Venus

Edenridge

Timestamp: Four weeks after the Boston restaurant fiasco

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There were days when Mika wished he didn’t have such a soft spot for his nephew, Raf. But he always had a soft spot for kids and especially a kid that he held very close to his vest. Call it the Uncle Badger instinct or whatever people want to call it. If anyone asked him, he would lie straight to their face, but Mika would do anything for his nephew, as well as his mother and Mika’s adoptive sister (though that doesn’t take away from how much he loves Ley). Whether it meant going into scary parts of the southside to get her a special kind of cream or going northside to fetch her that damn sandwich she apparently can’t proceed her obviously eventful day without. She was a pain in his ass sometimes, but given recent events, he could swallow whatever temporary annoyances he may have to sooth her rising panic any chance he could.

“Yeah, the things I do for that sister of mine.”

Whenever Mika drove into the northside, there was always something interesting in a very culture shock kind of way. The way the roads felt underneath the bed of his truck, how his tires felt going along the pavement. In the southside, whenever he was running errands (specifically picking up little things from Phil’s Junkyard), the wear and tear and lack of maintenance was obvious. It was somewhat the same on the northside roads, but the vibration wasn’t that noticeable. Mika’s truck had off-road tires, so it didn’t pose any danger to his tires, but he just always found it pretty interesting.

As he made his way down Central Avenue, Mika pulled his truck just across the street from the Godmother’s Sandwich shop. He rubbed his eyes before he jumped out of his truck. He was showing signs of mental and physical exhaustion over the past few weeks. Between juggling his time at his apartment whenever Hyde felt like needing him for something and making sure his mother was secure in her apartment, Mika was dividing his time up at Edge, working as a bouncer, and making sure Ley wasn’t freaking out too much because she found out about Hyde.

Suffice to say, HB’s life hasn’t been dull as of late.

And speaking of his sister, she was on one of her sandwich binges again. But not just any sandwich. Oh no, she had a very specific request: three of Cat’s special toasted pastrami cabbage sandwiches with extra mayo and on Italian bread. Now, usually Mika would tell her to get it herself, but circumstances were different. Anything he could do to help her feel better, well damn it Mika was going to do it. Besides, he was kind of hungry himself and a meatball sub with extra cheese and sauce had his name on it.

When Cece walked into The Godmother that afternoon, it had been with the intention of picking up the to-go order she’d placed in advance fifteen minutes prior and leaving as fast as she’d walked in. The first part of her plan had been executed flawlessly. Her order had been awaiting her arrival behind the pick-up counter, and she’d only had to endure less than three minutes of polite small talk before she’d been free to leave. Now armed with her sandwiches, sides, and drinks in the car, the young woman was ready to surprise Niles with a little lakeside picnic she’d secretly put together for them. She had been so caught up in her excitement about her upcoming plans that she didn’t notice someone approaching the deli door as she was exiting.

Mika walked towards the entrance and his hand was about to push the door open, but just as he did, it opened and dinged him right in the face. “Motherfucker!” Mika grunted in Russian, holding the spot between his eyes where the edge of the door had hit rather firmly. “Watch where you’re going!” he cursed.

“Oh my God! I’m so sorry!” Caitlin heard herself say, placing her to-go bag on top of the nearest patio table and rushing to assist the person she’d accidentally injured. But when she realized who it was and the manner in which he was speaking to her, she stopped in her tracks and took a step back. Of course it would be him, of all people…

In a span of a few short seconds later, when he looked down at who he was cursing at, his stomach had twisted itself after he realized it was Cece. “Oh…hey, Cece...”

“Hi Mika,” Caitlin heard herself say meekly, instantly shifting her eyes to her shoes as her body tensed up. Her demeanor quickly changed from apologetic to anxious, bracing herself for another nail-biting scene like the one from four weeks ago.

There was a building tension inside him. No longer turning knots, his stomach sank as he hadn’t prepared for this moment, especially after she had apparently blocked him from her social media accounts (or so he assumed, since he couldn’t view her shit anymore). “You seemed like you were in a rush or do you always go around hitting everyone with doors in a very violent manner?” Mika cracked a smile, trying to hide the incredible tension he felt at this moment.

If this encounter would have taken place before the night she and Niles started dating, Caitlin might have answered with a smile of her own and a playful comment to match his. As hurt as she'd been after the breakup, she wasn't the type of person to hold grudges. Unfortunately, Mika’s own actions from earlier in the month had changed the way she would react to his presence in the present day.

“I’m really sorry about that,” was all she could bring herself up to mutter instead, glancing up at him for the most fleeting of seconds while fighting back the overwhelming wave of guilt and anger washing over her. Guilt at the decision she’d taken to cut him off from her life as much as she could after the dinner fiasco a few weeks prior, by blocking him from all of her social media profiles. And anger, because she couldn’t believe how nonchalantly he was addressing her after he’d purposely ruined her date and embarrassed her in front of everybody at that upscale Boston restaurant. No matter how hard she tried, Cece was sure both feelings were painted clear as day all over her freckled face.

Mika offered her a small shrug as he rubbed his temples. “It’s whatever.” Despite his outward demeanor, it still hurt like a bitch. He had his eyes closed for a few moments as he continued to massage between his eyes and when Mka opened them, he finally had the chance to really look at his ginger ex. It was unlike her (at least as far as he knew her) to show anger so forward. “You seem…mad.” Mika guessed, almost trying to lure her to say whatever she was thinking. There was a part of him that probably knew, but best to let her say it.

