Lucca's POV: twenty-three years later...

"Lucca! Get your fucking ass up!"

I gasped as I quickly sat up and stumbled onto the floor. Just as I headed for my closet, I felt a sharp pain when my left pinky toe crashed into the leg of my bed frame.

"Ah, fuck!"

"Lucca, shut up!" Ciro yelled from my bed, throwing a pillow at me and missing.

"Shut it, Ciro. I just stubbed my toe!"

"I don't care, just be quiet!"

"You weren't quiet last night. Besides, you're in my room. I'll be as loud as I want."

I turned and walked towards my closet, but I was tackled to the floor just seconds later. Ciro hit my chest and covered my mouth.

"Be quiet! Dad or Bubba can't know about that, damn it." Ciro covered my mouth, and I deadpanned, pushing his hand away.

"You think they don't know what we do?" I laughed, shaking my head. "You sleep in my bed every night. So will the other two. I mean, Dad and Bubba have caught us kissing on multiple occasions and they haven't said anything."

"Still. It's just embarrassing." Ciro's bronze skin blushed.

"Lucca! I'm beating your ass if you don't come down right now!"

I pushed Ciro off and quickly changed, heading to the bathroom and brushing my teeth before fixing my hair. It was pretty curly which I got from Bubba, so I kept it short.

I went downstairs and to the kitchen where Dad was, and he turned around with a warm smile. "Help me make breakfast." I stared and blinked at my dad as he giggled, coming over to hug me. "What?"

"I thought you were making me go to the warehouse or something, I don't know." I groaned, rubbing my face.

"Aw, I'm sorry, Lucca. I just needed help to make breakfast. You already know I can't cook for shit." Dad laughed softly and kissed my face. "Once you're done helping me, you can go back to bed if you'd like? I just don't want to risk cooking and burning the house down."

I nodded and felt Dad kiss my cheek, then rested his head on my shoulder. "You're so tall, it's not fair."

I laughed and patted Dad's head. "Too bad you're the shortest in the family."

"I know. Even the shortest out of our entire family." Dad patted my back.

"Now help me make breakfast. It's your youngest brother's birthday, so I wanted to surprise him with breakfast in bed."

"I forgot it was his birthday, to be honest."

Dad gave me the stink eye. "He remembers everyone's birthdays, but someone always has to forget his, huh."

"The only way I remember his birthday is that it's the same as Papa's."

Dad stopped peeling the potato in his hand which was going to be used for hash browns. He turned to me with a small smile, but I could see sadness in his eyes.

"Yeah, that's one way to remember."

"Sorry, Dad."

"Don't be, Lucca. Thank you for reminding me about your papa. It's been so long I feel like I'm starting to forget his face..."

I furrowed my brows and looked at the wall on my left, then looked at a different wall somewhere behind us. "Uh, his face is literally plastered on every wall in the house."

Dad laughed and shook his head. "I know, I was joking. I could never forget Romeo's handsome face. You know, he would've been the sweetest person you would've ever met. He also..."

Dad told me all about Papa. I was told some things I already knew, but also some other things that were new to me.

I wish my papa was still alive. I would've wanted to meet him. He was the man that named me after all, so it would've been nice to know who he was. All that was left of him were loads of pictures, all of his clothes, and his ashes which sat on a shelf beneath the tv.

Dad even made a note jar for Papa, and from the time that I could remember to the present he'd write notes. He wouldn't write everyday but it was often when he would. He'd empty the jar and put the notes in a box which was hidden in his closet, then continue the process. I'd even catch Bubba putting notes in the jar. I was never tempted to see what was written out of respect for my parents, but I also felt like it was an intimate thing between the three of them.

Maybe someday I'd get to meet my papa, but for now all I could do was look at photos of him and imagine what type of person he was from the things Dad and Bubba would tell me.

"I burnt the pancake..." Dad pouted.

"It's ok, we can make another one."

"Your bubba's almost here with the cake and balloons, and I'm still burning pancakes."

"Dad, it's ok. We've already got lots of pancakes which we probably won't even finish. Let's just finish making bacon and then we can fix Junior a plate once Bubba's here." I rubbed my Dad's head, and he nodded, hugging my waist.

