Chapter 152 BROTHER.
\~~~VIKTOR.
“Viktor?” Her voice pulled me back, sharper now.
“We need to plan this well, the boss…”
“Do you think you can't face him?” She cut me off, her fork pausing mid-air.
“I can. I am not ready,” The words came out quieter than I meant, but honest.
“It is always going to be my brother, is it not?’' She set her fork down, her tone laced with hurt.
“What are you saying?”
“Your loyalty will always remain to him, will it not?” She asked again, dropping her cutlery with a soft clatter that echoed too loud in the quiet room.
“You are being…”
“Would you ever fight for this if need be?’' Her eyes were fierce now, challenging me.
“He is my boss, I can't…”
“You can't fight him?”
“Alessia,” I reached across the table, but she pulled back.
“It’s been a fun month,” she said, standing up abruptly, her chair scraping against the floor.
She turned and walked away, toward the living room, her shoulders tense.
I watched her go, dumbfounded, my fork forgotten in my hand.
How the hell was I supposed to explain this?
How was I supposed to go against and fight the man who had taken me in when I was nothing but seven years old, a scrawny homeless beggar scraping by on the streets of New York?
I remembered that day like it was yesterday. Rain poured down, I huddled under a cardboard box near a dumpster, and my stomach growled so loud it hurt. Luciano had been twelve, all gangly limbs and that serious face even then, had walked out of the car and walked towards me.
He stopped, stared at me for a long minute, then held out half his sandwich.
“You look like shit,” he'd said, but there was no meanness in it. Just pity, and something else, kindness, maybe.
He didn't leave me there, he dragged me to his house, pleaded with his mother to let me stay the night.
“He is just a kid, Ma. Like me.” It took hours of arguing, tears from him, and promises that he would be responsible before I was allowed to stay.
His father, God, that man was a wall of cold steel. He grumbled about strays and extra mouths, but Luciano stood his ground.
“He is family now,” the kid had said with his fists clenched. Eventually, they let me in. Not fully accepted, never that from the old man, but Luciano fought for me every step. Taught me to read, to fight, and to survive in their world.
He gave me a purpose when I had none.
How was I supposed to suddenly fight him over a woman I wasn't supposed to have fallen for?
Alessia had always been off-limits, the sister of my savior, and the one I protected from afar. But somewhere along the line, those glances turned into touches, and yearnings I could not fight.
She saw past the scars, the ones on my body from street fights, and the ones inside from losing everything young. With her, I felt whole, not just the loyal dog at Luciano's heel.
I pushed my chair back, the legs scraping louder than hers, and followed her. She was by the window now, her arms crossed, staring out at the city lights twinkling below her apartment. The room felt smaller, the air thick with unspoken fears.
“Alessia, wait,” I said softly, stopping a few feet away.
“It is not that simple.”
She didn't turn, but her voice was steady. “Then, make it simple, Viktor. Tell me you want this, us, enough to stand up to him. I am not asking you to betray him, hell!”
I stepped closer, my hand hovering near her shoulder before touching it gently. She didn't pull away, which was something.
“I do want it. More than anything. These weeks... they have been everything. Coming here, holding you, and waking up to your smile… It is the first time I've felt like I have a real home.”
She turned then, her eyes softer but still guarded. “Then why does it feel like you're holding back?”
“Because losing him means losing part of me. He is not just my boss, he's the brother I never had. The one who saved me when no one else would.” I let my hand drop to hers, lacing our fingers.
“But you... you are the one who makes me want to fight for something new. I just need time to figure out how to do it without burning everything down. I can’t lose Luciano, too.”
She sighed, leaning into me a little. “Time. That is what you've been saying for weeks. I will talk to him if you let me, I don’t give a fuck. You are the one who is worried and holding me back.”
“I know. And I am sorry.” I tried to pull her into my arms but she pulled back gently.
“Well, you’ve got to figure this out first.”
With that, she turned away, and all he could do was watch her ascend the stairs.
I am afraid of him.
This was the first time I am admitting it loudly to myself.
I was not afraid of the violence that came with him. I wouldn’t even flinch if he pointed a gun at me.
I am afraid of disappointing him.
I am afraid of losing the only family I have ever known.
“Winner. That will suit you the best, hence, your name will be Viktor from this day henceforth.”
He had given him a name, too.
Luciano was his family, and he would never want to be in a position where he would have to choose between him and Alessia.
Never.