Callous

Chapter 20/Reunion

Aarib's POV

Punch.

Kick.

Punch.

Kick.

Sweat drips down on the mat like a drizzle of rain, covering the whole of my body. I just stand in a vest and biker shorts, taking out all of my aggression on this punching bag that has become my best friend. But obviously I'm not quite treating it well and using it for my very own needs—of course—because it's a stupid punching bag. Not a human.

I wish it were a human I was beating to the plump.

Life is a damn mess.

I am a damn mess.

Everything around me is a damn mess.

I'm totally, completely shattered.

Screwed.

Broken beyond repair.

If people called me heartless before, they definitely called me a monster now.

Except the thing is, a monster could still be tamed, calmed down. Isn't that what that stupid Disney movie princess did? What was her name—Bell? She fell in love with him and he went from being the monster he had gotten back to being a charming, handsome price.

Illusione perfetta.

Perfect illusion.

I throw a hard punch one last time before falling on the bed behind me and gasping hard, pushing the wet hair out of my face. My breaths are coming in breathless gasps, my heart hammering inside my chest. My knuckles are officially bleeding again and I literally couldn't care less. I stopped boxing with the gloves two weeks back and since then whenever the skin of my knuckles would torn open, Feroze would ask his secretary—more like a toy he plays with—to put an ointment on which did little to no help considering I tore them open again.

Also, I hate when she touches my hand.

Yesterday I banned her from entering my room or coming anywhere near me.

She makes me sick to the point where I want to claw at my skin and throw her to the wolves and take my sweet time watching her suffer.

Today I'll probably fire her. I don't care if my brother throws a hissy fit. He's had his own ways for quite a time now. Now, I will make the rules.

I've come to Italy for a business deal with our enemies. Must I say, dealing with mob business and the capos' is a big headache and also a danger to our lives. Our: mine, Hatim's and Sheru's.

Why my friends are here is a long story I am not in the mood to tell.

Bear with it.

The door to my room bursts open.

"Ever heard of the word 'privacy'?" I call out to Hatim who closes the door behind him and walking over to the dresser grabs the remote and turns on the tv, craning the volume too annoyingly loud.

"What are you doing?" I sit up, giving him a look. He looks like he just encountered a ghost outside.

Hatim runs a shaky hand through his blonde hair. "Shite! She's here."

My first guess is Haya, like always. But that's impossible. She'd never come to Italy.

"Okay. Who?"

"Remember the girl that I always used to gush about? I saw her at the fighting arena once—"

"Ah, the one you fell in love with. You know, love at first sight aren't really my thing." I tried to ignore how my heart sort of stopped beating when the possibility of Haya being here wasn't confirmed.