Chapter 20 : High School Ruined Me
Chapter 20: High School Ruined Me
Sophie
“I didn't bring you anything.” I mumbled, embarrassed.
“I..I didn't know that..” he smiled, stepping closer and making me lose my words.
“It is okay, butterfly.” He pressed a kiss to my cheek that heated under his lips.
“You decided to still stay friends with us after that happened. That was the best gift of all.” I smiled.
He was so nice, I got off the desk, accidentally knocking the pen stand on the floor. I bent down to pick it up so that I could put it back on the desk. But he slammed his hands on the desk and caged me in. I looked up at him with wide eyes. His jaw was clenched, dark eyes watching me. My eyes fell on the strand of his hair coming over his forehead. I tucked it behind his ear before I could stop myself. His jaw loosened and he sighed.
“Don't bend in front of anyone wearing this, baby girl.” He muttered.
“Okay?” I bit my lip.
“Did you see…”
“Yes,” he nodded, cutting me off.
“Little red panties.” He muttered. I blushed.
“Oh,” he rolled his eyes.
“Let's go grab Adriano and Luciano, I am hungry.”
Adriano slid his ring on my pinky and Luciano slid his on my middle finger. The rings didn't match but somehow they looked good on my fingers. We ate pizza, Angelo had asked me what I wanted to eat, every time anyone asked me what I wanted to eat, I always said pizza. It was a reflex.
“I want to pay.” I said.
“No,” Adriano kisses my cheek.
“It can be my little Christmas gift.” I insisted, trying to give my card to the waitress. Angelo took it from my hand.
“No,” he said sternly.
“But..”
“No,” Luciano kissed my temple ans handwe his card to the lady who quickly grabbed it ajd walked away.
I folded my arms against my chest, leaning back into my seat, glaring at them. They seemed unaffected by my furious glaring. How? We walked out of the place while I texted Sarah.
‘I ate pizza, did you eat anything yet?’
‘I ate a burger, I will see you tonight.’
“Who is texting?” Luciano asked, he was sitting across from me with Angelo.
“ A friend.” I said, putting my phone in the pocket of my skirt.
“Sar?” Adriano asked softly, raising an eyebrow at me and I shrugged.
“Kind of.” He looked away from me.
They didn't say anything until we reached my apartment, Luciano helped me out of the car and pressed a kiss to my forehead, not saying anything. Adriano and Angelo kissed my cheeks and got back into the car. I knocked on the tainted window, it slid sown. Adriano raised his eyebrows at me.
“Do you forget something?” He asked.
“Sar is Sarah and she is my best friend.” I told him. He smiled.
“Alright, darling.” He kissed the corner of my mouth and the breath got knocked out of me.
“Go up, now.”
I robotically turned around and walked into my apartment. I heard the sound of their car driving away after I closed the door. I looked down at the ring and a smile crept up on my lips.
Thomas Rizzo was found dead on Christmas morning, there were other dead bodies there too. The reporter had said it was the mafia that did this. They killed Rizzo's cousin and five more. Sarah was sitting beside me, it was the day after Christmas and we both were under a thick layer of blankets with her cat jumping around and snarling at me. She didn't like me that much, Sarah looked at me.
“Their cousin died.” She said, pausing the television.
Her apartment was small with broken furniture but it had a honey feeling to it that made it feel welcoming.
“Did they say anything?” Asked me and I shook my head, nibbling at my bottom lip.
I had been too hungry yesterday and too drunk and nervous the day before. They were bad men, it didn't matter if it sounded like they wanted to be out of the mafia. They were in the mafia. Why did they not save their brother? Did they even have a say in it? Maybe the Don ordered someone to kill Thomas and the other five people. That could be the truth but they had not even appeared to be sad. They were happy, giving me the rings. The rings.
I looked down at the three rings adoring my fingers, glittering prettily. They could have guessed my ring sizes in the same way they guessed my dress size. I had been too flattered, too blown away by their beauty to pay attention to the details. Dress size could be guessed too. After a few more hours of spending time with Sarah, I left her apartment. I walked home alone, and it was dark, her apartment was a few minutes away from mine but everything was so dark. It was about two in the night, I should have stayed but her couch was too uncomfortable.
I was a little away from my apartment when I felt someone watching me, I didn't bother to look. I ran inside the building and quickly climbed the staircase. I pushed my cupboard against my door and bookshelf against the window and then I peeked out. A man was dressed in a suit, he was standing near a black car with no plate number behind it. By the way he stood, I was again hit with the feeling that I knew who he was, I just couldn't figure it out. I couldn't see his face in the darkness. He watched me for a couple of seconds and then got inside his car and drove away.
I was a little scared, I didn't get what was going on with the Rizzo's and I didn't get who it was outside the apartment. I had a feeling that the man who had attacked me and this man were the same. Could he be? The police have failed to catch him. I had the officer as soon as I calmed down, he had assured me that he would find who the man was but I didn't believe him. He had barely listened to me when I had told him about the attacker. I was curled into a ball on my bed, I couldn't sleep. It was already five in the morning and I was looking at the cupboard pressed to the door, I imagined it falling over and the man coming inside.
I was reminded in high school how my bullies would lock me in the janitor's closet sometimes when they were done tormenting me. I didn't have a stutter before high school, I was fine. I was good at studies and confident. High school ruined me, they ruined me.