His last words made Caitlin finally look up from the floor to lock eyes with his: her blue stare suddenly blazing with the pent-up resentment she’d been carrying with since that night. “You say it like you don’t know why that could be,” she replied with an uncharacteristic scoff. “But, unlike you, I don’t want to cause a scene. So I think it’s best if I go before you decide to humiliate me in front of everybody again.”

She’s still mad about that?

He kept rubbing his temples, but now it was for a different reason. Before it was because she whacked him in the face with that damn door, but now it was the frustration he was feeling. How did a person hang onto something so trivial for this long? “Right, because you prefer to just shadow block people from your socials.” Mika sighed, finally looking at Cece.

The redhead couldn’t help but scoff again, shaking her head in disbelief. Who did Mika think he was, anyway?! How could he feel entitled to any explanation regarding what she did or didn’t do, especially after what he’d done? “I don’t have to justify what I do with my socials to you-- or anything else I do, for that matter,” she snapped, frowning deeply at him. “You deserve the same amount of explanations you gave me when you broke things off: none.”

As he stood there, Mika felt like he was at a literal crossroads, because somewhere in him knew she was right. As far as she knew, he broke up with her without really telling her why. He didn’t blame her for feeling so angry at him. Maybe that was part of his frustration. He was projecting his own anger at himself onto her, going for cheap shots like her blocking him. It bothered him, but he didn’t need to say that. He could go for more cheap shots now, but that wouldn’t serve any purpose, or at least none that made sense for him to do now. He went for cheap shots at the hotel because she was with that tool Niles, but he wasn’t anywhere nearby.

So maybe there was a different approach Mika Zima could take that didn’t involve reverting to his old asshole ways. “When you’re right, you’re right.” He gave her a sigh of partial defeat. “I don’t deserve any explanation, but maybe you do.”

Mika’s answer to her statement took Cece by surprise. Was she finally about to get the answer to the age-old question that had haunted her since that August evening nearly a year before? Whatever it was, she knew she didn’t want that discussion to keep happening in front of The Godmother-- especially with so many people that knew her and her family potentially lurking about. The last thing she wanted was for word of her encounter to get back to anyone in her family-- or worse: back to Niles. God only knew how he would react if he heard she’d talked to Mika again.

“Before we even go down that road, maybe we should go talk somewhere more private?” Cece proposed to her ex, shrugging her small shoulders.

“Good idea.” Mika looked at his ginger ex for a few seconds, trying to come up with a place but he couldn’t think of any solid ideas. Any place he thought of was Southbound and that was the whole fucking point of never telling her the reason why he broke her heart all that time ago. “Since you suggested it, your call where you wanna talk.”

Caitlin was quiet for a second, thinking of a place they could speak out of sight from prying eyes. There was only one place in town that she trusted they could go to and would be provided with absolute privacy. But given the memories the location harbored, she wasn't sure whether Mika would want to go there or not. "We could take a trip down to O'Halloran's Creek?" she offered, the hesitation thick in her mild-mannered voice.

“O’Halloran Creek, huh?” A small laugh escaped through Mika’s partially opened lips, a half-grin never leaving his face. Before everything went to crap between them, the two of them spent a lot of time at the creek that became one of their favorite go-to spots. Back when they had dated, they kept their relationship out of the public view (more so on Mika's request than Cece's), but enjoyed what time they could spend with each other there. The creek had been their safe space-- their little piece of paradise away from the dangers and worries of their hometown.

Surely Cece knew that when she suggested it.

“Yeah, that could work. At least we know we can talk for as long as we want about whatever we want without having to worry about a thing.” That nostalgic feeling of fondness came through in his voice. “You have your car around anywhere?” He asked, pointing to his truck across the street. “If not, I don’t mind giving you a lift.”

Caitlin bit her lower lip and gave a quick glance around the vicinity, searching for any familiar faces who could turn into potential little birdies taking information back to her family or boyfriend. When she was sure they weren't any, she turned back to Mika and nodded solemnly. "My car's parked out back, but I think your truck would be the better option. I haven't been to the creek since… You know, since back then, so I don't know how the dirt road to reach it is holding up. I don't think my little Jetta could compete with the mud, the rocks or the craters," she said with a small laugh.

Mika huffed a gritty laugh. “Yeah, you got that right! I mean, yeah your Jetta is nice and all, but for dirt trails, you might as well drive it straight into a mud puddle.” Another laugh from Mika as he started to walk towards his Toyota Tacoma, with Caitlin and her takeout bag of food tagging along.

Delbrook Academy: Senior Year [ FULL ]

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Delbrook Academy: Senior Year [ FULL ]

Snipped

Descension {A God RP}

Just when I thought I was out, I'm pulled back in. Damn that Collossus!

*clears throat*

I mean I'm in!

@metanoia

Mood 😂

Edenridge

_{A @LovelyComplex & @Venus Collaboration
Featuring Niles Sinclair & Caitlin Cleary}

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Niles Sinclair and Caitlin Cleary had kissed and made up the night prior. After the tense encounter with her ex-whatever-he-was, they had left the restaurant and gone straight to the hotel he had reserved for them. While the car ride was silent and the initial moment of entering their room was awkward, they did end up deciding to bury things for the night so they could enjoy each other’s presence. He could finally make her his… And he did.

