Madelaina:
The boys texted that they'd be here soon so me and Thea have been waiting near my front door like children on Christmas morning for their arrival.
Who knew four days apart would feel so long?
Perhaps I may have some form of separation anxiety.
Thea too, even though she tries to hide the fact that she doesn't miss him.
Every time we've hung out, I've caught her checking her phone every ten minutes.
"Dude, slow down. You're going to get fucking whiplash!"
"We're going at the same pace!"
We snap our gazes to each other, then the doors and then each other again, before mentally, mutually agreeing to rush up the stairs and sit like we haven't been lingering in the foyer for thirty minutes.
Right as we've gotten ourselves into a natural position, two maids stumble in from opening the doors from the outside and Luca and Angel all but storm in.
Dio, it shouldn't feel this good to see him.
His eyes find mine almost immediately and I try hard to play it off. To be relaxed and not overly excited. And I manage it for about five seconds. But then I can't take it anymore.
The thrum in my pulse quickens and my hands ache to reach out and touch him.
So I decide to ditch the plan.
Letting the smile loose from my face, I stand and barely make it down the stairs without tripping. But he's right there at the bottom, waiting and ready.
I jump into his arms, laying my head in the crook of his neck.
He holds me tightly to him, spinning me round.
"hey, baby." He mumbles into my hair. "Did you miss me?"
I sigh and squeeze him closer. "Like the plague."
He laughs and spins us once more before I pull back to look him in the eyes.
They're sparkling. Beautiful and green.
"Did you miss me?" I ask.
He leans his face forward and softly brushes his lips over mine, then rests his forehead on my own.
"Nah."
Now it's my turn to laugh. I turn my head away when he leans in for a kiss and catch the staring contest that's
currently going on between Angel and Althea.
She descends the stairs slowly and doesn't stop until she's right in front of him, their eye contact never breaking.
He looks down at her with a mixture of hesitation and hope in his and hers hold dither and longing.
After an excruciating ten seconds, she makes up her mind and throws herself into his arms.
He catches her easily, fluidly. Like he was prepared for it and wraps his arms tightly around her while she circles his waist with her legs.
They hug one another close like that before she lifts her head a little to whisper in his ear.
He stills for a minute but then nods and places a soft kiss on her cheek, turning and walking away.
Althea looks at me over his shoulder and I give her an encouraging smile.
They're going to be fine.
"They're going to be fine." Luca voices my thoughts and I move my attention back to him.
"I know."
He smiles and leans forward again. This time, I allow his lips to press against mine. If only for a few moments. Then, I pull back and tilt my head.
"Do you want to come have a nap with me?"
"A nap?" He asks but is already heading towards the stairs.
"Mhm. I'm tired."
"I think I'm more tired than you, mia cara. I've just spent days with four juvenile man-babies and got off a flight merely a few hours ago."
"And you can tell me all about it when we've napped."
He shakes his head but amusement lights his eyes and we make it to my bedroom.
He throws back the covers and lays me down, removing his shoes, jacket and shirt before joining me.
Taking me into his embrace, he encompasses my waist in one arm and begins to stroke my hair with his other hand.
"Have you spoken to your parents?"
"I called them when I landed. But I wanted to come straight to you."
My mouth lifts into a smile and I snuggle deeper into him.
"Let's sleep." He says, voice like smooth velvet.
I have questions. About where he's been and what he's been up to. But I'll leave them for afterwards. Right now, I just want to lie here with him.
So, I let him kiss my forehead and then close my eyes.
Lucas:
I stare at the beautiful girl in my arms and debate whether to tell her the truth or not when she wakes.
On one hand, honesty is probably the best route to take in terms of trust and relationships and consequences and whatever. But on the other hand, I don't want to trigger her anxiety. Plus, I have no idea how she would react. And that's the scariest thing about all this.
She stirs and all thoughts leave my brain. A smile tugging at my lips as I move a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
Her eyes flutter open and she looks confused for a second before a smile of her own blossoms.
"I forgot you're here."
Lowering my head down, I press a soft kiss to her mouth. "I'm here."
"What time is it?"
"Around four. Are you hungry?"
She nods and sits up, running her fingers through her hair and giving a yawn. "Starving."
Breathing out a laugh, I slide out of bed and scoop her up, walking towards the door.
"Luca!" She squeaks at the unexpected gesture and hurriedly clings on.
"Let's get some food in you." I make it to the dining room and set her down on one of the chairs.
She glances at the spread of food and furrows her brows. "When did all this get here? This doesn't usually happen at this time."
"I asked a maid to prepare a light meal when she knocked on your door not too long ago. I knew you'd be hungry."
"Is that an insult?" She raises a brow.
"A fact." I ruffle her hair and then take a seat beside her. "What do you want?"
She points to a pot of chicken soup and I fill her a bowl.
Resting my arm on the table, I lay my head in my fist and watch her take a spoonful.
"Stop being a creep" she remarks, blowing onto the spoon.
"No."
She turns her head to me, a sarcastic glare on her face..
"I like watching you."
A roll of her eyes, ten minutes and a glass of water later, she dabs her mouth with a napkin.
"Do you want anything else?"
"Yes." She twists to face me. "Answers."
I groan.
"Don't give me that." She swats my shoulder. "What have you been doing with the boys for the past four days? Why was it so sudden? Is it done?"
"You really want to know?"
She nods.
"I'm not sure if you'll like it."
"What does that mean?" Then her eyes go wide and she gasps, covering her mouth with her hand. "Did you guys actually do that weird blood ritual thing you told me Oakley was talking about?"
A nearby maid chokes.
A deep laugh escapes my throat and I reach for her. "No, baby. Nothing like that. Never that." Pulling her onto my lap, I signal for the staff to leave and wait until they have shut the doors behind them until I start talking again.
"It's about you."
"Me?" She scrunches her brows.
Nodding slowly, I begin to wrap a strand of her hair around my finger.
"I don't want to upset you."
"Upset me?" She frowns. "Upset me how?"
"Just know that I'm doing this because I love you, okay? I care about you so much that it feels like a fucking sin for me not to do this."
"To do what? Tell me, Luca."
I breathe in and then out through my nose. Bracing myself for whatever comes next. Whether that be curses or tears or violation.
"Remember when you told me about what happened to you at your old school? Those people who hurt you? I can't stop thinking about it, Principessa. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since you told me." She tenses a little but doesn't say anything. "I had Oakley look into them almost as soon as you were sleeping and then last week when I left to go speak with Mads I ended up talking about it with them. I wanted to get revenge."
I cup her face with my free hand and look directly into her eyes. "I wanted to hurt them so fucking badly, baby. Hurt them like they hurt you. Only so much worse. And I still do. We've been in your old city, watching them. Calculating them. Oak's sent them an anonymous message but apart from that we haven't done anything. I just..." The words get lodged in my throat. Anger, frustration, hatred, guilt, suspense, love. All corrupting my senses like a killing dose. "I'm sorry, mia cara, I-"
A soft pressure on my cheek has my gaze jerking back to hers. I didn't even realise I had turned to looking down.
Her eyes are filled with as much emotion as mine and tears fill them, making them appear like delicate glass.
"I love you." She whispers.
"What?" I manage to choke out on my astonishment.
"No one has ever done anything like that for me. No one has ever loved me enough to do so." She strokes a thumb over my skin. "Thank you."
"You're not angry with me?"
"I'm not angry with you."
"So you're okay with me- I can-"
"Make them suffer." She says. Her voice faint but carrying the weight of hundreds of sleepless nights.
"I will." I vow and desperately press my lips to hers. "I promise."
Whatever my baby wants.
They're about to feel the fucking fire.