And now we get into some heavier (sorta) stuff. Its not too serious yet, I mean the setting is a club so of course its not terribly serious lol. I just wanted to say thank you so much for all the positive attention this story is getting. I never really expected you all to like it that much haha. It makes my day to see a new review or favourite or follower! So yea, keep being the awesome people you are! Oh and if there's any typos its because I have part of this prewritten but it was written with different names so now I'm editing it to fit Spamano.
Freezing rain sharply pelted Lovino's face as he jogged over to his beat up Dodge Dart. Rivulets of water ran down the peeling grey paint, soaking the cuff of his sweater sleeve as he opened the door and stuffed himself inside. A gust of wind carried a few droplets into the car, sprinkling the steering wheel. The hazel-eyed man shook his now-damp locks and reclined back in the seat to catch his breath.
The storm outside was a perfect reflection of the chaos raging within his own heart. Everything about his mood was bitter, uninviting, and tumultuous. Deluges of rage poured into the author's mind until all he could see when he closed his eyes was a barrier of fiery red and frigid black.
Lovino could not believe his horrible luck.
What were the odds of running into Antonio the day after he had way-too-quickly fallen for him? And what were the odds of Antonio actually stopping to speak with him, let alone sit down and carry on an actual conversation that ended in a barrage of hateful blows? The odds were slim to none, but yet, it had still happened.
The dark humor of the situation caused Lovino to let out a mirthful chuckle as he let his head droop into his frosty hands. He should have known from the moment he laid his eye on that man that he would be trouble. Then again, he was a pop star so of course he would be trouble. If only he could have just come to terms with that from the start, maybe he wouldn't be sitting in a car trying to mend a broken heart.
No. His heart wasn't broken. In order to have a broken heart, he would've needed to have loved Antonio, which most certainly was not the case. What happened between the two of them was a severe case of attraction and a bit of slightly stalkerish spying. Nothing more. Although, the dull ache in his heart begged to differ.
However, Lovino dismissed all emotions with a sharp smack to his temple.
"Pull yourself together," he muttered while inserting the keys in the ignition and starting the car, "He's just some inconsequential bastard."
The old engine roared to life and Lovino revved gas once or twice to get the machine warmed up. A squealing sound permeating the air from wet tires rolling across pavement as the young man reversed the car out of the parking space and sped onto the road. It was only a two minutes drive from the coffee shop to his house, but the quicker he was away from that place, the better.
Rain washed across the windshield and the wipers carried it away as the green foliage lining the edges of the road blurred out of focus. Lovino's thoughts turned away from the road and onto his current predicament.
He needed to take his mind off of Antonio and everything dealing with relationships, including his new novel. Unfortunately, the creative streak he'd had would be wasted, but it seemed impossible to try and write while his mind was a hurricane of emotion. He hated to admit it since he'd been putting the lad off for the past month, but the best idea for him right now was to do a little catching up with none other than his brother and, quite possibly, only friend.
A frown crept onto Lovino's face as he pulled the old vehicle into the driveway of his secluded bungalow. The initial phone call to Feliciano would be incredibly awkward and he would most likely be irritated because of their lack of interaction in the past month. Needless to say, he was dreading this, but if a night out would help him forget Antonio, then it would have to be done.
The heavy torrents rain had let up some but were still steadily falling on the Italian's back as he exited the car and walked up the stone steps of his abode. He never looked at his house for the sight of it would make his slight case of OCD go insane. The light chestnut paint was coming off in large strips, revealing rotted wood underneath from the large amounts of rain received in the past few years. Weeds littered the front yard and only added to the abandoned haunted house sensation given off by the structure. Everything about the house screamed neglect, however Lovino didn't have to time nor the want to waste his precious writing schedule on cleaning up, and so the house remained as it was: overrun with foliage while the woodwork was well on its way to collapsing.
A half-amused snort escaped Lovino's lips as he fumbled around in his pockets before latching onto the metal key that would open the old-style front door. After placing the key into the lock, the barrier opened with a click and swung inward to reveal a dark house that was as cold as the autumn air outside.
Lovino softly cursed himself for not turning the heat on before he left as he stepped inside, rubbing his hands together for warmth. Should he turn it on now? Would it even be worth it since he was planning on leaving soon anyways?
Deciding against it, the author bounded up the dark oak staircase on the right, curl bobbing up and down with every step he took. The only room that was located on the second story was his bedroom. It was small and cozy and in the style of an attic loft, complete with a sloped roof and small square footage. Yet, these reasons were exactly what made this Lovino's second favorite room after the writing room.
