Chapter 1 #13
"I'm in," Noah says without even hesitating. "You say jump, I ask how high, then do a backflip."
"Okay, acrobat. Let me feed my child and then I'm calling Gio," I say. "We're not letting this go."
"Good," Noah says. "Text me details. Dude..."
"Yeah?"
"See? You're a genius. You are not stupid. I love you. And you're not an idiot. Just soft," he says. "We'll fix it."
I swallow, smiling a little. "Love you too. Talk soon." I hang up, put the phone down, and look at Antonio, who is now zooming the car into his bowl.
I scoop up another spoonful and sit back down in front of him. "Sorry I took so long, bean," I say, blowing on it a little. "Something very good just happened."
He looks up at me with his mouth already open, then pauses. "What happen, Dada?"
Right. Words. Carefully.
I feed him the spoon first, buy myself three seconds while he chews. "So," I start, "Yesterday some... bad people came and made a big mess in our house."
He nods, more serious now. "Make boom boom," he says, doing little explosion hands. "Yeah," I huff. "Exactly. They made boom boom."
I think for a second, searching for something that doesn't sound like a horror movie. "Well," I say, "there are special rooms in the world. Big, strong rooms. With big doors. And those rooms are only for people who hurt others. You know? People who steal, or hit, or are really mean to others."
He frowns. "Like time-out time!"
I smile a little. "Kind of. But, like, super time-out. Grown-up time-out. They can't go play, they can't go to the park, they can't go for ice cream. They just stay there with other bad grown-ups." "In the room?" he asks.
"In the room," I confirm. "With the other bad people. So they can't hurt anyone else."
He thinks about it, lips pushed together. I give him another spoonful. "Is scary?" he asks after he swallows.
"For them?" I shrug. "Probably a little. But for us? No. For us it's good. Because it means they're not near our house anymore. They're not near you, or Daddy, or Blu, or Lulu. They're far away, in their special 'you were bad' room."
He nods slowly, taking that in. "We just found something that might help put them in that room. So they can't break more houses. Or scare more kids. Or make more mess."
His eyes widen. "You put them?"
I can't help smiling. "Me, Daddy, Noah and Lorenzo are all gonna try, yeah. Daddy is very strong," I say. "And he has a lot of friends. And Noah is very clever. And Lorenzo is very annoying. So together, they're like... super team."
"Superheroes?" Antonio says.
"Yeah," I say. He grins, then gets serious again. "They come back?" he asks quietly.
"The bad guys?" My stomach squeezes, but I keep my face calm. "No," I say firmly. "We're not gonna let them come back. You're safe, bean. I promise. Daddy will protect you, and I will too."
He relaxes a bit at that. "Okay," he says. "They go room."
"Exactly," I nod. "They go room, we stay home. That's the deal." He crashes the toy car into the side of his bowl. "Vroom go room," he announces.
I laugh. "No, vroom stays with you. Vroom is good boy. Vroom never steals."
"Vroom is baby," he says, hugging it to his chest with one arm while I sneak another spoon into his mouth. "You know what I was thinking," I say casually, "when all this is over, and we're calm..."
He blinks at me, already interested. "What?"
"Maybe," I draw it out, "we can get you a new car." His jaw drops. "New vroom??"
"New vroom," I nod. "Not instead of this one. This one stays forever. This is OG vroom. But maybe we can get him a friend. Like... a purple one. Or a blue one. Or one that makes real noises."
He lights up.
"Purple. And blue. And black," he says immediately.
"Oh, okay, we're starting a dealership," I say. "Antonio Motors."
He giggles. "I give Daddy vroom," he says seriously, holding up the toy. "He no cry."
"That's very sweet," I say, leaning in to kiss his cheek. "He'll love that. But first, you have to finish your breakfast. Superheroes don't fight crime on an empty stomach."
"I superhero?" he asks.
"Of course you are. You're like… Antonio 'Vroom' Rossi. Like Valentino Rossi. The bravest bean in the world."
He grins, opens his mouth wide for the spoon.
25) Skittles Under The Rainbow
Rava
The door unlocks and Gio walks in with Blu.
"Hi," I say, getting up immediately. I lean in and kiss his cheek, smiling way too much. "Gio, I'm a genius."
He starts laughing right away. "Until half an hour ago you were calling yourself stupid. What changed?"
