A T H E N A

"Once upon a time, a few mistakes ago, I was in your sights you got me alone. You found me"

° ° °

"So, when are you going to college?" he asks.

"When summer's over," I tell him. He frowns. "Oh," he says, and grips my waist. He pulls me closer to him so he can put his face in my neck, and breathes in deeply.

"So, I can't have you all to myself," he murmurs and presses a kiss against my skin. "You can always visit me on campus," I chuckle and rake a hand through his soft hair.

It's then that I downs on me that I don't know what we are. Are we just lovers? Do I actually mean something to him? But what is he to me? I don't know what my feelings are for him, but I do know that they're deep. I think I even—

My thoughts are interrupted by his cellphone ringing, and he rolls over to check his phone. Immediately, I feel cold without his warmth and I grab the sheets to cover myself.

"Amoretto," he says curtly as soon as he picks up the phone.

"Cosa? Ora? Sono... occupato. Può aspettare? Perché no? Certo che no, dannazione," he speaks into the phone, and sits up in bed. I frown, and also sit up. 

He gets out of it and starts walking off to his walk-in closet. After some time, he hangs up and walks out of his closet wearing some briefs and a suit in his hands.

"I need to go to work, there's an emergency and I need to be there," he says and starts putting on his clothes. My frown deepens. 

So, he's leaving? I also get out of bed, and search for my clothes. "What are you doing?" I hear him ask once he knows what I'm doing.

"I suppose I should be leaving too?" I ask and raise my eyebrows. 

"You don't have to," he says suggestively and buttons up his shirt. 

"No, I need to talk with Lucy anyway. You know, about what happened," I say, referring to Chris. Disappointment flashes in his eyes and he presses his lips together.

"Alright," he nods and puts on his jacket. "I want to drop you off but I really need to get to work. I'll call my driver," he says and without waiting for a response he gets out of the room.

In silence, I put on my clothes and go downstairs, to find Vincenzo on the phone again talking to someone.

"Alright, I'll be going now. Yes... okay," he says and hangs up. He turns around and his dark eyes meet mine.

"Athena, I'll be going now, okay? I'll speak to you later," he says and swiftly pecks my lips.

I don't even have the chance to tell him goodbye because he walks out of the front door and slams it shut.

That was fun.

I sigh and grab my belongings before going outside and wait for the driver to arrive.

What the hell did just happen?

A black car stops in front of me and Vincenzo's driver gets out of it and opens the door for me.

"Thank you," I tell him and flash him a smile before getting in the car. I take a seat against the window and look outside. Once the driver is seated behind the steering wheel, I tell him the direction of my house.

Now that my relationship with Chris is over, what does that mean for Vincenzo and me? 

I know I told Chris the truth because he deserved to know and I didn't really love him as my boyfriend, but I feel like I also did that because I wanted something more with Vincenzo without feeling guilty about it.

But does Vincenzo think the same way about it as I do? I shake the disturbing thought off of me and continue to stare outside, ignoring the bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.

° ° °

Lucy came over to my house, and I told her everything that happened. While doing so I started to cry again and she hugged me tightly and said it was all going to be fine.

Right now, we're lying on my bed, staring up at my ceiling while there's a comfortable silence.

"So," she begins, "is Vincenzo banging you good?"

"Lucy!"

She bursts out laughing. "What? This is a serious question. Is his dick any good?" she asks and turns her head to the side, looking at me expectantly. I bite my lip and blush. 

"Yes," I admit whispering. She squeals and jumps on the bed. "Is he big? He better be big if you were willing to cheat on Chris," she laughs, and I start laughing along.

"Lucy! That's mean," I scold her while still laughing and playfully hit her arm. "So?" she asks. 

"I think he's big. I mean, I never saw one before but the first time I was really scared if it was going to fit..." I trail off and see her holding back a smile. 

"What? Stop looking at me like that," I laugh and push her a little. "Can't I be happy for my best friend who finally got laid?" she chuckles. We're being interrupted by my phone lighting up.

"Oh! Is it him?" she asks and tries to look over my shoulder with me when I grab my phone. "Chill! It's just my dad," I tell her and open the message he sent me.

Dad; Care to still have lunch with your old man?

I smile, and reply that I'll be there in 30 minutes. "I need to go, my dad wants to have lunch with me," I tell Lucy and get up from bed.

"You should pay a visit to your secret admirer, and you know, have office sex," she giggles. I throw a pillow her way and with a smile on my face, I open my closet and take out some clothes.

I put on a brown sweater and a tight, black skirt with black knee-high socks. It's a bit bold because normally I wouldn't wear this kind of clothing, but I'm willing to do so for Vincenzo.

"Damn girl, you're looking good," Lucy whistles when I come back walking into my room. 

"Shut up," I chuckle and grab my phone. I text my dad to ask him what I should bring for him and while waiting for his response, I grab my shoes and put them on. 

"Are you wearing that sexy skirt for Vincenzo?" she asks and I can hear the grin in her voice.

"Maybe," I say and bring my hair a little into shape. 

"But I need to go, Luce. Talk to you later," I say and quickly press a kiss against her cheek before storming down the stairs, grabbing my keys and exiting my house.

° ° °

"Hey dad," I greet him when I enter his office. He looks up from his computer and smiles when he sees me.

"Athena! I'm so happy to see you," he says and stands up from behind his desk. He walks over to me and gives me a hug. I press a kiss against his cheek and smile at him.

"I brought you lunch," I say and hold the bag up, wiggling it in front of his face and place it on his desk.

