Chapter 1 #2
Italy. The heat is unreal. I swear my eyeballs are melting. I can feel my soul sweating.
I grab my shirt and start fanning myself, but it does absolutely nothing. My whole existence is currently liquefying. I drop my suitcase in front of me and hunch over my phone, trying to shade the screen with my hand so I can read Daisy's directions.
Daisy is my older sister.
But with this sun? I can't see shit.
I hear a loud car horn and I jump. I swear Daisy really wants me dead before I even make it home.
I drag my suitcase toward her white car. She's got both hands on the wheel. Her sunglasses are halfway down her nose, like she's spying on me over the top.
Jin, my younger brother, is in the backseat.
How the hell did they convince him to come? This dude gets bored by oxygen. I'm betting Daisy bribed him with some limited-edition nonsense.
I get close and both of them climb out. Daisy hugs me first, so tight I swear I see the afterlife for a second.
But I smile, because honestly? Meetings aside… yeah.
I missed them.
"Welcome, you little shit," she says. "I missed you."
"I missed you too. A little," I answer.
She punches my shoulder. "Unfortunately, you made it," Jin adds. "They said you might miss your flight. I got my hopes up."
I drop my bag by his feet. "Missed you too, bro."
Daisy sighs like she's already exhausted by us. I grin and throw my bag into the backseat before sliding into the passenger seat.
The leather burns the shit out of my skin, but I don't bother complaining.
It's Italy during summer. Everything is burning.
As Daisy pulls out of the airport, I glance at her. "So where are mom and dad? Kind of weird how he didn't show up just to throw me into a meeting straight from the runway."
Daisy smirks. "Oh, don't worry. You'll be at your first one by the end of the day."
I groan. "I wanna cry. Why don't they ever bother you? Why is it always ME?"
"Because, our dad is unfortunately the classic old-school, European, traditional, sexist, and very much homophobic father," she says.
"Boys are superior, boys know more, women belong in the house. Only work builds men, meh meh meh."
I cringe so hard I want to eject myself from the car.
She's not wrong. And honestly? I'm not exactly proud of him either. He's embarrassed us more times than I can count. The things he says in public, the arguments he starts, the way he tries to convince everyone that he is the one with the right opinions.
"So yeah," Daisy continues, shrugging. "I make plans with mom. I don't give him any attention." She points at me. "You, on the other hand, are cooked, brother."
"Shut up," I mutter, covering my face. "Let's not talk about this anymore." Jin leans forward, propping his chin on the back of my headrest. "You know," he muses, "I kinda still think I'd be a better heir than you."
I scoff. "How? You're only sixteen." He shrugs. "And?"
I turn to look at him. "And if you want the job so bad, be my fucking guest. I'll even print you a nameplate."
He hums, pretending to think about it, then sits back. "Nah. I have a life."
I snort, rolling down the window as the warm wind rushes in. I'm in one of the nicest countries on the planet and somehow, I'm still about to have the most miserable summer of my life.
Daisy turns up the music, claiming that "Mestral" is her favorite song.
I lean back, looking outside. We pass by a familiar neon sign. "Huh." I tilt my head. "That ice cream place is still open?! Thought it'd be gone by now. Wow." Daisy turns around with a grin. "That's a sign. We have to stop."
Jin scoffs. "Damn, Rava. You sound ancient. 'Back in my day, this place used to be—'"
I flip him off. "Go do your homework." We step out, and the heat slaps me again. Shit. As we approach the crosswalk, Jin moves first, but my arm instinctively shoots out, stopping him. "Wait, you dumb idiot!"
A motorcycle tears through the intersection, moving so fast it barely seems real.
Two police cars speed after him, sirens wailing.
The three of us stand there, completely frozen. The whole thing lasts maybe three seconds, but it feels stretched out. I'm probably half deaf right now. "Holy shit," Jin mutters.
Daisy lets out a low, impressed hum.
"Damn," she murmurs, "that was… kinda hot."
I snap my head toward her, incredulous. "I hope they catch him." Daisy just smirks. "Yeah… they're not catching him."
I whip my head toward her. "What does that even mean?! If nobody stops him, he's gonna die doing that shit."
We step inside the ice cream shop mid-rant. Finally, cold air. Actual mercy.
"Stop being a Karen," Daisy says, flicking her hair while checking the flavors. "You like bikes. You used to doodle them everywhere. Why draw them if you hated them? Huh?"
I stare at her. This woman really dug up my entire childhood for this argument.
