TRIGGER WARNINGS:
EXPLICIT LANGUAGE
SWEARING
ALCOHOL/SMOKING
I was hungover as fuck. I sat with my head resting back on the sofa, my eyes closed, while the thrum of a splitting headache assaulted me. Raf was beside me but with his head solemnly hung in his hands. And uncle Kaden was sat on the other sofa, sipping on water.
"Yeah yeah Ace give it a rest." Uncle Kaden grumbled to dad who was giving him a lecture. I was glad he was giving uncle Kaden a lecture and not me. "All I did was take my nephews out for some drinks. You could have come if you wanted." Uncle Kaden added with a groan.
I felt something small pawing at my legs and I looked down to see Masiela. I leaned down and picked the dog up, placing her onto my lap. She enjoyed being stroked and then she ran up to Raf, who patted her head. "Is daddy sick?" Isabella asked walking in, holding onto Lira's hand.
She slept over last night while we were all out getting shitfaced. Lira did remove my clothes last night not that I could remember. All I could remember was seeing her undressing. "No he's not. They're all just drunk." Lira replied with a smile. Isabella went to check on her dad, holding his face in her hands and Lira sat down in between Raf and I. She smiled looking at Masiela in Raf's lap. She reached out to stroke it and as expected, the dog bared it's teeth at her. Lira backed away and leaned into me.
"Ace sorry again for getting you with the sword." Lira apologised to dad, whilst looking at the small bandage on his forearm. Apparently they had a sword fight. Fuck. They must have have had more fun than we did last night. Dad chuckled and shook his head. "I've told you to stop apologising. Don't worry about it." He smiled, making Lira nod, acting a little shy. She was cute when she was shy.
It was now two hours later, everyone had gone their separate ways and I was a little more sober, a little better. I found Lira in the kitchen, plating up some dog food for Masiela. "Are you going to be a good girl?" She asked the playful dog who looked at her with eagerness. It jumped on its feet, tail wagging when Lira brought the dish down towards her. "Sit. Wait. I'm going to put the bowl down and then you can eat it." Lira ordered, her eyes fixed firmly on Masiela. She slowly placed the bowl down but before she could tear her hand away, Masiela rushed for the bowl. "Damn bitch." Lira swore while whipping her hand away.
I walked over to her, taking in how beautiful she looked. Still in simple jeans and a T-shirt but she could pull anything off. She smiled when she saw me and put her hand down by her side. I frowned and picked her hand up in mine, rubbing the back of it with my thumb. "Fabi has called in a favor. Specifically my favor. So looks like Raf and I are off to Russia." I sighed.
"I could I come with you." She offered. I shook my head slowly. I know she hated her jet lag and besides I could handle it. "No it's okay. Raf is coming. And I promise I'll try and be friendly." I smiled. She hummed and wrapped her arms around my neck, with me putting mine around her waist. "Okay bello. I love you." She smiled and kissed me. "I love you too." I mumbled against her skin.
An hour later I was sitting on a private plane, headed to Russia, with Raf sitting opposite me. He had already whined about why we had to go and now was taking a nap. If he didn't take a nap, I might have resorted to putting something in his water. I spent my time typing out my vows, cutting parts out and rewriting things. I would treat her with respect..and kindness, to be able to share her dreams and hopes. That one lifetime with her was better than an eternity alone. Perhaps I should tone it down.
After we landed in Russia, the cool air hit us, our warm jackets keeping us heated enough. I glanced up at the grey mottled sky, with soft snow falling. It was light and sparse. Snow was a beautiful thing. When Raf and I were small, we used to play in the snow for hours. Mara would join us and beat our asses with snowballs. Raf had his hands bundled into his pockets, the fur lined trim of his jacket blowing softly. "Remember when you slipped on ice and fell on your ass. You cried." Raf chuckled, nudging me as we walked towards the SUV that would take us to Fabi. "Remember when you ate yellow snow thinking it was candy." I laughed. I laughed so much that day, tears spilled from my eyes. Raf laughed along with me and we reminisced about our lives.
When we eventually stopped at Fabi's mansion, a very large estate with a lot of land, Raf and I exited the car. The snow was falling much heavier now, almost like rain. It trickled down and landed on my eyelashes and hair. My nose was the first to feel cold, with my toes following suit. The gates were opened to us with colossal squeaking, the shrill sound burned into the night. We walked up to the door, faint footsteps being left behind in the snow that was still building up.
We didn't knock, the door was opened for us and there stood Fabi. The tall muscle packed man, looked at us with no expression. Maybe I could like the man. He looked between Raf and I. "Vicenzo. Raphael. I hope the journey wasn't too unpleasant." He said by way of a greeting. His full lips moved effortlessly, his deep voice being laced with a Russian accent. "Not at all. I owe you a favor, you have every right to call it in." I replied.
"Come with me. Let's eat and discuss the favor. Or perhaps you'd like to clean yourselves up. You're staying the night I take it. I have rooms prepared. Artem can take your coats and help you get settled in." Fabi said, with perhaps the smallest smile possible.
Raf's room was right next door to mine. My room was large but it didn't feel empty. Not with the bed, furniture and tables. There was a sofa to one corner, a dressing table on the other side. Everything a bedroom needed. I pulled the heavy curtains open to reveal the window. The snow was relentless, I'm sure the wind was howling not that I could hear it. Sergio checked out my room, making sure it was safe. I didn't trust Fabi but he was quite decent so far. His values were much like mine and now I wondered whether Lira was right. Would it be so bad to be friends with him. Mom and dad would find it absolutely hilarious no doubt.
