Mi Corazón

Chapter 2- Antonio

Chapter 2- Antonio's POV

"So where shall we eat tonight?" Francis asked.
"IL RAGAZZO!" I yelled without thinking. I wasn't exactly sure what was causing his powerful urge to return to that restaurant... actually, that was a lie. I knew exactly what. That boy, Lovino. I wasn't sure what it was, but there was something about him that made my stomach flip and my heart feel like it was bursting out of my chest.

"C'mon, Toni we went there last night!" Gilbert whined.
I pouted and looked at Francis with pleading eyes. I knew he would understand.
Francis looked at me and rubbed his chin stubble.
"Hmmm... okay, The Ragazzo it is!"
Gil groaned.
"Oh come on!"
"Hey! My car, my rules." Said Francis. "If I say we're going back to that restaurant, that's where we're going. Okay? Besides, Toni's got some serious pulling to do."

I blushed but brushed that last comment off with a smile. I knew Francis' idea of pulling was getting someone into bed with him. And that's not what I wanted to do at all. I just wanted to get Lovino to like me. That was a start at least.

As we pulled up outside Il Ragazzo D'oro (or just 'The Ragazzo' as we had decided to nickname it) I saw the cars parked in the staff parking area, and one vehicle in particular caught my eye. A short, comical, flourescent green jelly bean of a car was perched in a parking space that could easily have been twice the size of the vehicle itself. It was surrounded by shiny black business cars almost identical to each other in shape and size. The jelly bean stuck out like a sore thumb.

Everything in the restaurant was as it was before: the beach view, the sunset, the ambiance, but I couldn't care less about any of that now. Okay, maybe I did care about the beach; it reminded me of home. We sat at a beach-side table where I kicked off my shoes and dug my toes deep into the warm golden sand, letting the soft feel soothe my skin. I let my mind flood with memories of home and the sweet kiss of the Spanish sun and the ocean...
I closed his eyes and leaned back in the chair, wiggling my toes to feel the sand against them.

As my mind cleared, I wandered down a rabbit hole, lost in thought. I began to consider possible outcomes of seeing Lovino again. I went through every pick up line he knew but none seemed to fit. Every word of enchanting, flirtacious mannerisms were forgotten and I just couldn't think straight. Damn it, what was wrong with me? I'd gotten tonnes of people to like me before when I'd been out with Francis. I was good at this stuff so what was I so worried about? So many questions I wouldn't normally ask before trying to pick up a guy.
What if Lovino rejected me?
How would I do it?
I'd feel like such an idiot if I got rejected.

I had no idea how long I'd had my eyes shut, but when I opened them Francis and Gilbert were reading aloud from their wine menus.
"And what do you want Toni?"
"What... uh..." I looked up at my friends and saw something different in their eyes. There was a certain alertness there, their faces stretched into unnatural, uneasy grins. It gave me goosebumbs.

I slowly turned my head to see what horrific creature stood behind me and why on earth it was causing them to act so strangely. Of course. Of fricking course. Of course I had just sat there with my eyes shut, wiggling my toes around in the sand like an insane person as Lovino of all people stood behind me. The Italian looked a lot shorter up close, and had a slightly humoured expression. At least he had matching shoes and socks today.

Lovino opened his mouth to say something but swiftly closed it again.
I panicked slightly as my chest tightened. I was supposed to be ordering wine! Speak, damn it!
"Um... the... wantsomesangria... thing... Spanish..."
Fuck.

Nervously, I laughed it off and flashed Lovino my widest grin. Oh, God, my heart was pounding.
Why didn't I just use normal sentences like a normal person? Damn, I screwed up. Perhaps Lovino thought it was funny? Not really the impression I was going for but it's better than nothing. I looked up hopefully at Lovino. But alas, he did not look impressed or humoured but instead like he had just smelled something awful, like he had just found a piece of dog shit stuck to the bottom of his shoe.