"Dancing?" Arabella countered. Giovanni nodded, the wind whopping through his near black hair, "We could dance until our legs give out, or we could stay here and fuck with the windows open, tell the neighbours we're finally home,"
Her cheeks turned beet red, tilting away from his curious gaze on her, "Dancing, then that," She smiled, her chest aching with excitement. He smiled, "Wear that green dress, yeah?"
She nodded quickly, slipping past him as she walked back into the bedroom, Giovanni following behind her. She plopped down on the silk sheets, stuffing her face into them as she inhaled the clean smell, a ridiculous smile on her lips.
After they showered and Arabella did her makeup, Giovanni was stood behind her, buttoning up a black shirt with dark flowers on it, gold jewellery detailing his fingers and two chunky necklaces hung from his neck.
Arabella was still in her white towel, bending forward as she examined her sharp winged eyeliner in the bathroom mirror before she smiled, content with the result.
She turned, taking the towel from her figure as she hung it up behind the door, making her way to her suitcase, unaware of how Giovanni paused in adjusting his shirt to gawk at her. She picked out the dress, thankful that it didn't crumble in her suitcase before she slipped it on over her naked chest and lace covered bottom.
"I want to see you in that dress every day for the rest of my life," Giovanni mumbled, stuffing his hands in his black trousers, now merely watching her apply a few finishing touches to her makeup and curly hair.
She smiled, glancing up at him before she adjusted the strap on the pair of black high heels on her feet, now successfully an inch taller than before.
"You look nice," She complimented, making a blush spread across the man's cheeks. He smiled, looking away from the girl as he adjusted the vintage watch on his wrist, pushing the pack of cigarettes and small box of matches into his pocket, making his way out of the bedroom.
He waited for her at the bottom of the stairs, having already lit a cigarette, taking a few drags as he watched her walk down the stairs, the bottom of the dress loose and fluttering with every movement she made. She took hold of his hand, and as they made their way out of the door, Arabella was practically shaking from nervousness.
The two spoke as Giovanni drove them to a local bar, knowing almost the entire part of Sicily out of his head. The sun was just starting to set and even that looked different. Instead of orange, it was blood red and purple mixed and a few hues of blue and pink, creating shadows of colour of the ocean, making everyone it shined on to glow with the colours.
It was a busy night. Buses and cars and bikes, people in crowds and alone walked the streets, laughing loudly and smoking.
As Giovanni opened the door of his car for his girl, he held out his hand for her to take, gently tugging her out. The night air was warm on their skin, the stars already glimmering in the sky.
The bar was small, but the personality radiated off of it. It was called Sempre Sveglio, and it was true to its name. It stayed open until the last person left, no matter how late it was. Arabella trailed behind him as he nodded at the bouncer, cigarette hanging from his lips.
[Always Awake]
The music boomed off the walls and she parted her lips in surprise. It was jam packed, everyone was dancing and singing and probably drunk too. There was the DJ at the back of the room, dance floor in front of it. Then the bar was to the left and a long red booth lined the wall next to the door, a few tables to the right.
Arabella felt almost out of place in the room. Everyone looked like they belonged, even Giovanni. He held her behind him as he made his way straight for the bar, slopping between people who were dancing and singing along to the upbeat Italian mix.
"Vodka e whisky, per favore," Giovanni yelled over the music at the bartender, receiving a nod as he quickly prepared the drinks.
Giovanni turned to her, "What do we think?" He asked, taking the cigarette from his lips. She smiled, "I don't have words," She replied. He nodded, "It's very... Italy, isn't it?"
She nodded quickly, laughing softly as she took the glass from Giovanni, bringing it to her lips. Straight, smooth vodka passed down her throat. She winced, frowning up at him.
"We don't mix things in Italy, darling."
She rolled her eyes, causing Giovanni to laugh silently as he watched her take another sip, her eyes squeezing shut tightly as she shook her head. He took her glass and replaced it with his own.
And Arabella watched as he tilted his head back and the vodka disappeared down his throat, no evidence on his face of how it burned. She silently took a sip of the whiskey. It was better than straight Vodka, and she quickly swallowed it down, holding her hand out to Giovanni. He shook his head, leaning down to her ear, "I'm not drunk enough," He said. She laughed, pressing a kiss to his cheek before she made her way towards the music, slopping past people.
Arabella was obsessed with Dirty Dancing when she was younger and now was the perfect time to apply her through memorising of the dances. The music was an old remix, she knew that much.
