Darling, You.

The Dinner Interrogation

He has to hold it in. This is surreal. Too surreal.

Okay, he feels like he's about to combust. He's so happy. Maybe more than happy. He's in a euphoric state to sit across from the woman he admires so much.

Domenico cannot exactly pinpoint how it started. This small crush turned into something that could make him lose all sense and practicality of life. It’s so unlike him to act this way, but this is Catalina di Fronzo. Sure, she may be like every woman out there and that’s a fact, but there is just something about finding someone normal and they slowly start to grow on you. The way they brush their fingers down their hair makes their hair sparkle all the more, and the way the sunlight shines on them just adds an ethereal effect to their aura. She was uniquely normal in his eyes, and he grew to love her for it.

She was the highlight of his bleak life filled with a lot of tension from other families, sometimes even within close relatives. He started working at Salumeria Spallanzani to spend most of his time doing something productive while not being concerned about familial matters…and the occasional death threats. He loves his family, but sometimes he needs his breaks. His parents taught him what he needed to learn about self-defense and deceit. He’s nearing his 30’s. He can take care of himself now.

But falling in love was always out of the question. That’s why he wanted to keep his crush on Catalina small. He saw her as a frequent customer of the sandwich shop and he always wondered what it would be like to be with someone who does not live the same life as him. He could have always sparked a conversation with her, that’s easy for him.

What was hard was holding himself back. If they started talking and feelings would develop, it would have been harder to let her adjust to his messy and secretive real life. He was ready to simply admire her from afar…

But fate had other plans.

He eventually found out about her real life. He found out her name and what her family does. He even found out that she was the head of operations in their family business handling countless properties.

Finally, there was someone like him who could be meant for him. He won’t be alone in ranting about annoying family members and how bothersome new death threats could be.

His thoughts will finally be heard by someone who could understand him. And he will be the best listener Catalina needs. He just needs to make her realize that even if she might be a bit slow.

But DAMMIT. WHY DID SHE CHOOSE THIS PLACE TO EAT DINNER TOGETHER?!

“You’ve been awfully quiet ever since we arrived here,” Catalina comments.

Domenico, midway from scoffing down the sandwich he ordered, looks up at her and places the sandwich he has despised ever since he set his eyes on it back on his plate. He takes his table napkin and wipes it across his mouth. “I was simply enjoying my sandwich, darling.”

A mocking look of concern shows on Catalina’s face. “Does it bother you that I also like your rival sandwich shop?”

Ask yourself and that soggy sandwich you’ve barely touched tonight. Domenico bit his tongue. He is not going to say that tonight, but it would feel so good to shout out loud how much La Bricco sucks. Dio, it’s so hard to swallow down one’s pride.

“I won’t ever judge your tastes,” he replies, smiling at her. Though, if you’ll spare me the whole night I can talk about how horrible this place is from the way they take care of their ingredients to the tacky decorations. Please, I bet there are rats scuttling around the shop just begging to be caught.

Catalina returns his smile with one of hers that does not look too genuine. In Domenico’s eyes, it looked sarcastic. Maybe she was doing it to scare him away or cause him to start an outburst.