In the moment, it felt right. But afterwards, when she fell asleep and he was up laying on his side staring out the balcony glass doors, he couldn’t stop seeing Mikhail’s face. Even when Niles was dating Natalia this piece of shit was putting moves on his girl. All this planning and for what? He thought Caitlin liked him, loved him even. He thought she wanted to be with him. He thought they shared a bond because they both lost someone dear to them.

The legacy to the Sinclair name laid there, letting his anger boil as he had the night prior play over and over and over again in his head. Was she actually his? Or did she choose to toy with him because she needed to feel loved? She loved the idea of being loved? Her arms held onto him as she snuggled close to him-- he the little spoon, her the big-- and he found himself in a place he thought he had left behind. A place of self loathing. A place where he felt undeserving of her love because he knew she could do so much better.

Was it really that hard to change who you are?

Niles wasn’t good or bad, but he certainly wasn't happy. He put all his heart into Caitlin because it was someone, something, to aim for. Goals. He needed to have goals to avoid the dark thoughts he battled in high school. The reason why he had this burn scar on his shoulder, the reason why he went to medical school, he was trying to move forward. Not let his mother’s ghost determine how he lived his life. Coming back home was not like returning to Neverland. Edenridge wasn’t a place for kids. No, Edenridge ripped your innocence away and forced you to grow up. Be stable or die trying.

In the morning, as she continued to soundlessly sleep, Niles set the dining table with room service breakfast. He had put on gray sweatpants and no shirt. With the smell of coffee in the air, he glanced over to Cece wondering if she was going to wake up. He didn’t get any sleep. No. He was stuck on the thought that she wasn’t his and that she was toying with him, clearly not coming clean with how she feels with her ex or the dead person she constantly talks about. He was angry because she made him realize he didn’t make any progress. He was still the same asshole he’s always been.

Going to the balcony, he leaned on the door to stare out at the early morning of Boston. Time went on and he continued to wait for her to stir, not touching a single bacon, a single pancake, a single anything until she woke up. He was waiting.

After the mortifying situation of the night before, the couple had opted to put the discontent aside to privately celebrate the start of their relationship. The ‘celebrations’ in question, along with the emotional exhaustion of the encounter with Mika, had drained all of Caitlin’s energies. She’d been out like a light after some cuddles, not budging awake until she felt the absence of the warm figure she’d been so comfortably snuggling against. The tempting smell of coffee and food making her empty stomach rumble had helped persuade her, too.

When she opened her eyes, she was met with the sight of Niles leaning against the balcony’s glass door. She took a moment to admire his handsome figure illuminated by the rays of sunshine of the Boston morning: his messy brown curls, gray sweatpants and shirtless upper body… And with the ocean view outside, it was truly a wonderful sight to wake up to.

“Good morning, handsome,” Caitlin mumbled with a sleepy smile, slender arms over her head as she took a moment to stretch her stiff muscles. Unbeknownst to the tumultuous mood her shirtless boyfriend was in, the redhead was in good spirits. “Something smells amazing in here,” Cece noted, sitting up from her position on the bed looking around the room for the source of the delicious scent. When her eyes fell on the breakfast selection laid out on the suite’s table, her blue eyes lit up with gratitude at the sweet gesture. “You got us breakfast?” she asked Niles, with a smile as bright as the day outside.

“What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t get you something to eat, especially after last night?” While his tone was spirited he hid his emotions behind a strained smile. The kind of smile Natalia could catch immediately as fake. He walked away from the balcony and pulled out a chair for her, “M’lady,” he jested.

Giggling, the beaming Caitlin got up from the bed, slipped on the fluffy white robe courtesy of the hotel, and occupied the chair Niles had so courteously pulled out for her to sit in. “Thank you so much; this looks so yummy!” she said gratefully, looking around at the dishes in front of her and bracing herself for the feast to come.

As she took account of all the food he bought for her, Niles leaned forward, pushing her hair back and kissing her neck. He didn’t remove his lips until he left a mark. Once he could visibly see a hickey, he pulled away and went to the other side of the table. After he sat down, he scanned her up and down, methodically, before asking, “You sleep well?”

When Caitlin felt Niles push her hair back and press his lips to her neck, she smiled and closed her eyes in anticipation of the goosebumps that followed. This time, however, the marking felt different. Where Mika’s hickies always came from a place of playfulness and passion, this one had a rougher, slightly dominant edge to it: like it was a branding rather than a love bite. But instead of going down a rabbit hole of seeing things that weren’t there, worrying over nothing and potentially sabotaging her new relationship, Cece opened her eyes, pushed the thoughts out of her head and refocused on the conversation at hand.

“I sure did,” she answered sweetly, taking the first bite off of her delectable plate. “Best sleep I’ve had in some time, if I’m honest. This hotel bed is super comfortable-- and the company helped too,” Caitlin said playfully, shooting Niles a small wink. What about you? I noticed you weren’t in bed when I woke up. Is everything okay? Did you not sleep well?”

“No, I didn’t actually.” Instead of eating, Niles simply leaned back in his chair and watched her like a hawk watching its prey. “Don’t get me wrong, I don’t usually sleep well, but last night especially, I couldn’t. Do you know why?” His piercing gaze carefully and deeply looked into her eyes, making sure they didn’t look away from him. It was curious, really. Yes, fucking her senseless helped tire her out, but he had a feeling that she wasn’t as innocent as she acted. Perhaps, Natalia was right along. Caitlin Cleary wasn’t a girl to be trusted. “Did you have any dreams?”

