IT all started when my older brother pulled into the parking lot. "Okay, we're here. "

I looked at my surroundings. The apartment was located on a steep hill, a dirt road filling up the clumsy path. My head was forced to lay back on the car seat, since the car was at a 60 degree angle from the ground. The trees surrounding the area acted as an earthly shade from the scorching hot sun that roasted my pale skin. Then there was the apartment itself. It was conjoined with other apartments creating a townhouse look. It was painted in a warm sun set orange, which was new to me. From below, the sea boarded the section and the local docks that served for the local fishermen in the area. Shops were lined up at the bottom, along with Italian restaurants, smelling up the small town with roasted lobster and fresh baked bread.

Compared to what life was like before I was forced to move here with my brother and his two obnoxious friends, Germany was less tropical, and less colorful. We didn't have a good view of the sea and we didn't have the sun constantly beaming on us, although it wasn't a totally horrible feeling. I actually like it better here than there, but Germany was Germany, and I liked the beer my brother let me sip from his mug on occasions.

"Wow…Gilbert I think you've out done yourself!" A blond, other than myself, second stepped out the rental truck. "It looks almost as nice as Antonio's house!"

Said man, around my age only older by a few years, rolled his green eyes, "mi amigo, where did you find the money to find such a nice place?" Unstrapping the seat belt, I opened the car door and stepped onto intricately designed stone and walked up the place we were now to call home, in Portoverne Italy.

"It was grandpa's will." I nodded, that explains things. Because there was no way that Gilbert could afford this luxury with what he earns just by fixing cars.

"Well, let's get everything set before the movers come. I want to at least claim my portion of the house before we start moving things around!"

"Hey wait, not so fast!" Francis chased after my white haired albino brother, "I want to at least meet some of the cute Italian girls first before work!"

Antonio shook his head at his friends and my brother's immaturity, "C'mon Luddy, I'll give you the keys to the house and you go pick what room you want before we start painting. " I nodded, "Tony, you've been here before, what are the people like?"

Antonio chuckled, "Oh, that's what you've been worried about? Don't worry Ludwig, the people here are gracious."

"What the hell are you doing here? Leave him alone you dumb fucks before I give you a whole can of Italiano whoop-ass!" A Dark haired brunette called out across the hall with what looked like an old paint roller, the paint dripping off at the base.

The 'him' he was referring to was a boy who looked to be around my age, maybe younger, pinned against the wall by Francis and Gilbert. "No you don't understand, he was peeping into our room, stealing our things!" The boy shook his head furiously, tears threatening to fall from his copper eyes, " No no no no! mi dispiace! You don't get it, I was just trying to- uah!" he choked. Francis tightened his grip around his neck, turning the teen red in his face. "Veneziano! Let him go you Bullies!" But before the older Italian boy could get him out of his hands, Veneziano mustered enough of his strength to kick Francis in his balls. As he let go, he punched him square in his nose with a left hook. "ARGH!"

My eyes widened in total surprise. This thin kid has more physical strength than he let on. "Francis! Are you ok?" Antonio called, lifting his head from the tiled floor. The guy named Veneziano gasped at what he just done, "Oh no you're bleeding!" I smirked. "It's okay; he deserves a good knock here and there. Hi, my name is Antonio. This is my unfortunate friend Francis, Gilbert, and this is our friend Luddy" Antonio tried to make a good impression out of the awkward situation, no such luck.

"Does it look like I care? You bastards tried to harm my brother and he done absolutely nothing!"

"Then what was this ginger-head doing at our place?"

"I was helping the movers bring your things up and I was just looking at your paintings. I was just about to put the things in order before Francis attacked me!"

Francis, Antonio, Gilbert, and I stared in awe at their kindness. "Oh…"

"Pfft…foreigners…we try to be nice and they automatically think that we are stealing, c'mon Veneziano, we have to finish our chores before we go to school. We're a little behind schedule."

The boy picked his apron off the ground and the push broom before leaving us at our door. "Well, good day…" he left, wiping the tears away from his face, angry at himself for harming another.

Antonio left to bring Francis inside and tend to his bleeding nose, possibly broken. I glared at my elder brother before he got a chance to say anything ignorant. "Why do you guys always have to make a big scene? They were probably helping out and you attack them!" Gilbert faltered. "I didn't know okay! I…I'm sorry I'm just not used to kind people…" I rolled my sapphire blue eyes, "Whatever, just don't act to irrational again. You embarrass me sometimes…" I blushed. I hate being the older brother at times.

