Less kisses, more kills

The harsh rays of sunlight scorched them as they stood facing eachother in the wide room. the sunlight tanned their delicate skins but they still stood, glaring at eachother, unflinching and oblivious to their surroundings, only themselves.

Giovanni Sforza adjusted his poise as his glower at his nemesis, Carlo Rizzo deepened. The cheating bastard, Carlo had agreed to meet him openly here, both arriving with their soldiers and capos.

He and Carlo's Ill fated relationship went way back to the generation before them. Back then, when he was merely an heir to the Sforza mafiadom, he'd watched his father closely and found out his dad had a lot of foes.

"one thing you should learn, Giovanni" his father had always told him "is that, a man couldn't have scaled to the top without making his fair share of enemies and allies. but a man's wisdom truly counts if he's able to make an equal balance of his friends and his foes"

his dad made peace with mafia families which were worth making peace with, and he effortlessly transformed them into his allies, but some mafia gangs, he kept feuding with.

once Giovanni had asked him about the families he was at war with, his dad replied saying, "making peace with certain type of people are overrated" and Giovanni took note of that.

one of the prominent families his dad had been at war with was the Rizzo mafiadom.

even if his father had feuded with several mafia families, in the onset and medial of his business, Giovanni couldn't help but notice the Rizzo family.

Intermittent wars, bloodbath, sabotage went on and on between the both mafia families. according to what he'd noticed from his dad, his dad loathed competition and always strived to rise above his foes, but he couldn't rise above the Rizzos .In fact, they both struggled to rise above each other, either by working with mass associates, initiating more soldiers and capos, smuggling more drugs and building an enormous and thriving drug ring or through any desperate measure they could think of.

the other family, Giovanni's dad had feuded heavily with was the Romano family.

the influence and power tussle went on and on until his father passed away and he took over from where his father left off.

as usual, he had his fair share of friends and foes around his circle, the Romano and Rizzo family inclusive.

Although it wasn't a blood bath like during his father's time, he was still in competition with the Rizzos.

Garnering associates who would assist them in smuggling and embezzlement was a hell of a job

And they both strived to have more than the other.

Giovanni thought, they had lesser competition with the Romano's. the Romano's only got in their way when it came to extorting from owners of businesses around their city, but still, they always resolved it one way or another.

they always came up with a solution all the time, in a way it benefitted the both gangs.

he remembered vividly, two years back, when a political associate of his, paved a way for him to get elected and join the Consiglio dei ministri (council of ministers) and he'd gladly accepted to be part of the Italian cabinet because he knew that was going to be a direct and free access to cool cash everyday.

But as usual, Carlo was there to ruin all his plans as they began to fiercely compete until the Consiglio dei ministri offer was snatched from Giovanni and Carlo who aspired too.

Giovanni somehow managed to make peace with the Romano mafiadom, he swiftly turned them into his allies, balancing his friends and foes, as per his dad's advice. then the previous year, something he didn't expect to happen, happened. One Mancini mafia, a fast rising mafia family emerged and threatened to overshadow the pioneer mafias. Giovanni, being a fierce competitor, didn't like to be overshadowed, so he quickly marked the Mancini family, his foes.

He wasn't the only one who shared the revulsion. The Rizzos too made enemies out of the Mancini mafia.

On a bright afternoon, Carlo Rizzo came to Giovanni to offer a truce. they both agreed to start a war against the Mancini mafia and plunder them after defeat.

Giovanni and Carlo both came out victorious and benefitting of course, and they found the Sforza and Rizzo families in peace for some months until...

mafia families who'd gone through generational feud like the Sforza and Rizzo mafia families weren't bound to come to terms at all. the war and disputes dragged on for generations. Giovanni was kidding himself if he thought his generation could be different. he hated Carlo Rizzo and wasn't planning to change that. when their families went back to feuding, they just stayed out of each others way and tried as much as possible to lessen the competition, until Carlo did something to Giovanni which he could never forgive till his dying day and that was the reason they both stood under the scorching heat from the sun, scowling at each other, unflinchingly.

"Are you going to speak up now?" Giovanni growled "tell me why you slept with my wife "

Carlo let out a snicker.

"I really don't want to get down to the gory details" said Carlo "but wasn't my reason obvious? she's desirable..." he trailed off, smirking to Giovanni's disgust.