“No…” the redhead answered slowly, confusion settling on her freckled face. She could feel a change in her boyfriend’s demeanor, and the new energy in the room unsettled her slightly. She tried to think back to the events of the night before after leaving the restaurant and up until this point, but found no evidence of any wrongdoings on her part. Whatever it was, it was clearly making Niles feel some sort of way, and she wanted to fix it immediately. “Did I do something? Because if I did, and it upset you or anything, I really am sorry, and I’d like to know what I can do about it.”

Grabbing a glass of OJ, Niles took a nice, slow sip. He was in no rush to explain himself. Not to her. Once he was drinking enough to hydrate himself, he countered, “So you admit it, you think you did something wrong?” Reaching his hand out, bringing it close to her, but not going for her, Niles grabbed an apple that was by her side. Tossing it up in the air, letting it fall back in his hand, he asked, “If you need me to tell you, then you find no fault in your actions.” He ripped a piece of apple off and chewed it thoroughly.

“That’s not what I--” the young woman’s brows furrowed together as she felt silent, her stomach now twisting itself into a knot of anxiety that she was sure showed. She was quiet for a few moments once again, thinking hard about every past event, yet continued to come up empty-handed. “I swear I’m not trying to be difficult, but I really don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t know what it was that I did wrong, but it’s clearly upsetting you, so I’m apologizing to try and make things better.”

“I’ll only ask you this once and if I don’t find an answer that I agree with, I won’t take it lightly.” Niles threatened. This naive act that Cece was playing… It was getting old fast. Did she actually understand him like she said she did all these months or was she just toying with him? Playing a game because Mika pushed her away and she needed someone to cling to?

He took another bite out of his apple. He chewed and he chewed, taking his time to build anticipation. Purposely, Niles wanted her to be anxious and nervous. He wanted her to know that she was wrong. Not even Natalia would do that shit to him. She would’ve cussed Mika out for interrupting her moment with him. “What is your relationship with Mika?” He curtly said.

If Niles’ threat had made Cece feel as if she’d wanted to throw up on the spot, the mention of Mika and the inquiry about their relationship filled her with both a sense of dread and a moment of clarity. So that’s what this was all about. Never mind that she had almost become a statue from sheer shock when she’d heard the man’s voice, or that anxiety had held her hostage during the length of the tense encounter, or even that she’d called her ex out on his hypocrisy in front of everyone staring, standing up for her current relationship and asking him to please leave them alone in the process. No: it was all about that split-second in which her mouth curled upward in the shadow of a smile (not even a full-fledged smile) in response to Mika’s antiques.

After what seemed like a long pause, the redhead finally spoke up. “He’s my ex,” Caitlin admitted, shifting her eyes down to her lap as she always did when she was anxious. She didn’t want to see Niles’ expression. “He never asked me, and we never put a label on it, but he might as well have been. We were together for two years, but a few days before I left for college, he broke things off with me. That story about the serpent I fell for, the one I told you when we started getting into the topic of our past relationships? It was about Mika.”

Of course it was about Mika. Of course Mika would fuck both Natalia and Cece. With a strained expression, Niles contemplated his next words and actions. Instead of saying anything, he angrily bolted the apple in his hand forward, mere inches away from Cece’s face. He needed to calm down. This was okay. He should’ve known before he got with her that this was part of the package. “So you’re telling me your ex ruined our first date?” His teeth gritted and his fists balled up. He dug his nails into his own skin. “It’s clear he still has feelings for you, Caitlin.” It didn’t take a rocket scientist to notice that Mika was still into her. Seething at this point, Niles interrogated, “Am I a joke to you?”

The apple being flung across the room so closely to her face made Cece instinctively flinch and turn her head away, hoping to avoid getting struck. Her heart was hammering wildly in her chest, no longer in anxiety but in sheer terror at what was happening. In the midst of the tense moment, she was rendered momentarily speechless, unable to answer any of the questions or statements Niles was shooting at her. Overwhelmed with distress, the young woman couldn’t stop herself from closing her eyes and starting to sob silently, her slim, petite body trembling with fright.

In her nearly twenty years of age, she had never experienced any type of physical violence directed towards her-- not from her parents, her siblings, or even people at school. This intense reaction from Niles at the mention of her ex scared her, filling her with dread and second-guesses about whether jumping headfirst into this relationship had been a good idea. Judging by this interaction, accepting Niles’ proposal to date less than five minutes after their first physical interaction since their school days might have been a mistake.

Christ.

Focusing on his breathing, Niles brought himself to a calm to play his part. Standing up, he cautiously made his way to her and kneeled down, without reaching for her, “I’m sorry. I’m innately jealous… It gets really bad. I just-- Your ex and I don’t have a good past, and I don’t want things to repeat, okay? I want to make you happy, okay? But, I need you to be honest with me too. Can you promise me that? From now on, you’ll tell the truth?”

In all honesty, Cailtin wanted to tell Niles that she didn’t feel as if she’d lied about anything in the first place. How would she lie about something she didn’t even know was still weighing on his mind so heavily? Ultimately, she decided against voicing her opinion, terrified of triggering him into aggression again. Instead, the sniffling Caitlin just nodded, wiping the tears away from her flushed cheeks and still shaking a little.

