"You have your notebooks?"
"Yep."
"Pencils?"
"Yep.
"Folders?"
"Mm hmm."
"Lunch?"
"Oh my God, Mom, what is this, a military inspection?"
Pearl huffed and planted her hands on her hips at her daughter's interjection. "Oh, Jolyne, I'm just double checking if Emporio has everything ready for school."
"Well," Emporio said softly, place a loose curl of hair behind his ear, "three times, actually, if you count me putting my bag together last night.". September had brought in a gaggle of changes and beginnings. Fall had begun rolling through to change the greens to warm reds and yellows, fun in the sun had changed to responsibilities in overcast weather and most importantly, at least for Emporio Alniño, school was starting. For the first time in his entire life, he would be around kids his own age and with adults who wanted to teach him things such as mathematics and biology instead of like before where he picked up anything he learned from web pages and books thicker than his small body. And the thought of this both terrified and excited him. Or maybe they were just one in the same. He couldn't tell.
Either way, the boy was looking more like a pack mule with all the school supplies and lunch bag strapped onto him. It wasn't like it was heavy or that Emporio was weak, but it was definitely a new feeling. It was the same new sort of experience now, for the first time in his life being anxious over something non-life threatening. Well, if missing a school bus could possibly be hazardous to one's health. He peeked over the teal couch in front of the window once again, only faced with the green and cut lawn and pink azaleas he had helped plant over the summer. Jolyne was spread out on the sofa, rolling her eyes at her mother's preening.
"See? Even Emporio's on top of this. He may be a kid but he's more responsible than some adults." Emporio blushed at the statement. While it was true, he found it embarrassing to admit he really didn't act like a conventional 11 year old. "Plus, we HAVE been preparing for this for 3 months. And I should know that very well since you dragged me with you guys for all the back to school shopping." Jolyne stuck out her tongue at the memories of not only the hours spent her mom and Emporio choosing the "most best" outfits for the boy's school year but also of her own childhood of her mom preening and making her wear a nice dress for the first day of school that was soon muddied and destroyed later in the day from wrestling with other kids. Pearl tapped her foot and sighed.
"I just. Want him to make a good first impression."
"For a bunch of squeaky voiced preteens?"
"Oh, you know what I mean! It's his first day of being around children at ALL, Jolyne. So I have good reason to be pedantic." As if on cue, Emporio looked out the living room window again and instead of seeing the grey and empty road the bright yellow bus, now stopped in front of the house. Pearl, seeing the block of yellow over her daughter's shoulder, dropped everything and rushed to open to the front door.
" !" Emporio rushed the cluster of words out as he sped out the door, twisting his body around to give a quick wave to the two ladies before disappearing into the open maw of the bus. With a shut of the doors and sputter of the engine, the bus sped away to its next stop, leaving the bungalow quiet and almost empty.
"…Do you think he had had everything?" Jolyne groaned at her mom's fretting even as the bus was much out of bounds for her to actually do anything. But this was to be expected from Pearl (formerly Cujoh) Partridge. Jolyne's whole childhood consisted not only of this motherly hen attitude but also feeling like her mom was behind her back on any and everything she did. Did you clean your room, did you apply for that university, did you ask out that boy you've been throwing goo goo eyes at, it was constant. Perhaps it was her way of trying to make up for the girl having only one parental figure for most of her childhood, but it made Jolyne dread moments like these. The silent and tepid times, with her and her mom and her facing each other like a pair of gunmen at high noon. It would either end with Jolyne diverting the topic to something completely remote to what her mother wanted to say or…
Pearl sat down on the chair adjacent to Jolyne, sweeping a bit of loose lock of hair from her vision. The past few months had added more grays to her mother's hair, making her look older than she was. Jolyne braced for impact, twirling a loose strand of thread from her hoodie between her fingers.
