Chapter 1 #4
Gio coughs awkwardly. "Let's not talk about me," he says.
"How did you two meet?" Bianca's mom brightens immediately.
"Oh! It's really funny actually. We met in a bookstore!
I was buying this cheesy romance novel and Carlo came over to recommend another one.
And he knew ALL the tropes and all the authors, it was adorable. "
He was probably looking for gay fiction.
"We actually weren't even supposed to date at first!" she says, laughing. "His family kept telling him it was 'time to settle down,' and we hung out a few times, and we clicked.
Then I found out I was pregnant much earlier than expected, so everything happened fast."
…I stare at her. I stare at Carlo. I stare back at her.
I'm gonna jump out the window.
The poor woman has NO idea. None. She's smiling like her life is a rom-com when her husband is currently giving mine heart eyes and gay Morse code from across my damn living room.
Woman. Wake up. Please. I'm begging you.
Your husband wants my husband.
I glance at Carlo and he's nodding along with her story like "haha yes babe totally, that's exactly how it happened," while ALSO checking out Gio's shoulders every five seconds.
Disgusting. Vile. I want to shake her shoulders and scream, YOU THINK YOU CLICKED??? No babe, he clicked with men, he just legally committed to you.
God, I feel bad for her. Gio taps the couch beside him. A little "come closer" gesture with his fingers that lowkey says save me before I strangle him.
I slide closer and he immediately hooks his arm around my waist. He smiles at them. "What a sweet story," he says. The wife beams. "I know! It's CRAZY that you two know each other. Did you hang out a lot back then?"
"No." "Yes."
They answer at the same time. Gio said the no. Carlo said the yes. "No, we didn't hang out," Gio corrects quickly. "I was living in Spain that year."
Yeah. You didn't hang out. You just exchanged bodily fluids. If I scream, will anyone stop me?
The wife nods, and there's this weird silence where everyone looks at anything except each other.
She claps her hands suddenly. "So! Rava!
You're a teacher, right?" I smile, relieved to have a normal topic.
"Yes! I honestly love my job. I'd love to have Bianca as a student someday. I'd take really good c—"
"Well how are YOU two even together?" Carlo cuts in, laughing. "No offense! You guys have completely different minds. Total opposites. Like day and night."
...
How does he know Gio's mind? Why does he THINK he knows Gio's mind? I swallow the urge to throw the ice cream bowl at him.
The wife elbows him lightly. "Carlo, stop."
I force a smile. "I'm not sure what you mean by that, Carlo," I say, sweet. "We actually have a LOT in common. And we have... a really, really good time together. Promise." I add, sliding my hand over Gio's knee for effect.
"Honestly, I think what's saved us as a couple is that we don't have secrets. None. I know all of his secrets. And he knows all of mine."
Gio tightens his arm around my waist. Carlo nods.
…
These were the most uncomfortable hours of my entire life. I swear. Pure torture. Every time I looked at Carlo's face, my brain instantly replayed images I did NOT ask for, like some cursed slideshow.
And I hate it. I hate that I can't stop my imagination. I know I shouldn't react like this, he had every right to have a life. He was nineteen, in another country, I wasn't even a thought in his mind.
He didn't know what the future held. Neither did I.
But now that we're married and he's mine, thinking about Gio with someone else makes me want to curl up and scream into a pillow.
And obviously I don't blame him. He didn't know I was gonna randomly bring his past to our doorstep. I didn't know who I was inviting into my home either. Nobody warned me.
There wasn't a label on him saying "Hi! I've licked your husband!"
Hours finally crawl by, and it's time for them to leave. Thank God. If they stayed any longer, I'd develop a stress rash. We're at the door and Bianca's mom smiles.
"You two are honestly the sweetest. I'd love for us to meet again, let the little ones keep growing their little romance."
Yeah. No. Absolutely not.
I'm not planning on becoming in-laws with my husband's ex-situationship. Bianca can be Antonio's sweet little friend, sure, but wife? Over my dead, burned body.
Then Carlo picks up Antonio. Antonio giggles. Carlo does this little baby-talk thing with him. Then he hands Antonio to Gio in this soft, slow way.
Ew. Ew ew ew.
I literally feel my skin crawl. We wave and shut the door behind them. Gio bends down to Antonio's level, brushing his fingers through his hair. "Alright, bean, go inside and start picking up your toys, okay? I'll come help you in a minute."
Antonio looks up at both of us.
"We're... not gonna play together?"
Gio laughs. "Of course we will. I'm in the mood to play. Just wait for us, okay?" Antonio nods and runs off. The moment the kid disappears down the hall, Gio turns to me and shoves me.
