Song: Reflections - The Neighbourhood
𝐀𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐚
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I wake up by a shooting alarm, Valerios arms are wrapped around me and I'm so close to him we're basically baked together like burritos.
I groan at the sound and try to wiggle out of his hold but that just makes him pull me closer to him.
"Valerio- turn the fucking alarm off or I swear to god I'll scream." I grumble.
He groans and lifts up his body to turn of the alarm on his phone.
"Why do you even have an alarm on?" I ask burying my head in the pillow.
"I have a meeting at 8 so I have to wake up early to get ready, sorry for waking you go back to sleep, amore." He kisses the back of my head and gets up from the bed.
"I'm awake now anyways so I might as well get up." I get up too but like hell im getting fully ready at 6 in the morning. I slip on one of his oversized t shirts that reach my mid thighs leaving my legs bare.
While Valerio gets ready in the bathroom I walk to my room and do my skincare, brush my teeth and all the basics. When I'm done I go back to his room to see him already gone. How can such a large man be so quiet?
I shrug and go back to room to watch the vampire diaries instead.
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It's 11:47 and I've decided to get lunch for him as he probably won't have time to get anything for himself.
At first I was dedicated to get him something myself but that was thrown out the window when I remembered how shit I am at cooking.
I pull on some jeans and valerios grey hoodie then leave to get takeaway from his favourite sushi place.
He told me about it during our da- dinner and luckily it's not to far so I jump in my car and start driving.
45 minutes later and I finally have his food, of course the sushi place was fancy as hell so I had to bribe them to be able to get takeout. I search up his name on google to get the location of his workplace because for some reason I don't know that, and start driving.
It only takes me about 10 minutes to get there and when I do I'm introduced by a tall glass building that has HERNANDEZ plastered on it.
I walk inside hugging the bag of food hoping I don't look to underdressed. But of course I look fucking homeless compared to everyone else when I walk inside. Everyone's wearing fancy dresses and heels, some have pullovers thrown over them or scarfs but not a single person is wearing jeans and a hoodie. Except for me.
Well fuck
I nervously stop by the reception hoping I can quickly leave his food and get the hell out of here.
"Hi, I'm here for Valerio?" I bite my lip. "Valerio Hernandez." I add but obviously she already knows that.
She lifts an eyebrow and looks me up and down. "What's the occasion?" She almost looks like she's about to burst out laughing.
"Im here to leave him his lunch." Fuck I sound like a child.
She snorts but covers it up as a cough then types something on her computer.
"He's not available right now, and even if he was we don't let just anyone see him. Especially dresses like... that."
The other people in the reception look me up and down and try to contain their laughs and I can't ignore the weird looks from the people walking by either.
I take a deep breathe trying to calm myself down from the embarrassment.
"He told me his meeting was finished at 11 so he should be available by now shouldn't he?" I say trying to stay confident.
"Well it looks like it got pulled over." She fakes smiles.
"Well that's fine I can just wait by his office, I don't mind." I fiddle with the bag in my fingers.
"Uhm.. yeah so, who are you?" She says dryly.
"I'm uhm..-" what the fuck do I say? "I'm his girlfriend." The words feel alien leaving my mouth but I don't think they'd let me in otherwise.
This time she actually laughs like- out loud. "Okay sweetie, Mr. Hernandez doesn't do girlfriends if he did it would be someone who actually knows how to dress for a place like this. Lying your way to him isn't going to work."
Embarrassment hits me like a truck and I stumble on my words not knowing what the hell I'm supposed to answer to that. "I-"
"Amara?" A far too familiar voice says.
Thank fucking god
I quickly turn around to see Valerio in his suite and dress pants.
He walks up to me looking at the bag in my hand.
"What are you doing here, amore?" He grabs my by my waist and kisses my forehead. The girl lets out a small gasp and returns to write something on her computer.
"I came to give you your lunch. You didn't have to come down in the middle of your meeting." I say.
"I finished my meeting ages ago, I told you that, no?"
"Huh? But she-" I look over to the receptionist and realize she was just trying to get me away from him. I gulp and look back at him. "Never mind, here you go." I hand him the bag and he takes it
"Thank you, amore. Come up with me, yes?" He kisses the front of my head.
I chuckle slightly at his affection and agree.
He presses the elevator to the last floor, and the second the doors close he goes serious.
"What did she say to you?" His tone surprises me and I flinch.
"Who?" I know exactly who he's talking about
"The receptionist, Amara."
"Oh, nothing Valerio, it's fine." I look away from him because I know that if I look at him he'll see right through me.
He takes a step closer to me, grabs my chin and says. "Amara, tell me what she said."
"It's stupid-"
"I don't care" he snaps.
God this is awkward.
"She just went all bitchy about what I was wearing and that someone like me shouldn't be in a place like this. But she's right I mean I'm wearing jeans and your hoodie when everyone else is wearing fancy dresses." I spill.
His jaw clenches.
"Valerio, it's fine I swear."
"Like hell it is. I'll take care of it. Wear whatever you want when your here, okay?" He kisses me cheek as the elevator doors open.
Valerio does that a lot, I'm not sure why but I'm guessing it's kind of like a replacement of actually kissing me.
The doors open to a room with large windows coating most of the walls. There are 3 sofas in. U shape on one end of the room with a table in the middle and then his desk in the other end. The other side of the wall is covered in books, files and everything you need. I step onto the full coverage carpet watching Valerio put the bag of food on the table.
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"That's unhealthily insane." he leans back in the sofa.
"No it's not." I argue.
"You watched 26, 45 minute episodes in one day. That's not normal."
"I was bored." I cross my arms around my waist.
He chuckles and shakes his head.
"Right."
"We should go, it's getting late." I say.
He nods standing up to open the door for me. He had split the sushi for both of us and we ended up talking for hours.
When we step out of the elevator, its surprisingly still as busy as it was before, if not even busier.
"Jesus, why is it so busy still? It's like nine thirty." I ask him.
He places a hand on my back while we walk through everyone. "It's busier at night here."
"Why?" I try to ignore the weird and shocked looks from everyone around us.
"You don't go to clubs during the day do you?" He grins.
"Oh."
We head towards the exit where a black sports car is parked.
The car ride is silent, but not an awkward silence, we say a few words now and then. He parks the car in the garage and then we walk through the reception to get to the elevator. I quickly glance at the receptionist seeing the same girl I saw the first time I came here.
"Ms. Willson oh my god I'm so sorry please make your way up. He lives on the last floor. The penthouse."
Why did she act like I was some kind of celebrity?
The elevator doors close and this time it's my turn to interrogate him.
"How did the receptionist know my last name when i hadn't told you?" I ask him
He stills. "What do you mean?"
"When I came to give the car you gave me back, she somehow knew my last name and acted like I was some well known person. Why?"
His body tenses like he's looking for some kind of excuse.
"Tell me the truth." I mumble.
He leans on the elevator walls. "The club you came from the day we met, I own it. I looked through the guest list that day and found you. That's how I knew your last name. The receptionist was probably thrown off guard since I had told her that I was expecting you, and when I expect people in my own apartment their normally very important people." He says, the elevator door opens and we walk into the apartment together.
What he said makes sense I guess, but I can't get over the feeling that there's something else going on, something he won't tell me.
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I kinda cringed a bit at this chapter but oh well😭