Break In My Heart

16. Burn In Hell

Above I attached "Easy" by Troye Sivan. It really captures the last half of this chapter. Also, double update in one week, who am I? Strap in because it's a doozie.

***
The sound of my heart hammering in my chest and the sound of dishes scraping against each other battled for dominance in my ears.

I'd floated through the day, not fully there mentally unless Ty was by my side. From my first period to my train ride home, my insides were anxiously buzzing with anticipation. Tyler was coming here to have dinner with my family. To Azalea and my other siblings, it would just seem like I'd invited a friend over to hang out, but to Padre and Papa, they knew it meant more. So much more.

I was wondering if inviting him so soon was a mistake.

Though we'd been content keeping our relationship— if you could even really call it that— labelless, now I was second-guessing everything I did, trying not to come off too strong too fast. I had to admit I was falling. Hard. Every smile he threw my way, every melody that made up his laugh, every bout of warmth he sent through my body by simply smiling made me fall deeper and deeper into him, like I was trapped in quicksand. I liked him a lot, and that, like most things that'd been happening recently, scared me. I really didn't want to mess this up.

I glanced at the clock as I put the finishing touches on the meal I'd created. Tyler had texted me fifteen minutes ago that he was on his way. Any second I'd get the text confirming his arrival. The very thought made my hands sweaty.

I'd made my family's favorite dish of mine: bucatini with lemony carbonara. I'd also made freshly squeezed lemonade and salad. I just hoped Tyler would like it. Kyra never really did. Yeah, she'd pretend but she was more of a basic Olive-Garden-Italian kind of girl. But he was...different.

"Everything smells good, Addison," Azalea said as she wandered into the kitchen. Her hair was newly styled, this time she had two braids leading into a high puff. She had a scarf wrapped around the front of her hair, likely to lay down her intricate edges. I'd never understood how she did it. Even when she tried to teach me, I was left with more confusion than answers. And a whole lot of hair gel stuck to my hands.

She was a wizard.

"Thanks, Azzy." She approached my side as she slid her phone into her back pocket, likely texting Josh again. According to Tyler, he'd seen them becoming closer and closer. Holding hands, even a few kisses here and there. As much as I wanted to interrogate her and grill Josh harder than a barbeque, I wasn't the one to judge someone about secret relationships, a pot kettle thing.

She raised a brow as she looked at me, her deep brown eyes filled with amusement. "You're sweating bullets, Addison. What's up with you?" There was a certain tease in her voice that nudged me.

I chuckled, trying to brush it off. "Nothing. I'm just hot and I've been working really hard on this."

"Vedo (I see). Go change your shirt and wipe that look of impending doom off your face, Addi. It doesn't suit you. I'll make sure the little demons don't eat it before dinner starts."

I rolled my eyes before I gently pushed her on her forehead, causing her head to fall back. "Thanks, Azalea. You know, you're really not that bad when you're not being annoying. Dovresti farlo più spesso (you should do it more often)."

She swatted my hand away before she gave me a sickly sweet smile as she flipped me off. "Love you to, fratello (brother)."

I chuckled before I hurried upstairs and did as I was told. I changed into a simple sweatshirt and a pair of gray sweatpants. I looked around my room. I'd made sure that it was as clean and presentable as possible. If we made it back here after dinner, which I was endlessly hoping for, I wanted it to be as clean as possible. I looked at my bed, the one we'd sat shoulder to shoulder a bit over a week ago would be the same one that could harbor other deeds. A shiver ran down my spine just thinking about it.