Chapter 1 1

Martina's POV

"Bye, Matteo," I giggled and waved my hand to my friend while we parted ways. He smiled warmly while waving back at me and replied, "Bye, Martina," .

"I'm home, Mom," I said as my mother replied, "Welcome, dear. Now go and freshen up. Let's eat lunch together; your father is coming for lunch. That came as a shock." I looked at my mom with a quizzical look, a raised eyebrow as she finished her statement about my dad's coming.

"Dad will be here for lunch?" My father doesn't come for lunch due to work, he is a busy lawyer, the most sort after in the city, so he hardly made it for lunch but he was going to be here for lunch today, that's odd. "Yes, dear, he said he had something to tell us that's why he is coming and while he's here he'd also have lunch."

'Then it must be important,' I thought and went inside my room to freshen up. After taking a cold shower, I came out of the bathroom wearing a comfortable pair of clothes. I dried my long black hair with a towel and let them open for a moment.

The sound of a horn indicating my father's arrived beamed. I smiled consciously and went outside my room to open the door. "Welcome, Dad!" Her father hugged her and patted her head softly as they came inside. "How lucky I am to get such a sweet daughter as her, right, Isabella?"

He asked his wife, waiting for a reply from her but she rolled her eyes at his antics and said, "Yea, yea, such a sweet daughter, and what about your wife? Isn't she sweet?" She asked while walking towards the couch in which the we had both settled in.

I chuckled. "She is also very good but just a little less than my daughter," he said, and then we both high-fived, making my Mom shake her head at us. I and my father love to irritate Mom until she becomes furious sometimes, and then we both have to face her playful wrath together.

She joined us on the couch. "How was your day, Vincent?" My mom asked him as he said, "Well, it was nice, but this evening there is a business event where many rich and powerful people are going to come, and this is being hosted by one of my important clients." The ladies listened to him quietly.

"Ohh, then you will be busy tonight, right?" I spoke as my bright face got dull and a small pout formed at my lips. My father's chest got tight as he said. "Hey, hey, little miss, don't be sad; my client has invited all of us" he said as my brown eyes got bright with excitement.

"But--" both looked at him curiously and said at the same time. "But what?" their voice sounded with a hint of desperation "As I said, there are going to be rich and powerful people along with some mafias, and I really don't want you to get involved in this, so you people are not goi--" "Dad" I didn't let him finish his sentence and whined loudly.

"Let us go to the event, please," I said as my father sighed. "Try to understand, Martina; that place will be filled with many dangerous people," he spoke softly as I shook my head. "But you will also be there with those people," she argued. "No means no," he spoke with a little hardness while glaring at me, making my chin wobble.

"Mom," I pleaded with my cracked voice "No, Martina, listen to your dad." My mother's stern voice made me look at my lap, accepting the defeat. "We don't want to risk you, baby," my mother cooed as Martina silently nodded. "Ok, after this event we will go for a family picnic, ok?" Her father said that, trying to cheer me up.

"O-okk." A tear slid down my face but I wiped it immediately, but my parents noticed it as they glanced at each other. I always cried whenever my parents raised their voice at me; that's why I always do what they tell me to do. I have been sensitive since I was a child. My life just roamed around my friend Matteo and my parents.

But I always wanted to attend formal events like this. Due to my being introverted and shy, I've never attended a single party in my nineteen years of existence. But today I had this golden chance to attend one, and moreover, my parents would also be present but I'm still denied the pleasure. I wanted to see what a party was like, i don't care about the dangerous people attending, it was a party, that's supposed to be a merry place I think.

My father's chest got tight as he sighed before saying. "Ok, ok, don't cry; we will go." I glanced at him to confirm if he was lying so I wouldn't cry or actually telling the truth. When I saw that he was not lying, a smile sprang from my face as I spoke.

"I promise you that I won't leave your side for a second." My mother was still a little hesitant but nonetheless nodded and said. "Ok, ok, now let's eat lunch, or it will get cold due to your emotional blackmailing." The atmosphere transforms from tense to light by her joke as we all laughed hysterically.

After lunch my father went back to work and told us to be ready by 8pm. I helped my mother with dishes and then went to my room to take a rest. I glanced at the clock as it was almost 4pm.

******

I sank to my bed as the thought of the evening's event crossed my mind as some strange feeling washed through me, which was a little different from the excitement.

How many people are going to come there? Anxiety starts eating me from the inside as I take some deep breaths to calm down my racing heart and tensed nerves. I'm not comfortable with many people around me, but still I have to overcome this fear of mine.

I shut my eyes tightly and consoled myself that I can do it. Slowly sleep starts consuming me, and I drifted into it.