{A/N I'm back guys! And I am so happy with myself because I successfully completed NaNoWriMo :D Congratulations for any of you who have won or even just taken part in NaNo, even if you didn't win it is still such an achievement to make it as far as you did.
...Reviews:D...
ROCuevas: Thank you, and I know! It's out and it's so good! I got my copy recently and have been pretty much playing it non-stop! I fail at it a lot though but hey I still like it.
xVentressx: I feel sorry for you, though my parents are a little like that too. XD
MarabouChocolate: Aw thank you so much and I hope you are enjoying AC3 as much as I am!
TheCrazyPurpleJester: Thank you and congratulations on competing in NaNo you are awesome and I know you achieved all you could!
Dead Bad Wolf: I'm glad I make you laugh, I try to make my chapters relatively long but if I made them any longer you would have to wait more!
Kitkat101895: (wow that is a lot of numbers in your username!) Thank you so much! x
Serena Cupcake: Thank you and I would totally love it too, well apart from how cramped it would be! Also thank you for your review on my one-shot, your idea about the costumes is totally awesome – why didn't I think of that?! I am planning on a Christmas special and I hope to add that idea in somewhere... maybe!
Dessoestma: Thank you for your amazing PMs (including our awesome rp ones) it means a lot to have someone like you to talk to! :D
...
Alrighty guys I know you have been so patient to wait this long (a whole month and a bit!) so I hope this makes up for it! Please review and tell me what you think.
Enjoy x}
Halfway through the movie I got a text from Rachel telling me she had finished editing the pictures (which all didn't include my huge plaster cast thank god) and that she was sending over canvases with them on –which she wouldn't let me refuse. Attached to that message were some previews and I have to admit they looked so good. The effects Rachel had added looked so realistic, there's this one shot of me flipping my hair upwards and she had made it look like the air was full of glittering rainbow coloured particles. It was so beautiful that I had to gasp.
"And what are you gasping about?" Ezio said as he sat next to me with an arm around my shoulders with a bowl of salted popcorn sitting between us. Everyone else was so engrossed with the movie, which they couldn't believe wasn't real, so we were practically alone.
"The beautiful photos my friend Rachel took." I said before showing him the snap along with a few others, one of me as Juliet from the Shakespeare play (which was taken using a green screen) and another where I am the damsel in distress for a silent movie melodrama. I watched his reaction and he looked a little in awe too. He stared at my phone for a few seconds before looking at me with those awe filled eyes.
"You look so..." he said trailing off as the right descriptive word failed to arrive in his head.
"Weird?" I finished for him. "Yeah the eyeshadow on that first shot is a little eccentric but it looks good so-"
"I was not going to say weird." he said handing my phone back to me and instead holding my hand. "I was merely trying to think of a compliment that suited this picture but none would express the true beauty of yourself in it and the others." he said completely in charming mode. Well I would say that I totally didn't fall for his charms and definitely didn't blush or giggle at all but that would be a lie. I did all of those things I just mentioned.
"Why thank you." I said trying to calm my blush and stop my cheeks being so hot.
"What are you giggling about?" Ben asked taking his eyes away from the telly. I threw him my phone and he looked at the photos too.
"I'm getting canvases with them on too." I said as Ben continued to admire them.
"Cool, have you sent mum and dad these photos?" Ben asked chucking me my phone back. I caught it before it broke and placed it on the table and grabbed a handful of popcorn.
"Not yet but I'm going to soon." I said before tapping Ezio's forearm with my full hand and explaining a little competition for us to do - the movie was a rom-com and I could see Ezio was not enjoying it (Ben on the other hand loves them and Federico looked like he didn't mind them either).
"First one to get throw popcorn and get it to land in their mouth wins." I said getting a kernel ready in my other hand as Ezio did the same.
"Okay... 3... 2... 1, go!" I said before throwing the kernel in the air and getting it in on my first shot. I ate it and grinned, that had never happened before!
