Here's chapter 4. Thank you for your continued support!
Oddly enough, Antonio showed up the next day.
"How did you know where I was?" Romano seethed, shocked that the man had found him.
"I asked around."
"And how did you get here?"
"I walked."
"You're kidding."
"Nope!" The walk to the Veneroma headquarters was exceedingly long. It also consisted of crossing several dangerous highways. Romano scowled. Antonio was much too persistent.
"Stupid. You came all the way here and you don't even know if I'll go with you." Another thought suddenly occurred to him. "Why did you have to walk here anyway? Don't you have a car?"
"No."
"A motorcycle?"
"No."
"A bike?"
"No." Antonio shrugged. "I don't have enough money. And I sold my bike a while back to get some."
"Oh. Well…" Romano shook his head to clear it of distracting thoughts. He shouldn't feel sorry for this guy, damn it! "Anyway, I'm not going with you and your friends." So there.
"Romanooo!" Antonio's eyes were wider than moons. "But you'll miss out on the fun!"
"I don't care." He could practically feel his resolve strengthening with every word. Of course, Antonio had to send it crashing down immediately after. The man clasped Romano's hand in both of his and pleaded,
"Pleeeeeeeeaaaaaaaase—" However, even that was insufficient.
"No." Well, he had to admit, the feel of Antonio's skin on his had almost made him quail. But no, he, Lovino Romano Vargas, was going to hold steadfast and true to his Grand Master Plan and nobody—
"Alright, then. I guess I'll just have to make you go." There was oddly enough a dangerous glint in Antonio's eyes. He hadn't let go of Romano's hand.
"Let go of my—"
"Come on!" And then he dragged the unsuspecting man away at full speed.
"Hey! Stop it! Stop!" Damn, the guy was strong. Antonio merely called over his shoulder,
"Don't worry! It'll be fun!" Romano found himself repeating it like a mantra. Don't worry. It'll be fun. Don't worry, it'll be fun. Don't worry it'll be fun. Don'tworryit'llbefun— What did that mean? It seemed that he couldn't remember what fun was.
Somehow, Antonio had managed to find his motorcycle. Romano, stumbling behind him, tried to plant his feet firmly on the blacktop.
"This is as far as I go."
"Don't you need to get home?"
"…Yes."
"Then think of this as a side trip! Or you can just pretend that I'm a hitchhiker who needs to get somewhere, like last time."
"I don't have an obligation to help you!"
"But then I'll have to force you again." Antonio put on a puppy dog face. "Please?" Romano wasn't sure if it was those big green eyes or the thought that Antonio would nag at him until kingdom come that finally made him agree. He was leaning heavily toward the latter. Either way, he was soon speeding toward the intersection between Maine Avenue and Bourne Street with one very happy passenger clinging onto him.
"Gil! Francis!" Antonio waved his arms frantically from where the motorcycle was parked.
"Stop moving so much," Romano ground out, trying to stabilize his precariously rocking vehicle. The other man chuckled sheepishly.
"Sorry." They dismounted. The designer crossed his arms.
"So, where are your friends?" His companion pointed at a pair of steadily advancing figures.
"There!"
"Antonio!" one of the figures ahead shouted. It was probably Gil, since the hair was cropped short. Running beside him, Francis yelled out something garbled.
"What did you say?" Romano's companion screamed back. Finally, the two arrived.
"I said," Francis panted, "Where did you go? I turned around to talk to a beautiful lady for one minute and then you were gone."
"I went to find Romano! We promised to meet up at his workplace."
"You could have told me, you know," the blond said fondly. I'd have taken you there." He did not seem like it, Romano thought, but Francis was actually pretty caring. Not that he was observing him or anything. Meanwhile, the other one, Gil or whatever his name was, sauntered up to them. He smirked wolfishly.
"Who are you?"
"Romano. You must be… uh… Gil, right?"
"Ah, so you've heard of me! I'm not surprised though. News of my awesomeness always gets around one way or another." He pointed at himself. "I am the awesome Gilbert Beilschmidt."