"you-- you ruined my marriage" Giovanni gritted "you're always there to ruin everything. first, my opportunity to join the Consiglio dei ministri and some other unforgivable things... now "

"ha! you really are good at playing the victim, aren't you?" Carlo countered

"victim? did you say victim? you slept with my wife, you conniving bastard and here you are ---"

"it's a dirty game, Giovanni " Carlo drawled smugly " You've wronged me in so many ways too. C'est la vie, you'll just have to live that way"

Giovanni released an exasperated breath. Carlo wasn't going to own up, talk more of apologizing or paying for his mistakes. not like he expected him to, he was never going to forgive him for ruining his marriage. whether Carlo liked it or not, Giovanni was going to make him pay for his sins and they were not leaving this place until he made sure of that.

"And the Consiglio dei ministri offer was two years ago, Giovanni " Carlo ran his fingers through his hair in mock distress "why haven't you forgotten about that? it was two years ago for goodness sake, get over it"

"why did you sleep with Barbara, my wife " he huffed out 'my wife ' to lay emphasis on Carlo's infidelity.

Carlo chuckled, he was enjoying all of this. well, not for long.

"Barbara came to me." he started "where did we first meet? yes! it was at the Rocco fundraiser. we met, exchanged pleasantries, I could tell she wasn't bothered by our feud. a measly fight, that's what she called it. and we started conversing like civilised people. you see, Barbara is really intelligent. I found myself drawn to her appeal...." he trailed off, then looked at Giovanni.

"Why'd you stop?" questioned Giovanni

"you wanna hear the sordid details? it'll get nasty from here " Carlo licked his lips, in eagerness, waiting for Giovanni's permission to go on.

that action alone repulsed Giovanni. he dipped his hand in his jacket pocket, his fingers, wrapped around his dagger handle.

"go on" he said

"apart from the way she spoke, her carriage, I felt something else" Carlo said.

"you know what I felt? sexual tension. yes, I felt it so much at that moment. that rush of blood and heat around my groin. flushed cheeks, yes! that's how your wife made me feel ---"

"you had a wife!" Giovanni barked before he could stop himself.

"relax, Giovanni. you're the one who told me to explain it sordidly. I won't omit the nasty stuff " he snickered

"just so you know, I love Rita. she's the mother of my kids, after all"

Giovanni's hands tightened around the dagger handle.

"I noticed something about Barbara at the fundraiser " Carlo continued. "she desired me. she approached me with a motive in mind. I wasn't blind to these things, I saw the way she stared at me and I just couldn't let that chance pass me by. if not for the people who attended the event, I would have banged her on any of the tables around "

"that's enough, Carlo, I'll hear no more"

"oh no! but this is the climax. we exchanged numbers. I and your wife exchanged numbers and we met with each other and we made love ---"

"I said stop!" Giovanni growled as his hand tightened the more around the dagger handle, waiting for the perfect time to strike.

"okay, okay. we did that only twice" Carlo smirked. "how did you find out about our... illicit affair?" he asked, feigning curiosity.

Giovanni recalled bitterly. it was there on her phone. so openly, she placed it, like she wanted him to find out.

His wife's phone kept beeping. out of curiosity which he wished he never felt at that moment, he went over to the phone. he was about to drop the phone, after shunning the idea of going through her chats, but then he saw something. he saw the name Carlo with two heart emojis. his breath hitched. knowing her password, he quickly utilized it and opened the phone.

what he saw after opening the phone, took his breath away. he opened videos, obscene videos, Carlo's nude videos and photos. as if having sex physically, behind his back wasn't enough, they continued to have it on the phone. he saw messages where Carlo said that he couldn't wait to meet her, they'll spice it up whenever they meet again. If it was a one sided infidelity, maybe from Carlo's path, he would have understood because he loved his wife, but it wasn't. Barbara blatantly cheated on him. she sent her nudes....

As if on cue, Barbara came in and caught him going through her phone.

Giovanni almost smiled as he remembered exactly what happened at that moment Barbara saw him. they both started hyperventilating, his was due to the shock and betrayal coming from the woman he loved, while hers was perhaps due to panic.

"you know, Giovanni" Carlo began, interrupting his thoughts. " when Barbara came and offered herself to me, I second guessed sleeping with her. I had a wife, after all. but then I remembered you.... now you know the reason I slept with her and sent her those messages"

"it's because of you" Carlo continued. "it was a sweet form of revenge, where I hurt you and I gain pleasure" he laughed

"what exactly did I do?" Giovanni asked him

"you don't know? I really loathed following your shadow, Giovanni. picking up the bread crumbs you littered. I hated the fact that I was the one who had to beg for a truce while you flourished with loyal associates, who were ready to give you a seat in the Consiglio dei ministri "

Even if Giovanni felt defeated by Carlo, he couldn't help feeling smug at Carlo's confession. the fact that Carlo felt that way gave him a certain type of victory.