It was quarter after three in the afternoon when we were done painting and setting up our living room. Complete with a flat screen T.V. The stereo was installed in each corner of the room. Leather brown café couches layed flat against the cream colored walls. A tall bookshelf, with pressed flowers completed the design of the protective glass case for our photos. More so Antonio's, Francis's, and Gilbert's graduation photo, Antonio's family reunion, Francis's great grandmother, my grandpapa, and a casual photo of my brother and I when I was younger. I was in a navy blue jumper, baby blue button up polo. My hair wasn't jelled, just combed to a standard cut and I was sitting in Gilberts lap with Gilbert's arms around me. I always laughed at it because they caught me while I was eating some Swiss chocolate from the restaurant Gilbert's ex girlfriend invited us to. I vaguely remember her as Hungary, because…well that's where she was from. On the next shelf were four photo albums. The largest one was Antonio's because he is a photographer. Even with an album 5 inches thick, he still says he has more. Unbelievable. Then on the very bottom shelf was Gilbert's scared box. Up to this day I still have yet to see what exactly he's been hiding in there. I remember talking to him about what was inside it and all he said was "wait until you're 18". I still have 2 more years to go damnit! In another corner of the living room was another book shelf preserved for the many DVD's and CD's we owned, which was more than Netflix could provide. The next wall was a great window with a view of the whole town. Then there was the hall that lead to 5 room and that bathroom at the end of the hall way. Gilbert and I shared the hall with the study and Antonio and Francis had the left side of the hall. The guy stood at the door way with the card board boxes and trash that needed to be thrown away. "We will be back to help you with your other things. My employee told us that they won't be able to ship your things in time, so don't expect them to come before dusk. Lots of Tourists are entering the Portoverne today so there will be a lot of traffic. Oh and a word of advice, you should repay those boys for helping you guys earlier. They work hard in this village and helping you was totally up to them today. Lord knows that they need a break."

"So you know them?" The woman carried the last of box of our cloths before sweeping out the dust that came in as she entered the entrance of our home. "Everyone knows the Vargas boys. You know that saying 'it takes two to create a child and a village to raise him'? Ever since their mother died and the father walked out on them, they had no one to look after them. Then the grandfather just came out of nowhere and took it upon himself to raise them." I nodded along the explanation. "Then just a few years ago, Roma, the grandfather fell ill with Alzheimers." Francis frowned, "Oh just give me another sob story to make me feel worse, why don't you?"

Ms. Mona giggled, "Now now, it's not the end of the world. The one you beat up earlier was the nicer of the two sons. He's a sweet heart. A bit insecure but he has charm. All the girls love him." Antonio laughed, "Which is why all the guys hate him!"

Ms. Mona cackled, "Yea, you know the deal dear! All the Italiano boys just love to give him a hard time but he's alright. His brother on the other hand, he's one you all should look out for. He's a hot head, but he has his moments where he can be nice. But that's a rare occasion."

"So they're polar opposites?" Ms. Mona nodded, "Yes, but like I said, don't give them a hard time. They've been through so much already. It won't be too much trouble if they at least had a friend nearby, now would it?" she said.

"Hey Ludwig, go get me some tomatoes from the market nearby. I'm going to make some hot salsa with beans and cheese." My friend called from the kitchen, behind the sofa of the living room. With one good stretch, I rolled off the couch and grabbed the spare keys by the door. "Is there anything else that I should get before I leave?" In a blink of an eye, Gilbert popped out the back door with dirt all over him. "Yea, can you get me a pack of beer- oh yea; you're not up to age yet…Hmm get a pack of club soda?" I nodded in his direction. From the corner of my eye, Francis walked out of his room in nothing but his socks… "Put some pants on Francis!"

"But it's hot!"

Not to self, get this man some underpants…

Veneziano strolled his way over to his favorite place, Le Bocche, a place where he actually makes good money. It's a lovely restaurant on the shores of Italy, few miles away from where he lives in the village, but the job is worth it. After school ended, he dropped his brother off at the retirement home where his grandfather now resides and left to catch a bus ride to the place. He always worked long shifts on Thursdays, and the rest where short days. And unfortunately, today was Thursday, and boy was he not in the mood for dealing with foreigners.

The brunette walked right past the waiters and the manager of the joint, going unnoticed before someone caught him by his collar, "Vene dear, come give your fidanzata a bacio!" A busty woman with heavy make-up latched onto him. The other women at the table laughed unladylike while popping champagne bottles. "He's so adorable, isn't he ladies" she slurred. It was only 4p.m. and she was already drunk off her mind. Veneziano squirmed out her grasp before she got a chance to put her dirty fingers in some places that was kept unmentionable. "Good afternoon and good day!" he called before running into the double doors of the kitchen.

"That was a close one…" he glared out the little glass window fastening his cooking apron and his infamous chef hat that he wore with pride as the top chef in the job.

"Hey twinkle toes" another voice called. He groaned inwardly as he was beckoned once again, this time it was a male's voice. "Where's the twenty Euros you promised me?" Ivan smirked; his unnaturally purple eyes glowered at the petite Italian man. Italy cringed at his tone of voice, "I don't owe you any money Ivan. Leave me alone." He sniffed. "Yea Okay, but remember, I will always be watching you…"

And he then stalked away, helping out another chef who didn't know how to make the soup.

