La Rosa Del Sur (The Rose of the south)

Chapter 3

Chapter 3
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The warm night air of July felt pleasant on our exposed shoulders as Zoe and I walked down the streets of Sicily. I began to feel more and more excited as we got closer to the club. The darkened pavement was slowly alleviated by bright lights, music-filled our ears, we heard the laughter and chatter of happy people all eating and drinking both inside and outside. There was a big bright sign with the name of the club, Vita Santa, across the top of a large square building.

"Hey, princesas, ven aqui!" Zoe and I turned our heads and saw Rafael and Diego standing in line, close to the entrance of the club. We walked over to them, sporting huge smiles at the prospect of getting in so soon.

The line kept moving faster and faster until we had reached the bouncer at the entrance. We each flashed our I.D.s to the burly man, and received a noise of approval. All of us walked through the entrance into an exciting environment.

There were bright, multicolored lights flashing and swirling everywhere and the beat of the music pounded against our eardrums. The boys went straight to the bar to get us drinks, while Zoe and I went to find a booth to sit. After about two minutes we saw the boys walking over to us. I got up and took a Bloody Mary from Rafael, thanking him.

After I finished my drink I said to Zoella, "Ven y baila conmigo!"

"I don't wanna dance," She whined.

"Why not Zoe, it will be fun!"

"But my dancing looks like shit!"

"No, it doesn't," I insisted. "Please just one dance?" I widened my eyes and jutted out my bottom lip

"Ok fine," She relented. "But you have to buy me another drink!"

"You got it, mamacitá," I winked and giggled. I pulled Zoe to the center of the dance floor just as the song changed. Many people had left the dance floor to buy drinks and cool off, leaving plenty of room for us.

We swirled and twirled around each other, swaying our hips, spinning each other around, and laughing as a feeling of euphoria and adrenaline kicked in. We didn't care if we looked childish or foolish, we just had fun.

Eventually people began to join back in, crowding around us, leading to Zoe grabbing my hand and screaming in my ear, "It's too crowded! Let's get away!"

We pushed our way through the throng, finally ending up at the bar. Before we could get settled, Zoella suddenly told me that she had to pee and ran off to find the restroom. As I sat down, I could feel an acute sensation on the back of my neck. I swiveled around on the barstool, and saw a man, who looked not much older than me. His black hair was slicked back, and he was staring at me with the most intense green eyes I'd ever seen.

"Sì?" I asked, after a long minute. He stared at me a minute longer before answering.

"I haven't seen you here before," His voice was deep and smooth, like running your hand over silk.

"Do you keep track who comes in and out of this club?"

He laughed. "Yes actually. As the owner, I generally need to know who is and isn't in my club."

"Aren't you a little young to own a club?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Does it matter how young I am?" He stood up and walked over to where I was sitting.

"I guess it doesn't," I said, shifting a little in my seat. "So, do you have a name, or are you just known as the mystery club owner?"

He held out a hand. "Luca Bellucci Marino, at your service." I froze when I heard his last name. I wanted to ask if he knew a Lorenzo Marino, but I held back and put my hand in his.