Chapter 4 #2
I do! Sleeping is one of life’s few free luxuries. I would sleep in every single day if I could.
Matteo
And it wasn’t weird at all. Jade is just grilling me about why I’m so interested in my phone this morning. I think she’s going to chuck a pillow at me in a second if I don’t tell her who I’m talking to.
“Matteo,” Jade huffs, trying to pull my attention back.
“Impatient,” I chide, waiting for Anya’s reply as her chat bubble flashes. “Give me a second, woman.”
Anya
Are you going to tell her?
My reply is instant.
Matteo
I won’t if you don’t want me to.
After a moment, I send another.
Matteo
I typically tell Jade everything, but if you want privacy, I won’t mind.
It might be difficult to keep my inquisitive sister off my case, but I’d do it for Anya. She clearly has some unresolved difficulties with seeing and speaking to her brothers, so I would understand why she may not want Jade—and therefore Dmitri—privy to our budding friendship.
Anya
You can tell her. She won’t make a big deal out of it, will she?
I smile, sensing that Anya is being brave right now. She’s not entirely comfortable with this new dynamic that’s happening, but she isn’t shying away from it either.
Matteo
Nah, Jade is cool. She might tease me, but that’s about it.
Shit, I mutter under my breath, realizing how that might sound.
Matteo
Tease me for texting a girl, not because it’s you. She wants everyone to fall in love and have babies now that she has.
Annnnd that might have made it worse?
“Matteo Moretti,” Jade scolds loudly, clapping once sharply to get my attention. “You’ve forgotten about your breakfast sandwich while staring at your phone. If you don’t tell me who it is, I’m going to assume you’ve been taken over by an alien or possessed by a digital demon.”
“And you call me dramatic.” I take another bite of my breakfast and continue to stare at my phone screen, wondering if I should send another clarifying message.
Anya
Well, she does make very cute babies.
Phew. Crisis averted.
Eventually, I’m going to put my foot in my mouth messaging her.
But thankfully, I haven’t royally screwed up on day one.
I do want the girl to like me, after all.
It’s been a while since I’ve made a new friend, and I know it’s been even longer for her.
There’s bound to be some awkwardness in our future, but I plan to avoid it for as long as humanly possible.
Matteo
She does indeed! I think she’s going to end up like my father and make herself a whole basketball team with that brother of yours. I envy that you’ve never had to see them making their disgusting googly eyes at each other or the way they flirt.
Matteo
Seriously, I just shivered thinking about it.
Not even an exaggeration.
I feel like I need to rinse my eyes out with soap, just thinking about the horrible things I’ve seen in this house. This house is a fortress of safety, love, and protection. But it’s also a prison where I walk into the kitchen to find my little sister with flushed cheeks and bruised lips.
Ugh, gag me.
Anya
That does sound awkward.
Matteo
You have no idea. Let me think of how to change this topic. Why did my brain go there?
Anya
Someone told me once that 80% of our thoughts are negative and 95% are repetitive. We think about things that we don’t want to think about all the time.
Matteo
Umm, okay, Ms. Insightful. That’s actually wild. I don’t think I’ve ever heard that before.
Matteo
I told you that you were smart.
“Dad, Matteo’s been taken over by some kind of entity that makes him ignore food in favor of his phone. I think we need to take him to the hospital.” Jade’s tone is entirely too serious.
I look up to find our father has joined us, having scooped up baby Isobella and now sitting next to Jade.
Deciding to mimic her, I let out an exaggerated sigh. “Dad, Jade is being nosey and won’t leave me alone to text in peace.”
“Text who?” Jade asks again.
“My friend,” I reply with a huff, secretly finding her frustration amusing. Jade is one of the most sweet, levelheaded people I’ve ever met. Riling her up is rare, and any time it happens, I swear she looks like a little pissed off cartoon fairy princess.
“Matteo, I will tackle you.”
“Not in front of the kids you won’t.”
“You little—”
“It’s Anya,” I finally say, cutting off what would likely be a censored curse.
Jade is shocked silent with only two words. It’s almost comedic, seeing her mouth open and close like a fish out of water as she struggles to find words.
“It’s who?” Ivan asks, his voice going low.
“Your father didn’t tell you?” I ask innocently. “He gave her my number himself. We have permission to be friends now.”
Something feral flashes behind his eyes, and I swear he’s about to get up off the floor to hit me. But before he can move, Dmitri clears his throat, sounding like a warning.
His anger turns to his older brother. “You knew about this?”
“I knew it was a possibility,” Dmitri tells him with a firm nod of his head. “Anya asked to be allowed to contact Matteo. And it seems that Father has decided.”
“Well, that’s just great,” Jade finally says, clapping her hands together to pull into her chest. “Matteo is the first friend I ever made, and I’m so glad Anya gets to experience that for herself.”
Whatever rage has been bubbling up in Ivan was effectively silenced by Jade’s enthusiasm and her reasoning for it.
His brotherly protective nature activated instantly, but he knows me better than he used to.
I’d honestly be a bit hurt if he genuinely thought I was capable of doing anything untoward to his sister.
“You’re going to make me all weepy,” I warn, swallowing back genuine emotion.
Being Jade’s friend and brother has meant just as much to me as it has to her.
She grew up without all of us, hidden from our whole family by her straight up evil “mother.” But I grew up as the youngest of nine, never quite finding the close relationship that some of my brothers shared.
I usually got along with almost everyone, but I was never anyone’s best friend.
Remo and Nico had each other as twins. The same for Elio and Emilio. Apollo, Leon, and Cassio were always the closest as the three eldest. Armani went ahead and attached himself to cowboy Colton as a kid. And then there was me.
Until there was Jade. Once she showed up? We were fucking inseparable. I attached myself to her side like glue, and she never once pushed me away in favor of someone else.
When she developed such a close bond with Ivan, I wanted to hate him—to kill him, even.
But it didn’t turn out to be so bad. She has enough room in that big-ass heart of hers for the both of us.
Somehow she never runs out of love to give, which is one of the reasons that she fits so fucking perfectly in this enormous family.
“Very well said, sweetheart,” Dad tells her, patting her thigh.
“Good, now that that’s settled,” I say, scarfing down the last of my sandwich. “I have friendship brewing and this is very delicate work.”
Jade scoffs, but I ignore it, seeing two new messages arrive back to back.
Anya
My psychiatrist, that’s who I meant by someone.
Anya
I don’t know why I do that. I shouldn’t try to hide it, like it’s embarrassing. Force of habit, I suppose.
Brave girl.
Matteo
You’re right, you shouldn’t try to hide it! I don’t think it’s embarrassing at all to take care of yourself however you need to.
Matteo
Besides, it’s a judgment-free zone here. That’s what friends are for, right?