"Hey what are you—"
Before I can finish, he pushes me onto the couch and throws himself on top of me.
His arms are now wrapped fully around my waist, right under my back, squeezing tight. His head drops onto my stomach. "I'm so sorry, Ravioli," he mumbles into my shirt. "I feel awful."
I slide my fingers into his hair, stroking the back of his head again and again.
"Gio," I whisper, "don't apologize for having a life before me. I don't blame you. Even if it's... gross. Very gross."
He groans dramatically and buries his face deeper into my stomach. "I know, but still. That was so awkward. And I felt so uncomfortable for you the whole time."
"Me too," I admit. "But we didn't know. Neither of us did. It just... happened. We ran into him by chance."
My hand keeps moving through his hair. He melts into it. "Please don't ever invite him again," Gio mutters. "Fuck no. The audacity alone was enough. Never again."
"Great," he sighs. "Now let's go play with our son."
"Agreed," I say, leaning down to kiss the top of his head. "Let's go be normal parents again."
12) Christmas Trip pt. 1
Rava
Why did no one tell me Lorenzo owns a whole damn chalet in Trentino?!
"I swear I didn't know he had a vacation house," I say to Gio while stuffing a fire truck into the toy bag.
"You did know," he shoots back instantly. "You were drunk when we talked about it. Where do you think he lived before moving here?"
Oh. Right. I nod like an idiot. "Makes sense. Didn't think about it."
Lorenzo invited all of us to spend Christmas at his place in Trentino because our parents ditched us for some business trip in Spain. And we have never stayed under one roof like this.
Me. Gio. Antonio. Lorenzo. Marco. Noah. Daisy. Valentina. Jin. AND the pets. Lorenzo's hamsters, Lulu, and Blu.
I'm not exaggerating. I'm terrified.
This sounds like a documentary about household chaos waiting to happen. One thing I am excited about is cooking. Cooking for a whole group. Finally trying all the recipes I've been saving.
I live for this.
I throw on my jacket, then crouch to help Antonio into his. Gio starts laughing immediately. "Antonio, you look like a little basketball with that puffy coat, you know that?"
I whip my head toward him, mouth hanging open while I wrap my arms protectively around Antonio. "You're making fun of our baby? SHAME ON YOU."
We both crack up, and Gio scoops Antonio into his arms. "You happy to see snow for the first time?" he asks. Antonio nods so hard his hood flops forward.
My baby. He's never seen snow. He's so tiny. I might actually cry.
We hear Noah's horn from three streets away. I swear, I can identify that man's car just from how aggressively he honks and by the rhythm.
They wanted all of us to leave together, with Lorenzo leading the way so we don't get lost during the three-hour drive.
I'm carrying Antonio on one hip, his bag on my other arm, AND Blu's leash.
Gio... is carrying everything else. Like a mule.
With Lulu draped over his shoulder like a diva scarf.
I knock on Noah's window. He rolls it down while he and Marco are full-on dancing to Pitbull like they're in a Miami club.
They're insane. "Hello, Fontana family," Noah sings.
Valentina's in the backseat, relaxing like a queen. Gio leans in. "Open the back window, I wanna ask Valentina something."
Oh no. Here we go.
Noah presses the button, the window rolls down, and Gio bends down. "Hi."
Valentina laughs immediately. "Yes, Gio. I did everything. I drank my water, I ate real food, I took my vitamins, I didn't lift anything heavy, I slept, I breathed, I didn't touch coffee, I didn't get stressed, nothing exploded, you can relax."
I'm dying. She roasted him in one breath. "Uhhh... that's not what I was gonna say?" Gio mutters.
"Oh? Then what were you gonna say?" she teases. Gio looks around like he's searching for an excuse in the air molecules. "I wanted to ask if you, um, still have that game on your phone? That we played the other day..."
"...Sudoku?!"
"YES. Yeah. That. Whatever. I just remembered.
Bye." I'm laughing as we walk toward Lorenzo and Daisy's car.
Absolute chaos already. "AYYYYY!" Lorenzo yells from the driver's seat.
"FINALLY. You're done. Thank God. Will you leave Antonio with me so I have someone to talk to?
Daisy's gonna be puking every five minutes. "
Daisy holds up a peace sign and giggles. She's so cute. "Am I not enough for you, you bitch??" Jin says, nudging Lorenzo's shoulder as he gets in.
"Bro, you're on your phone so much I forget you exist sometimes," Lorenzo fires back.
"Shut up," Jin says. "I'm invested in a book."
"You're gonna finish it later," Lorenzo snaps. "If you get carsick and throw up in my car, I'm throwing you out on the highway."
Jin rolls his eyes. "I won't get carsick if YOU don't drive like a championship racer."