"Yes I won!" I said feeling a little too happy about that. Ezio on the other hand wasn't taking it as well.
"That was not fair, I was a little confused still as to how to actually do it." he said and I agreed to his demand of a rematch. It took me a few more tries this time but I still won. Again he demanded that we do another rematch and this time he won. He did the gentlemanly thing and didn't rub it in my face. After that we just sat through the movie (well technically I was showing him most of the songs on my overused phone as well as some more photos) until everyone else went upstairs and it was just me, Ben and Ezio left. He smiled at us before typing on his own phone and getting up off the sofa.
"I'm going round Jenny's." he said as I could hear him putting on his trainers.
"Great thanks for that image Ben!" I called sarcastically to him as I heard the jingling of his keys. I shuddered at the thought and I heard Ben laugh.
"Your welcome." I heard him say before the door closed with a click. Seriously I think that all older brothers are secretly robots designed to annoy you to death. Ezio smirked and gently turned my face towards him.
"There is a way I may be able to erase that image." he said and pulled me closer to him with his charming smile. He kissed me before I could make a smartarse remark but I soon made up for that after we parted.
"I bet you could not go one day without flirting or being charming in any way." I said smirking and crossing my arms as he continued to hold me. He laughed but didn't accept the challenge. Both of us knew he was too much of a romantic to stop like that.
"It looks like I will be able to sleep down here tonight. It will give me a chance to escape my brother's snoring." He said smiling at me.
"Oh my god, his snores are so loud! I couldn't get to sleep in my own room when he was asleep next door." I said remembering the time when I was upset and was snuggled in my room getting no sleep whatsoever.
"That is how I feel every night." Ezio pointed out and I winced.
"Wow, well now you don't. Instead you'll have a large sofabed all to yourself and silence and peace." I said getting up off of the loveseat and moving to the other sofa and was about to get it out but I stopped when I came up with an idea to pass the time. I put the sofa back and proceeded to move the table to allow more space in the centre of the room.
"What are you doing?" Ezio asked questioning my actions as he stretched out on the love seat watching me as I moved to plug in the TV and the Wii that stood next to it. I'm sure this is not what everyone wants to do at half past ten at night but I had plenty of energy left and I needed to waste it and I figured having fun at the same time was a bonus.
"Putting a plan into action. I have too much energy to go to sleep with and don't you dare say what I think you are about to say." I added as Ezio was about to come out with a dirty remark. He laughed and continued to watch as I started the console up and activated a controller. I clipped it around my wrist and found the case for 'Just Dance 2' before inserting the disk into the Wii.
"I don't know what you mean Abby." He said with mock innocence as the game loaded. I clicked through the menu and put my hair up in a messy bun to keep it out of the way of my face. I laughed and rolled my eyes as I stood up and prepared to embarrass myself in front of him.
"Right... so basically what you do for this game is follow the on screen instructions and mirror the dancer on the screen. The more points you get the better." I explained as I selected the most energetic song ever, Jump. The dance itself lives up to its name and by the end I was quite tired. I still wanted to play more songs though. I looked at Ezio and he seemed on the verge of cracking up with laughter. I guessed that dances he had seen and experienced back home where completely different to this.
"Come on, up you get. I'll replay it and you're gonna join in this time." I said chucking a controller at him and showing him how to put it on and how to hold it.
"I don't know about this." He said a little unsure as I dragged him up off of his seat and into the space. He looked really out of his depth and I just managed not to laugh at that. "I am unsure how to do any of those moves."
"Don't worry, most of them are repeated and if you really can't do anything else then just join in with the chorus." I said reassuringly as I hit replay on the screen. He still looked nervous but as the song started he became determined and tried (and many times failed) to copy his character but he never gave up and even managed to just about nail the chorus (though I could see he was growing tired of jumping by the end). I still won by miles but I was proud of Ezio for trying and not giving up. The determination in his eyes had been amazing. If this was how he was over a light hearted game then I thought he would never give up on anything he set his mind to.
