Piccoletto

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*short chapter today everyone. I've been super busy, but I'll keep posting as quickly as I can!

Alberto's heart beat faster than ever before as he felt Luca get limper in his arms, his violent shaking now subsided. Luca screaming out in pain had been horrifying, but somehow it was worse when he wasn't screaming. Luca had been stabbed. Alberto could feel the warm blood soaking through his shorts and shirt and knew that Luca had lost too much just by the look of his face. He was as pale as a sheet of paper, which was probably the reason for him fainting (that and shock).

Alberto struggled to hold him up. Luca would slip a few inches off of Alberto, and Alberto would pull him back up, pulling weight off of the balance he had on the vespa. The vespa would slightly swerve making it even harder for Alberto to hold Luca up. If this continued, Luca could fall off.

"Luca!" Alberto screamed over the wind. "You have to wake up! Now! Luca, wake up!"

Luca didn't stir. His head bobbed with the bumping of the vespa as it picked up speed. Alberto was horrified as he turned the handle backwards to break, only to realize the vespa wasn't stopping. He immediately remembered how the handle had broken when he had smashed through the cellar. The vespa wouldn't stop.

Alberto's adrenaline pumped through his temples as he looked at the ground beneath him, blurry as it sped by. There was no possible way he could stop the vespa unless he crashed it. But where could he? Anywhere other than the water could kill Luca!

Alberto's eyes widened as he realized what he had thought. The water. That was the only way he could even have a chance of saving Luca, let alone himself. Was Luca even still alive? Didn't stab wounds kill people? Luca had gotten stabbed in the thigh, not the heart. Was that still deadly? And why was he still unconscious? What if Luca. . . was dying?

Silenzio Bruno! Alberto shrieked in his mind. He couldn't think about that now. He had to get Luca safe if he even wanted to save him at all. Swerving the vespa off down the hill into the ocean would risk getting Luca hurt, especially with Alberto's lack of control on the vespa. The safest place was Portorosso's center. If he dove off the stone ledge, it would be a perfect place to keep him and Luca from crashing. Alberto stifled a cry as he held onto Luca stronger than ever before as he screamed.

"Luca, please," Alberto pleaded as he looked down at the limp boy. "Wake up. . ."

Alberto looked up to see a light bobbing in the distance as he raced down the hill. His heart got caught in his throat as a familiar figure emerged from the darkness. Lantern in his right hand, fat cat on his shoulder. . . Massimo.

As Alberto realized who it was, his stomach dropped with relief. It was really Massimo. Had he come looking for them?

"Massimo!" Alberto screamed as the vespa sped towards the bottom of the hill. "Help!"

There was no way he could stop. Alberto knew he'd be forced to speed right past him, there was no way Massimo could really help. But that didn't stop the fear from the chilling look he received. Massimo cried out in the distance as Alberto approached, but from the wind, Alberto couldn't make out a word. In a second of slowed time, Alberto stared as he passed Massimo, tears streaming down his face.

The two made eye contact, and Alberto could look into Massimo's wide, revealed eyes. As soon as the moment had come, it had gone. Alberto had whisked past faster than lightning as he watched Massimo get smaller in the distance. He was forced to rip his gaze away to look ahead of him as he watched buildings start to speed past. He finally knew where he was. He knew where he needed to go.

Alberto raced down the steep alleyways of Portorosso as he found himself in the main market street heading straight down for the ocean. People jumped out of the way as they nearly got hit by the rocketing vespa. The fountain was right ahead of them.

Alberto looked down at Luca and stifled a sob.

"Hang on, buddy!" Alberto cried, watching the dark ocean approach before his eyes. "You're gonna be ok! We're home! Just hang on!"

Alberto shut his eyes tightly and removed his hand from the vespa's handle before bending down and enveloping Luca into his arms as he, Luca, and the vespa fell straight into the ocean in front of Portorosso.