𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐛𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 ✔️

Chapter 40

6 months later - July.

The second I woke up and stretched, I turned to look at Casper who lay asleep beside me.

He looks so peaceful.

Time to ruin that.

I jumped on top of him, giving him a one sided hug and pressing kisses against his face. Once his body woke up and processed what was going on, a smile formed on his face and he wrapped his arms around me.

"Sorry to wake you up. I just don't want us to miss our flight," I told him as he moved some hair out of my face.

He grabbed his phone from his nightstand, checking the time. He agreed, "Shit. Yea, we should probably get up now."

I sprung out of bed with so much energy. But I'm sure I'll lose it during the 2 and a half hour flight to Venice. 

We packed our suitcases the night before, so all we had to do was get ready and say goodbye to Marino. Because of the hot weather, I put on a white dress and put half of my hair up. I stared at myself in the mirror, making sure I looked good enough.

I need to look good when meeting Caspers parents for the first time.

I was on summer break, so we were finally able to go. I asked Casper if he was going to call them and let them know that we were coming first, but he said he wanted it to be a surprise. I'm sure they'll be surprised when he and his wife show up at their house after not hearing from him for years.

He appeared in the doorway of the bathroom after getting changed and whispered, "Wow. You look beautiful."

"Are you sure they're gonna like me?" I worried.

He nodded and spoke sincerely, "Positive. Now let's go say bye to Marino."

Casper carried our suitcases into his car while I walked over to Marinos door, knocking three times. When he didn't answer I slowly opened the door, my jaw dropping seeing him asleep with a girl in bed.

I shut the door quietly, nearly running outside. Once I was outside I whispered, "Casper! Marino brought a girl home with him last night!"

"Good for him. About time he got a girlfriend," Casper shrugged, "You gonna wake him up?"

I shook my head no. I don't want to disturb him and his potential girlfriend.

We made our way to the airport in Madrid, and I felt so nervous the entire time. But the butterflies really started to kick in once it was time for us to board our flight.

I shook my leg anxiously in my seat and Casper put his hand on my thigh to stop me. He smiled at me, "Lex. You have nothing to be worried about."

I took a deep breath, nodding my head. I have nothing to be worried about.

I laid my head on Caspers shoulder for the entire flight, trying to force myself into a nap so I'd calm down. And I guess it worked, because before I knew it Casper was gently shaking me and people walked past me, exiting the plane.

I stood up, walking with Caper to get our suitcases. Once we had them he called a taxi, and we were just 20 minutes away from his parents house.

Venice was absolutely beautiful. I spent the entire drive admiring it, understanding why Caspers parents chose to live here. It is gorgeous.

After a 20 minute drive, we stopped in front of a small house. It was painted blue, and was right in front of the canal. As we got out of the car I asked him, "Are you nervous?"

He nodded, "Yea. I am."

I held onto his hand, giving it a supportive squeeze. The taxi drove away and we walked up to the door, Casper hesitating before knocking on it.

There was shuffling on the other side and then a beautiful 40 year old woman opened the door. She had long black hair, big brown eyes, and sharp facial features.

She looks just like him.

Her jaw dropped, looking like she was questioning her own reality. She put her hand over her mouth as Casper said, "Ciao Mamma."

"Casper!" She smiled, pulling him down into a hug.

She started to ask him multiple questions in Italian, which Casper answered in Italian, but I couldn't really understand. She yelled for his dad, and his dad had the same reaction as his mom when seeing him. He pulled him into a hug, saying something to him in Italian that made his eyes water.

Casper looked at me and started explaining to them who I was in Italian. His mom gasped and hugged me, "Wife! It's so good to meet you, Lex!"

I hugged her back, "Sorry my Italian isn't the best. Spanish has been filling my brain."

"Oh, sweetheart, don't apologize! Come on in, both of you!" She smiled at us, gesturing inside.

We walked in and I looked around. It was small, but it was beautiful. It looked like a home with many memories. His family talked to him some more, probably asking him about what he's been doing for the past couple of years.

And I sat there, watching with a smile. Casper said something that made his mom turn to me, "I'm so glad you liked my pasta! Why doesn't Casper show you around while I start to get it ready?"

"That would be amazing," I smiled at her.

She headed to the kitchen and Casper guided me upstairs. He opened a door to a small room with not much furniture, but I knew it was his from the pictures on the desk. He told me, "This was my bedroom. And if you look out the window, you can still see the old basketball net I used to use."

I looked outside of his window, seeing a very old basketball net with a deflated soccer ball beside it. He kissed my forehead and said, "After we eat, I'll show you around outside."

Caspers dad came in and started talking to him, and I went downstairs to help his mom. She showed me step by step how to cook it, and I swirled the pasta around in the pan. She glanced upstairs at the sound of Casper and his dad laughing before turning back to me, "He's grown into such a fine young man. And I think I have you to thank for that."

She moved some of my brown hair while continuing to speak, "Thank you for bringing the good back out in my son. I always knew he still had it buried deep in him."

Her words made me smile as Casper and his dad came back down the stairs. The pasta was done now, so she and I put it into bowls before sitting at the wooden kitchen table.

We spent the next hour talking, laughing, and his parents told me a few stories from when Casper was young. It was an amazing time.

Once we were done eating I went to help his mom when she told me, "Oh don't worry about it! You and Casper are only here for a week, let him show you around Venice!"

I felt Caspers arm wrap around me and he told me, "Come on darling."

I nodded and held onto his hand as we walked down the warm street. The sun was setting and reflected beautifully against the water in the canal beside us. I smiled at him, "Your parents are lovely."

"They've definitely improved since I was a teenager. I'm gonna leave them some money once we leave so that they can afford to redo the interior, I know they love the house too much to leave."

I smiled at his words. We walked along the sidewalk, just appreciating the nature.

Once we needed a break we took a seat on a bench, the sky an orange glow. He put his hands on the sides of my face, pressing a long sweet kiss against my lips. Once he pulled away I asked him, "What did I do to deserve that?"

"You deserve the world, Lex. And I'm going to give it to you."

The End.

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♡ 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤, 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬. 𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦. ♡