SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION
INTRODUCTION
Classes ended late for Lovino Vargas. He was supposed to meet with his brother, Feliciano, an hour ago in McDonald's. He groaned while walking to the popular fast food chain. He couldn't understand why the idiot's new obsession was such a tasteless place. The coffee was shit, the food was greasy, everything was sub-par. He would rather make his own coffee and food than eat in such a tasteless place. He needed to emphasize that McDonald's was a tasteless place.
The university was only a ten-minute walk from the bustling downtown. Before he could even push the glass doors, the idiotic grin and waving of his brother caught Lovino's attention. A waft of freshly fried fries and noisy chatter greeted Lovino. He groaned for the nth time since he left the university. While walking to where Feliciano was seated, he noticed another idiot with the same cheerfully idiotic smile beside him.
"Hi," Idiot number two greeted Lovino.
"Uh, yeah, hi," Lovino nonchalantly replied.
"Lovino, this is Antonio, he's my classmate in my fine arts class. Antonio, my older brother, Lovino," Feliciano introduced them to each other.
"You could have messaged or called me," Lovino grumbled, which Feliciano ignored and proceeded, "We need help with our final project. Our teacher wants us to create a design for a sub-urban house."
"Okay; you can definitely do that," Lovino sound unimpressed.
"But," Feliciano whined. "We need a draft and a model for it."
"So you want me to do your project for you?!" Lovino crossed his arm.
"No, no," Feliciano immediately replied. "We already have a design and draft but we don't know how to make the model."
"Your project is demanding just for a minor subject," The older sighed. "Give me the draft and I'll see what I can do."
Antonio handed a rolled paper to him. For a brief moment, when their hands brushed each other, Lovino felt a static sensation. He paid no mind and busied himself with the draft of their design. He didn't want to get distracted with the person sitting in front of him. He hated admitting that Antonio was a good looking person.
"I can't do everything by myself. I have a plate due next week..." Lovino mulled. He handed back the paper to Antonio. Then, again, that static sensation. Fuck, Lovino inwardly cursed. Maybe it's just because of the air conditioning, his mind rationalized. I think that this is static electricity... yeah, this is the science of that fucking tingling sensation.
"We can drop by at your house this Friday," Feliciano chimed.
"Hm, okay," Lovino was lost in thought for a second before he continued. "Bring the materials you need and your own food."
"Deal!" Feliciano beamed.
There a short silence between the three of them before Antonio asked, "You two don't live together?"
"No," Lovino replied curtly. "Feliciano lives in the campus dorm and I don't."
"Lovino has his own place," Feliciano expounded.
"Oh," Antonio said in amazement. Lovino couldn't help rolling his eyes. Then, he stood up, "It was nice meeting you. I need to go now."
"Message me if you get home Vino," Feliciano said which Lovino replied with a nod.
His younger brother was fussier than their grandfather. Due to familial circumstances, they grew up separate from each other. It was only recently when they began communicating again. Feliciano took the extra mile by attending the same university as him.
The drive home was peaceful. The streets were devoid of any vehicle. It was understandable since it was already ten in the evening. In this quaint university town, establishments close at eight and by nine, there's barely any soul outside the downtown area. The exception were Fridays and Saturdays; people magically appear and party all night long.
"You're home late Lovino," The elder Vargas opened the door.
"Yeah... I met with Feliciano," Lovino replied curtly.
"I see. How is he?"
"Fine, I think. He'll be coming over this Friday, along with a classmate,"
"Ah, well, tell him I give my regards. I need to be in Florence on Thursday. I'll be gone for two weeks,"
"Okay,"
Lovino went to his room and changed his clothes. He had a lot to do but his body and mind were tired. As he lay on his bed, he looked back on his childhood. It wasn't dramatic; but it wasn't happy either. After his parents divorced, his mother remarried. Lovino was left in the care of his father and grandfather. His father worked as an engineer in the Middle East while his grandfather was a retired tenente generale or lieutenant general. From then until now, the elder Vargas single-handedly reared the temperamental Lovino.
He was always scolded by his grandfather for being uncouth, lousy with the house chores, among other things; the list of his flaws was endless. After Lovino graduated high school, the scoldings lessened. Lovino learned his lesson (sort-of) after fifteen long years under his grandfather's watch. He was careful with his language and he cleans the mess he makes in the shed. His bedroom is also spic and span; most of the time. He was definitely a better version of his adolescent self.
The young man was about to sleep when his phone rang.
"Who the fuck calls in the middle of the night?!" Lovino murmured as he picked the call.
"Lovino, are you home?" Feliciano's voice sounded worried.
"Yes Mother. I'm about to sleep," Lovino replied dismissively. He forgot to text Feliciano; the idiot was a worry-wart.
"Mm, 'kay. See you on Friday,"
Come Friday, Lovino woke up nervously. He called the housekeeper to prepare the house today. It was his first time having a guest (who was not Feliciano) over. The cupboards and fridge had food; and his grandfather just bought coffee beans... Lovino mentally punched himself. He was over thinking; he didn't have to make a good impression.
Once the housekeeper arrived, Lovino left for school. He sent a text to Feliciano telling him they should meet at the Cathedral. It was the first Friday of the month and he was going to Church after his classes finished in the afternoon. Despite his demeanor and mean-streak, he was a devout Catholic and attended Mass regularly. Setting aside his religious beliefs and convictions, his eyes darted to a familiar figure. Hastily, Lovino parked his car; he didn't want to be cornered by potato bastard number two. Lovino dashed to the student center and hid inside the CR for five-full minutes before he made his way to his college's building.
Potato Bastard Number Two was the brother of Feliciano's current boyfriend. The bastard had the habit of teasing him and Lovino didn't enjoy being at the end of someone's joke. However, if Liz, Gilbert's girlfriend was around, Gilbert had a different persona; he acted like he was some saint.
Lovino arrived at his class in nick of time. The rest of the day was a lull; during the last class, Lovino immediately dashed outside and headed to the parking lot. He felt energy surge through his body. During Gospel, Feliciano and Antonio sat on either side Lovino. Lovino tried to hide his excitement; if they would be singing Our Father, he would be holding Antonio's hand.
Dear God, I am sorry for mind wandering... to thoughts other than Mass.
As Lovino anticipated, they did hold hands for the duration of the song. Once the ecclesiastical ceremony was over, the trio went to Lovino's home. The young man was thankful that the idiots in his passenger seat were talking nonsensical shit. Being out of the conversation allowed him to concentrate on the road.
By the time they arrived in the Vargas home, Lovino has calmed down. He led his guests to the kitchen and served them refreshments. The topic of the conversation then shifted to the impending assignment. Lovino discussed his ideas and he was happy that the idiots weren't that much of idiots when they started working. Feliciano and Antonio decided to sleep over to finish the project. With the three of them working harmoniously, they were able to finish the overall layout of the project.
"Congrats," Lovino tried to hide his joy. He didn't help with the construction; all he did was instruct the two on what and how to achieve their vision.
"Thank you for helping us Lovino!" Antonio beamed and hugged the architecture student.
"Fu-Damn it! Let go of me," Lovino struggled half-heartedly; he needed to be out of this man's grasp because, because, Antonio might notice how his heart was beating erratically.
"We should celebrate this Friday Lovino. We couldn't have done this without your help," Feliciano joined the hug. At this point, Lovino surrendered himself to the group hug. He also grumbled his agreement that was enthusiastically met by Feliciano and Antonio.
To be continued
A/N: Hello! Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope that you enjoyed reading this. Have a great day ahead.