Sinclair also felt like he was not in the wrong. It was clear how things ended between his girlfriend and her ex-lover. She left room for Mika to bombard her with attention and she did not set clear boundaries, likely expecting for more. Niles wasn’t going to buy this innocent act. Usually the most innocent ones had the more dangerous motives. “Do you still care about me or did I mess that up?”

The young woman took a few slow, calming breaths, willing her body back to a state that wasn’t fight or flight. “Of course I still care about you,” Cece admitted, placing a gentle hand on top of his as she scanned his demeanor and tested the waters for any additional outbursts. “But you didn’t have to throw anything at me. That was really freaking scary.”

“That was pretty unnecessary, wasn’t it?” The girl in front of him nodded. Turning his hand around to grab ahold of her’s, Niles brought her dainty, fragile hand to his lips and gave it a kiss. “I’ll work on that, okay?” Once he pulled his head away, he grasped her hand tightly, “But I also need you to build stronger boundaries. I don’t want to regret the decision I made.” Niles intensely stared into her eyes, in a commanding way that demanded her to not look away. “I care about you, Caitlin, but if we are going to make this work you need to be more forward with your intentions.”

The redhead nodded vigorously again. Maybe her boyfriend had a point with what he’d said. She had been so kind and considerate of people’s feelings throughout her life that it was very possible that, in her quest to be the least offensive or hurtful with her actions, she had overlooked how it could come across to others. She didn’t want to be taken advantage of, or leave herself open and vulnerable to further misunderstandings. From this point onward, she would work on that.

“I care about you too, Niles: I really do,” she replied, almost as if she was pleading for him to believe she meant every word. “I really want this to work too. I promise I’ll do anything I can to make this work.”

“Okay. I’ll take your word,” Niles acknowledged, truly giving her the benefit of the doubt. “Let’s eat our food then take a shower. We’ve got a long day ahead of us.” Pulling her in with ease, he gave her a firm kiss, one that was more loveless than not but got his point across. “Remember what you said when I asked you to be mine?”

”Yes.” The young woman nodded again, this time with a small smile. “I said ‘of course’,” she recalled, the events from the previous night still fresh in her mind yet somehow feeling miles away.

“Let’s keep it that way.”

Edenridge

^{A @LovelyComplex & @Venus Collaboration}




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Danilo had been decompressing in his bedroom, away from his family. Decompressing from the busy day of family affairs while also processing the events of yesterday. Not only was he forced to revisit his past, a time when things were simpler, but he had to confront his present demons. The emotions he kept buried itched in his throat when Marco found his way to him at the Godmother. The emotions he chose to ignore ran through his veins when he saw so many of his classmates shattered at the truth of Allison Davies’ death. The emotions he knew he was ashamed of made a home in his chest and it ached. It ached so hard because all he did was hurt those he loved.

Laying in bed with his dress blouse slightly unbuttoned, his tie loose, and his pants still on, he stared at his ceiling wondering how he could make this better. How could he heal those he broke? Jillian, Natalia… Marco. He wasn’t a good person. He knew that, but couldn’t bad people redeem themselves? Certainly, he could try. Closing his eyes, he replayed the moments he shared with his ex in his car. Marco had made a major shift in emotion as the night went on. Was it something he said? As he continued to overthink, he heard screaming outside his hall and down the hallway.

After the successful therapy session with Creed and Jokes and becoming a godmother for the first time, Natalia had all but returned back to her usual self. The worries that had plagued her the night before were still present, of course, but had been successfully tucked back into their respective boxes of repression. This wasn’t the time to crumble! It was all just another test to prove how strong the Belmonte girl really was! So what if Niles was dating her nemesis? She could do so much better than him anyway. Poppy finding out about her and Charlie? She’d cross that bridge when she got there. As for the regrets with Danny and her mom? These were things she could start working on right away. Tonight, even. Yeah, tonight seemed like a good time to start her self-betterment journey.

But first: gym time.

Decked out in leggings, sports bra and sneakers, Natalia was in the midst of packing the final items into her gym bag when she heard a commotion begin in the hallway and the room across her. Frowning, the young woman opened the door, and was instantly flabbergasted at the events unfolding in front of her eyes. Apparently her cousin had slept with Father Joe and was denying it-- which for some reason had Cat acting like she’d spat on her pasta. In the blink of an eye, Cat had slapped Tiff, Tiff had stormed away crying, Vivia had come to her cousin’s defense and Cat decided it was the perfect moment to shout out from the rooftops that her third youngest sister was dating ReyRey.

Oh fuck…

“CATERINA AND VIVIA, SCENDI QUI. ADESSO.” Tiziano Belmonte called out to his daughters, hearing more than enough of the conversation from upstairs. The whole neighborhood could hear it!

Rushing out of his bedroom, Danny ran out the door to see a sobbing Tiffannie clutching her reddened cheek, rushing to the guest bedroom and slamming the door shut while Cat chased Viv downstairs with so much wrath. “Is… everything-- actually, no. Nevermind. Don’t even bother.” That would be a dumb question because cleary nothing was okay in the Belmonte household. Instead of getting any answers, a scene was stirring downstairs in the living room, where most of their other family members were.

“Is it true?” Taz sternly asked Vivia, not removing himself from his man chair as he smoked his cigar, in the calmest of manners he could do at the moment, which wasn’t calm at all. His fourth youngest daughter didn’t respond. “Vivia Primavera Belmonte. I do not repeat myself.”