"You did great," I said with genuine praise and not mocking him at all. "I got way lower than that on my first try."
"Grazie, you are a beautiful dancer." He said being as charming as ever though he already looked a little tired.
"Does that mean you were looking at my body the whole time?" I joked putting my hands on my hips and waiting for his reaction. He looked a little shocked and even blushed at one point. I rolled my eyes and turned away from him.
"Unbelievable, first my cousin and now me." I said as I smiled at the curtains, I loved winding him up. I then realised I was giving him the chance to stare at my arse. I quickly blushed too and turned back to face him.
"I... Your clothes make it almost impossible for me not to! I am not used to such tight clinging material on a woman." He admitted sheepishly not looking at me at all now. His embarrassed face is so damn cute! I walked up to him and kissed him since his face made it impossible for me not to.
"It's okay, I wasn't used to your tight trousers when you first appeared here." I admitted since he was admitting things. I felt I had to to stop him feeling guilty. "We're both in the same boat."
"What?" he said, not understanding the common figure of speech.
"I mean, we are both in the same situation." I said explaining the meaning of the metaphor.
"Oh..." he said as he held me close. I laughed at his now confused expression and kissed him again before moving away and moving the screen back to the song selection menu.
"Another song?" I asked and he nodded and the look of determination returned. I loaded it up and we began to play.
Eight songs later and me and Ezio were truly tired out. We only just made it to the sofa before we fell asleep.
...
"They look so cute!" I heard Claudia say and I begun to wake up at her words.
"Ssh Claudia," Giovanni said with a hushed voice from nearby too. "They are clearly tired and need their rest, do not disturb them with your raised tone."
"Sorry padre." Claudia said, her voice much more quieter.
"I will go fetch us something to eat." I heard Maria say before I slipped into sleep again.
...
"Abs." A voice said and I smelt the smell of fresh coffee from nearby. Someone was shaking my shoulder gently.
"Mmm?" I said as I opened my eyes, I felt pressure and breath on my head and it took me about a minute to realise that Ezio's head was leaning on mine.
"Wake up, you only have two hours until you go to work." Ben said fully dressed, he had probably only just got in.
"Oh m'kay." I said sleepily before my brain processed this and my eyes shot open again. "Holy sh-" I just managed to slap a hand over my mouth in time before Petruccio heard a swear word. Ezio lifted his head and groaned at my loud shout. I looked at the clock and gasped, it was quarter past eight! How the hell did I manage to sleep in that long?! I heard Ben laughing as a hot cup of coffee was pressed into my hands. Ezio was just about waking up as he was given his own coffee.
"Abby our lesson!" Petruccio said walking over to me and looking at me eagerly. He was already sad that we missed it at the usual time.
"Oooh yeah." I said standing up and taking my coffee with me. "You coming Ezio?"
"Si, just give me a moment to wake fully." He said getting up and stretching. Petruccio was already at the door and waiting impatiently for us, I began to walk over before Maria came out of the kitchen and handed a plate piled with toast. Aw that is so sweet.
"Thank you Maria, that's so kind of you." I said smiling gratefully at her as I took the plate and nodded my head in thanks.
"You have done many kind things for us so it is about time we started to repay the many debts we owe you." She said smiling back as Petruccio and Ezio headed upstairs.
"You don't owe me anything Maria, I've liked having you here. It makes a nice change." I said taking a half slice of buttered toast and beginning to eat it as I made my way up the stairs too and putting the plate between the three of us to eat while I taught.
The lesson was short but sweet though it kinda saddened me when Petruccio said that he missed his home (translated by Ezio). Of course it didn't help that we were talking about home and household objects. His little minorly sad and longing face made me realise that I had not thought my relationship with Ezio through and had not really realised that he would have to leave abruptly. I was not emotionally ready for that and I was already distressed that it had to happen at some point and that was probably soon. How though was still a mystery since I thought that the Xbox thing was a one off. If it hadn't been for the Auditores standing in the living room then I would've thought that it was my imagination going into overdrive. I peeked at Ezio after Petruccio's words and he seemed a little sad too like he was coming to the same realisation I was. I finished up with Petruccio and was going to talk to him about it but my ringtone interrupted my train of thought with a text from Evie.