So, shoving her shyness to the back of her head, she lifted her arms above her head and she closed her eyes. She moved without thinking, she felt like she was the only one in the room, like she wasn't being watched by two grey eyes.
Her hair whipped around her as she spun, completely entrancing Giovanni as he sat in the chair across from the dance floor, keeping his eyes on his girl, being momentarily interrupted by someone standing right in front of him.
His eyes snapped upwards, the whiskey glass lowering from his lips, his eyes widening. He stood slowly, his smile widening.
"I thought I recognised the brooding man in the corner! When did you get here?"
Giovanni laughed, "Two hours ago, maybe. How are you, Flavio?" He asked. The shorter man pulled him into a hug, patting his back. "Non posso lamentarmi, amico. Come stai? Hai un bell'aspetto!"
[Can't complain. How're you? You look good!]
Giovanni grinned, taking a cigarette from the pack, putting it between his lips, "Bene, come sempre."
[Good, as always.]
His eyes momentarily snapped from his friends face to the girl behind him. Gritting his teeth, his eyes hardened as he lifted his chin, the music draining from his ears and red, hot jealousy taking its place.
Her arms were slumped over his shoulders, her face inches from his and as she laughed and threw her head back, Giovanni raised the glass to his lips, attempting to wet his suddenly dry throat. Her hips moved so loosely that it drove Giovanni insane, his heart thudding hard against his chest.
Flavio turned, the frown between his eyebrows disappearing the moment he layed knowing eyes on the girl in the middle of the floor.
"Buon Dio, look at that," He said, turning back to Giovanni, "Your girl, yes?"
Giovanni nodded, his eyes finding Flavio's again. The man shrugged, "You're not dancing with her, so she'll find someone else to dance with, no?"
"Perhaps. Or she's doing this to make me jealous,"
Flavio laughed, "Why do you say that?" He asked, now standing next to Giovanni, observing the girl and the rest of the dancers. Giovanni held his glass in front of his mouth, and when he saw her glance at him, a teasing smirk on her face, he said: "There," And Flavio scoffed, shaking his head, "That is only a coincidence, Giovanni,"
He shook his head, running his tongue along his inner cheek, the corner of his mouth tilting upwards, "Nothing is ever a coincidence, Flavio."
It was an hour later, Giovanni and Flavio got drawn into conversation about what happened since they last saw each other, drinking and standing never worked well for Giovanni. He was slurring slightly, opting for water instead of whiskey and a few reluctant shots forced in by Flavio.
He took a sip from the water in the plastic bottle, and he momentarily looked at Arabella, wondering how she wasn't tired in the slightest. She was still dancing as she was an hour ago, although her hair was tangled and wet from sweat. Then, he watched as she picked up her hair from her back, apologising profusely to the man she was dancing with for leaving him so abruptly.
She made her way through the crowd. Jealousy was still with Giovanni, reminding him with the images of Arabella with another man.
Her chest was rising and lowering quickly, her skin glinting with a layer of sweat and she was smiling widely up at Giovanni. He raised his brow at her, holding the water bottle out to her as he fought back an amused smile.
She thanked him, tilting her head back as she gulped down the water. Flavio and Giovanni found her state highly amusing. First time visitors of Italy usually looked like her in their first night to a bar or club.
Arabella's eyes found the man stood next to Giovanni, her frown momentarily flashing over her brows before she looked back at her lover. Giovanni motioned to the man, his black mustache tilting upwards as he grinned, the peaked cap on his head holding long curly hair at bay behind his neck.
"Arabella, this is Flavio, he was my college roommate,"
She nodded, "You went to college in Italy then?" She asked Giovanni, her confusion clear on her face. "No, I went to college in the States," The men chimed in before he took Arabella's hand, bowing as he pressed a kiss to the top of her hand. Her eyes snapped up to Giovanni, he was stating down at her, a knowing smirk on his face.
She smiled at Flavio, turning to Giovanni as he whispered next to her ear, "You want to leave?"
"But we haven't danced yet," She pouted. Giovanni shrugged, "We have plenty of time to dance, my love. But for now, let's go home yeah?"
She sighed, nodding reluctantly. She bid Flavio a goodbye and after Giovanni did the same, he held onto her hand as he pulled her behind him out of the building.
The warm air did nothing to help the warmth of Arabella's skin and thankfully Giovanni rolled down the windows and turned on the AC, receiving a content hum from Arabella as she layed her head out of the window, the moon casting a white glow to the side of her face, making her look like the loveliest angels to the man beside her.