My Property

Promise

~Malia~

12 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑠 𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟,

I sat by the community bench, as she played around with the other kids. It's nice to have a responsibility that doesn't involve murder, pain or death, It distracts you from the real world.

"Misha sweetie let's go" I called for her, as I got ready to leave. She ran after me in her little ballerina shoes, as a stunning smile lit up her face.

"Now?" she pouted,

"I'm afraid so" I smiled, zipping her coat up to the top, she held onto my hand as we got ready to leave.

My life has taken twists and turns in many aspects, things have changed all the time. There's never a point I think to myself, that this is my permanent state, I'm always aware that things could take a turn.

After Romano's death, I decided I wouldn't move to Italy. I'm not going to leave the people I know here and start a new life there with things that were still burdening me on the inside. So Instead I brought it all here, every single thing. I have a massive mansion, not for me, but for everyone who works for me. I've learnt from Ezra the skills and responsibilities that I would need to know, he's been a great tutor. Rita left the country, after hearing about the incident with Lorenzo. She took Ayana with her, as without Lorenzo she had no family left. I didn't get the chance to say goodbye to her, as Rita had vanished immediately.

I wanted to juggle my responsibilities as well as my passion. So over the years I managed to write a couple books, each based on true events, though the readers will never know. I wrote each book, on each stage in my life. I never knew that it would become such a hit, so big that I brought a whole book shop just to sell the books in. And it was the best decision I've ever made, I've never been more happier with it.

"Come on" I giggled, pulling onto Misha's little fingers. We walked into my store, it was like a breeze of peace flashing towards me. As soon as we entered Misha ran towards her mum, wrestling her to the ground.

"Look at you" Eva laughed, lifting her off the ground and placing a big kiss on her cheek. "Did you and auntie M have fun". She giggled at her mum's lipstick stain, that was stamped onto her cheek.

Eva got her happy ending in the end, she married an accountant named Francis, a real gentleman. They got married under the floating lanterns, it was one of the most beautiful events I've ever been to. They had Misha about 5 years ago and she continuously tells me how she's the best thing that's ever happened in her life. I gave her a job at my store as she needed one and plus it's nice to have your best friend close by.

"How are my favourite people doing?" a voice says behind my ear, I slap him with the back of my hand as he goes to muzzle the top of my head.

"You two are literal children" Eva sighs, taking Misha down the aisles of the store.

"You're the child" I point my finger at Ezra's nose, he catches it before trying to bite it. He swings his arm around my shoulder, following me at every step I take.

Ezra's kind of become a little pet that never leaves my side, a good little pet though. He's helped me so much after the incident, we've helped each other. He left things to Claire, as she started to take full control of the place, ruining all that Romano had ever created. So Ezra's technically with the Italian now, yet he refuses to admit it. If he's going to fight for us and be by my side 24/7, it's only facts.

"How's business doing?" Ezra asks, as I check the orders we had today.

"Absolutely shit", some days my whole store can be left empty and others you can literally hear the tumbleweeds.

"Actually that's not true" Eva shouts from the other side of the shop, She runs Through with Misha tagging on behind. She opens the laptop, typing in something I couldn't see. Then from below the cabinet she took out a little envelope and handed it to me. "You're not going to believe me, but all 25 of your books were sold to one buyer".

"WHAT?",

"In one day?" Ezra's as astonished as I am. She pulls out the receipt from the order, laughing as she swings it in my face. I snatch hold of it, reading it all to be true. Ezra kept pushing to see the proof that was printed on it too.

"Who was it?" I questioned, wanting to know who my number 1 buyer was.

"Two random men came in, they didn't look like the book reading type. They handed me a note asking for every single fucking book and then left this. They said not to open it, it's for you." Eva says, pointing down at the envelope she had given me. I opened it up, ripping past the glued down paper. I was desperate to know, who was so interested in my books.

Inside was a little square note, the writing all too familiar.

𝐼 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑒𝑑

Those words hit me inside, a tight knot gathering up in my stomach, I traced my fingers over the words, it just made me smile even more. My eyes reverted to my ring, closing my eye's at his memory. It was him, even after his death, he kept his promise to me. I remembered that day, the day I told him everything, he promised to buy every single one of them.

"Romano" Ezra says, also recognising the writing, "How did he?-".

"I have no idea",

I don't know what it was that made me fall in love with him. Maybe it was his smile, or his voice or the way he could make me feel. But along with that I got consumed by the pain that came as a package within the love.

Sometimes It hurt, but I learned to move on. I've suffered, swallowed death and more, all for my love to be him, the man whom I once thought only to be a monster.

A secret that I wasn't read to share with him, was that I always dreamt of our future. I wished of us moving away into a homie little town, filled with lovely old aged people. We would spend our days being the happiest of couples, not living in reality, being far away from the danger of it.

I wanted kids, a little girl and a little boy. He'd love them even though he once told me he hated kids, they'd be his only exception. We'd give them a normal life, the life we never got. One filled with kisses and bedtime stories and adventures as a family.

And then after that, we'd watch them grow, have children of their own. Whilst we grow old and grey together, still fulfilled by our forever blossoming love.

It was all a fantasy, of course.

Sometimes when I sleep his heartbeat echoes inside my ears, calming me to sleep. I dream of his smile, looking at me from above, watching over me. I know I'll never love again, cause he was my forever and I was his.

I would do anything for one last
Hug,
Kiss,
Even smile, even just the sound of his last breath.

Our story may have not been perfect, a love story in which we all dream about. But it was mine, as he always will be.

"𝑅𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑜 𝐷𝑒'𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑏𝑒 𝑚𝑦 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛".

~𝐸𝑛𝑑~

(Please read the next page)