'Evie: Abs? can i come over? i need to talk...'
It sounded like she needed some advice so I quickly replied back as Ezio finished the last of the toast.
'Abby: Of course, what is it you want to talk about?'
I didn't get an answer but I didn't have time to dwell because the doorbell rang and no-one made no move to get it.
"Seriously? Why do I always have to go get the door!" I said and I trudged down the stairs. To my surprise Evelyn was already standing there looking a little shocked at something.
"Hey Evelyn," I was a little confused at her expression since I she wasn't exactly upset but wasn't angry or worried either. "Are you alright?"
And then she held up the all to familiar game package with Ezio on the front and it all became clear. "What is this?"
Shit she found it! "I...I..." words really failed me at that point because I felt to guilty and shocked at the same time even though I kinda knew this moment would come.
"D...did you know about this?" she asked now confused too, she had obviously thought I was clueless too. I looked back at the Auditores, now all seated and chatting in the living room, before stepping outside and shutting the door behind me.
"Yes, yes I did. I would've told you earlier but I didn't know how you'd react and..." I trailed off at the end, not knowing how to end it. "I'm sorry." I added after a moments silence.
"I-is this some kind of joke? Are...are they not real?" she asked, blinking as she caught a glimpse of the family. "Are they...are they not from this time?"
"They're from 15th century Florence, according to Ben. As for their actual existence... I don't know. The day they came the Xbox had died but when I touched it, it glowed and then I heard voices and then they were there in the living room just there. I don't whether the Xbox took them from the game and made them real or just took them from the past." I said hurriedly since I was still confused as to where and why they came. "You realise you can't tell anyone right Evie?"
Evelyn just looked at me, disbelief clouding her features, "Okay, you have GOT to be joking me!" she saw the serious look on my face and grew wide eyed, "You're...not...joking..." she looked down at the package and stared at it, unable to comprehend what happened, "Wait...I just went out with a possibly non existent guy?" she looked at me once more again and this time I could see she was now sad at the news of this.
"I've fallen in love with a possibly non-existent guy too..." I said sharing the news with my cousin in an extremely unplanned way. "...have you played it?" I asked looking down at Ezio's hooded face under the plastic. Ben told me never to play it or research it, he said that if I did I would probably 'never recover from it' or something like that. I didn't really want to play it so I would never know what supposedly happened to them (if they were video game characters).
Evelyn just blinked at me before looking away, "Not yet...I don't think I want to know." She said looking at the game package warily before shifting to look at me again. "So, Ezio, eh?" she quirked a smile at me before laughing.
"Yes!" I said laughing too, we were stuck in a sticky situation but at least we were in it together. Evelyn giggled before hugging me close.
"So, did he like our date?" she asked, blushing a tiny bit.
"Of course he did Evie!" I said smiling at her and hugging her back. If he hadn't and broke up with Evie, he would have a lot more to deal with than my crying cousin, he would have to deal with me too!
"He's eavesdropping right now if you want to get a second opinion." I smiled as I heard chuckling and the door opened to Ezio and Federico standing in the doorway. Thank god they hadn't been there during the first bit, I have never told them about the game.
"Buongiorno girls." Ezio said charmingly standing next to me and wrapping an arm around my waist. Federico smiled at Evie and took her hand and giving her a quick kiss. Then he turned to me.
"How did you know we were there?"
I just laughed and tapped my nose jokily. He grinned and stood beside Evie while me and Ezio stood together in front of the door. Evelyn flashed a smiled at Federico.
"So it will happen again?" she asked and Federico smiled charmingly at her.
