"Hey kid, want to head into town later?" David came barreling down the hill were Christopher laid in the sun.
"Yeah sure just tell me when you wanna head out." He didn't even look at David and he knew he was staring at him. David was always observing our family, he often sat back and watched our family operate. He often told me your family is so different, and boy was we ever.
Jona sat on the edge of the lake, feet in the water and playing his guitar. He had two of the local girls swooning over him while he played a song Elio had taught him. If he would have known this was how you got girls to notice you he would have played in front of people more often. He was always too shy to play in front of others but this is how you get someone to notice you. Elio often put emphasis on the You part. He often told Jona that if you let someone in while you play your heart out they won't just notice you they will see who you are.
At the house the mood was a little different, Oliver was waiting by his phone. He wouldn't tell Elio why he was so uptight today so he left him alone.
"What is he doing?" Marzia asked pointing to Oliver staring at him phone sat in the study.
"Waiting for an important phone call. He sent out what I'm assuming was a manuscript two weeks ago so I'm guessing he's waiting for his editor to call." Elio said glancing at Oliver.
"You assume? I thought Oliver told you everything?"
"He does but for some reason, this book he's been working on all year is a passion project. He's been really protective of it."
Just then Oliver's phone started to ring and he quickly grabbed it, it apparently wasn't who he was expecting. As soon as he answered his face fell, and he walked to the back of the house and began yelling for Jona and Christopher.
"Their mother." Elio states to Marzia, they had been sitting in the living room drinking coffee.
"You don't seem to impress by her."
"No she's fine, she made it very clear where I stand with her. She pretty much can't stand me. Which is fine I'm not the biggest fan of her either, she treats the boys very differently. She coddles and shields poor Jona and doesn't look twice at Christopher."
"Elio, you have to treat each child differently, if I fussed over Valentina the same way I fuss over Nicola. She would hate it, she would hate me but I love them the same. You're an only child you don't know these things"
"That's the problem I don't think she loves them the same. I think it's because Christopher is so much like Oliver, even looks almost exactly like him. Hell, sometimes I have to look twice when I speak to him to make sure I won't say something off-putting."
"I think you're imagining things, no mother can love one child less than the other."
"You don't see what I see Marzia."
"Have you spoken with Oliver about it?"
"No, it's a line I don't wish to cross with him. I only observe things and keep them to myself, at least for now. Never thought I would love children the way I love those boys."
"They are apart of Oliver, of course, you love them. If you didn't I would call you heartless."
Christopher and Jona ran to the back door, Oliver handed the phone to Christopher. He talked to his mother for no more than a minute and then handed the phone to his brother.
"Did you once see him smile during that short conversation with her?" Elio asked Marzia.
"I don't like it, you need to talk to Oliver."
"And say what? Oliver, your ex-wife is treating your oldest son like dirt?! No, he will either see it or hate me for saying it."
"The day Oliver hates you is the day all joy in the world dies, my dear."
Elio watched as Jona spoke with his mother, he was being candied as Oliver's children were prone to be. Soon he handed the phone back to Oliver who only spoke to her for a moment.
Christopher came into the living room, followed by David.
"David and I are going into town can I take the car?"
"Yes, sweetheart the key's are hanging by the back door. Don't forget to tell your father where you are going."
"I won't." Christopher leaned down and hugged Elio, kissing him on the cheek. Elio looked at Marzia with a bewildered look on his face and tears in his eyes.
"Well, that was very new."
Christopher and David got changed they had been going to the disco they found a few days ago when they had gone to get take out on Sophia's night off. Christopher stopped by his dad's office.
"Dad, David and I are going out I'll be back later." Oliver mouthed I love you, and be safe to his son, he had been on the phone.
"Ready to go kid?" David asked. Kid why he insisted on calling Christopher kid, was starting to annoy him. Call him Chris, Christopher or hey dumbass but not a kid, it made him feel like he was six years old boy.
They drove to the center of B when they arrived at the disco all of Christopher's friends were sat at the table near the back.
"Is your girlfriend going to be here tonight?" David asked.
"No, her, her dad and brother went to Paris for the week to visit her grandparents."
"Why didn't Marzia go?"
"In Marzia's words, her mother in law is a French pig and she would rather get a hot poker to the eye than be with that women for a week." David busted out laughing, Christopher joined in. Marzia was very colorful when speaking about her husband's family.
