Chapter 28
Vico
Throughout the entire walk to Camilla's house, despite Pietro's lively chatter, I can't shake my image of Hanna in Florian's arms. I see her smiling happily, him kissing her cheek and then her lips.
A shiver runs down my spine.
"What do you think? Can we do it this way?" Pietro suddenly asks in a deafening volume.
I turn my head to him. "Hmm?" I reply because I can't remember what he asked of me just now.
He puts his arm around my shoulders. "You seem pretty taken with her."
Taken with her? Me? As unbelievable as it is, he might be right. Nevertheless, I respond with a dismissive gesture. "Nonsense. She's taken, so…"
"Well, the way she was gazing at you behind the house… man, I'm telling you…" He winks at me and playfully punches my side.
So Pietro saw it too. It wasn't just my imagination. There was something between Hanna and me. Something so strong that I was ready to throw all principles out the window.
I wanted to kiss her. And find out if this could be the exact future for both of us that she envisioned in her fantasy.
"Quite possible there's something there," I admit, and at the same time, I wonder why I'm saying this. "But that's not the point. You saw him. With his ridiculous roses and that silly grin." I hear bitterness in my voice. I'm probably being unfair to Florian, but I can't suppress the nagging jealousy inside me.
We head toward Camilla's bungalow. "Yes, he was there," Pietro unnecessarily confirms, as if I didn't already know what that meant. "But I could swear Hanna didn't look thrilled at all."
"Do you think?" Could that be the truth? I go back in my thoughts to replay the scene. There was something odd about the way she was in his arms. Pietro shrugs. "Sure. She was stiff as a board when he kissed her."
Absentmindedly, I nod. I remember that too. She was tense. Although I could only see her back, I'm certain she didn't feel comfortable. But that's not surprising after what almost happened between us just moments before. "So you think there's no real love involved?"
We enter the entrance area and take off our shoes. "Not a trace, if you ask me," Pietro confirms.
Even if that were the case, it wouldn't change anything. I open the door to the living-kitchen area, but before I can enter, Pietro holds me back.
"What do you have to lose?" he asks insistently.
Everything , is the immediate answer that forms inside me. Has he forgotten how my father vegetated day by day? And there's still my lifestyle, which certainly wouldn't make Hanna happy. Because despite the picturesque image of all of us at the estate for a moment, it's far from reality.
I have a dream that is not only bigger but also more realistic than that. But I don't tell him that; instead, I shake my head and try to distance myself from him.
In the living-kitchen area, my sisters await me. Camilla, who was discharged from the hospital just yesterday, looks pale. Nonetheless, she fusses with a radiant smile, adjusting the light yellow romper of little Francesca with the dark tuft of hair.
Alessia comes from the kitchen, and suddenly, Aurora appears as well.
Since when is she here?
"Hello, stranger." With an exaggerated grin on her face, Aurora marches toward me.
She has lost weight, I would estimate at least twenty pounds, and that's despite her never being even remotely overweight before. She wears an oversized pair of glasses on her nose, her hair has grown longer, but the wavy tips are still much lighter than the rest. I hug her, feeling her bony shoulder pressing against my armpit. She smells like grappa.
"The prodigal sister has returned, how wonderful," I say affectionately. Although we are all together again for the first time since Mother's death, this meeting has surprisingly little of the bitterness I had feared for years.
"How's the cliff diving?" she wants to know as I release her from the hug. With shaky fingers, she smooths out her wide linen pants. "Are you a star already?"
"Not yet." I give her a mysterious look. "But maybe soon."
She claps her hands. "How exciting! I'm happy for you."
There's something odd about her. I don't remember her being so hyperactive. I gaze into her eyes, searching her pupils. They're dilated. Is my sister on drugs? Perhaps she's also afraid. But afraid of what?
And that's not all. While Camilla and Alessia take every opportunity to show their sorrow over the sale of the estate, she seems carefree. Each of my sisters burst into tears upon reuniting with me, but she behaves as if she couldn't care less that we're all about to lose our home.
Wait a minute. What am I thinking? And why does it pain my heart?
"Have you seen your adorable nieces?" She turns to Alessia and Camilla, wildly gesticulating, as they each hold one of the babies in their arms. "Aren't they amazing?" Her voice threatens to break. This is not the Aurora I grew up with.
What on earth happened to her?
Again, I study her intensely, but she immediately looks away. "So what do you say?" she asks again.
As much as I hate to admit it, there is indeed something about them that I can't resist even today. I nod in agreement and hurry to the kitchen to get myself a glass of water. Not that someone might think of handing me one of the babies.
"Well, little Stella…" I hear Alessia coo behind me. "With that birthmark, you're destined to become a celebrity. One day, you'll be an actress. Or maybe a TV star."
Joyful laughter fills the room. I turn around and take a look at my family, who radiates so much warmth despite Aurora's strange behavior. Pietro looks at me expectantly.
What do you have to lose? , his eyes ask me again, while gesturing to his own little family, filled with happiness.
I wish I knew the answer, but I don't.
Perhaps I'll lose everything.
Perhaps nothing.
And maybe, just maybe, I might even gain something.