"so when Barbara dear came at me with a lustful stare, I couldn't turn her down. I satisfied myself with her, relishing the fact that it'll cause you pain"

well, I'm about to cause you pain, Giovanni thought. his hand tightened around the dagger handle as he calculated. he and Carlo stood, a bit of a distance away from each other. if he were to come at Carlo with his dagger, his chances of survival would be slim because he wasn't foolish enough to know that Carlo must have come with a weapon. he had to figure out a way to lure Carlo in slowly, and kill him.

"suddenly quiet? I'm sure you've come to terms with the fact that your wife has slept with me and there's nothing you can do about it" Carlo said

"absolutely not" Giovanni said, in an attempt to stall him. suddenly, an idea came to Giovanni.

"I actually called you here to tell you that I forgive you" he lied

Carlo let out a loud laughter

"that's ridiculous! do you think I want your forgiveness? there's nothing you can do---"

"I have a terminal disease " Giovanni cut him short. "my cancer cells are spreading quick and I don't have much time left " he watched Carlo as he said this, and he could tell that his words had already begun to have an effect on Carlos. of course, it should, because everyone had a heart.

"I'm not saying this for you to have pity on me" Giovanni continued. "but I just want to make peace with everyone near me, including you Carlo "

Carlo giggled nervously

"do, do you think I'm --- I'm gonna buy your lies?"

while Carlo said that, Giovanni coughed and swayed. surprisingly, Carlo ran and held him, to break his fall.

Bingo! Giovanni thought when Carlo came to him. he had Carlo exactly where he wanted him. grabbing Carlo's shoulder with his left hand, he swiftly pulled out the dagger from his pocket and thrust it into Carlo's stomach.

Carlo yelped in pain and staggered back a little.

"this is for being an opportunistic jerk" he pulled out the dagger and thrust it again into Carlo's stomach

"this is for seducing my wife and ruining my marriage" he pulled out the dagger and thrust it into Carlo's chest, this time.

Carlo dropped on the floor, breathing heavily, trying to stay alive.

"even hades is too good, a place for you " Giovanni said and turned his back at Carlo.

his soldiers and capos were far off, waiting for him to be done with Carlo.

he'll leave now. without sparing a final glance at Carlo, he started off, but as he took a step, he heard a loud sound, a gunshot sound. he then felt a sharp pain in his stomach. he held his stomach, he was bleeding. then he realised that that bastard, Carlo had shot him.

he turned to Carlo

"rot in hell" he gasped

"with you" Carlo whispered and released another bullet, it went straight through his head, and he slumped.

Carlo's hand fell on the floor, lifelessly and he too, breathed his last.

"Easy, Matt, I'll be at the party" said Bianca Rizzo, as she conversed with her boyfriend, Matt on the phone. across her, sat Allegra and Kimberly who both feasted on her with their eyes, waiting for what she'll say next, if they could be of any help with her conversation.

"okay, I'll get off the phone now, I've got to meet up with Spencer and Grant" said Matt to Bianca

"alright, see you at the party " She replied and was about to hang up

"I love you!" Matt interjected

"Same" said Bianca and got a glare from the both of her friends.

"wait right there! I need you to say it" Matt pushed and she rolled her eyes, was it always necessary to reply a declaration of love when you're in a relationship? most times, she didn't deem it necessary to always declare love, she was someone who acted more than she spoke.

But if Matt insisted...

"okay, Matt, I love you too. happy now?"

"Babe that sounded really insincere " Matt complained

"say it like you mean it"

Bianca rolled her eyes again. he was back to his typical 'say it like you mean it' form of persuasion. he said that to her all the time and anytime he did, she found herself proving to him that she meant what she said. sometimes she'd get pissed because he wouldn't believe her when she said certain stuff. she wasn't going to give in this time around, he could think whatever he wished.

"don't you have somewhere to be, Matt?" her friends scowled at her again, when she said that.

"Bianca?" he called her, still expecting

"I'll get off the phone now, bye Matt" she said, quickly and disconnected the line

"what the hell, Bianca?" Allegra exclaimed

"Same? what's Same? who says 'same' after someone declares their love?" Kimberly asked

"she doesn't love him "Allegra said to Kim "do you, Bianca?"

