Family Business

Chapter 1.

17 September 2025 7 years old

 Chapter 1. 17 September 2025 7 years old

"There are countless tales of family wars, dating all the way back to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, and even before then too. These tales show us how life can be 'fight or flight', as my father likes to say. He explains that there is a time to fight and there is a time to give up. At some point in life, everyone is faced with this decision. It is hard to decide which path to follow. Some fight and win, some fight and lose. Some give up and are happy, some give up and- Are you even listening, dolcezza?"

I look up and nod. "Yes." He gives me a look, "Yes Papà, I am listening. You're talking about how sometimes we have to fight. Some people win and some people lose... Can I go play now?"

He sighs deeply, kissing the top of my head gently. "Yes, angelo."

I let go of his hand, "Grazie, Papà! Viviana, I'm coming!!"

"No yelling in the house... Walk!" He calls after me as I scamper off down the hall. I slow down just enough until I am out of sight, before taking off down the hall after turning the corner.

We live in a big house because my family is kind of a big deal around the city. I continue to run down the hall, but trip and fall. Grabbing my knee, I let out a soft whimper, sitting up slowly. Looking up, I noticed a picture on the wall that I did not recognize. It was a photo of everyone who lives in the house. We just took it a few weeks ago and I got in trouble for getting mud on my dress. The picture was framed, small in comparison to the big family picture, but big enough for me to notice. Mama must have put it in recently.

"We are the Rossi's and we get what we want," Papà says. He is the mayor and he runs all of Verna. He wears suits, talks to important people, but most importantly brings me presents when he goes away on business. He is tall, has dark hair which has some grey now, and always has a cigar or a whiskey glass in hand; sometimes he has both. He has heavy steps and a loud voice when he gets angry, like when I had run down the hall a few minutes ago. Papà always tells us that everything he does is for me and my brothers.

Next in the hierarchy of power is Nonno and Nonna, Mama's parents. They live in the house next to us but it is connected to our mansion. Nonno used to work with Papi, Papà's daddy, and that's how Papà met Mommy. Nonno used to run the business with Papi and when Papà was old enough, he was allowed to work with them too. Nonna helped out Mommy and made really yummy food for us.

Mommy is so pretty. She has long dark hair that she wears in braids. She has blue eyes and her whole face lights up when she smiles. She always plays with me and sings me songs when I cannot fall asleep. She has to work sometimes too and comes home wearing shimmery dresses. Occasionally, she lets me wear her heels and play dress up. Me and Viviana sneak into her makeup room when she is away and make ourselves as pretty as she is. When Papà leaves for work, she lets me sleep in their huge bed with her. Those were my favorite times because I got to actually spend time with Mama without sharing her.

Then, there is Greta, Viviana's mommy. She takes care of me when mommy and Papà are away. She cleans the house, makes me pick up my toys, makes me do my homework, and lets me play if I'm good. She is fat and gets red when I make her angry. I like to make her angry just to see how red she can get. Greta always wears an apron and a scarf over her head to cover her hair. Viviana has a twin, Jasper. They're both 7 years old and get to go to a real school. When they come back, they tell me everything that they get to do there. I just have tutors because Mama and Papà don't let me go to a real school.