"Thank you, baby." He leaned up to kiss my cheek and I felt my face grow warm.

I helped Dad cook the bacon and just as we put the last few pieces on some paper towels to soak the grease, we heard the front door open and close.

Bubba walked through the door and he smiled once he noticed we were cooking. "Good morning."

"Dino!" Dad ran over to his husband and I watched him kiss the latter. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Bubba smiled and kissed Dad's cheek before he turned to me. "Lucca, come give me a kiss."

I blushed and walked over to Bubba, leaning down to kiss his cheek. He hugged me and pressed a kiss to my head before pulling back.

"I got the cake in Junior's favorite color. There weren't any good balloons so I just got the happy birthday balloons and some white ones." Bubba pointed up at the five balloons.

"That's fine. I wanna see the cake!" Dad clapped his hands and gasped softly when Bubba pulled back the carton lid. "It's pretty. Junior will love it."

"What time are we waking him up? It's getting a bit late, no?" Bubba asked.

"We were waiting for you to get home. We'll fix him a plate and then we can go upstairs. Let's save the cake for later, but we can take the balloons up. I'll stick a candle in the pancakes or something." Dad grabbed a plate out of the cabinet.

I helped him fix a plate and Dad found a purple candle, sticking it right in the middle of the pancakes. I grabbed a small tray table and placed the plate, not forgetting to bring the small bowl that contained butter and another holding syrup. We made sure to grab utensils as well as napkins.

"Dino, can you get some apple juice please? We'll go upstairs after you're done." Dad finished setting up the tray all nice and pretty while Bubba retrieved the glass of apple juice.

"I'll carry the balloons. Lucca, you carry the tray. Dino, you carry the apple juice."

"You're gonna carry the lightest thing?" Bubba side-eyed Dad, who giggled behind his hand.

"Of course."

Bubba grumbled, then we headed upstairs. Ciro had just walked out of my room as we reached our youngest brother's room door, and Dad waved him over.

The latter received a kiss on the cheek. "Good morning, Ciro. Can you get Vanni from his room? We're surprising Junior with breakfast in bed."

"Yeah, I'll go wake him up." Ciro went to Vanni's room and opened the door. "He's not in here."

"He's in Junior's room, then." Dad slowly opened the door and we saw that Vanni was indeed in Junior's bed. "Come in quietly."

We stood around the room and Dad leaned down to gently rub Junior's head. "Baby, wake up. It's your birthday."

Junior opened his eyes and he looked at us tiredly before rubbing his hazel eyes. "Good morning."

"Good morning, baby. Did you sleep well?" Dad sat the balloons on the nightstand and Junior sat up.

The sheet fell down and exposed his bare chest. He blushed softly. "Oh, I-I forgot."

Dad giggled and I grunted. "My arms hurt." I sat the tray on the edge of the bed.

I woke Vanni up and he sat upright, the sheet also falling down to expose his bare chest. "Ah, shit. It's cold."

"Van." Bubba glared at the third oldest, who shrugged.

He looked down at the tray and gasped, moving to crawl. "Is this for me?"

"Vanni, wait–!" Ciro tried to stop him, but it was too late.

Dad and Bubba laughed while Vanni froze, quickly covering his naked lower half. "I lost my pants."

"Yeah, I think you accidentally threw them over here." Bubba picked up the plaid pajama pants and tossed them to Vanni.

"Anyways, it's Junior's birthday. Let's sing for him."

Junior blushed as we sang to him, but he had a small smile across his lips.

"Fuck, I forgot to light the candle." Dad whined, but Junior shook his head.

"It's ok, Dad. You guys made all this for me and bought me balloons. It's enough just having you guys around to celebrate with me."

Dad smiled, wrapping his arms around Junior's shoulders and kissing his cheek. "I love you so much, baby. Happy birthday."

"I love you so much too, and thank you." Junior kissed Dad's cheek and accepted the hug and kiss from Bubba as well.

He turned to us with a small smile. "I love you guys so much, too."

"We love you, too." Vanni pulled Junior into a hug, but the way he pulled on him lowered the sheet, also exposing our youngest brother's naked lower half.

