Of Mobsters and Men

Chapter 8

Raelyn

I furrowed my eyebrows, folding my arms as I looked at her skeptically. "Why are you looking at me like that?"I questioned Gigi. Gigi chewed the inside of her lip before answering me. "I think stefano and your parents have plans for you, Rae." She said subtly.

"If you're saying what I think you're saying-"
"I think you're about to be given to Stefano." Gigi said walking towards me so now we were face to face. The look in her eyes said it all. She pitied me already.

I didn't like the sound of what she said. Given? Given to Stefano?

"What am I ? A sack of potatoes?" I asked loudly, throwing my arms up in the air and bringing them back down to my sides, making a slapping sound on the side of my thighs. "You know how we're treated in our society." Gigi said back to me.

"It can't be, Gigi." I started. I couldn't be given to Stefano. "He's a high profiled man. I don't think he'd risk embarrassment by trying to wed me. That doesn't make sense. I also hate to bring it up, but I'm also an outsider, and I'm not Italian. Isn't there some kind of code or tradition for this stuff?" I asked quickly.

"Yes. But stefano is capo. He can do whatever he wants." Gigi said. Well, there's that.

"Spare me." Muttered. "I refuse to believe any of that. I'm comfortable with just believing he gave me a gift from the kindness of his heart and my mom is doing nothing but wishful thinking."

"Made men don't do anything from the kindness of their hearts, especially without a motive." Gigi took my hands and squeezed them in hers.

"I don't want to talk about this anymore, Gigi." I said frowning afterwards. All this talk of my future being planned without me made me upset. I also wondered if Gigi could be right...

Even if she is, I wouldn't just sit down for it to catch up with me. Right?

*

Gigi and I stood by our lockers in the morning. We would arrive at school twenty minutes early before the bell rung which allowed us time to talk to each other and walk the halls.

I leaned against my locker, bringing my textbooks to my chest as I looked past Gigi, admiring Vincent from a far. He was talking to his buddies, about three of them. One of his friends glanced over at me, making me gasp and look away. "What's wrong?" Gigi asked looking up from her phone. When I turned back to Vincent's direction, he was looking at me. He winked at me before turning to his friend and whispering something.

"Should we go over there?" Gigi asked me, looking at the group of guys as well. I looked at her as if she had two heads. "Gigi you know the guys come to us. We don't go to men."

"I know that, but he's your boyfriend so-" she started but I cut her off.
"He's not my boyfriend."
"Not yet." She muttered looking down at her phone.

"Well my dad is not going to be home tonight." Gigi said in a tone that told she wasn't new to her father not coming home sometimes.

"Why?" I asked her.

She gave me a look. "Do you really have to ask?"

I looked past Gigi to see Vincent making his way over to us. He came over to my side and leaned on my locker. For some reason students started to look in our direction.

"You doing alright, Rae?" Vincent asked me. He crossed his arms and something twinkled in his eyes as he looked at me up and down.
I smiled, very taken back by this show of interest in public. "Eh, it's the morning. What about you?"

I could hear Gigi gag in disgust.

"Cool like an icy puc." He answered, a cheesy grin on his face. Gigi muttered something in Italian which made Vincent roll his eyes. "Let's walk around." Vincent said nodding his head to down the hall.