"Have you decided to call him yet?" the sentence came out as fast and as hard as a bullet, hitting Jolyne between the ribs. Ahh, there it is. That "yet". There were no "mights", "maybes" or even "perhaps" with her mom. When she asked if you were going to do something "yet", she wanted you to DO it. Even if it took a second, minute or month, it would inevitably happen. Jolyne huffed and rested her cheek in her open palm.
"No, I haven't, Ma." she flatly replied. Pearl crossed one leg over the other, hands held in her lap. Her pose was professional, and her gaze was icy and burning at the same time.
"And why is that? If you know it's his, it's at least worth a shot to reach out to him and share the news. Unless there are others…" the tale of that sentence curled in a cloying way. Jolyne's cheeks had a soft brush of red painted on them now.
"Jesus Chri-No. There is and was no one else. At all. Seriously."
"Hmmm," her mom pursed her lips together. Jolyne didn't like where this was going, "if you say so, Jojo." Jolyne groaned once again and let her free arm fall limply around her midsection. The risen yet hard area cushioned her forearm. This. This developing bundle of flesh and cells was what causing this awkward yet tedious conversation. Her kid.
"Look," Jolyne straightened her back, "I got black out drunk that ONE time, banged another black out drunk guy that ONE time and since then I haven't even had the chance to touch any dick besides my dildo because no man out there WANTS a trainwreck chick with another man's kid! Ok?" she hadn't meant to get so aggressive and biting to her own mother, but the culminating months of frustration and issues thrown on her bad just spilled out all too easily. Pearl was taken aback from her daughter's rant, eyes widening. Regret washing over her, Jolyne pinched her brow and sighed. She couldn't believe she just said all…that.
"…Sorry, sorry. I'm…I'm not doing well with any of this right now. It hasn't BEEN fine since I saw that unholy pink cross."
"Oh, I understand that Jojo," her mom replied sympathetically and with a tinge of regret, "I just don't fully or even understand why you haven't called this one night suitor of yours yet. I mean, he GAVE you his contact information!" Pearl tapped a finger on the arm of her seat, "many girls out there would DREAM of their child's father to give them that."
"I'm just…" Jolyne furrowed her brow, "I guess I'm just afraid.". She shrugged nonchalantly after dropping that obvious bomb, "I mean, on one hand, being a single mom would be…much less than ideal," Pearl nodded, understanding and knowing that struggle all too well, "but at the same time, like I said, I only knew the dude that one night and what information he gave to me on his card. Other than that, he's an enigma."
Pearl chose her words carefully before speaking. She may have been an assertive and many times head strong woman but never intentionally harsh or cruel (most of the time at least). "Well…just think of this. If you call him and he at least wants to be in the child's life, then go from there. And if he doesn't then just…well, fuck him," Pearl shrugged, "if he doesn't want it, you shouldn't force him."
Jolyne groaned, "Mmm, I dunno…" she looked in thought but could still feel her mom's gaze burning into her skull. Her mom obviously was doing more than a nudge for her to just pick up the phone and call the damn number. But still, doubt rested in the woman's mind. Something felt…off about this. About Giorno. It was akin to peeking over a diving board only to see the water as so dark and murky that you couldn't even see the bottom. At this point, her mom was right. She had to bite the bullet and pull out that card from her desk. With a hum, Jolyne prepared to lift herself off the couch. Having a growing baby inside of her had made the simple act of standing up feel alien, even the minuscule weight this far in the trimester putting Jolyne's balance off just so slightly. She dreaded how the later months would warp her body further.
"Alright, I'll do it. Just to get it over with. BUT." She pointed an accusatory finger at her mom and lowered her brow seriously, "No eavesdropping. Period."
"Oh Jojo, you really think I'd go that far to violate your privacy?" a beat of silence went by. Pearl laughed dryly.
"Yeah, you know me too well."