Bianca exhaled

"y'all are being so dramatic"

she said to them

"aren't we allowed to be, after we just witnessed you blow Matt off?" Allegra said

"Matt and I are good. these things happen every now and then"

they both stared at her in disbelief

"tell us, Bianca, do you love Matt?" Allegra asked

truth be told, she loved Matt. she cared for him and enjoyed his company. Matt's jovial nature was what sustained their relationship. they dated for over seven months since she met him.

But Bianca knew deep down, love wasn't enough. their relationship lacked a spark. she'd never felt fireworks with Matt. She didn't know how to explain what she meant. she just wanted to wake up one morning and decide to love him fiercely, do spontaneous stuff with him and wish a day would never end. But then, it wasn't that case with Matt. it was more of a regular, safe, sweet kind of relationship.

"I do love Matt, although I don't know why on earth you'd ask me that" she answered Allegra

"do you?" Allegra teased

"stop it, Allegra...." she trailed off when her phone beeped, meaning a message had entered. she immediately checked the message.

it was from Lorenzo and it said

'sorry it took this long to reply. I'm at work and right now, I see this gemstone and all I can think about is you'

the second one said

'its crazy how a gemstone makes me think about you, don't you think?'

her cheeks immediately flushed and she felt unusual heat. she began to fan herself with her hands.

"wow! who's that, Bianca?" Kimberly asked.

When she opened the message, she became oblivious to the fact that two people were seated across her because Lorenzo always had a way of grabbing her attention.

she smiled as she typed

'focus on what you're doing at work. don't let me distract you'

then she sent it.

"who's message is making you grin?" Kimberly asked

"if it isn't her online, fantasy boyfriend, then who is it?" said Allegra, her voice laced with sarcasm.

"Lorenzo?" Kimberly asked

"the one and only" Allegra replied "has Matt found out you're cheating on him?"

"Allegra!" both Bianca and Kim chorused

"what" said Allegra, deadpan. "isn't that what you're doing?"

Bianca sighed. this wasn't the first time her she was accused by her friends, they always misunderstood her relationship with Lorenzo.

she and Lorenzo met online through a social media app and they struck off as good friends. she began chatting with him at an emotionally low point in her life, where she'd faced betrayal and loneliness. Lorenzo was also going through shit at that time so it was easy for them to grant each other emotional support. Most times, Bianca would anticipate meeting him because they've been chatting for four years without actually seeing eachother.

The main thing that made her bond with him was his origin. he was from Sicily just like her. Although they came from different hometowns, she still felt really good to know someone who was from Sicily.

To be honest, she didn't know how she felt about Lorenzo. Just like the bodily reaction his flirty text message gave her, she felt really different with him.

She was able to bare out some secrets about herself to him because she hadn't met him and wasn't sure if she would and she felt her secrets was safe with someone she hadn't met than someone she knew.

"hello!" Kim waved at her to grab her attention "back down to earth, princess!"

Bianca rolled her eyes, a habit she became fond of.

"Lorenzo and I are merely online friends" she said for the thousandth time. she didn't know how many times she was going to say it before they believed her.

"blah! blah! cliché" Allegra yawned

Bianca frowned at her.

"that effect his message had on you wasn't exactly friend zone-ish" Kim muttered under her breath

"I heard you" said Bianca

Allegra suddenly left where she sat and then sat next to Bianca.

"Look" Allegra turned to her "there are so many guys who'd want to hang with and around you, even Matt, your perfect boyfriend. why do you concern yourself with a guy you haven't seen before?"

"it's just, Lorenzo ---" she started but Kim cut her off

"Liam asked me to hook him up, just yesterday"

"who's Liam?" Bianca asked. she didn't know she had so many male fans.

"the guy from the liberal arts faculty, brunet, he's a jock too. remember?"

"nope" said Bianca

"is he good looking?" Allegra leaned in

"Maybe"

"back to what we were saying Bianca" Allegra continued. "you have a bunch of male admirers, even Hailey from our faculty has a crush on you. so why Lorenzo?"