Vivia’s eyes sparked with the utmost anger and disdain for her older sister. It was none of her business of who she dated. It was no one’s business but her own. She was twenty three and her family were still policing who she could and could not be with. “I am.” She simply answered.

Instead of responding, Taz took in enough smoke to fill his mouth before blowing it out. He did this four more times, without responding. Slow puffs and simply enjoying the fragrance while never taking his eyes away from his daughter with golden locks.

Cat decided to break the silence by asking her father, “Did you hear about your niece?”

“Caterina.” Taz warned, saying her name in a tone she knew all too well. “Silenzio and mind your business.” Bringing his dark gaze back to his daughter, keeping the cigar in his mouth, moving his hands with his words, he asked, “And when were you going to tell me? How long has this been going on?”

Shrugging and shortly after crossing her arms, Vivia lied, “I didn’t think it was that important.”

“While I have nothing against the Gonzalez’s, you do realize what Reynaldo Gonzalez Junior does, right? You do realize his business is not our business, and I do not want it to become our business.” His smoking was now on auto-pilot as he waited for his daughter to respond, as most of his other children sat and watched, in silence. When Taz commanded silence, it was given.

Vivia was pushed between a rock and a hard place and she didn’t feel like she did anything wrong. “Lui mi ama, daddy. He loves me and he has taken good care of me for years.”

Taz’s eyebrows rose, “Years?” Clenching his jaws and holding the cigar between his fingers on his right side, Taz sat there, seething. “You know, your righteous sister-- yes, you, Caterina-- got pregnant before she secured anything stable in her life. Nina did too, but at least she introduced her man before… the pregnancy. And Nina, she’s always taken good care of me and your mother. Tua madre che è malata. All I’ve ever asked from you is to do right by the family. Do you think lying and sleeping with the leader of the serpents is doing right by the family?”

The fifth-born daughter of Taz and Silvia grimaced at her dad’s words. As bad as she felt about Vivia’s relationship getting exposed this way and her dad choosing to bring up every dishonorable action her older sisters had done, Natalia couldn’t help but feel relieved she wasn’t a part of the conversation. No matter how kind, polite and well-mannered her ex-boyfriend Creed had been, it was no secret that he was a known runner, enforcer and occasional dealer for the very same man her father felt so strongly about. The last thing she wanted was for anyone to bring up this tidbit of family history to the forefront.

Rather than getting herself involved in the developing drama, Tal chose to take a seat on the top step of the stairs: the prime location for eavesdropping on the downstairs conversations without being seen. Noticing that Danny was still hanging around his bedroom door, she offered her brother a commiserating grimace, and jerked her head in the direction of the empty space on the step beside her. He’d know what she wanted to say without words-- thank the twinsense for that.

With no argument, the muscular Belmonte took a seat beside his twin and furrowed his eyebrows. Everything was blowing out of proportion and the one that was paying the price was none of the members involved. No, it was their mother hopefully soundlessly sleeping in her bedroom. He looked at Natalia, in exasperation, in a way that asked her when was this all going to end? Ever since the shooting, their family was on edge and talking to a good handful of them was like walking in a land mine field.

“That’s fucking rich coming from you.” Vivia hissed at her father.

Oh, shit… Natalia said in her head, turning to Danny with her blue eyes wide as saucers. She wouldn't dare…? This was dangerous territory that Vivia was trying to embark in, and it wouldn’t get anywhere good.

“Vivia, per favore.” Elisabetta cut in, knowing exactly where her younger sister was going. Elisa had been sitting on the couch, watching a Disney movie with the kids. Now, though? She was at her younger sister’s side, trying to calm her down. Glancing to her husband, Salvio, she begged, “Honey, can you take the kids outside? The men in the family, including her husband, who was the most loved by Taz, took charge to get the kids out of this family feud. It was late but they’d make it work. What were fathers for?

“Please you, Elisa.” Vivia protested. “Dad acts all high and mighty when he is a bastardo!”

“HEY!” Caterina yelled at her sister. “You have no fucking right to talk about our time in New York. You were only FOUR, Vivia. Don’t act like you know how it was to live in a time where--”

“Where, what? Mom was going to divorce dad?”

“ABBASTANZA!” Taz loudly shouted, off the top of his lungs, done with all the disrespect. “Voi.” He angrily pointed at his only blonde daughter. “I’m sending you to your aunt. Tonight. You understand how much I’ve given to you? You think your life is cheap? Who’s card do you swipe when you need something? Not your boyfriend’s. No. You use my money. Sei fuori. Your mother does not need this, especially not from you. My niece is a better daughter than you.”

While all this happened, Nina looked between her sisters, rested her eyes on her father and waited in silence. It looked like she wanted to cry. Nina was the type of woman that carried the weight of the world on her shoulder, but instead she stood there hopelessly waiting to see what her father wanted her to do. Obedient through and through.

At his limit, Danny turned his attention back to Natalia, with grief and sadness in his eyes, not only because their family was falling apart, but yesterday was awful, “Hey.. you want to leave?” Please, let’s go, Natalia. This one time, can we agree on something?

Even if it hadn’t been plastered all over his face, Natalia could feel her brother’s pain. She’d been able to sense the ache plaguing her brother since the day of their mother’s devastating diagnosis. Out of the seven Belmonte children, she knew he was the one taking the situation the hardest. The bond he shared with Silvia as the only son was incomparable, so for him to be so distraught was to be expected. The fighting between their sisters, the worry of it wilting away the little health Silvia had, the fear of hearing their father revert back into how he was in the dark days before they were even born… It was suffocating. No wonder Danny wanted to leave-- and she'd definitely go with him.