Once we had both tidied ourselves up, shaking the snow out of our hair and changing, we met Fabi downstairs in the dining room. The rectangular table was topped with food. Raf's eyes looked over everything, no doubt he was assessing what to eat first and what to save for last. We took our seats beside each other. "Your brothers aren't joining us." I pointed out. Fabi began to serve himself some food and on cue Raf did the same, filling his plate with various meats and puffed pastries. "No. I've sent them out for business. They are a little useless. You must be thinking, why I called you for a favor when I could have sorted it myself. I need the help." He spoke.
I filled up my plate with food and began to eat. A maid poured us some wine, but I didn't drink any, neither did Raf. "So you're using us, like hired assassins." I raised a brow at Fabi. He nodded shamelessly. I do applaud the man. He told us all about the so called favor. He needed us to kill some people causing him trouble. He would help of course. It sounded simple enough. My mind whirled trying to think if he had a hidden agenda, trying to figure things out.
Our forks were still clinking against the plates as we ate and talked. Fabi wasn't so bad. "Fabi I-" A timid woman's voice spoke up. We all turned to see Marina standing at the doorway. The petite girl who was usually pale skinned was looking a little flushed, with pink cheeks. Fabi sighed before rubbing his clean shaven face. "What?" He asked seemingly annoyed. I suppose all siblings talked the same.
The girl walked in, her hands fidgeting together. She walked over to sit beside Fabi, opposite me, never once glancing over at Raf, who was staring at his plate. "Nothing." Marina almost whispered, tucking in her brown hair behind her ear. Her lips were tinted a soft pink and she wore a long sleeved knitted jumper and trousers. "Marina, if it's nothing, do you mind, we're kind of in the middle of something here." Fabi looked at his sister. Marina gulped and chewed on the inside of her cheek.
"I don't feel so well." She said quietly. At that Raf looked up at her, but his expression didn't change. Fabi sighed and rubbed his face. "What do you want me to do about it?" He asked more annoyed than anything. The girls shoulders slumped and she glanced at Raf before standing up. She was too innocent, I don't know why Fabi hasn't taught her anything yet. She left the room, no doubt to retire in her room. She didn't seem that unwell only perhaps a flu. Perhaps she wanted to see Raf.
"Lira wants me to come to your wedding. What do you think about that?" Fabi asked, now sipping on his wine. I almost chuckled. "You coming will make her happy and to be honest you aren't a bad man so come. Bring Marina if you wish." I said as I reached into my pocket. I pulled out the slightly bent invite Lira wanted me to pass on. I handed it to Fabi who smiled looking down at it.
We all talked for a while longer, this time having fun and laughing. He wasn't actually too bad of a man, I just felt a little at odds because we; Lira and I, we did kill two of his brothers. And even if Fabi didn't care about them, it was always in the back of my mind.
It was late now and we had all gone to our rooms. I was laying on my bed with crossed ankles, smoking. Raf was laying beside me in a similar position. We both couldn't sleep so we stayed up talking. Being in Russia agitated us both. I refrained from asking about Marina but now I couldn't keep my mouth shut. "Are you not interested in Marina anymore?" I voiced as I stared up at the ceiling. He huffed out a breath. "No. She's not my type. She's just..she's Fabi's sister and we don't fuck with the Russians." He mumbled trying to think of the right words. She was his type so why was he lying.
"Talk to me." I said as I watched him cross his arms. He sighed. "I don't like her okay. I only fucked her. And ever since Donzel came back all I can think about is her. But she doesn't even feel the same way. I flirt with her over and over and she drives me fucking crazy. We argue and fight but all I want is her. You know I don't even want to fuck her. Well I do but I want her." Raf inhaled his cigarette.
"She does feel the same way." I smiled. "What? Then why? Why does she mess with me?" Raf asked with furrowed brows. "She's scared I guess. You know how she is. Too proud. Too strong. Too independent. I guess if she actually was with you, maybe she's scared of heartbreak. And Raf, you don't have the most perfect record when it comes to relationships." I replied.
"I wouldn't break her heart. I don't know." He closed his eyes. "She's coming for dinner one day. Why don't you talk to her then. And I mean talk. Not flirting or joking. And I can talk to her. Or I can ask Lira. I don't know. I just want you to be happy." I smiled softly. He hummed. "I am happy Enzo." He smiled.
"Can I ask you something? Well it was always going to be you but do you want to be my best man?" I smiled. Raf chuckled and kicked my foot with his. "Obviously yes. Who else would want to? I'm really happy for you. You know I need to work on my best man's speech because someone needs to embarrass you." He grinned making me laugh.
"Have you come up with your vows yet. I can help. You should say that her ass is what you love most about her." Raf chuckled and I nudged him, an elbow to the ribs softly. "All right fine fine. Something about her eyes. Something about how the world stops when you're with her." Raf spoke.
Somehow I think he was talking about Donzel. But I didn't stop him, the more he talked, the more I knew I had to get them together.
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FABI IS FINE AS HELL but Enzo's and Raf's little heart to heart was cute af
Is the favour going to be as easy as it sounds or will something go wrong?
Is Fabi setting them up?
Is someone going to DIEEEEEEE
MUHAHAHAH
Yeah I know I'm annoying
Fun fact: Some perfumes contain ambergris which is literally whale vomit. 🐳