"How is your day so far?" I ask him and take a seat at his desk. He takes a seat in front of me and opens the bag of food in front of him. 

"Pretty good. Everything goes well," he smiles and takes a bite from his sandwich. "I'm glad," I say and also grab my sandwich. After some time, I notice his stare on me and I look up with raised eyebrows.

"What's the matter?" I ask and wipe my mouth with a napkin I brought with me.

"You don't think your mother and I noticed your absence this night?"

I almost choke on my bread and clear my throat. "W-what?" I stutter.

"Don't act dumb now, Athena. I'm not mad, I just want to know where you were this night," he says. "A-at Lucy's. Where else would I be?" I chuckle nervously.

"You would've told us if you were with Lucy," he tells me, seeing right through my lie. "N-no. She needed me because she had a fight with her mother, a bad one," I quickly make up. He narrows his eyes, but nods anyway.

"Alright, if you say so," he says, not really convinced.

I feel like I need to say something else to really convince him. "And I broke up with Chris," I say quickly. Surprised, he looks up and blinks a couple of times.

"What?" 

I swallow and nod. "Y-yeah. It was for the best and I needed some comfort," I tell him honestly, but in fact I sought comfort with Vincenzo.

"I understand," dad tells me, and I see sincerity and pity in his eyes. I press my lips together and smile. 

We continue to eat and laugh about stupid things. My time with dad flies by too quickly and before I know it, his time is up.

"Alright, it was fun," he smiles at me and gives me a hug. "Yeah, it was. Too bad I have to go," I say and let go of him. "I know, but I need to get to work. I need to deliver something to Vincenzo anyway," he says and walks back towards his desk.

"I can deliver it," I say a little too quickly. He turns around and raises an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes, of course," I smile and walk back over to his desk.

"Alright," he says and gives me the directions of Vincenzo's office, even though I already know them.

He hands me an envelope and gives me another hug. "See you at home, honey," he says and pats my head.

"Yes dad," I chuckle and leave his office. I go over to the elevator and press the button for it.

Not much later, the doors open and I step inside, now pressing the button for the top floor and wait patiently for the elevator to go up. I hope I don't run into Nate because it always seems like the elevator is the place for us to accidently meet.

But fortunately, I don't see him and I arrive at Vincenzo's floor without awkward interruptions. I hear the familiar ping of the doors opening and I step out, greeting the receptionist on my way to Vincenzo's office.

After some time, I finally reach Vincenzo's office and knock on it. I hear laughter resound through his office, and I wonder what's going on.

"Come in!" I hear his deep voice say and I wrap my hand around the cool metal of the doorknob. I open the door with a small smile that soon vanishes when I see Vincenzo sitting at his desk, with a blonde woman sitting in front of him while having lunch.

Vincenzo looks up with a smile and as soon as he sees me, the corners of his lips tug downwards a little.

Am I ruining the mood?

I feel a dark feeling settle in the pit of my stomach, and it gets worse when the woman turns around to look who has entered. Her kind, brown eyes meet mine and she sends me a smile in order of a greeting.

She's breathtaking.

Was she the emergency?

Instead of greeting me, he doesn't. "What are you doing here?"

Hurt courses through me and I feel like I've been punched in the stomach.

I feel like an intruder, as someone who shouldn't be there.

"Hey, I just came to drop this off," I say quietly and step forward to hand the envelope over. Vincenzo snaps out of his daze and stands up from behind his desk, walking over towards me.

"Athena," he says, nothing readable in his eyes. A sting goes through me and I feel so incredibly hurt.

And stupid.

I lick my lips. "Mr. Amoretto," I fire back and thrust the envelope in his hand.

"Vincenzo, mind telling me who this is?" the woman behind him asks, and tilts her head to the side while observing me. Before Vincenzo can open his mouth, I beat him to it.

"I'm no one," I tell her, while still looking at Vincenzo, "I'm just a girl."

Vincenzo clenches his jaw together, and his eyes rake over my body, taking in my attire. "Can I speak to you for a moment?" he asks me.

"No, I'm really sorry I interrupted you. You don't have to worry about me anymore," I tell him and send the woman a polite smile before turning around and walking out of his office, blinking away the tears.

What the hell just happened?

° ° °

I drive back home, feeling numb.

Why didn't he tell her I was his girlfriend, like he did in New York?

Because maybe you're just a fling to him. A victory.

Now I've broken up with Chris, there's nothing exciting about me anymore, I guess.

He's moved on to something new. Maybe she's married, and he's wondering if he can get her.

At least she's a woman, and her parents wouldn't mind her being with him.

I arrive home and get out of the car.

"Hey honey," mom greets me as soon as I walk in. "Hey," I greet her back and press a kiss against her cheek.

"Would you like some tea?" she asks, and I nod.

"Yes please," I mutter and sit down at the table. While mom prepares the tea, I think about what happened. 

"I saw Vincenzo with a woman today," I tell her. She chuckles. "Wouldn't be the first time," she jokes. She heats the water and gets my favorite tea out of the cupboard, along with the sugar.

"Yeah, but it seemed like they were really having a good time. They were lunching," I say. 

"Oh yes. Was she blonde? Brown eyes? Really pretty?" she asks and turns around, her eyes grown wide.

I frown. "Yes, why?"

She laughs and throws her hands in the air. "I can't believe it. When your dad told me, I thought he was joking at first. The woman you saw is Emma Ricci, Vincenzo's ex-fiancée."

. . . 

and i oop-

(yes, I'm a vsco-girl, sorta)