The heaviness in her feet dissipating, Jolyne looked at her mom, vulnerability dimly glimmering in her eyes before going upstairs. As she ascended each step, she thought about what she would say exactly. Informing him of the pregnancy was the main goal but just blurting it out flatly would obviously be dumb and quite counterintuitive. Maybe just…lay it down softly? Start with a "Hey, I just wanted to see how you're doing. Three months later. Out of the blue.". Ok no, too obvious. She could just go the "I have something to tell you" route. It seemed the most safe option at the moment. Dancing around the subject and bluntness were never going to work so why not go the tried and true route? At least, she hoped it would be tried and true.
Anxiety weighed on the woman's chest as she stopped right in the doorway of her room. Her cellphone laid carelessly tossed on the bed. The card was still in one of her desk's drawers, the little slip seeming to radiate an intimidating energy. She felt Stone Free emerge from her skin, translucent and hovering over her shoulder. She felt much safer and more confident with her stand active, even if there were no enemies or hostiles around. She breathed in, holding the breath for a few seconds and exhaled. It didn't quite calm her down or lower her anxiety much like people claimed doing that did but it at least did give her more time to mentally strengthen herself. Quickly, Jolyne snatched the business card from her drawer and plopped down onto her bed. She looked over at the card, probably the 100th time she had read it over. The card itself was extremely professional looking, the material it was made out of thick with a slightly raised texture. The lettering seemed to be pressed from gold leaf and shined in the light.
"Giorno Giovanna". That name had been stuck in the back of her mind like gum stuck under a desk. Would he still recognize her voice? Would he remember Jolyne at all?
The call was probably going to cost quite a bit but that would be dealt with later. With Giorno's number inputted, her thumb hovered over the dial button. She'd gone this far already; no point in hesitating now. She pressed the button and the low thrum of the ringtone vibrated in her hand. It echoed in her skull as she had the phone pressed against her ear. Every ring just added tension to Jolyne's already tense nerves. Then. The click of the call being picked up and for the first time in three months Jolyne heard that melodious voice tinged with an Italian accent again.
"Hello, this is Giorno Giovanna speaking."
So professional, crisp yet delightful on the ears. Jolyne didn't speak for a second, words stuck at the gate.
"Hello?" this finally got Jolyne to speak.
"Hey," she licked her dry lips, "it's me."
The sense of tension thickened as she let her simple statement set in. Jolyne feared that she had started badly right out of the gate. "It's me". Like he would immediately remember her when he had probably already gone through a carousel of women by now.
"J-Jolyne?" Giorno sounded surprised and almost incredulous even.
"Y-yeah. In the…" she tapped her finger against her thigh, "voice." She shrugged. She tried her best for that one.
"Well, I'm, uh, I'm surprised to see you call me. I haven't heard anything from you in months."
"I know, I've been slacking on that," it was hard to keep that casual tone when her voice threatened to crack.
"…You need something don't you?" Giorno was interrogative now, starting to catch on to why the woman called. Jolyne gulped and Stone Free's hand rubbed the now more tense muscles in her shoulders.
"Well, it's not like I NEED anything, per se, besides the fact that I NEED to tell you something quite important," nailed it. She somehow could imagine a blonde brow raising on the other side of the line.
"Well then, please tell me. I'm a busy man," despite the annoyance in his voice, there was an obvious anxiety under that layer.
"Well…you know when we…" Jolyne wasn't the type of person who blanched at frank wording, but right now it was hard enough just finding the best words to say, "did it? About three months ago?" she patiently waited for a reply but only got silence. Not even the sound of breathing.
"Is…" Giorno finally spoke, gulping before continuing, "it herpes?" the pregnant pause came back as the gears spun in Jolyne's head, processing what she just heard. Stone Free face palmed for her.
"Jesus fu-NO."
"Syphilis?"
"NO."
"HIV?" Giorno's voice cracked into a squeak and Jolyne felt like hanging up from sheer embarrassment now.
"No! Damn it Giorno, I'm…" Jolyne clenched her teeth, not wanting to say it. After a few seconds of silence she continued, voice quiet and monotone, "…I'm pregnant."
