The Rossi boy

Chapter 11

The three of us ended up sleeping on Adrien's room. Last thing I remember was watching the second film about some cop going wacko and harassing this neighbors. Lucas was asleep next to me and Dante was sprawled on the end of the bed, using my legs as a pillow.

I woke up tangled in Lucas, with Dante's foot pushing on my back.

My heart started to race when I noticed Lucas' hand dangerously close to my butt. His other arm was under my head. I have no idea how could he sleep like that without getting the numbing ants.

I untangled my legs from Lucas's and jumped out of bed carefully, trying not to wake up Dante. It was still early. I took the chance to have a shower first, so I'd be able to fully wake up. My neck was killing me, so the hot water would be like a blessing from above.

When I got out of the shower, none of the boys were in the room. I heard Dante's shower was running while I went down the stair to help Marie with breakfast.

I couldn't help to think about how weird things were between Lucas and I. We've been so far away from each other for so long and suddenly it feels like not a day went by since we were twelve. I've missed him so much (Not that I was ever gonna let him know that) that the months after we drifted apart, I used to cry myself to sleep every knight.

Growing up, I always felt like damaged gods, like I wouldn't be able to go beyond my childhood traumas and be forever alone. When Lucas insisted on being my friend, and treated me with kindness and warmth, I realized not all boys were evil. When I started coming more often to the Rossi's, I realized that my kind of 'normal family', wasn't normal at all. In all the years I've known them, not once I heard Vittorio raise his voice to Marie or the boys. They all respected and loved each other dearly. And for some reason they loved Grandma and me, too.

I was really grateful for them, I didn't know what my life would be like if it wasn't for them. If it wasn't for Lucas.

I suppose the logical next step is to fall in love with your savior, right? Wrong! If you fall, you lose it all. At least in my case. So when he started to ignore me and go out with girls, I realized I was smart by kipping my mouth shut.

At least, even if Lucas would never return my feelings, I got to keep his family close, and gained a new best friend in Adrien.

"How did you sleep?" Marie asked upon seeing me still bouncing my head from side to side.

"My neck is killing me."

"Well... that's a small bed for three people" Her knowing smirk made me laugh.

"I'm kicking them out tonight", I said. She just laughed at me.

"Good luck with that."

" Mom, can you give me something for the pain? I can't feel my arm", Lucas complained, moving it in circles while he seated at the table. I blushed and looked away sitting at the place I always do.

"I didn't see you complain about it last night when I went to check on you kids" Marie turned from the stow to watch her son in the eye with a smile that looked a lot like the Cheshire cat's. "In fact, I think I saw you cuddle really happy..."

Lucas went into a fit of cough and had to take some orange juice, while his mom patted his back innocently.

We ate Marie's delicious pancakes and helped her wash the dishes. Then all of us got our backpacks and went out to the Jeep. It was a beautiful sunny day. A waste to be spent at school...

"I'm never sleeping with you again. You kicked me in the groin, twice!", Dante accused.

"Me?! Your smelly foot was in my face!!", I defended.

"My feet don't smell! But Lucas'..."

"Hey! Watch it!", he warned his little brother. "At least you didn't get drooled on", he said looking in my direction. My mouth fell open. I was livid!

"I did not drool on you!"

"You did! My t-shirt had a drooling stain this big", me motioned with his fingers the size of an orange. "I didn't do that, and Dante sure as hell didn't come close enough to my chest to do that"

"Well, if a two hundred pounds bulldozer squashed you, You'd drool too!!", I retorted, while they laughed.

"Isabelle..." Asashi's voice traveled to us from my front lawn. He must have been exercising. There was a tatami mattress spread in the grass next to the bushes.

"Morning, Asashi", I greeted. Dante nodded in his direction and Lucas just put his shades on, getting in the car, not even acknowledging him. "You practice Yoga?"

Okay, Let me confess that I was internally fanning myself. You could see the lean muscles under the thin cotton of the t-shirt an his cheeks were kind of flushed. He was so hot, so early in the morning!

"Yeah... I do Yoga and Taekwondo."

I heard Dante whistle his amazement in the back seat. I just imagined Asashi in those pajama kind of uniforms... The flawless skin glistening with sweat, his agile movements, powerful and controlled... Yep, the boy was making me hot.

"My best friend practices Judo. I'd love to see what the difference between the two sports is", I said, trying to sound detached, but screaming my head off internally at the prospect of Asashi showing me some moves.

"I'd be happy to show you." He flashed me a million dollar smile, and I was gone. I only reacted when Lucas pushed me to the other side of the car, getting me in. "I'll be doing a special class in the Martial Arts association on the weekend... Wanna come? You can invite your friend too"

"We'd love to come! I'll talk to you after school!", I screamed at him.

The car pulled out of the driveway an I smiled to Asashi, waving my hand. Nobody said a word on the way to school. And I was too busy thinking of the gorgeous boy sleeping in my house to care about the silence.

When the jeep stoped in its parking space , there were a lot of people around, waiting for Lucas, mostly. I jumped off the car and started backing away, trying to go unnoticed, like I always do. I noticed Vic standing close to the building entrance and sighed in relief, my wallflower nature happy to get out of the sorroundings of the spotlights. But this time, I couldn't vanish...

"Belle...", Lucas' voice sounded close to me. I slowly turned to find him standing right behind me, so close he could almost touch me with his whole body. Everybody was staring at us in silence, like they needed to hear the conversation to save their lives.

"What?" I enquired, my voice like a shaky breath.

His head ducked even closer to mine, like he was whispering a secret, his hand brushed my arm as he talked. A few gasps raised from the place where the jocks an the skanks were.

"Can you lend me some money? I forgot my wallet and I need to go buy something", he explained.

To say I was shocked, was an understatement. He'd never done that before... but I supposed me currently staying at his house, it would be ungrateful not to lend him.

What did he need money in school for, anyways? He brought his lunch... Was he buying drugs? Cigarretes? Condoms?

"You are not buying ilegal stuff with it, are you?", I squinted my eyes at him. He laughed, earning us a lot of flabbergasted looks.

"No... I'm not buying anything ilegal."

"Good." I said, slapping a twenty dollar bill on his open hand. "'Cuz I would kick your ass if you used my hard earned money in stupid things."

He kissed my forehead and walked away, passing by his atonished friends and whores, going into the school building.

"What in fuck's name was that all about ?" Vic was standing next to me, frozen solid, just like me. Her mouth hangging open, her eyes stuck in Lucas' back... or ass. I would never know.

"I have no idea...", I answered honestly.