"How about Ms Robinson?"

"Please, I don't want a freaking fluff ball who jumps at every sound working on this floor." I sighed.

"She has practically achieved the most! It's like you're throwing all of them in the garbage bin if you reject her!" Alice fell into the chair in front of my desk.

"I'm saying this for the last time, I. Am. Not. Hiring. Her."

"Alright, how about," She paused and shuffled through the pile and picked out two other files.

"Okay, throw that redhead's resume this instant. He looked like he was about to cry."

"Can't blame him, though."

"What?"

"That leaves Mr Luciano." She sighed.

"Alright."

"Finally!" She muttered excitedly and left with his papers.

I took the rest and immediately threw them in the bin.

What psycho writes that they can read fast in a resume?

I started typing on the laptop.
____

"I don't know." She said from the other side of the call.

"You used to have a god damned list!" I exclaimed while looking through a bunch of clothes at the store.

"I just feel like eating a cake and sleeping." I could almost imagine her bored face hearing her voice.

"Alright, how about -"

"No, I don't want a hot guy for my birthday."

I laughed, "You sure know me."

"Do I?"

"What is my favourite snack?"

"You don't have one."

"Exactly. Point proved."

She sighed, "Whatever, get me a hot guy, I guess."

"You sure?" I teased.

"You won't."

"Alright, bet. You started this Tati." I hung up.

I shoved the phone back into my pocket and looked through the dresses.

"Do you have a specific style or occasion in mind, ma'am?" The lady asked.

"Something formal, classy, and something I can wear at business parties and birthday parties?" I walked past the lot.

"I think you'd like the new collection over there." She stated, pointing at a display of dresses.

A few caught my eye, but the price was not worth the dresses. I moved forward, and a red dress caught my eye.

"What about that one?" I asked, walking towards it.

"Oh, you might need to opt for a fitting with that one, considering your figure." She said, walking behind me, and I turned around, feeling slightly offended.

"Well, the bust size in this one is small, and many customers have called for a below-thigh fitting." She explained, taking the dress out, "I think we do have a larger size for the bust problem."

"I think a fitting would ruin the way it would look." I pondered

"What about a thigh slit instead?" She suggested.

"T-Thigh high!?" My eyeballs were about to pop off.

I had never worn a dress! Let alone that exposes my entire leg!

"A slit should do if there isn't too much of a stretch when you try it."

I looked at the dress and gulped.

Should I do this...?

Whatever, si vive solo una volta.

[One only lives once.]

I tried the other dress she brought and it fit, except I couldn't walk in that.

"I think a thigh slit should do." She said, kneeling and pulling the fabric slightly.

"Alright then. I need it by tomorrow morning then."

She nodded.
____

I have no idea how I'm going to pull that off without feeling anxious.

I was sitting in the living room and hoping that the roof might fall on me, injuring me enough to escape the party but not killing me.

I slid and lay down on the sofa for a while as the music played.

I want to dance.

And putting my thoughts into action, I swayed around the house, picking clothes from everywhere and dumping them on a chair in my room.

I read a book for some time and dozed off to sleep.
____
Next day
____

"The dress is ready."

"Can I try it on again?"

"Sure."

I headed to the fitting room again and... wow...

I remember wondering who the woman in front of me was and semi-flirting with myself in the mirror.
_____

In the afternoon, we had a great time at the party.

Tati was saved from being drunk and talking shit about me.

Though it was rather... breezy, with the dress, I managed by sitting it out most of the time.

I had deprived everyone of drinks, with the reason that they had to work the next morning. Though I doubt some of them complied as I found a few bottles of vodka and whiskey in a corner.

Are they trying to die off alcohol or something?

After everyone was gone, I told Tati to go home and change, and then I'd pick her up.
_____

I opened the door to the house. It looked the same as it did on that day.

I shook my thoughts off.

It's Tati's birthday today.

The sun had almost set, making the living room darker.

"Tati!" I called, "I'm here!"

"Sure you are." I heard a man's voice and immediately looked around.