She waited for Giorno's response, his end of the line dead quiet. She thought he had hung up until he finally spoke in that alluring tone of his.
"Are you sure it's mine?"
She wanted to fly to Italy right that second to kick him in the balls for saying that.
"Wha-do y-I'm not A FUCKIN' SLU-" if she gripped the phone any harder, it would probably crack between Jolyne's fingers. Her hands shook as she took a deep breath in. Calm down, Cujoh, just calm down. As much as the implication of that question hit a sensitive part of her ego, she had to understand why Giorno asked that. He was obviously a wealthy dude, most likely with good standing in Italy. It wasn't too ludicrous to think that grifting and scheming women had tried to pin paternity on the man in an effort to get child support. He had to be vigilant for such pregnancy claims…it didn't make her feel much better, but it at least was an explanation.
"I am very SURE it is yours, Giovanna. So sure in fact that I'm sure the kid will come out singing "Funiculi Funicula" and drinking wine instead of breastmilk considering how much of your fuckin Italian sauce you shot into me," she flopped back down on the bed, regretting her spur of the moment rant. Giorno remained calm, slipping back into his professional voice.
"I do not doubt that it would be impossible to rule me out as the father of your supposed child-"
"It's not SUPPOSED, it's fucking real and I've been dealing this for the past THREE MONTHS." Jolyne hadn't intended to get so heated and her anger was most likely turning Giorno off from the idea of assisting her in any way with the pregnancy. But he had pissed her off. BAD. And Jolyne's temper was famous.
"Send me a photo then."
"Excuse me?"
"Send me a photo of your stomach, bare and exposed, so I can know for sure that you're not lying. And no, a positive pregnancy test of any sort wouldn't suffice as that could be faked easily."
Jolyne rubbed her temples as the veins under her finger pulsed. Well…she wasn't expecting the call to turn out like this.
"…this isn't a fetish thing is it?"
"Why would it be?"
"Because guys usually don't ask to see women's stomachs, even for pregnancy shit."
"Well I assure you that my request is not fetishistic in nature, purely for pragmatic purposes."
Jolyne groaned. He did have a point. If she sent him a photo of the result of their romp it was one step further for him to make a decision. Pulling her shirt up and exposing the noticeable and firm bump, she snapped a photo of her belly and texted it to Giorno.
"There, did you get it?"
"…"
"Giorno?"
"…"
"Oh, yes," he sputtered like a car attempting to start in freezing weather, "sorry….I fully believe you now." Thank God, Jolyne thought. "But I'm still not fully convinced on the paternity aspect."
"God damn it…"
"Jolyne, we only had any contact with each since this phone call three months ago in that hotel and nothing between then and now. How am I supposed to know you didn't have sex with any other men in that time period."
"…why am I even trying," Jolyne lost any and all edge to her voice, raspy from exhaustion, "you're not gonna believe me anyways unless I get a DNA test…after the kid is born." She sniffled a bit and rolled onto her side. The weight of the baby on her organs was starting to feel uncomfortable. "I shouldn't have called you in the first place. Sorry for that."
"Now Jolyne, you don't have to rule out-"
"No no, it's fine. I shouldn't have tried and hold you responsible for a mistake I made. This was just…foolish of me to do."
"Well," he paused, planning what was best to say next, "it was sort of was but-"
Jolyne hung up and let her arm flop down to the bed. She could only mull over how incredibly naïve calling Giorno was. It was a good effort, no one could say she didn't TRY and tell him about it, but she already knew that even if she convinced him that yes, this was his kid, he would decline or just not call her back. It was almost always foolhardy for Jolyne to try to put her hope and trust in guys as most of them always let her down in one way or another. Her gut told her Giorno, this stranger, would just be the same. It was better to just nip that in the bud before she let her or the kid get hurt.
Stone Free rested its chin on Jolyne's shoulder, akin to a dog seeing its master in distress. Jolyne dryly squeezed a laugh from this.