"No, no, listen to me," I say, waving my hands. "I'm a genius. Sit down."
"You're scaring me," he says. "Wait, let me feed Blu and I'll come back." He heads into the kitchen. I plop back down at the table and start tapping my fingers on the corner of it, trying not to vibrate out of my own skin from excitement.
Antonio copies me with his tiny hands, tapping his own little rhythm and staring at me. Gio comes back, leans over Antonio from behind and kisses his face all over.
His cheeks, his neck, his forehead, until Antonio bursts into giggles and grabs his hair to drag his head down in front of him. "Okay, okay," Gio laughs, letting himself be manhandled. He scoops Antonio up and sits, putting him on his lap so they're both right next to me.
It's still so weird how much Antonio already looks like him. It's the expressions. The confused face. Copy fucking paste. I'm basically living with two versions of the same confused man. That's a blessing, honestly.
"So," Gio says, resting his chin on Antonio's shoulder, both of them looking at me. "What's the news? Why are you a genius?"
"Listen," I say, super proud of myself. "I noticed something on that guy. The tall one. He had a tattoo on his arm and there was no hair on that spot. It was shaved, right?"
"Yeah," Gio nods slowly. "Which means," I raise a finger, "he did that tattoo recently. So what did I do?"
Gio's eyes narrow.
"I called Noah. I described the guy—"
"Don't tell me," Gio cuts in, already grinning. I stare at him in full silence and nod once.
He starts laughing, almost hysterically. "No shit!"
"No shit," I echo, grinning. "Noah did the tattoo. On him. And he has a second appointment with him tomorrow."
Gio is just staring at me now, mouth slightly open. "That's not all," I say, leaning in, buzzing. "Listen to what I thought."
"Go on, mastermind."
"We'll get Lorenzo to book a tattoo at the same time," I say. "Same slot. He'll sit right next to him. Marco will go too, hanging around as 'moral support'."
Antonio copies my hand gestures, absolutely lost but very involved.
"Noah is gonna act like he's venting," I continue.
"He'll say something like, 'Some friends of mine got robbed the other day, poor things, thank God they didn't touch the desk.
' Something like that. Make it sound casual, like he's just gossiping. "
Gio squints. "Because...?"
"Because, Mister Genius Thief hears: There's important stuff at their desk. You know how they think. They will see it as a second chance. A free shot."
Gio's mouth curves. "You think he'll actually go back?"
"I think thieves who get in that easily and leave that much behind, will be tempted. Especially if they think everyone's gone and there's still something worth taking."
Gio is listening so closely now that even Antonio goes quiet.
"So," I go on, "we'll already have called the cops.
In a 'we have solid info about the guys who robbed us and a probable second attempt, you might want to be ready' way.
We ask some of Marco's people to do a little drive-by 'patrol' near the old house," I say.
"Civilians but keeping eyes open. If the guys show up, our people spot them, notify the cops immediately. The cops swoop in, catch them in the act or right after, and boom. We nail them. Solid."
I sit back, feeling very pleased. "We get our stuff back, they get their big-boy time-out."
Gio just stares at me for a beat. Antonio pokes his cheek. "Dada is genius," he declares randomly, and I almost choke laughing.
"See?" I say, pointing at Antonio. "The child knows."
Gio finally laughs, shaking his head. "Okay, okay. I'm not gonna lie, that's... actually smart as fuck."
"I told you I'm a genius," I say, grinning. He looks impressed and a little amused. "And the best part is that Duke guy has no idea we're all connected. He thinks Noah is just some random tattoo artist. He doesn't know he literally walked into our circle."
Gio leans back, still holding Antonio. "You really thought this through, damn."
"Look," I say. "If I was dumb enough to invite them in, I'm at least gonna be smart enough to help throw them out of everyone's lives."
Antonio crashes his car on the table and shouts, "Boom!"
"Exactly," I say, tapping his little car. "Boom."
Gio suddenly reaches out, takes my face in both hands and pulls me in for a kiss. I smile against his mouth before pulling back just enough to look at him.
"So..." I say, searching his eyes. "Will you forgive me if my plan actually works?"
He huffs out a laugh through his nose. "If it doesn't work, I'll still forgive you," he says. "I'll be pissed until we figure out another way to catch them, but I'll forgive you."
