Chapter Twelve #3
Dante, Matteo and Enzo exchanged glances, part amused and part warily impressed. One look at the gleam in Dario's eye told them he wasn't bluffing. I knew for a fact he wasn't. I'd survived his full four-year-old wrath before, and trust me, it wasn't pleasant.
I couldn't help but laugh softly as I watched him stride ahead, confident as though he'd ruled every place he'd ever been.
Bianca must have noticed how tense everything felt because, after the introductions, she gently ushered everyone away.
Rafael tried to linger for a moment, but one look from her sent him moving with the others.
The house had been full of eyes watching us, questions hanging in the air that no one had asked yet.
Now the halls were quieter.
It was just me, Dario and Luca walking through the house.
Luca led us through the house, pointing out the rooms as we passed, but Dario barely gave him time to explain anything. Every few steps, he stopped to stare at something new, his excitement growing with every room.
Then Luca pushed open another door.
Dario stopped dead.
The room was darker than the others, with a huge screen covering the far wall and rows of comfortable seats facing it.
His mouth dropped open.
“SAbrINA!”
He spun around to look at me.
“IT'S A MOVIE HOUSE!”
Before either of us could answer, he started doing a little dance in the middle of the room, bouncing from foot to foot while waving his arms around wildly.
A laugh escaped before I could stop it.
Luca leaned against the doorway, watching with obvious amusement.
“That might be the best reaction this room has ever gotten.”
Dario raced back over and grabbed my hand, practically vibrating with excitement.
“We can watch movies here!” he said breathlessly. “Like... every movie!”
“I think that's the idea.”
His grin somehow grew even wider.
“We're going to have movie nights,” he announced, already planning cartoons, popcorn and everything in between.
I glanced at Luca.
He was watching us with a quiet smile, like he was simply happy we were here, even if none of us quite knew what we were doing yet.
Luca led us upstairs and along a quieter hallway before stopping outside a door.
“Alright,” he said, glancing down at Dario. “This one's yours.”
He pushed the door open.
The room was warm and simple, with beige walls, wooden furniture and a large window overlooking the grounds. An enormous bed sat in the centre.
Dario froze.
Then the biggest gasp I'd heard all day escaped him.
“That bed is HUGE!”
Before either of us could respond, he kicked off his shoes and launched himself across the room. The mattress dipped beneath him before bouncing him back up, and laughter burst out of him as he sprawled across it, claiming every inch.
He looked over the edge at me, beaming.
“Bina! This is the biggest bed I've ever seen!”
I leaned against the doorway, smiling despite myself.
Luca glanced around the room.
“It's not really finished,” he admitted. “We didn't know we were getting another family member so suddenly.”
He gestured towards the empty shelves.
“You'll be able to decorate it however you want. Colours, toys, posters... whatever you like.”
Dario sat up and slowly looked around.
“This room is the same size as my room in the orphanage,” he said thoughtfully. “But this time I don't have to share it with anyone.”
He fell back onto the bed, stretching his arms and legs as far as they'd go.
“And the bed is way bigger than the one me and Bina slept on.”
He grinned at Luca.
“So I'm happy.”
Something tightened quietly in my chest.
None of the luxury mattered to him. Not the mansion or the huge room. Just the fact that, for the first time in his life, he had a bed that was truly his.
Luca waited until Dario finally stopped bouncing before clearing his throat.
“There's one more room.”
Dario hopped off the bed, shoved his shoes back on and raced into the hallway.
Luca only had to walk a few steps before stopping outside the next door.
“This one's yours.”
He opened it.
The room had the same warm, simple feeling as Dario's: beige walls, wooden furniture, a large window and a bed waiting in the centre.
“Another big bed!” Dario announced, hurrying inside.
Compared with the apartment, the room felt enormous.
Luca gestured towards the empty shelves.
“Same as Dario's. Nothing's permanent. You can decorate it however you want.”
Dario slowly turned in a circle before looking back at me.
“This room is bigger than your apartment, Bina.”
The words hung in the air.
When I glanced at Luca, I caught the curious look on his face. Before he could ask anything, Dario's smile faded.
I crouched down beside him.
“What's wrong?”
He hesitated.
“I don't want to sleep by myself.”
I ruffled his hair.
“You don't have to.”
He looked up immediately.
“You can still sleep with me until you're ready.”
The tension melted from his shoulders.
“Really?”
“Really.”
His grin returned instantly.
For the first time since we left Los Angeles, I felt a little less like we were stepping into something completely unknown. Dario was happy, and for now, that was enough.