"Of course bella, if that is what you want." he said before kissing her again. Ezio and I stood there watching proudly as that happened before having a little moment of our own.
Evelyn patted his cheek before she pursed her lips and fixed some of his hair that had begun to stickup. She smiled proudly when she fixed it and looked at Ezio and Abby, smiling widely.
"Oh Abby!"
"What?" I said innocently as me and Ezio finished. He grinned at me and I grinned back.
"Are you trying to make this a competition fratello?" Federico commented, Ezio looked at him fake shocked.
"No. Why would you say that?"
Federico just smiled. I looked down at my watch and realised I had to be at work in 20 minutes.
" Oh, I have to be at work in like 20 minutes so I'll have to go." I said going over and hugging my cousin and looking at my watch again as I realised just how short of time I was. Evelyn pouted.
"Already?" she said before hugging me back.
"Good luck, Abs!" she said smiling brightly and giving a slight wave.
"Danke, I'll leave you guys to it." I said going back inside to change into my work uniform and get my lunch ready in the remaining time. I just made it in time and managed to leave on time.
"Abby may I walk with you?" Ezio said leaning on the door frame with his shoes already on. Why did I pick tight t-shirts for him to wear?! Now I'm his girlfriend I can't help but look at his abs!
"Well since you're already dressed for the occasion..." I said averting my eyes and smiling sheepishly and waiting for him to step out and close the door. He rolled his eyes and stood in front of me taking my hands in his and standing very close to me.
"If you wanted a better look then you could have just asked." He said quietly and a little seductively. I laughed and stood on my tiptoes to kiss him and put an end to his weird comments. He smiled within the kiss and cupped my face, lengthening the kiss. Now I was gonna be late for work but obviously I was making no complaints about the reason.
"We really have to get going now if I don't want to get fired." I said looking at him with a smile taking his forearms and moving them from my face. He looked at me curiously and I guessed that he didn't know what that meant. "I mean loose my job."
"Ah I see," he said looking less confused now. "Lead the way." He said motioning for me to go first.
"Nope you're not walking behind me," I said cheekily stopping and letting him catch up. "Not after what you said last night."
He blushed again and looked very cute, it made me feel almost a little guilty for winding him up.
"Well you look at my muscles a lot too." He retorted now being witty too. I was pretty impressed.
"Fair point." I said grinning while we walked. "I guess we are both hypocrites then."
"Indeed we are." He said grinning too and looking down at my hand in a fabric brace. "How is your arm?"
"A few more days and I get to take it off." I said happy at the thought. It was quite annoying and I couldn't play my guitar or piano properly with it on!
"That is good news, I have missed your music." He said and that compliment brightened my day already. Even some of the most annoying customers couldn't bring my mood down now.
"Thank you, I've missed it too."
"Maybe you could teach me something before I... have to leave." He said touching briefly on the sore subject. I bumped his shoulder slightly in a bid to cheer him up.
"Of course, that would be awesome." I said smiling and he couldn't help but smile too. The rest of the short journey passed with the same level of easy conversation. People on the street smiled at our cute couple holding hands and the kiss he gave me before I went into the cafe. Most people here are really nice but it can sometimes be a bit less nice when it's busy. Tourist season isn't always fun though you do get more customers which means more income ( )!
"I thought that was your cousin?" Lisa said looking at Ezio as he left to go back to the house after a brief wave in my direction.
"We call them cousins but they're just really close family friends." I said using my well rehearsed lie.
"I guess I'll have to tell Tash that she has to remove dibs from him then." She said smiling as she opened the cafe and ushered me over to the counter. I raised an eyebrow and laughed at the comment. Ezio was now untouchable to my single friends and that wouldn't come without many continuous complaints.
"That guy..." Tom said as I came to stand beside him behind the counter. "I swear he looks like the character from that new video game."
"What?" I said in shock, the realisation on his face made my heart pound. They couldn't be discovered now!
{I'll leave it there because this is nine pages already!
Please review and tell me what you thought of it }