sister, and his own parents. And a slowly stirring Darcy.