I grin. "Okay," I say. "Then we're gonna pull it off."
"Now we draw," Antonio announces.
Gio gasps dramatically. "You're right. It's time, king. It's been way too long since someone did a portrait of me."
He looks at me when he says that and I almost blush. Almost. He remembers the Spain one.
"What is... potait?" Antonio asks, tripping over the word, and we both burst out laughing.
"A portrait," I say, ruffling his hair. "It means you'll draw Dada, you, and Daddy. Can you do that?"
Antonio nods, so seriously you'd think we just hired him for an important job. "Perfect," I say, standing up. "Let's go."
Gio gets up too, swinging Antonio onto his hip, and the three of us head toward the living room. I bring all of Antonio's art stuff into the living room.
Well, all the stuff I managed to shove into a bag when we left the other house. I dump it on the coffee table. Crayons, markers, some colored pencils, a slightly bent sketchbook, stickers that will definitely end up on the furniture. The essentials.
"First we do Dada," Antonio announces, climbing onto the couch. I laugh, way too proud.
"Wow. Honored," Gio says. "Alright. That's how it is. I'll remember this." He's acting offended. He's smiling though.
"After Dada, I do Daddy," Antonio says, focused, grabbing a marker. "Of course," Gio nods. "Obviously."
"And then Blu," Antonio adds.
I blink. "And you're not gonna draw yourself?"
"No," he says casually, already drawing, tongue sticking out a bit.
"Why not?" I ask, laughing.
He shrugs. "I don't draw babies."
Both me and Gio just freeze. Then we look at each other with our eyes wide and our jaws dropped before bursting out laughing. "I'm sorry, what?" Gio chokes out. "You don't draw WHAT?"
"Babies," Antonio repeats calmly, like this is a known rule of the universe.
Gio leans forward, hand over his chest. "Excuse me, sir. You are not a baby. You're a whole man. A whole guy. I demand a drawing of you, mister. It's my right as a parent."
Antonio sighs like we're so exhausting. "Okay, Daddy," he mumbles, giving in. "The first one is ready," he declares after about twenty seconds, grabbing the paper and handing it to me with both hands.
"Let's see," I say, taking it carefully.
On the page there's... something. Big round head. Two dots for eyes. A massive smile. Spiky lines on top that I assume are hair. Tiny stick body with long, long legs.
One arm is suspiciously longer than the other, holding what looks like... a spoon? Or a sword. Or a toothbrush.
Honestly, it's open to interpretation. "That's you, Dada," he says proudly. "You're happy."
"Wow," I say, genuinely impressed. "I love it. You made me super tall, too. Respect."
Gio leans in to look. "Damn, he really gave you model legs. Look at that. The power."
"This is going in a frame," I announce. "I'm not kidding."
"In the new house," Gio adds. "Front and center. Hallway gallery. First thing people see: Rava long-legs."
Antonio giggles, kicking his real short legs. "Okay," I say, handing it back carefully.
"Now you do Daddy." Gio sits up straighter, smoothing his hair. "Make sure you capture my best angles," he says. "I want cheekbones."
"Chick... bones??" Antonio repeats, confused. That look again. The 'Gio' look.
"Don't worry about him," I tell Antonio. "Just draw him like you see him."
He nods seriously and then gets to work. Gio watches him, studying his every move. "Is there a motorcycle in the drawing?" Gio asks.
"No," Antonio says.
"Tragic," Gio mutters. "It’s fine. But remember," he adds, poking his shoulder lightly, "I want a drawing of you too. No more 'I don't draw babies'. I'm gonna sue."
Antonio rolls his eyes in the most dramatic way, but he's smiling.
"Where did he learn that?" I whisper.
Gio just points at me. Antonio lifts his head after a moment. "Done," he says, handing the new paper to Gio.
Gio takes it like it's a legal document. "Oh my God. Why do my eyes look like I've seen every bad thing that has ever happened in this universe AND I'm about to see more."
"That's Daddy," Antonio insists.
"Baby, that is tax season," Gio says. "This man has anxiety, and zero savings."
I'm wheezing. He moves on to the body. "Man... where is my torso," he says. "Why do I have one spaghetti line for a neck and then nothing. No chest, no shoulders. I'm basically a lollipop."