"I didn't like them," I hiss. "I don't like them now. I will NEVER like them. I was practicing my drawing. On everything." I lean closer, lowering my voice. "By that logic… since Jin keeps drawing dicks on his desk and giggling to himself like a psycho, does that mean he—"
A cookie gets stuffed straight into my mouth.
"Eat it and shut up," Jin says. "Dicks are funny."
I chew aggressively, glaring at both of them while we pay and head back to the car. Daisy starts the engine.
"Alright, troops. Five minutes till we're home. Get your souls ready."
...
Five minutes later, the car rolls to a stop. Daisy parks, hops out, and both she and Jin start grabbing my things to help me.
I see my dad, standing at the entrance like a museum statue, checking his watch like I'm late for my own execution.
Tell me I'm a bad person, go on, but yeah, I show up already pissed, already biased, and already mentally exhausted.
I come here pre-annoyed.
But the second I actually look at the house… it hits me weird. I soften a little and tense up at the same time. This place holds both the best memories I have and the ones that still kick me in the teeth at night.
I walk up to him slowly. He's dressed formal, inside the house, like he's expecting royalty instead of… just me.
Rava.
I lean in and give him a careful hug. "Finally, home," he says, patting my back. "How was the trip?"
"Long. Hot." I pull away, squinting up at him. "You look more like a fisherman every time I see you."
He laughs. "And you look like you've been locked in a library for months."
"I mean… that's not too far from the truth,"
I admit, stretching my arms. "Where's mom?"
"Inside, cooking. You hungry?" That's when I smell it… roasted potatoes.
Jesus Christ. It takes me straight back to childhood summers, running barefoot on sunburnt tiles, sneaking bites of food before dinner.
I wipe the sweat from my forehead, grab the rest of my bags, and follow my dad inside.
I feel like I'm twelve again. I haven't been back to Italy much these past years, like, what, twice?
Three times max. I was always drowning in assignments, deadlines, practicum hours…
there was never time. So they came to Canada instead. A lot. Especially mom.
God, I missed this house. My place back home is all dark colors, calm, muted. This one? Bright everywhere.
I walk into the kitchen. The second I see mom, I can't help but smile. She throws her arms up while still holding a wooden spoon. "There he is! My baby!" She practically tackles me with a hug.
"Rava, I missed you so much," she says, squeezing the life out of me. I wrap my arms around her and run my hand through her hair.
"I missed you too, mom." She pulls back to look at me and does the classic mom stare.
"Oh my God, Rava. What are they feeding you over there? You get more handsome every time I see you."
I adjust my glasses, tug on my shirt, trying not to look like a melted tourist.
"Mom, I don't look handsome right now. I literally look like I survived a war. You don't have to lie."
"I'm not lying," she snaps. "When your hair looks terrible and sticks up everywhere, I tell you."
"…Okay, fair."
"I know," she smirks.
"I'm gonna take a quick shower and come back," I say, stepping toward the hallway.
"Yes, go! Food is almost ready."
Up in my room, I drop my bag by the bed and sit on the mattress. The window is open just a crack, letting in a gentle, nice breeze. I stand and walk over to it, pushing it open wider. The view is exactly how I remember it, the sea in the distance, the long main road stretching out below.
…Wait a damn minute. There is a whole-ass house next to ours. A giant one. This wasn't here.
This plot used to be dead grass and a sad goalpost where Jin and I played soccer until someone cried.
Usually, me.
But this? Someone definitely tried to one-up us. It looks like a honeymoon Airbnb for influencers, or a bachelor party mansion where someone inevitably ends up in jail.
I'm not bothered. Totally unbothered. Zen.
Except… the house is so close I might as well wave good morning to the neighbor while I'm changing underwear.
At this point we should just share closets. And food.
My phone buzzes. Sophia.
"Hey!" I answer.
"Heeey," she says. "How was the flight?"
"God, a mess," I breathe out. "Don't even ask.
The guy next to me cried the entire way.
I don't know what his life story was, but I felt bad.
" I pause, remembering. "Then they served food though, and suddenly he was fine.
Whatever trauma he had? Gone. Cured instantly.
It was kinda adorable actually," I laugh.
"I should go," she says, cutting me off mid-sentence. Her tone changes. "Oh. Why?"
"I just—I’ll call you later, okay?" And then she hangs up.
I frown at the phone, confused. That was… weird.
She didn't even say goodbye.
Every insecure neuron in my brain wakes up at once. Was I annoying? Maybe I over-shared. I don't know.
Maybe she was busy. Anyway. Great start.