"Ah…we need some tomatoes! We ran out! Veneziano, go get some tomatoes! And make it snappy! We have a house load full of customers and they all want the special tonight!"

Vene sighed, putting down his chef hat on the counter and fumbling for his work keys to get through the back door. "Okay, okay!" he then left, grabbing one of the local motor scooters available and putting it in gear before driving off down the traffic filled road.

It's already been twenty minutes on the road and he still hasn't moved. Vene's engine roared to life as he wiggled through the many conjoined cars on the narrow block. He hated running errands for the boss but he had no choice. As the newest employee of the establishment, it was only natural that he would be treated horribly, compared to the other employees. Not that he ever shows his discomfort on that position. You know what they say, serve with a smile!

In three minutes, he finally arrived to his destination, an open market, the only place to buy freshly grown tomatoes and pack it all in a box to bring to work. If only he had enough money to keep some for himself to cook his brother and himself some pasta with tomato sauce. Now that he thought about it, he hasn't had a hot meal in a long time. Living on soup made him thin in the few months that he had to start working.

As he layed the cardboard box on the floor, he reached over to the crate of tomatoes, feeling which ones were ripe and which ones were spoiled.

Just as he was about to grab the first tomato until a hand beat him to it. "Huh?" He looked over to see a familiar face, with blond hair slicked back and blue piercing eyes. "Oh it's you again, Luddy!" he smiled.

I never thought I'd see him again. What a small town after all, "Oh hello, Guten tag." I greeted.

"Ciao!" he smiled. Wasn't he mad at us earlier, why isn't he angry?

There was an awkward silence between us, him smiling and me just staring at the tomatoes. I felt the tomato I just grabbed from him, then offered it back, "Here, you were about to grab this one". He took it from me graciously, and then frowned at it, "It's too soft". I scoffed, "Well, what is a tomato suppose to feel like?"

Veneziano picked up a bright red tomato, twisting it around on the palm of his hand, before grinning in satisfaction, "Like this!" He gave it to me test for myself, and indeed, it was nice and hard.

I watched him continue packing a whole crate of tomatoes as I cautiously picked a few tomatoes at a time, Seldomly asking whether it's good or not, then a question came to me, "What are you doing with all those tomatoes?"

Veneziano looked up from his crate, half way full of tomatoes. "My boss called for it. We ran out of tomatoes so I had to quickly run out here and bring it back to the restaurant in-time so we can serve the costumers."

I sighed, "That doesn't do you any good if you had to skip out on your hours to get supplies that they should've already have. You're the chef aren't you?" He nodded, "Yes, but since I just started the job, they treat me more as their errand boy than a five star chef."

"You cook that well?"
"Only the best pasta in town. Say, you want to come over some day? You can bring your family with you…" I shook my head, "Oh they're not my family. But the albino guy is. The other two are our friends. Speaking of which, I'm sorry you had to put up with Francis, he can be a jerk at times…"

Veneziano waved me off, "Oh it's no big deal. Really it's understandable. I wouldn't trust anyone either if it were me and I moved to a new country."

I nodded along, "Yea, I guess if you put it that way. By the way…" He stopped, dropping the last of the tomatoes in the crate, and then tying it off with a thick rope on his scooter. Stepping on the peddle, the motor roared to life, getting ready to go. "Si?", His light brown hair flying over his eyes as he fixed his helmet on his head. "Where did you learn to pull that left hook?"

"Eh...It's a long story, another time okay? I need to go now. Hungry people!" he called before driving away on his scooter.

It was now dusk when I climbed up the last step made of stone and dirt. I pulled out the keys to the apartment and unlocked the door to a house full of noise.

"Oh Dios Mio, que estás hablando?" I closed the door with a small thud, letting everyone know that I was home. I set the plastic bag down in the kitchen, unpacking the goods instead of sitting around like I would usually do after running a long errand.

"I…I didn't… nonoonono, I didn't…She came to me and she said that she….ARGH!" I flinched at the height of Antonio's voice. I raised my eyes as I continued to hear him talk. Just then, Gilbert walked in, acting as if nothing happened. "What's up kiddo?"

I shook my head, "Nothing much…hey what's wrong with Antonio?" Gilbert glanced back into the living room to see the Spaniard slumped on the couch, bags under his youthful face and a girl talking loudly in his ears. He looked towards us with irritation.

"Nothing special west, just some girl he's been seeing the past couple of months. I swear, he and Bonnefoy have it coming. "

I chewed my lip, no sure how to comprehend that. "Oh, I'm sorry Luddy. I just remembered you haven't had the talk yet?"

What 'talk' is he referring to?

"Well, I guess it's all in the job of a big brother…sixteen years huh? Luddy, you're making me feel old!" My brother ruffled my blond hair, laughing at his own pun. "Gilbert, you're only thirty-four calm down!"

"I'm getting Ooold!"