He was at the top of the stairs.

I chuckled, "I can recognise you with a mask too, Eduardo."

"Sure, but that won't be the case with your sister if I had peeled her skin off."

I was taken aback. After all these years of mentoring me without showing up, he comes to harm us.

"You know, I never wanted to involve this little princess," He descended downstairs, and I saw her...

"Lasciala!" I spoke impulsively.

[Leave her!]

"Your wish," He threw her off the stairs, "is my command, Cordello."

I ran to her before she hit the stairs.

I supported her to the sofa, and a part of me was relieved to see her only passed out but the rest felt rage, betrayed and a lot more.

"After all these years, I wondered why you didn't try to find me or contact me even." He said coming down. "I thought it was you in the car."

I... was supposed to be dead...

"That bastard-- Lorenzo!-- He was running an entire mafia without telling his family!" He laughed.

His laugh resonated in the house.

I did contact him. If it wasn't the one I talked with, then who?

"Surprised?" He came to me, and I realised that I needed to punch him.

I did. I punched him so hard, he was on the ground.

"Ah, I sure am old." He groaned, "But not him."

Another guy came downstairs, with a few more people.

"Harry, meet your competition," Eduardo said but I crushed his face under my foot.

The guy named Harry seemed like a whole new problem.

"I'm done with my life, but I'm not done caring for my sister yet." I kicked Eduardo's head hard, making him pass out.

"Dad!" Harry screamed.

"Oh, so you're his bastard." I walked over to the sofa and put the headphones nearby on Tati.

He signalled his men to charge but before he could reach me, Marco and the other guards knocked them all out.

Harry was held down by Marco himself.

"Bold of you to break in and think this house wasn't guarded," I said crushing his femur.

He coughed as Marco choked him.

"What was the mafia?" I asked.

"I don't know--" He choked.

Marco held him tighter and he screamed as I went inside the kitchen and grabbed a guava.

"Shush, my sister is asleep," I whispered putting the guava in his mouth.

I walked around to Eduardo.

Harry made weird sounds of dying until he passed out.

"Signora, è svenuto dal sonno." Marco said.

[Ma'am, he fainted.]

"Wait." I was pretty shocked. "We have to keep him!"

I sighed and bent down to see Eduardo's scarred face in the dark.

He betrayed my parents as he talked like that.

And papi ran a mafia?

Did mamma know?

I had so many questions running through my head but I decided to tend to Tati.

I called a friend of mine, a doctor, home.
_____

"She passed out probably because of hitting her head or because of shock." He said writing a prescription.

"Thanks." I said sitting in the chair.

"You should probably take care of her more." He said standing up, "She might have a post-traumatic experience or nightmares. But since I'm not an expert on that I can only prefer a doctor." He handed me a card.

"I'll take my leave then, pay me online." He left and Marco came in.

"Mi dispiace, signora. Non sono riuscito ad arrivare in tempo quando ho ricevuto il segnale SOS." He said.

[I'm sorry ma'am. I wasn't able to reach on time when I received the SOS signal.]

"Where did you tie up Harry and Eduardo?"

"La sua casa, signora."

[Your house, ma'am.]

I nodded.

I wanted to know, now. What was Eduardo talking about?

A mafia? Run by papi? And mamma didn't know? There is no way mamma wouldn't know something about papi.

He-- or maybe 'they'-- wanted to kill me but not Tati. What is it that I could do and not Tati?

"Marco, scava nel passato di Eduardo e Cordello." I said and dismissed him.

[Marco, dig into Eduardo's and the Cordello's past.]

If I had not been able to call Marco...

I shuddered. I wanted to cry but I wanted to punch someone.

Tati was not supposed to be like this. She didn't deserve this. Of all people, not her at least.
______

Is the story progressing fast or is it okay?

I think the first 5 chapters should've been titled prologue but since the accident is the actual prologue, idk what to do so I stuck with this.

Pretty much of a shock this chapter.

It was Tati's bday... dang...