Emily’s p. o. v
It’s been two months since I arrived in Italy and started living with my aunt. Ever since I arrived, she has treated me like the daughter she never had. She took me to the mall a day after we arrived to help me design a new look for myself. We bought new clothes and then after, we went to the salon to get our hair and nails done.
I have changed SO much in such a short time. And not just my style, my attitude as well as my body. A week after arriving in Italy, I joined a local gym to lose weight and gain muscle. I even signed up for a ju-jitsu class so that I could learn some self-defence. And I have to say, all the hard work payed off, I’ve only been going to the gym for a month and a half now and my body is toned.
But to be honest, I spent most of the day working out so it didn’t just magically happen. Besides, I had nothing else to do while waiting for the school holidays to finish. That’s right, my aunt enrolled me at the local high school. School starts tomorrow so right now I am packing my bag and making sure that I have everything I need for tomorrow. Hopefully I’ll be able to make some good friends when I start, although with my new found confidence and style, I am sure I’ll find some good friends.
I am no longer the bullied, fat nerd who had no style, confidence or friends. I am A tall, strong and confident badass with killer style. And people should think twice before messing with me.
“EMILY” My aunt called from downstairs. “CAN YOU COME HERE PLEASE” Shoving the rest of my books in my school bag, I make my way downstairs to my Aunt who is currently in the kitchen.
“Yes aunty, what did you need?” upon hearing my question she spins around to face me as she puts her jacket on. “Sto per correre velocemente al supermercato” (I’m just going to run to the supermarket quickly) She says, looking around for her car keys. “No, andrò per te, cosa ti serviva dal supermercato?” (No, I’ll go for you, what did you need from the supermarket?) I reply fluently in Italian, thankful that I had decided to use my spare time when I was younger to learn the beautiful language. She didn’t stop her search as she said “No, vado. Potresti sapere come guidare ma non avrai la patente per un altro mese” (No, I’ll go. You may know how to drive but you don’t get your license for another month.) I walk towards her and stop her search, holding her shoulders so that she will look at me.
“Lasciami andare nei negozi, potrei comunque usare l’aria fresca. Inoltre, dista solo 10 minuetti.” (Let me just go to the shops, I could use the fresh air anyway. Besides, it’s only 10 minutes away.) When I finish my sentence, she just hugs me and says, “fai attenzione, sono le 22:00 e non sai quali pericoli ci sono. Abbiamo solo bisogno di un po ‘di latte e assicurati di indossare qualcosa di caldo. Non vorrai ammalarti il giorno prima dell’inizio della scuola.” (Be careful, it’s 10:00pm and you don’t know what dangers are out there. We just need some milk and make sure you wear something warm. You wouldn’t want to get sick the day before school starts.) I just nod before grabbing some money and my coat and then leaving.
10 minutes later, I arrive at the supermarket. I get the milk and some cookie dough ice cream for later, before paying and leaving. After walking for two minutes, I was suddenly grabbed from behind and pulled into a nearby ally. Dropping my bag of milk and ice cream I start wriggling around and screaming into the hand that is covering my mouth. I kicked him in the balls and jumped out of his arms when he loosened his hold on me. “Shit, you bitch” He hisses before lunging at me. I do my best to keep up, using some moves I learnt in ju-jitsu, but he was too fast and to skilled and eventually, he had me on the ground with a gun pointed at me.
I closed my eyes, tears streaming down my face knowing I was about to die. But the bullet never came. When I heard a groan of pain and a thud, I slowly opened my eyes, not sure what to expect. A young boy who looked no older than me was stood in front of me with his hand held out. I looked behind him at my knocked-out attacker and then back at the strange boy who still held his hand out.
“You saved me” I rasped out, taking his hand and allowing him to pull me up. “Well, I couldn’t just let him kill you” He replied with a goofy smile on his face. “That would be very ungentlemanly of me” He continued. “Thank you” I said, as he picked up my long-forgotten groceries. “How could I ever repay you?” I asked. I know it was a stupid question, but he did just save my life. “You could let me walk you home” he said, the goofy grin still plastered on his face. I simply nodded and allowed him to walk me home.
On the way there, I asked him how he was able to knock out my attacker since he not only had a gun but could also fight incredibly well. Believe me, I have first-hand experience. He had told me that he was in a gang called the ‘King-Cobras’ And then asked me if I wanted to join.
At first, I was hesitant but when he told me that I would be trained how to properly fight and how to use weapons, my protests slowly dissolved and I agreed, wanting to be able to protect myself if there was ever a repeat of tonight. When we finally arrived at my home, we exchanged numbers and said goodbye before Eric left, disappearing into the dark cover of the night.
I walked into the house only to be tackled by my aunt who started to ask a million questions a minuet about the few scratches I had obtained during the fight and about Eric, who she had apparently seen with me at the front door through the living room window.
I sat her down on the couch after putting the milk away and getting two spoons for the ice cream before retelling the events that occurred in the past 45 minutes. When I answered all the questions I could and convinced my aunt that joining the gang would be a good thing, I went to my room and showered before collapsing in my bad and letting sleep over take me.
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