"why do they all like me?" she deviated "I mean I'm like y'all "

"nope! you've got it all wrong there. you're one hot ass Italian lady" Allegra hyped "I mean even if I am Italian, I'm no match for you"

Bianca's cheeks flushed red

"what's she's trying to say is, ditch Lorenzo. Block his number. he'll do you no good " said Kim

"I should just block him out of the blues? without a reason?"

that was never going to happen, Bianca thought. she was yet to find out what she and Lorenzo had between them. she really wanted to schedule a meeting for them but she wasn't sure if she could because Lorenzo seemed to be a busy guy.

Allegra sighed deeply

"Girl," she said to Bianca. "you need a heavy reality check because you're going no where with that guy"

That wasn't for them to decide. she didn't even know where she was heading to with him. were they going to keep chatting forever? or was he going to take a bold step and make out time to visit her from his busy schedule?

"okay Bianca what if.... just what if you and this Lorenzo guy meet and he turns out to be ugly. Like very ugly" Kimberly teased, then she and Allegra burst out, laughing at Bianca's expense.

"what then is poor Bianca going to do?" Allegra mocked, in a singsong tone.

"I highly doubt that" Bianca began. " I mean, he's Italian"

"that doesn't guarantee his good looks. not all of them are gorgeous" Allegra countered

"Lorenzo is good looking. I'm ninety eight percent sure"

"oh! how are you sure? because you're psychic?" Kim mocked

"y'all know I don't settle for less. I just know that he's good looking. I can feel it"

Bianca proudly said. she'd never dated a guy who wasn't gorgeous since the genesis of her love life.

"we know you don't settle for less " Allegra cooed "but Lorenzo might be an exception. he might be not be as good looking as you think and you'll end up dating an ugly guy"

"when you talk about ugly, do you also mean Dominic Harper?" it was Bianca's turn to tease.

Dominic was currently dating Allegra. she'd admit, he was smitten by her at first but later gave up on her and went over to Allegra.

At first, Allegra was skeptical about him hitting on her, but later succumbed to his charms. 'cute Californian guys are more of my thing', Allegra had once said to her.

"Dominic is good looking" Allegra defended

"he's not, to me"

"Take that back!" said Allegra, feigning rage

"I won't" Bianca giggled

"Girls" Kimberly called, raising her phone. "the party begins at 7pm, which gives us...." she trailed off as she checked the time. "about an hour and fifteen minutes to get ready"

They all quit bantering and got ready for the party.

"How many shops were the emerald piece delivered to?" Lorenzo Sforza asked Jay, his distribution manager as he went through papers.

"Forty three sir,"

"in Norway?" he asked, to confirm the location

"no sir, we made sure to deliver in Illinois first" replied Jay

"you haven't distributed pieces at Norway yet?"

"not yet, Sir. we are still making preparations"

"go now," Lorenzo ordered "see to it that the pieces get delivered before nightfall"

"I'll get right to it sir" said Jay then scurried off.

Lorenzo flipped through the last pages of the papers concerning work and kept it aside.

work life today was tiring since he decided to work a nine to five.

his schedule was always tight and sometimes he wondered when he would have time for a vacation, maybe at his hometown. he hadn't seen his parents for over six years since he traveled out to start his business. they'd only face timed. well, he doubted if they really missed him like they said because his smitten parents had eachother. he decided to fix a date to go back to his hometown because he'd figured out a way to control his business from any part of the world, even his hometown. putting his idea into action contributed to his busy schedule.

the rays of sunlight shone on a gemstone that was on his table which made him see his reflection for a minute. he took the gemstone and rubbed it's surface. he kept it with him because it was beautiful and it was freshly imported from Italy.

It reminded him of home and someone.... Bianca, the lady he'd been chatting with online for years. the gemstone made him think of her because they both came from the same place. it felt good to know she was from the same place as him.

he quickly picked up his phone and started typing a message to her.

'sorry it took this long to reply. I'm at work and right now, I see this gemstone and all I can think about is you'

Was the message too forward? he thought as he sent it. he didn't want her to get a wrong idea from a message. he'd only typed what he felt.

he typed a second message to her.

'its crazy how a gemstone makes me think about you, don't you think?'

he smiled as he sent it. Bianca, the mystery lady he'd formed a connection with, online had been friends with him for four years now, and he had to admit, it felt good to share good and bad stuff with someone he hadn't met. Bianca was more like his emotional support and so was he. Workload and tight schedules prevented him from meeting her, he thought sadly.

"Sir" a voice interrupted his thoughts. it was his female secretary calling him. "you have a visitor, Mrs Veronica is here to see you"

Vero, he thought. the lady he'd been hooking up with since the event he attended three months ago where he met her. he wondered what she wanted as she came to his office.