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” she mumbled, getting up from her staircase seat and signaling to Danny that she’d be right back. The young woman returned to her bedroom just long enough to toss the last few items from before into her gym bag, swing the bag’s strap over her shoulder and walk right back out, locking her bedroom door in the process. With how extra nosy and on a warpath Caterina seemed to be, the wisest decision was to ensure her sister had no opportunities to enter the sanctity of her room in search for any dirt she could use now or at a later date.

Within five minutes the twins were back at the top of the stairs. Instead of going downstairs, a high percentage of getting noticed from any of their immediate family members, they went straight to the youngest Belmonte’s room.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

After Danny knocked, he whispered, “Mira, it’s Nat and me.”

They waited, there was no response. He reached for the knob and turned it. It was locked. Maybe she wasn’t home. He tried knocking again but this time a bit more forceful, hoping to God the screaming didn’t stop downstairs. After another long moment, it seemed like this was a lost cause, the twins looked at each other, coming to terms with they might as well just walk downstairs.

Just when they were about to give up, Mirabella unlocked her door and only opened it slightly, allowing them to peek at her face but that’s about it. “What?”

“Can we use your window? We’re trying to leave before we become targets.”

“I guess.” Closing the door, locking it once more, Danny listened carefully and heard a lot of motion going on in there. After another few minutes, Mira opened the door and beside her was… Marco’s sister, Marcela.

A knowing grin spread across Natalia’s face, growing wider as she looked between the two girls. The disheveled hair, the flushed cheeks, the messy sheets behind them... As someone who’d been in this same situation innumerable times before, she knew exactly what Mira and Marcy had been doing before their unceremonious interruption. In all honesty, she was more curious about what drew them to each other in the first place than anything else. Out of all the girls in school, Tal would’ve never guessed that Marcy would be her little sister’s type.

“Hey there, Marcy,” the Belmonte sister greeted their visitor, that smug smile still hanging on her lips.

“Hi, Natalia,” Marcela greeted her dryly from Mira’s side, rolling her eyes and letting out an annoyed huff. She couldn’t be less thrilled about the current interaction, and what it could possibly mean for her and her partner.

“Hanging out with my sister, I see,” Natalia continued, fighting back the urge to say more in typical big sister fashion and forcing herself to behave.

“Yeah, and? She’s my best friend. You know that better than anyone else.” Mira crossed her arms, really not in the mood to deal with her family. “You want the window? There it is.”

Danny looked between the three girls and honestly was confused at the hostility and teasing. Marcela was over all the time. This wasn’t an odd sight. “It’s good to see you Marcy! I’m actually…” Danny stopped himself from saying what he wanted to say. He didn’t want his sisters to know where he was going, even if Marcy knew about his relationship with her brother. “Nevermind. Um, say hi to your family for me.”

“Will do,” Marcy replied with a nod to Danny, her demeanor softening somewhat in a sort of silent understanding. Even if they had never confirmed it, the Brady girl knew that Marco and Danny had been friends in the same way she and Mirabella were. Whether his family knew about it or not was none of her business. What she could do was follow his lead, which meant acting as normal and unassuming as could be.

“YOU’RE NOT GOING TO SEND ME OFF! I’LL FUCKING RUN AWAY!”

“Porca miseria! Leave! But just know you walk out that door, you’re cut off, Vivia. Cut off. Capisci?!

“A fanabla!”

”Hey, please dad… she doesn’t mean it. I, uh. I’m going to check on mom.” Faintly, under all the other voices, the twins and the lovers could hear Ninetta try her best to defuse the fight, like she usually did. Danny could feel her voice cracking and knew how much this hurt her. She was the most like their mother. Incredibly soft hearted and loving. He could only imagine if his mother was awake how he was feeling.

Before Danny started registering his older sister walking up the stairs, Mira was quick to go to her window over her bed and lift it open. “Come on, before anyone sees you.” Swiftly, Danny was on his way out the window. Cautiously, he grabbed the vines and climbed down it. This was kind of hard when you were as swole as him. After he dropped to the floor, he waited at the bottom for Natalia.

Natalia wasted no time in doing the same, but not without saying a few parting words to her sister and her ‘best friend’. “Enjoy the rest of your night, lover girls,” she said with a smirk, shooting them a playful wink before grabbing the vines and gracefully climbing down after Danilo.

When Natalia reached the bottom, Danny helping her out a little, he found himself instinctively pulling her in a tight embrace. His body was tense, his eyes were heavy, and his heart hurt. All things Natalia could feel. “Our family is falling apart.” He whispered to his twin, desperate for some affirmation, some connection, some understanding. He was depressed not only because of his mother, his family, and his relationship with his twin. He was depressed because Jill still hated him. Lanie was likely leaving him. And Marco… his grip tightened on Natalia.

For a few seconds, Natalia remained motionless in her brother’s arms, trying to process what was currently happening. It had been years since the last time she and Danny had spoken more than two sentences to each other, and probably even longer since the last time they’d had any sort of physical, affectionate contact. The fact that it had been Danny the one to initiate it meant that he had reached his breaking point, and he was searching for comfort in the one person he’d never be able to trick or fool. He was hurting, he was depressed, and he was desperate… Just like she’d been the night before. It was all the confirmation Nat needed to put the thoughts from earlier into action.

