ARIA’s POV
The weight of the phone seemed to multiply in my hands, the cool metal of the receiver suddenly becoming a painful, heated brand that I could no longer bear. I let it clatter to the floor, the dull thud a mere echo of the anguish that tore through me like a ravenous beast. Turning to face Matteo, I was met with a cold, impenetrable mask of indifference, his unshaven face, and sunken eyes betraying a darkness that chilled me to my very core.
“Why did you do it?”. I asked, and he furrowed his eyes brows.
“Yeah, i do not have an idea what you’re saying”. He said to m “You invided denis over?”
“Yes, I wanted to talk to him”.
“He doesn’t need to know! It’ll break him!”. I cried
“Well I can’t wait to meet our guest. He’ll be here, soon”. Matteo said as tears kept rolling down my cheek.
“Please make it stop”.
“Make what stop, my darling wife? He’s not here yet”. Matteo said with a proud smirk on that face of his.
“Matteo stop”. I cried. “He’s hurt already. We shouldn’t make it worse”.
“Aria baby. He’ll be here soon, so get ready for dinner”. He said in a firm voice and left. I hated him, but I could see some changes. He wasn’t the Matteo I used to know. But it wasn’t enough. I knew Dennis meeting Matteo wasn’t the smartest idea, and the fact that Dennis lost his mom a few weeks ago makes it even worse.
A sleek white car came to a halt at the front of the mansion, and out stepped Dennis, his eyes seeking me out. Before I could react, he had crossed the distance between us and wrapped me in a warm embrace. It was like being transported back in time, a familiarity that soothed my bruised heart. We stood there, two bodies reunited, and for a fleeting moment, the pain and turmoil melted away. His slender frame molded against mine, a silent evidence to the bond that still existed between us, as strong and unbreakable as ever.
“I missed you”. He finally said to me.
“Missed you too Dennis”. I whispered
“I hear you got married”. He said, and everything inside of me broke. He looked just the way he looked the last time I was in the States. “To a bloody rich man”. He said, and I smiled
“I’m sorry about your mom”. I said as I led him into our home.
“It’s fine. She always thought you’d be the one to be with me. She always believed that”. Dennis said before we walked into the dining room. There, we saw Matteo getting his hands washed against the sink before wiping it dry with a pristine white towel.
“Dennis…”. The name rolled off his tongue in a beautiful way. “We’re so happy to have you over for dinner. My wife and I couldn’t stop talking about it all”. He finished before taking a seat on the table.
Dennis took a quick glance at me and turned to take a seat. His eyes are watching Matteo closely. I sat opposite Dennis, and I could see he was angry. Anytime he was angry, he folded and unfolded his fists continuously. I found it cute when we were together, and I still do
“On what grounds did you marry the woman of my dreams”. Dennis asked, and Matteo stopped eating abruptly and looked at him.
“What do you mean, Dennis”. He asked in a calm voice.
“Well, I know Aria would never fall for a man like you. You’re not her type”. Dennis said, and the cutlery fell from Matteo’s hand. He was angry.
“And what is her type?”. Matteo asked through his teeth.
“Me. I’m her type”. Dennis said proudly.
“Dennis”. I whispered and stretched my hand to touch him, and when I did, Matteo smiled forcefully. His eyeswatchedg my hands
“That’s enough, Dennis”. I said
“She would never love you. You’re just a waste of time. When she’s done with this shitty relationship. I’ll take her to church and wed her as my wife cause I love her and I want to see her smile all the time. I want her to be the mother of little Dennis, but you, do you even care about her. You seem like a shitty man who only cares about himself”. Dennis said, just above a whisper.
I looked over at Matteo, his face expressionless. And his eyes hidden as he looked down on his plate.
“She’s my wife”. I heard Matteo say
“Not for long”. Dennis said, but I held his hand to stop talking. “Stop it, Aria! Rose told me everything he did to you!”. Dennis shouted at me. “And you still want to stay with this piece of shit?!”. He sighed and relaxed. “I know you do not love him cause I see the way you look at him. It’s the same way you look at Jack, the man who raped Rose. You fucking hate Jack!”.
“Enough!”. Matteo shouted
“Matteo Marino, I do not care who you are. The world doesn’t revolve around you. I will make her my wife cause she’s clearly made for me. She was mine before you stole her”.
“Stop it Dennis”. I whispered
“Stop?”. He chuckled dryly. “I love you, Aria, and I miss you. I only found out yesterday that my girl got married to a man she has no interest in, and he does horrendous things to her”. He said, his eyes wet with tears “I know you hate him. I know you could never love him. I know you don’t fucking care about him. I know all of this”. he finished off.
“Dennis please”. I sobbed. “Just stop”.
“I have something for you, Aria”. Dennis said and reached into his pocket. It was the necklace he got me after our first night together. “Remember this?”. He asked and sniffled, his tears even worse now.
“Stop”. I cried
“It was the necklace I got you after you lost your virginity to me”. That was it. That was the last straw because Matteo pulled the dining cloth, and everything fell off it along with the cloth. Dennis rushed to him and held the neckpiece in his face. “Did that hurt you? Did that make you feel something, at least?!!”. Dennis asked, but Matteo stared at him angrily. And then, Matteo patted his shoulder and laughed.
“Alonzo will take you to your car”. Matteo said and walked out of the room.
Dennis turned to me, but something in me angrily walked past him, and I could hear him calling my name at the back. I wanted to find Matteo. I had no reason why my legs were carrying me to him. I found him in the hallway, pacing up and down and running his fingers through his hair
“Matteo…”. I started
He turned to me and I saw his eyes were red. Like, he cried a little. He looked confused like he couldn’t comprehend anything anymore.
“Aria…”. He called out and sniffled. I could see he was hurt. I could tell he was short of words, so I reached out and pulled him in for a warm hug. He wrapped his hands against me in seconds and held me there. The heat from his body radiated into mine, and it felt just right.