"Beilschm—Oh, no." Romano's eyebrows knitted together. "Oh, no, no… You're that freaking Ludwig's brother!"
"Who are you calling 'freaking'? Watch your mouth when you're talking about my brother, asshole—"
"Are you speaking to me, fucker?"
"As a matter of fact, I am!" As the two engaged in a verbal battle, Antonio and Francis attempted to break them apart.
"Come on you guys!" the former pleaded. "We're all friends here!"
"I'm not friends with him!" Romano and Gilbert proclaimed simultaneously, glaring fiercely at each other. Francis gave Gilbert a warning look. He inclined his head slightly toward Antonio. The other man seemed to get the message; he retreated sullenly. It was all very odd, but Romano stayed quiet. Antonio had a broad smile on his face.
"Alright! So, whose turn is it today?"
"It was mine the last time we met up, so…" Francis pursed his lips. "It's yours, Antonio."
"I'm going to give my turn to Romano." Turning to his bewildered companion, he asked cheerfully, "What do you want to do?"
"W-Why are you asking me?" Romano stammered. I don't know. You're the one who dragged me here with no explanation whatsoever! What do you usually do?"
"Well, it depends! When it's Gil's turn, we go to the bar, when it's Francis' turn, we go into town, and when it's my turn, we usually go to my place and watch a movie or something." Romano wasn't sure he wanted to do anything with three virtual strangers, but since he was already here anyway… He opted for the first thing that popped into his mind.
"Park?"
"This," Gilbert grumbled. "Was one hell of a stupid idea." The four men were walking around the small park near Romano's home. Romano scowled.
"Shut up. I didn't know what to do, okay?" It wasn't his fault.
"There aren't even any pretty girls around here," Francis lamented, looking around at the predominantly elderly population.
"You shut up too! And don't you say anything. This is all because of you." That was directed at Antonio, who had opened his mouth to speak.
"But Romano, I just wanted to say that I'm having fun!"
"Oh. Well, in that case… Whatever, I don't care." Romano shoved his hands into his pockets. He didn't see any harm in coming to the park; he often went for a stroll when his house became too quiet. Of course those nincompoops Gilbert and Francis wouldn't know how to appreciate some peace and relaxation. At least Antonio had the good sense—It was there that he stopped himself. He was surprised that he was complimenting Antonio so willingly. And this recently acquired penchant for flushing red! It seemed only to happen around that man. Embarrassing, to say the least, and not at all professional. He pretended to survey his surroundings. Suddenly, he spied a head of chestnut brown hair with a distinctive curl. Could it be…?
Gilbert, Francis, and Antonio were startled to see Romano suddenly barrel his way over to a person who looked very much like him. The blonds waited for a few moments—then they grabbed Antonio and dragged him behind a bush, obscuring them from view. Their friend laughed.
"What's the matter, guys?"
"So, Toni," Gilbert said nonchalantly, "What's the deal with Romano?"
"Well…" An uncharacteristic blush stole over Antonio's face. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly." I like him?"
"I knew it! No wonder you talked about him so much."
"It was obvious that Antonio liked him, Gil, now the question is does Romano share the same sentiments?"
"Tch, we'll never get the answer out of Mr. Scowl-All-Day. We need to do some reconnaissance." Gilbert pounded his fist into his palm for emphasis.
"You guys don't have to do that for me. I can just talk to Romano."
"Nonsense!" Francis proclaimed dramatically. "In the Bad Friends Trio, it's all for one and one for all! We'll help you get Romano, no matter what."
"You can count on us!" The three bumped their fists together.
"You guys are the best," Antonio told them. His sunny smile was infectious; it spread onto the faces of his friends as they contemplated their next move.
"Stupid Feliciano, sneaking around to see that macho bastard—Hey! Why are you three hiding here?" Romano peered at them quizzically from over the bush. "And why are you grinning like idiots?"
"Tell, me, Romano, do you have a 'special someone'?" Francis subsequently received a hefty punch and a death glare as a reply, after which Romano angrily stomped away. Rubbing his arm ruefully, the blond gave a wry grin. "That means no."
Was that okay?