Without wasting any more time, Natalia wrapped her arms around her twin, holding him as tightly as he was her. “You know I love you, right?” she heard herself whispering back to Danny, planting a soft kiss on his cheek while her eyes filled with emotional tears. “For better or worse, I’ve got you. No matter how hard or painful or heartbreaking things get, you know I’ve got you. I’ll always, always be here for you. Always.” She was quiet for a moment, still silently crying and holding her brother. Eventually, Nat took a few deep breaths before adding in choked words, “And I really am sorry for ever making you feel like you didn’t have anybody in your corner.”

Biting his tongue, feeling emotion building in his chest, Danny dropped the strong build and mask. Finally, he revealed to his twin how defeated he felt since he broke up with Marco, since the shooting, since he failed his family, his friends, his best friend, and his ex lover. Danny wasn’t a man, he would never be man enough, and he was completely and utterly useless.

He couldn’t save them then and he couldn’t save them now while all the letters revealed terrible secrets. “I’m not a good person…” He muttered, looking away from her, ashamed of himself and guilty of all his past deeds. His fear living rent free in his heart. His worst enemy was no one but himself and with all this noise, with his mother dying, with secrets unraveling, with his family stabbing each other like there weren't bigger problems, he deflated. He was the only son of Tiziano Belmonte and all he could offer was weakness. “All I do is hurt people.”

“I guess it runs in the family, then,” the girl observed with a bitter laugh, wiping away the tears on her face. "As much as we hate it and we wish we could, we can't change the past, Danny. We've all done our share of things we wish we could take back. You don't think I don't feel guilty about stuff I did in the past, and how it's messing things up for me in the future? I mean, you're the perfect example of that. I pushed you away for years because I felt like you were replacing me with Caitlin and Jill, cutting you off from my life and hurting you in the process-- and you see where that got us," she told him, cupping his face with her hands and gently forcing him to look at her.

The regret for her past actions was clear. "Showing weakness and making mistakes doesn't make you a bad person, Hoops: it makes you a human. All we can do is learn from them and use them to make things right: just like I'm doing with you right now. Making the same mistakes over and over again and not learning from them? That's a bad person to me-- which you're obviously not, because a bad person wouldn't admit they're a bad person, you know?"

Silence was all that could be heard for the next minute. Danilo processed what his twin said and could feel the pain in his heart, her heart, grow worse. He was relieved to know the truth, but it didn’t change his mistake of hurting her in the past. “I’m sorry.” In the end, that’s all he could think of. All he could think of was ‘sorry’.

Natalia shook her head. "I'm the one who's sorry, Danny. I was immature and an idiot, and I should've said something long before today."

“I’m sorry I didn’t go to you. I…” was going through a lot “I don’t know how to explain it but I didn’t mean to hurt you. I love you, Natalia.” He gave a warm, yet exhausted smile, “Thank you for opening up to me. I want to be better. Do better. For us.” He brought his finger to Natalia’s cheek and gently wiped a tear away. “You’ll always be my twin. No one can take that away from you.”

"I guess we're stuck with each other, aren't we? Natalia chuckled, giving her brother a watery, apologetic smile. "I promise I'll try to be better too. I don't know how far I'll make it, but I promise I'll try," she told him, bestowing a kiss on Danny's forehead. "I love you, baby brother. We'll get through everything together." she declared, letting her promise hang in the air for a moment before embracing her brother under the stars once again.

What Are You Listening To?

Delbrook Academy High School

If face claim reservations are allowed, putting mine down right now:



FC: Brec Bassinger || Color: #eac55d || I'll be going for the popular girl (feminist with an attitude) trope and, if allowed, possibly head cheerleader (or high on the cheerleading hierarchy, at least).

@metanoia

And I'll bring in Tiff 🥰

Delbrook Academy High School

Maybe 👀

Palm Beach Royals: Class Reunion (Shelved)

Time: 8:30 PM
Location: H2O Suites’ Rooftop Deck
Attire: Smart Casual. Women wear short dresses, men are allowed jeans with button-down shirts and dress shoes.

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The sun was just starting the process to set in the horizon when the clock signaled eight in the evening. The 2012 graduates of King’s Academy would soon make their way to the hotel’s rooftop deck area, where the first official event of the reunion weekend would take place. Marie-Alexandra Hodges, ever the perfectionist, had made sure the reception area was nothing short of a vision for her guests. A set of string lights helped illuminate the poolside space, giving the area a cozy, fun feel. Sleek round bar tables had replaced the poolside lounge chairs, each of them with a maximum occupancy meant for two people, and the outdoor sofas remained available for use in the area. Floating on the pool were at least ten LED-illuminated beach balls, giving the atmosphere a more fun, casual feel. Hotel employees dressed in crisp, short-sleeved white shirts and khaki dress pants would begin circling the perimeter as soon as the guests arrived, handing out small plates of delicate hors d'oeuvres and glasses of water while taking orders for the bar. On the north side of the venue was the bar, with four chairs available for use and stoked with liquors of all kinds. But, of course, the true pièce de résistance was the deep blue waters of the Atlantic, stretching out beautifully into the horizon.

The sound of the shifting waves laced together with the music coming from the speakers filled the absence of conversation as the clock continued to tick away the seconds. It was only a matter of time before the former students of King’s Academy would make their long-awaited arrivals.