A few of Christopher's friends waved at him to come to join them on the dance floor, he ran over. David went and ordered a couple of glasses of wine and sat down at the table closest to Christopher's friends. One girl who's name completely escaped David's memory sat down in front of him.
"Do you want to dance?" She asked before he could answer she grabbed his hand and drug him to the dance floor.
Christopher caught a glimpse of them out of the corner of his eye. When he turned around David was dancing with Natalia, and he looked like he had no idea what he was doing. Christopher made his way over to David. The music was loud so he had to yell.
"You look like a dying fish out here!" Christopher yelled.
"I am, I have no fucking idea how to dance."
"Just watch me." Christopher said while laughing, as he began to show David how to dance to the song that was playing. Natalia moved behind David placing her hands on his hips so that he would move when she moved. They danced like that for a few songs.
"I'm done, I've got to tap out and drink." David declared, he went over and sat at the table were his glasses of wine sat. Christopher followed him.
"Come, one old man, this kid is kicking your ass out there." he said referring to himself.
"Let me get a few glasses of wine in me and I'll show you old man."
Christopher reached for one of the glasses, David grabbed his wrist,
"What?" Christopher said smiling.
"You can't have that, your too young."
"It's Italy, the rules are different here. I can drink beer and wine man it's ok, my dad isn't going to toss you out on your ass for letting me have it." Christopher said laughing. It was the most David had seen Christopher smile, he mostly stayed quiet and it was his younger brother that talked. Christopher downed the glass and went to grab two more glasses finishing one before he got back to the table.
"Are you ready to go back out on the dance floor?"
"Christopher are you ok? You seem to have something on your mind."
"Fuck, yes I'm fine, I just want to dance and get completely shitfaced. I can't always be perfect!" He said with annoyance in his voice. Christopher downed his third glass of wine, grabbed David's hand and drug him to the floor. He danced without a care in the world, the music moved him to places he'd never felt before. He felt warm from the wine, he opened his eyes seeing David just standing there. He grabbed his hands forcing David to start dancing. When the next song started, Christopher leaned in close to David's ear.
"Can you go and get me another glass, please?"
David nodded and bought Christopher another glass of wine. He danced off the floor, grabbing the glass and throwing it down his throat.
"Get a bottle and let's get out of here, want too?"
"If I say yes will you let me drive, you've already had too much?" David ask.
"Fuck it why not, just don't give me that sad puppy dog look again. That doesn't work."
Back at the house, Elio sat out by the guest house he had a few candles on the table reading, he tossed the book aside and grunted in disgust.
"I've never seen you treat a book so horribly what has it done to you?" Oliver asked coming up behind him.
"It exists that's what it has done, it's a fucking crime those kinds of books exist. Why Marzia lets her daughter read cheesy stupid and completely ridiculous romance novels like that is beyond me." Elio hissed out.
"Jesus, remind me never to bring those into the house."
"I tried to figure out why she loves reading them. I can't get past the first chapter." He says waving his hand at the book with a disgusted look on his face.
"Well, I would love to put you in a better mood. Christopher is out for the night, Jona is out for the next few hours, Sophia is here with your mother if anything comes up. So why don't you and I get dressed in our clothes we bought in Milan and go out to dinner. Maybe even a little dancing." Oliver said smiling at Elio, teasing him by running his fingers up the leg of his shorts.
"You mean a date? You are suggesting we go out on a Saturday night?" He teased
"Yes I am suggesting we go out tonight, no one is coming for dinner, we had guests call to ask if we were available and I told them all no. Because I want to take you out." Oliver got up and extended his hand to Elio. Elio grabbed the hand that was offered to him, he pulled Elio up and they walked to the house together. Hand in hand, they hadn't had a night alone scene they had arrived in B.
"Can I kiss you? I've always wanted to kiss an American boy." Julia asked or was she, Marta? Jona couldn't remember which blonde girl was who, they both looked so much alike. But he was sure the blonde with curly hair was Julia and the Blonde with wavy hair was Marta.
"No, I wanted to kiss the American boy, Julia!" Marta whined shew thank god he would have hated to have called them by the wrong name. Jona had met them at the lake a few days before when they found out he had been the one who was playing the guitar. They seemed to follow him around. They had invited him to Julia's house, the three of them sat in the guest house.