"Eh," she sighed, "well it won't be that bad. I still have mom, Emporio, Hermes, uncle J-" Jolyne closed her eyes and exhaled. Oh yeah, uncle Josuke was not going to handle this news well.
Now in all fairness, Giorno may have panicked. Everyone around him knew of him as the clever and scheming type. Always not one but three steps ahead of the competition and his enemies. With his charisma and stand, Giorno was able to sweep up Passione from its power vaccuum and cement himself as Italy's true and most powerful Don. All because he knew what to do, say, think or who to influence at achieving his goals.
Finding out the random American girl he lost his virginity to is now pregnant wasn't even on his ever growing and detailed list of "what ifs"; it was non existent to him. So when he heard her say those dreaded words, Giorno blanked out for the rest of the call. He went straight to voicemail, thinking and talking as if this was another meeting with a politician or foreign mafia leader. That was the worst possible time for him to go that route but it wasn't like the man had any pre planned lines or dialogue for this. Stupid. How stupid of him to never even have the potential of this even flash through his mind.
Giorno tapped the side of his cellphone, staring at the black screen. He had already tried calling Jolyne back. Four times already. He wanted to call her back one more time as he felt uneasy leaving it on four. It wouldn't do much though. He had already dug his grave and burned the bridge with Jolyne. He felt bad for being so curt yet rude but Giorno was almost always cautious with any relationship around him. Friendly, acquaintances, or a "we talked once" type, he had to tread lightly with almost all of them. He wouldn't be surprised if a woman would try to pass someone else's child off as his. Still…he felt wrong for his accusations. Even if it was out of anxiousness, she didn't seem like THAT type of girl. If Jolyne truly had been with many guys she might not have even called him in the first place: too many numbers and contacts to keep track of.
He leaned back, chair creaking under his weight. His head felt heavy yet light as the same time, thoughts running through it like fish in a bowl. He was lucky no one had burst into his office yet, giving Giorno time to think about what to do now. That photo, slightly angled and from below, stayed framed and hung in his brain. It was…strange. Just strange. Because for some reason looking at this common occurrence of life…moved him.
That…was most likely, HAD to be, he thought, their child. Even if it wasn't, Giorno knew his soul would never rest if he abandoned his child to a mother he knew little to nothing about. He had killed men, led others to their deaths, done many, many deceitful and criminal activities…and yet imagining that dark haired and dark brown eyes of the baby in his mind struck something tender in his soul.
"No," he mumbled, "it won't happen again. Not under my watch."
But there was an obvious snag in that thinking: he knew nothing about parenting or what really DID constitute as good parenting. Giorno knew the donts all too well, evidence A being his entire childhood, but the dos were much much more unknown to the mafia boss. He felt a bit hypocritical for judging Jolyne when he himself wasn't a shining example himself. This was going to require something more drastic and daunting for the Don of Passione: asking for help.
"Why can't I help?"
Mela pouted and puffed her cheeks at her father, hands planted firmly on her hips. Her indignant pose made the man chuckle and put down his knife.
"Well, considering you're only three, I can't quite yet trust you with sharp objects." Mela gasped at this.
"Pleeeeaaase, I'll be safe!"
"Mm, sorry baby, I don't wanna risk you getting a finger or two cut off. You can still help me though by getting an onion from the fridge." The child pouted again but still skittered to the fridge obediently. She would never turn down any opportunity to help her papa in the kitchen even if she was just doing little things like retrieving dinner's ingredients.
"Nara, you got a call from Giorno!" Trish called from the dining. Narancia turned down the heat on the sauce and walked swiftly to the dining room. When cooking, he'd usually ignore any calls until he was done. Dinner with his family took precedence over many things. One of those things was not Giorno. His wife handed him the ringing phone and nodded, mouthing "thank you" as he answered.
"What's up GioGio?" she chimed in.
"…ummm, I'm-I'm having a baby." Narancia blinked.
"…so you're doing good I guess?"
