From London to Rome

Chapter 40

Luca

I've never been more anxious in my life. Even when I asked Sky to be my girlfriend, I wasn't this nervous. I've been staying with her for the past four days, hoping that I could get enough courage to talk to my parents. But as soon as I got in the overcrowded tube, my nerves were out of control again. Can't these damned tourists do something else for a day? It's been almost two weeks since I introduced Sky to Valerie and Aiden, so that means that I've been putting this conversation off for just as long already. I've been staying with Sky most of the time, both to avoid facing my parents and to enjoy my new favourite activity which involves me, Sky and very few clothes.

The closer to our house I get, the bigger the knot in my stomach seems to get. I don't know why I'm this nervous, they are just my parents. Dad will probably just be happy for me and move on with his day since he already saw Sky once before, but it isn't his reaction I'm nervous about. Mum has made it very clear that she likes the kind of girl that only cares about her designer clothes, the number of calories she eats and when her next manicure is planned.

Mum tried to make Adrina one of those girls but failed her vegan mission once I got Adrina hooked on burgers and steak. She still wears designer clothes, but only because mum usually buys them for her. I don't think mum ever quit trying to turn us into her little puppets.

I know mum and dad will be home, I texted Adrina to make sure I wasn't getting nervous for no reason. Adrina also took that as her chance to get out of the house, so she wouldn't have to witness the lecture that's waiting for me.

I come home to find my mother in the kitchen. She's making coffee and offers me a cup. I guess she isn't mad that I left for a few days.

"Living room, now." Or she is... Out of both of my parents, mum is definitely the strictest one. Not that she was home often, so Adrina and I got away with almost anything. "Giovani! Coffee is ready! And our son decided to show up again!" My dad appears at the top of the stairs. He looks slightly more relaxed than mum, but I can see he's still not too happy about my disappearance.

"Well, son. How is the nomad-life treating you?"

"Stop joking around, Giovani. This is serious. I had to hear from Adrina that you left and would be back on the weekend. Care to explain why the sudden need to leave the city?"

"Well, I didn't exactly leave the city. I was staying with someone up in Tottenham. I needed some time to think some things through."

"And you couldn't have told us yourself? Or at least called us? Do you know who did call me? Your aunt Valerie."

This conversation is taking a turn I really don't like. I wanted to be the one to bring up Skylar, but apparently mum already heard something. I should have told Valerie to not tell my parents until I could tell them myself. But dad already knew, he saw Skylar in this very living room a while back and I'm surprised he never said anything about it.

"Valerie told me about this lovely girl you brought to meet her the weekend before last. She kept on talking about how sweet and pretty she was, I had no idea what she was talking about. Luckily for me, she mentioned her name, Skylar, am I right?"

Mum seems to get angrier with the minute. This is exactly why I didn't tell her in the first place. I knew she would react like this, and she hasn't even met Skylar yet.

"Since I never heard of a Skylar, I asked someone at the office to run a little check."

"You ran a background check on Skylar? This is the reason I didn't tell you about her."

How did she even find enough information to run a background check? All she knew was her first name. She must have tricked Valerie into telling her more about Skylar.

"I found out enough to know that this isn't a girl for you, Luca. You can do so much better. A girl like that is only going to hurt your reputation and your career. Why don't you just pick a girl like Sydney? She's in the business, she knows what is important."

"Does she really? Because when I heard her talk, all she seemed to care about was how often her pictures appeared in magazines and what colour nail polish is popular."

"Whether you like it or not, that Skylar girl is no good. She's not worthy of someone like you."

"I don't even know how to respond to this. What exactly does someone like me mean? Famous? Actor? Model? I don't care about any of that, neither does Sky. Sky is the best girl I've ever met. She takes me for who I really am, she cares about me. She's smart and funny, kind and ambitious and creative. If anything, I'm the one not worthy of her."

"Luca, open your eyes. There are plenty more girls that are smart or creative. She isn't someone you want to be seen with, in the media. You can't deny that she doesn't exactly have the looks and shape of a model."

"Do you even hear yourself, mother? You are calling my girlfriend fat. I won't allow you to say all these negative things about her. She's been through so much, the last thing she needs is an adult talking shit about her. I don't care whether she's a size four or a size ten, and I'm proud to be seen with her. She is the one who makes me happy. I love her and there is nothing you can do about it."

How can she not see that I've been happier since meeting Sky? Adrina notices a change in my mood way before I confessed me hanging out with Skylar. Julian has told me that I look better, healthier and happier since I started dating Skylar. Everyone can see how happy she makes me, everyone but my own mother.