"You both can kiss me I don't mind." Jona confessed, he had kissed a few girls back home but they didn't look like these girls. Julia quickly jumped up onto Jonas' knee and kissed him, she slid her tongue into his mouth he wasn't expecting it, he quickly returned the favor. And before he could recover from that kiss Marta jumped on the other knee pulling him into a kiss. Jonas summer quickly took a turn for the best fucking summer of his life. He had so much to tell his friends when he got home. He knew he needed proof of these girls so he quickly reached in his bag and grabbed his camera. Julia grabbed it and with each one kissing his cheek she snapped a couple of pictures. Best fucking summer ever Jona gushed.
Christopher and David were sat by the Berm, Christopher laying on the grass and David propped against a tree. Christopher had finished the bottle of wine, David tried to stop him but he was no match for Christopher.
"You know what?" Christopher slurred out.
"What's that?" David responds with concern.
"This past year has been so fucked up. My dad, you know the old guy left my mom for another dude! You wanna talk about a total mind fuck. My mom tells her friends that my dad cheated on her! Like what the fuck man, no he didn't. I totally hated my dad because she told me he cheated."
"I'm sorry." David said looking at the grass pulling at it.
"Naw don't be sorry man because honestly my mom she's kinda a really big you know starts with a big ol B!! I'm is not even gonna lie! I think she hates me, I look like my dad, I talk like him, I walk like him. I think she thinks I'm gonna start liking dick like him too so she just pushes me away."
"Don't say things you don't mean just because your upset Christopher. Your mom loves you."
"Ha yeah right! I just don't want summer to end and have to go back to that house. I wanna stay here, lay in the grass and kiss all night. Dude I almost got a blow job yesterday." Christopher said excitedly popping up onto his elbows, he rolled his head back.
"Oh, well how come you almost?" David asked
"I got nervous, I've never done anything like that before. But if she were to try it now I'd let it happen. I have all the liquid courage in the world!" He yelled flopping back onto his back. David laughed.
"Well if she wasn't so far away I'm sure she would be here for that."
"What's it like?"
"What?"
"Being with a girl?" There was a long silence, Christopher lifted his head. David sat there staring at Christopher.
"I don't know." David answered softly.
"Duuuude! Are you still a Virgin!? You're 24!" Christopher shouted.
"No, I'm not a Virgin, I just don't know what it's like to be with a girl."
"Damn! No shit! Well ok so what's that like?"
"Jesus you just want to know it all don't you kid."
"Don't call me kid, I'm not a kid!"
"Well, technically you are a kid until you're 18."
"Try again we are in Italy you are an adult at 14."
"Oh, so that's why you don't think you're a kid." David laughed. Christopher got up and struggled to get to his knees, he ended up on all fours and crawled to were David was. Propped against the tree-hugging his knees.
When he reached David he sat up sitting on his feet.
"No I know I'm not a kid."
David put up his hands in surrender.
"Ok, ok you're not I kid I will stop." He smirked.
Christopher grabbed a hold of David's shirt pulling him towards him.
"I'm serious, I'm not a kid."
Christopher yanked David up and kissed him hard. It started as a hard press of the lips, Christopher let go of David's shirt and he pulled away. David was shocked and Christopher's face was still set in anger, he wasn't thinking he grabbed the back of David's neck and kissed him again. This time it was softer, Christopher slipped his tongue into David's mouth taking in the taste of the beer that he had earlier that night. David slid his hand down Christopher's back and slowly move it down to his ass, squeezing it.
Christopher pulled back, this time there was no anger. Christopher put his fingers to his own lips.
"I'm sorry." He got up, turning to look at the Berm. David didn't move, he honestly didn't know what to do and had no idea what had just happened.
"I'm so sorry, David."
"Don't be sorry." David spoke softly.
"Can you please take me home now?"
David didn't answer he just got up and started walking to the car. He could hear Christopher walking behind him, when they got into the car Christopher slumped down in the passenger's seat.
"Are you going to be ok?" David asked, but he never got an answer. As soon as David reached the turn about Christopher was asleep or pretending to sleep. He sat in silence until they reached the house, he woke Christopher up and helped him to his room. Jona was sound asleep in his bed and Christopher crawled into his own fully clothed and kicked off his shoes.
When David got to his room he immediately took a shower, he felt no amount of soap and water would get rid of the guilt he felt. He knew he had done nothing wrong but the look on Christopher's face when he pulled away from that last kiss haunted him. It contained every emotion hate, desire, regret, pain, sorrow, need and want, he saw that face every time he closed his eyes. David was never out to have anything but friendship with Christopher but he didn't know where to turn now. The all American boy had just kissed him drunkly, he wouldn't speak of it until Christopher was ready. If he ever would be.