Her Mafia Brothers

Rocco's Discipline

"I'm not expecting you to guess," Rocco insisted. "I want you to have a think about it and see if you can figure it out. Put yourself in my shoes. How do you think I felt when I thought you were drowning?"

I didn't like this side of Rocco. I hated it, in fact.

"It was just a joke! Why don't you get that? Geez!" I snapped, angry. I'd totally had enough. I tried to jump down off the table, but Rocco wasn't having it. He grabbed my arm and held me still, not letting me leave.

"You're not going anywhere," he said, his trademark scowl fixed firmly in place.

"Let me go!" I demanded, kicking his leg roughly. I was so over this. I still had no idea what it was that I'd done so wrong, and Rocco didn't seem to have any intention of telling me.

Rocco responded by slapping the front of my thigh, hard. It was only one slap, but it was brutal. My pants absorbed none of the sting.

"Ow!" I yelled, bringing my hands to my thighs to prevent any further assault on them. Once it was clear Rocco wasn't going to slap me anymore I rubbed where he'd hit, trying to ease the sting, but it was futile. His huge hand left a fiery burn that covered fully a third of the front of my thigh and no amount of rubbing was going to take the burning away.

"Don't kick me," he growled.

"Sorry," I mumbled, looking at the ground.

His face softened at my apology.

"We haven't finished our chat." His scowl was gone now. Instead, he looked a bit sad again, much like he did when I was frightened of him before my shower.

He let go of my arm, but he held my chin with his fingers and tilted my face up so I couldn't avoid his gaze.

"When you pretended to drown, I was terrified for you," he said. "I know you think it was funny, but there was nothing funny at all about watching my little sister flailing around in the water, drowning. I thought you were actually at risk of dying. We've already lost you once, sis. We couldn't bear to lose you again."

"Oh." I felt a bit bad, now. I hadn't meant to make him upset, I'd just been playing an innocent prank.

"You know, it's almost like a betrayal," Rocco continued. "You used my love for you against me, to trick me. You pretended to take away the thing I love most, and you thought it was funny." He shook his head and looked at me sadly. "But it wasn't funny at all. It was horrible. That's why I got so angry at you."

"Oh." Now I felt doubly bad. I tried to look away, to avoid his eyes, but he wouldn't let me. He physically held my face so I couldn't move, and he kept his gaze steady on mine, making me look at him. Making me see the sadness and fear there.

"It's not funny when a prank involves hurting someone or pretending to die or anything serious like that."

Rocco let go of my face then but continued to lecture me for a bit, but I tuned him out. It didn't really matter what he was saying, because nothing could have more impact on me than what he'd already said: you pretended to take away the thing I love most.... Really? I was the thing he loved most? Warm fuzzies spread through me as those words echoed around in my brain. I couldn't get them out of my head and nor did I want to.

I was loved!

I was wanted!

After everything I'd been through, to hear those words was the most wonderful thing in the world.

"Give me your phone," Rocco ordered, snapping me back to reality.

"Huh?" I asked him, completely dazed. I had no clue what he was talking about. If someone had held a gun to my head and demanded to know what Rocco had said, I wouldn't be able to answer.