"Vanni!" Junior whined, quickly hiding himself.

Dad and Bubba laughed once again, but made no comment as to why Vanni and Junior were naked in the same bed.

"Sorry, I forgot..." Vanni rubbed his neck.

"Come on. Sit down and we can talk about what you want to do today." Dad pulled the tray over Junior's lap.

We all sat on the bed and Romeo was fed by Dad and Bubba. He had always been spoiled and babied the most since he was the last kid in the family, but he also looked the most like Papa.

If you were to take one of Papa's pictures and hold it up next to Junior's face, they looked almost identical. He had Papa's hazel eyes, black hair, similar skin tone, and facial features. Junior was also the same height as Papa before he passed away, at least that's what our parents told us.

I mean, Dad and Bubba also named Junior after our late father which was a last minute decision. They explained they only named him after Papa because of the same black hair they had, but they didn't expect for them to be so similar once Junior was older. They also had the same birthday, February 18, although Junior was supposed to be due three days later, but he was born early.

According to my parents, Junior also had a similar personality to Papa. Junior was quiet and always really sweet to whoever it was. He was a bit shy but he'd let you know if he was happy by doing something simple. He also had similar habits that Papa would do. Junior will carry Dad's inhaler whenever they're out together in case the latter ever needs it.

Sometimes I'd even catch Dad and Bubba stare at Junior for a while. When my brother would blush after realizing he was being stared at, our parents would always kiss his face. I thought it was cute, but deep down I know they get sad whenever they look at him. How could they not when all they saw on Junior's face was their deceased husband.

"Ugh, I'm going downstairs to eat. Watching Junior get fed is making me sick." Vanni rolled his eyes, but Bubba hooked his arm around his neck before the former could move away.

"Quit being jealous. If you go grab a plate and bring it upstairs I'll feed you, too."

Vanni blushed and quickly nodded, heading down.

"We'll do the same if you guys bring your plates. Make one for your Bubba and I, too!" Dad waved us away and I nodded.

I followed Ciro down and fixed myself a plate, making sure to grab some extra bacon.

"You can go up. Van and I will make Dad's and Bubba's plates."

"Alright." I grabbed my utensils and napkins, and headed upstairs.

I was about to walk in, but I stopped when I heard quiet whispering.

"Dino, don't leave marks on him."

"Vanni left so many on him already. Romeo, I don't understand why you didn't even try to hide it."

"I-I didn't think you guys would wake me up with breakfast in bed. I'm sorry."

I quietly peaked around the corner.

"Dino, quit making him feel bad." Dad smacked Bubba's back. "Baby, it's ok. You don't need to apologize. It was a surprise after all so it's not your fault, alright?"

Junior nodded with a red face and my eyes widened when Dad leaned in to peck his lips. "So cute, Romeo. Your bubba and I would like to give you a gift we've been waiting to give you ever since you were born."

"Really? I'm excited, then." Junior smiled brightly.

Bubba groaned, pulling Junior's head towards him for a kiss. "You're so cute, baby."

I stepped back and blinked before rushing downstairs quietly. I set my plate down and ran my hand through my short curls, catching the attention of Ciro and Vanni.

"Fuck is wrong with you?" Vanni asked as he popped a short piece of bacon into his mouth, and grabbed some utensils.

I stopped him and Ciro from going anywhere, but I couldn't quite say what I saw out loud.

"What's wrong?" Ciro frowned.

"I was about to go into the room, but then..." the scene replayed in my head, and I felt my face burn up, "Dad and Bubba kissed Junior...on the lips."

Ciro's and Vanni's mouths fell open, and I glared at the latter.

"Gross, dude. At least finish chewing first."

"They kissed?!" Ciro yelled, and I about knocked him out when I slapped his head. "Dick, that fucking hurt!" He winced and rubbed the right side of his head.

I actually felt bad since I knew I hit him a bit too hard, so I pulled him into my arms. "Sorry, Ro. I didn't mean to hit you so hard."

"It's ok..."

I kissed Ciro's head and gently rubbed the spot I smacked him.

"So you saw them kiss? Like you saw it?" Vanni asked quietly, and I nodded.

"Yeah..."

"So what do we do?"

