Chapter 18: The Punchline
SOFIA'S POV
2 weeks later...
"Today marks a year since the bombing in Brussels that took away lives including the wife and children of the Matteo Vescovi, a global fashion and art mogul. Ruby Vescovi was accompanying her 17 year old twin daughters Ayla and Alyssa Vescovi. Their last video was an excited dedication video to their eldest sister Sofia Vescovi, who has been in the shadows but not a secret in her father's Speeches. Sources speculate that she was battling her health when it happened and Matteo Vescovi wanted to protect her. Even then her name has appeared alot in fashion designs launched by the Vescovi fashion lines. The tragedy hit so close to home but to others, it hit more than that," I watched on my ipad as the different channels talked about my family.
It was easy engagement if they mentioned me or my dad. Everyone wanted to know who I was.
I walked out of my room content with the outfit I picked out for today.
My phone lights up with simultaneous texts but my face falls when I notice that they're from dad.
"Umm Sof, there's a package for you," Mila says opening the door wider to a huge bouquet of pink flowers.
"They're from my dad,"
I chuckle. Anyone trying to impress me would have to outdo him, because he treats me every bit the princess he thinks i am.
She signs off on the delivery carrying them inside like bulky luggage.
There's a note on it and she reads it before I do.
Happy birthday Sofia. I know you like normalcy but there's still perks of the Vescovi name
She reads it like an encrypted message.
The door knocks again and this time I open it. There's two men in suits.
"Sofia Powell-Vescovi?"
"That's me,"
"Sign here," I comply before he hands me a custom box.
And just like that, they're gone.
I open it, curious.
"You got a fucking black card on your 22nd birthday?!!!"
Mila squealed as I examined the card with my name.
I already had a Visa infinite card he gave me when I started college.
I call him but he doesn't pick up. Instead, he sends a text saying he's in a meeting but will call after.
"Still don't want me joining your couple's get away?" I ask fanning my face with the brand new card.
She rolls her eyes taking her phone out to record the grand gesture.
She forces me to pose with the huge bouquet for my Instagram feed.
"Okay. Now open my gift," she claps her hands as I pull the ribbon off the wide box.
My mom would be so happy to see the amazing friends I made.
The dress is the same one I mentioned I'd like in passing. The cream satin mini dress with a backless feel meant alot to me, as a gift.
There's also another box inside and I hesitate before opening it.
"Wait this is a Bali ticket,"
I chuckle.
"I'd never go anywhere far without you. You're practically family,"
She squeezing me gently in her sudden embrace. I love her so much, that much is evident.
"Would you leave Luca for me,"
"In a heart beat,"
She responds making us both laugh.
I'd never let her.
He makes her happy.
"This is a sub gift for the gift so be prepared Sofia,"
She closes the box dropping it off in my room before coming back.
A plate of eggs and bacon infront of me.
This was my first birthday without my sisters, without my mom.
And that weighed heavily on me.
Now that I have my jeep here I can drive us around without Mila having to ask Luca.
She blasts her Spanish Playlist,Camilo dominating it with the hit song Favorito on our way to campus. I made my usual stop at the café grabbing my usual black coffee and a strawberry matcha latte for miss Mila.
Luca approaches us as I grab my camera bag from the back seat. It's midday and all I had to do today was film the last practice drill with only scouts in the audience.
The eyes on me were constant now.
From a desperate sophomore to how could I afford a car like that?
Nova and I started something.
But all it had gotten to was intense kissing and interrupted moments. A few caresses under my shirt but that was it. If she's lucky tonight might just be the night.
The sneaking around was fun at first but my feelings anchored, and I realised that maybe I wanted more.
I wanted her.
But she's Nova Castiello.
She doesn't date.
What makes me think she'll make an exception for me?
The gym was a pressure cooker. This was the last official practice drill before the season opener, and the air was thick with the scent of floor wax and desperation. Scouts from the top tiers lined the bleachers, their pens scratching against clipboards like insects.
I stood at the baseline, my Sony camera mounted on a stabilizer.
My heart felt like an old clock.
Ticking, but heavy.
Twenty-two. I was twenty-two today. Five years older than my sisters would ever be.
One year since the world turned to smoke.
My phone vibrated. A private thread.
Castiello \[Private\]: I saw the date on your transcript. Happy Birthday, Tinkerbell. I wish I could say it to your face.
Me: Then say it. I’m standing right here.
Castiello \[Private\]: I can't. Delia is in the front row. My father is in the VIP box. Stay invisible. Please.
Me: Is that what I am to you, Castiello? Invisible?
Castiello \[Private\]: You’re the only thing that isn’t a lie. That’s why you have to stay hidden.
I look up. Nova was at the center of the court, leading the suicide drills. She was a blur of controlled violence, her face a mask of sweat and ice. She didn't look at me.
She didn't even acknowledge the girl in the rose gold framed glasses filming her every move.
"Pick it up!" Nova’s voice cracked through the gym like a gunshot. "If you play like this in the season opener, you’re not just losing a game....you’re losing your future!"
She pivoted.
Her eyes catching mine.
They didn't soften like they always did behind closed doors. She glared like a drill on a wall.
"Powell!" she barked, loud enough to make the head scout lean forward.
"You’re drifting. If you can’t keep the camera steady during a simple fast-break drill, get off the court. We don't have room for amateurs today."
Usually my guard would be up, but this meant a lot to her.
It meant alot to me too. A painful reminder of everything I lost.
The team quieted, sensing the Captain’s bite. Delia, seated next to her father, tucked a stray hair behind her ear and smiled. To her, I was just a humiliation object she couldn't help but entertain herself to.
"I’m capturing the rhythm, Captain," I said, my voice steady despite the roar in my ears.
"The rhythm is off because you’re in the way," Nova snapped, stepping into my personal space.
She smelled like the adrenaline of the court and the coldness of a stranger.
She leaned down, pretending to check my camera settings, her voice dropping to a jagged whisper.
"Go home, Sofia. Get out of here before my father sees the way I look at you."
I hesitated.
She straightened up before I could blink.
"Dismissed, Powell. We’ll–"
The coach charged towards her before she could finish.
Taking us both by surprise.
"I don't know what your doing picking on this girl,but she's the only one who can make the players look good so cut it out and focus that anger on the court," she says sternly.
Not once looking over to me.
Eyes shooting daggers up at Nova.
A small smirk crept on her face but it didn't last more than a second.
She had succeeded in proving her hostility towards me.
She was the Captain.
The legend.
The girl who didn't date.
And I was just the girl with the camera.
She blew the whistle for the next drill and I focused on the lense.
I filmed the shots as instructed and when that was done, I packed my gear in a blur, my hands moving by muscle memory.
I was twenty-two today.
I was five years older than the girls in the ground, and I was being humiliated by the only person who had made me feel alive in a year.
As I walked out, I checked my phone one last time.
Castiello \[Private\]: I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m trying to keep you out of the crosshairs. They’ll ruin you if they know you matter to me.
I deleted the draft of my reply. I didn't want her "sorry." I wanted the girl on the boat.
Castiello \[private\]: I had to. He was watching my heart rate on the monitor. I’m coming to you tonight. Don’t blow out the candles without me.
She was the Captain and I was her secret.
But I didn't need that harsh reminder today.
That I'd lost so much and I'd lose her too.