The Blossom of Rose

34 • Caring

♕ Rose ♕

"You look like shit," Oak, so charmingly, comments when I drag myself onto the kitchen stool. There's an aroma of a cake baking in the oven, and I grin, tiredly, at him. I love it when he bakes. He makes the best brownies.

"You look fine, Rose," Brando grimaces and I watch him scan my features cringing a little. He's too nice to tell me I look horrible. I couldn't sleep at all last night, and it had nothing to do with trauma or fear but the little gremlin kicking around inside me.

I think it's a boy. A girl wouldn't be that violent but then again it has Armani genes, so I can't be jumping to conclusions.

"Where's the breakfast?" I glance around the empty island.

"It's lunchtime, princess," Oakley emphasises and points to the clock on the wall as he leaves, making sure the timer is set on the oven.

1:03pm. What the- I've never gotten out of bed this late.

"Are you okay?" Brando eyes me in concern while handing me my pills and a glass of orange juice.

"Yeah, I think it's just side effects from the ultrasound," I rub my temples and take them. My head is throbbing in pain, and I feel extra nauseous today. I feel like jumping back into my warm bed. In fact, I will after I eat something.

"Ultrasounds have no side effects," he tells me pulling out a pan from the drawer and switching on the gas, "you're probably just overtired."

I had my 5-month scan yesterday. Marco, excitedly, took the envelope containing the gender from the midwife, offering her a wink. He quite clearly stated to her that this is not his baby and that he's the uncle. It didn't look like she cared much.

The conversation with Luca keeps playing in my mind and I told Oakley I didn't want a gender reveal party. Maya gasped as if I stabbed her. But I don't want to cause such a big fuss. Imagine if I have a son and Luca gets overwhelmed by all the blue around him. I'm not going to be the one who pushes him to drown in alcohol or worse, kill someone.

So, I told them to write it down and he can open the letter whenever he wants. I'll give him that right, at least. Currently, it's been a day. But I don't mind waiting until he's ready.

Brando is over the stove, cooking something. My head pounds again and I don't want to disturb him, so I go to the medicine cupboard to get the aspirin.

I stand on a stool, a heads-up to my height, and rummage through the pills on the top shelf. Buried deep behind all the medication are stacks of the same pill bottle. Prozac. But the name on it isn't mine. It reads Luca Armani.

My heart pounds heavily. He has antidepressants?

I sneak a glance at Brando to see him flipping an omelette while humming a tune, unaware of this. After checking all the bottles, the seal on them isn't broken. He doesn't take them. Not even one.

"You shouldn't be up there," Brando startles me and I nearly, nearly, knock over the medication revealing what had me frozen in place, "it's quite high up. You might fall. And I won't hear the end of it if that happens."

"I was just getting the aspirin," I tell him and take the hand he offered me, carefully gracing down the steps of the stool.

When my feet hit the ground, my head spins and black dots dance in my vision. Brando steadies me by placing an arm around my waist and shakes his head in disapproval, his blonde strands swaying. He sets me down on the seat and places the omelette in front of me, the smell of it making my stomach rumble.

"Can I ask you something?" He rests his elbows on the island, and I hum in response. "What do you plan on doing after you give birth?"

His question takes me aback. I haven't really thought about it that far. I always had in mind that I'll just have the baby and leave it with him but that's all changed now, thanks to this newfound crush I've developed.