"Act normal. If they wanna tell us then they will." I shrugged.

_________________________

"Happy birthday, Romeo." My grandpa, Xavier, hugged Junior tightly, gently kissing his cheek.

"Thank you, Dami." Romeo blushed softly and accepted the kiss from our other grandpa, Enzo. "Thank you, Baba."

We used to have a third grandpa, Amir, but he passed away almost five years ago now. Dad and Bubba were sad for a while, but they knew Bubba was tired. He had arthritis in his legs and it had gotten really bad, to the point he was praying out loud for anyone to end it all, which our Dami and Baba couldn't help but laugh about.

"Has the rest of your family wished you a happy birthday, Romeo?" Baba asked, and Junior nodded.

"Yeah, they wanted to come over and have a party, but I told Dad to tell them I wanted to spend time with just our family. We could have a party another day."

"I'm not surprised you said that." Dami laughed softly.

I stared at his face and then also glanced at my dad. They looked so much alike, and I couldn't help but get sad thinking about Dad growing to that age. I don't think anyone likes to see their parents grow older.

We stayed a while at our grandparents house until we left. We stopped by the floral shop and our parents left us in the car while they went to get flowers.

"I don't wanna see them cry." Junior frowned, and Vanni used his arm to pull him in.

"It's ok. We're all here for them." He kissed Junior's head.

Because it was also Papa's birthday, we were heading to the flower field to drop flowers off at his headstone. We had set some up next to the urn holding his ashes back at home, but we also usually dropped flowers off where the other half of his ashes were buried.

Dad and Bubba returned with two bouquets of flowers. Dad held the both of them on his lap once they got in the car, and Bubba began the short drive to the field.

It was silent once we arrived and we made our way over to Papa's headstone. Dad and Bubba walked ahead of us and they both kneeled in front of the headstone.

They dusted off the marble stone and grabbed the larger bouquet. Bubba handed each of us single flowers and we waited for Dad and Bubba to finish doing what they were doing.

My vision began to grow blurry when I heard Dad quietly cry. Bubba sniffled beside him and hugged him, kissing the side of his head and rubbing his back.

Because I didn't get to know my papa, I didn't really know what to say mentally. I just hoped he was ok, wherever he was.

Dad pulled tissues out of his pockets and blew his nose, inhaling deeply and sighing. He laid the bouquet on the headstone and leaned down to kiss the marble slab.

Bubba did the same and they moved to the side, letting us step forward. We gently laid the white roses on the headstone and took a few moments before walking about ten feet away where our grandpa's grave, Amir, rested.

The smaller bouquet was laid on the headstone and I bit my bottom lip. I actually did miss my grandpa. It had only been five years since he passed away when I was eighteen. He and our other grandparents would take care of us while Dad and Bubba were working. Our grandparents helped us train and learn, but also spoiled us with care and love.

Just like we did with Papa, we took a few moments and I hoped my grandpa was maybe hanging out with Papa in the field, patiently waiting for us to join them someday.

"Alright, boys, let's go eat dinner." Bubba exhaled, taking Dad's left hand into his right one.

We all followed behind our parents, but I noticed Junior missing. I looked back and saw him standing in front of Papa's headstone. His eyes were closed as he mumbled to himself.

"Junior?"

After a few seconds, Junior opened his eyes. He had a small flower he held in his hand and placed it on the headstone, gently brushing off the marble slab.

"Sorry, I thought Papa deserved to be wished a happy birthday." Junior grabbed my right hand as we began to walk away. "You think he's happy wherever he is?"

"Papa?" Junior hummed, and I nodded. "I think so. I think he'd be happy we're taking care of our parents, Dami and Baba, too. He also has Bubba Amir, so he's not alone."

"Yeah, I know. I just wish Papa was still here with us. Maybe then Dad and Bubba wouldn't look at me with sadness anymore."

_____________________________

Well, there it is guys, that's the end of this series (finally). I'm actually really sad, but the explanation and more details will be in the AN which will be the last 'chapter' of this story. Thank you for reading and keeping up with this series, I truly appreciate it! ( ' ▽ ' ).｡ｏ♡

What do you guys think?

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed! See you all next time, BYE!!! :))

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