"send her in" he told his secretary.

"sure" she said and walked out.

"Baby!" Vero called as she neared the entrance of his office. "I've missed you so bad I could not breathe" she rushed over to him and kissed him. her red short gown didn't do bad in doing justice to her curves.

"I was going to call you as soon as I got off work"

"that won't be necessary since I'm here now" she winked at him

"okay?" he said, promoting her to tell him why she suddenly visited. there was a moment of silence between them and then she said

"Enzo you have no idea how sexy you look in that tux" she made her way to him and grabbed his cheek

"uh.... what are you trying to do?" a confused Lorenzo asked

"I won't let this moment pass me by" she said then brought her lips down on his.

he was dazed by the sudden kiss. even if he felt fatigued from so much work and wanted something to cool his head, he didn't feel in the mood to make out.

"Vero" he muttered and gently detached from her. "this is the wrong place, love"

"Enzo, that's not a problem. your office is guarded by so many doors. no one will dare enter"

"but---" he protested

"take me on this table " she started to unzip her gown

"I'm totally in the mood"

"But I'm not!" said Lorenzo

her hands froze on the zipper.

"why?" she wailed "we haven't had sex for days now. are you pledging celibacy for some kind of reason?"

"no Vero, I've just been busy with work" he stood up and helped her with her zipper. they stared at each other up close, as he zipped her clothe.

"I've missed you, Lorenzo"

"I know" he stroked her hair "I'll make out time for you when my workload is less"

"I came here to see you and I get nothing in return " she grumbled

"you don't even have time for me anymore...." she kept talking but he wasn't hearing her because a message came in through his phone.

it was from Bianca. he smiled when he saw it

'focus on what you're doing at work. don't let me distract you'

he replied

'its too late for that. thoughts of you fill my head. I really can't wait to meet you'

then he sent it.

he didn't care if it was too forward, he only typed what he felt.

"what's making you smile?" said Veronica, then she snatched his phone from him

"what the flying fuck!" she exclaimed when she saw the message

"don't be so juvenile" he chided, taking his phone back from her.

"did you just say juvenile?" she yelled. "so this is the reason why you didn't want to have sex with me "

"don't you get it? I said I wasn't in the mood "

"but you're in the mood for cybersex you cheating freak" she lashed out at him

"I never cheated on you, we were never an item to start with "

she cringed when he said that.

"you mean I'm just your toy?" she asked in indignation "someone who you could just have sex with whenever you liked and dump?"

Lorenzo laughed

"How ironic! you're the one who barged into my office not to long ago and threw yourself at me"

"and I deeply regret that!" she yelled " I thought you loved for me, Lorenzo or even cared for me ...." she trailed off when her voice broke

"I do care "

"Liar!" she bit out "you're a heartless cheat! you're a casanova, Lorenzo. I can't believe I wasted my time with you. I can't believe I was just your casual hook-up"

"Vero--"

"it's Veronica! it's Veronica not Vero!" she yelled, spared him a final glower, grabbed her purse and stormed off.

Lorenzo sighed deeply. he'd totally forgotten about the drama associated with women. he didn't know how to feel about Vero's departure. did he feel sadness or relief? he couldn't believe she called him a casanova. he wasn't a casanova. even as gorgeous as he was, he didn't have an active love life because he failed to fully understand women and he didn't want to die trying. he checked his phone. Bianca hadn't replied his message. maybe she was busy. he released a sigh again. it was 6pm now. he'd better start heading home.

His phone began to ring, he picked it after seeing that the caller was his mom

"Madre!" he called excitedly.

"I was just thinking about you"

"Lorenzo" his mother sobbed his name "you ne-- need to come back home -- come back first flight tomorrow morning"

"why Ma? do you miss me that much?" admist the worry he felt, he smirked. he didn't know his mother missed him to the point of tears

"Ma calm down" he said to his sobbing mother. " I'll be back soon, you don't need to--"

"you have to come back tomorrow" she yelled across the phone

"tell me why, Madre"

"your dad...." she sobbed

"what's wrong? did he hit you? did you both argue?"

"your dad is dead"

that single statement made him speechless and took his breath away at the same time. he didn't know when his phone slipped from his hand and fell on the tiled floor.

"Lorenzo, Lorenzo...." shouts from his mom at the other end of the line became distant as he stared into nothingness.

*************

it was a house party. the crowd wasn't that much and Bianca knew, as she stepped in with her friends, that whoever threw this party did a great job. From the sitting room to the kitchen, to the stairs, everywhere looked extra large. the sitting room was large enough to contain a dance floor and people filled the dance floor and the kitchen.

Matt spotted her from the kitchen

"hey", he called her

"hi" she waved at him "I'll see you guys" she said to Kim and Allegra, then she headed towards Matt.

Matt came to her and kissed her. "there's a poker game going on there, wanna watch with me?" said Matt

"absolutely" she said. Now she knew why people crowded the kitchen area. this party was really impressive.

She and Matt stood and watched for over forty minutes and she was starting to get bored.

"I'll go meet Allegra and Kim on the dance floor" she said to Matt

"Sure" he said and she left

she met Allegra dancing with a guy, who's hands were all over her while Kim danced alone.

"how was the game?" Kim asked her

"it was boring. I stayed because Matt seemed to like it"

"this is fun!" Allegra screamed

"yeah! I feel we should take pictures" Kim suggested

"cool" said Bianca and then she figured she wasn't with her phone. her dress didn't have a pocket and she didn't come with a purse.

"did I give any of you guys my phone?" she asked them

"nope" they both said

"you must have left it at the poker table" said Kim

"right! I'll go check" just as she turned, she saw Matt.

"looking for this?" he had her phone all along

"oh thanks, Matt. I almost had a heart attack" she exhaled in relief as she took her phone from him.

"who owns that message I saw on your phone?" Matt suddenly asked, his icy voice matching his expression.

she checked her phone. it was a message from Lorenzo and it said;

'its too late for that. thoughts of you fill my head. I really can't wait to meet you'

she didn't know how she managed to stifle a smile when she read it. maybe it was because Matt had seen it before her and probably misunderstood.

"who's that?" He asked again

"um... he's Lorenzo, um... this guy I met online ---"

"tell me the truth, Bianca!"

"what makes you think I'm telling lies?" he was back to not believing her again which made her pissed.

"so you admit to being a cheat" Matt accused

"what?" this was all new to her. she'd never seen this side of Matt before. she guessed that saying 'bad things bring out the worst in people' came to play in this situation.

"you cheat and lie to me when all I've done is love you?"

"I didn't.... Lorenzo and I are online friends" she moved closer to Matt and whispered

"I would never do that to you"

Matt wasn't convinced

"explain to me why a guy texts you and tells you he's been thinking about you. didn't you tell him you had a boyfriend?"

"it's a lot more complicated than you think " that was all she could say.

there was a moment of tension filled silence between them, before Matt spoke

"now I know why you never told me you loved me. why you never reciprocated my feelings towards you "

"Matt..."

"I never knew you were a fuck girl" he raged. "you deceived me into thinking you actually felt something for me but now it's game over for you, isn't it?"

"I won't let you talk to her like that" Allegra stepped in "she's known Lorenzo longer than she's known you, so you have no right to get jealous"

"what are you?" Matt scoffed "her fellow bitch?"

Allegra gasped

"how--" she started but Bianca cut her off

"wait, Allegra" she turned to Matt

"Look, this is a misunderstanding, Lorenzo and I are friends. I haven't even met him before"

"you expect me to believe that?"

"I'm sorry if whatever you saw hurt you, but why do you always see me as a dishonest person?" she knew she was at fault but she couldn't help getting pissed at Matt's constant distrust.

"I don't know, Bianca" said Matt "maybe because you are?"

"or maybe because you don't trust me "

"you know what, Bianca" he said "let's end this here. whatever this is, let's end it here"

At that moment, Bianca fell silent. she didn't know what to say.

"we're done! you can go be with Lorenzo" said Matt, then he left.

Bianca just stood there and stared. she didn't know if she should go after Matt as he left the party or she should leave him.

"Bianca...." Kim began

"don't you dare say, "I told you so'." Bianca said to them and went after Matt.

when she got out of the house, she didn't see him at all.

"Matt" she called with a loud voice but it was futile. no body answered. she was about to go farther in search for him, when her phone rang.

it was a call from her mom

"Madre" she said, after picking up

"you need to come home, a flight will be booked by morning and you'll come back home tomorrow morning" her mother's voice shook as she spoke.

"I can't travel back just like that" she protested

"you have to" her mom insisted. for some reason, the situation scared her.

"why do I have to?"

"it's your father" said her mom "he's dead"