The walls were paneled in the same dark wood that was in the downstairs hallway but didn't give off a gloomy effect or make it feel enclosed. In fact, it added to the serenity. A short strand of white Christmas lights was taped to the adjacent wall since the bedside lamp had burned out many months ago. Lovino had never gotten around to replacing the bulb. An intricate patchwork quilt was neatly tucked into the bed that sat in the far right corner of the room. The tomato pattern of the material was one of the only sources of colour in the room and if someone entered for the first time, their eye was immediately drawn to this masterpiece of cloth.
Yet, hardly anyone ever got to see the quilt for the reclusive author never brought anyone up. Just like the writing room, the loft was his personal space where he could retreat to when the activity of daily life became too much to handle. The only person, besides himself, to go up there was Feliciano.
For now, the small space was bathed in shadows while Lovino quickly changed out of his damp sweater and threw on a blue plaid flannel that paired nicely with the dark wash jeans he was already wearing. Footsteps reverberated throughout the empty bungalow as he walked down the stairs and into the living room, making sure he didn't look at the mess he'd created in the writing room.
Lovino collapsed into one of the dark-green stuffed recliners with a content sigh. It felt good to finally sit down and rest after such a hectic day. If he would've known how this week was going to turn out, he'd have taken some medication to help deal with the stress of it all. It was bad enough being ensnared by writer's block for so long, but then to top it off, Antonio crashed into the picture and steamrolled the last couple of days with erratic heartbeats and thoughts of love.
The author firmly shook his head as he retrieved the cell phone in his jeans pocket. He couldn't spare another thought about that bastard and he promised himself he wouldn't worry about it a second longer. He needed to call Feliciano before a similar thought invaded his mind.
Ring ring. Ring ring. Ring-
"Ve?" the smooth voice on the other end answered drowsily.
"Hey, Feli. It's Lovino," he replied, biting his plump bottom lip. There was thumping on the other line as Feliciano moved around, presumably getting out of bed by the sound of his sleep-laden tone.
"Lovino? Is something wrong?" his brother warily questioned. Lovino sighed. He knew this was going to be difficult.
"I… erm… I was going to see if you wanted to hang out? You know, hit up a club and grab a drink or…" he dumbly trailed off before he could make a bigger idiot out of himself. A singular laugh rang out from Feliciano.
"I don't know, Lovi. Wasn't it just yesterday that you threatened my existence with cops? I don't want to have Ludwig come bail me out of jail."
"Look, okay, I know that and I'm really sorry. It's just been a stressful week and I need to get out of this house before I do something stupid like burn it down," Lovino said in one breath, trying not to show his irritation at the mention of his brother's German best friend. He could picture Feliciano raising a quizzical eyebrow wherever he was at the moment.
"And what if I said no?" Feliciano responded after a moment's pause.
"Then I guess you'll see an article in the morning paper about how the flames were over two stories tall," the author stated in a deadpan voice. There was a sigh on the other end signaling that his friend was moving again.
"Please don't do that, Lovi, even though I know you never would," Feliciano chuckled, "Give me fifteen minutes and I'll be over."
"Thanks Feli," Lovino smiled before closing the flip phone and settling into the comfortable recliner. Knowing his brother, it would be a lot longer than fifteen minutes until he showed up.
However, as the grandfather clock in the living room echoed out eight pm, exactly fifteen minutes since their phone call, the doorbell rang announcing Feliciano's presence at his door. With a bit of a grin quirked on his lips, Lovino all but ran to the door, flung it open, and showered his unsuspecting brother with a tight bear hug. The smaller boy yelped in protest and wriggled under the grasp.
"Lovi, what are you doing? Why are you hugging me?" he gasped as the author finally released his grip and air came whooshing back into his brother's lungs. Lovino nonchalantly shrugged.
"I haven't seen you in a while," he responded sheepishly, "I've missed you." Feliciano widened his eyes before stepping behind the brunette and shoving him in the direction of the midnight blue Mini Cooper parked in the narrow gravel driveway.
"We really need to get you to a bar and fast. I'm not sure what's wrong with your brain but I fully intend on fixing it. I told you that you'd go insane from keeping yourself locked up for so long."
"I'm not insane," Lovino rolled his eyes, stooping down to scrunch his lanky frame inside of the miniature automobile. The tiny vehicle bounced as Feliciano ungracefully plopped into the car and started it. Mumbling something about 'whatever you say but I still think you're crazy', he reversed out of the driveway and headed in the direction of the club.
The party was in already in full swing by the time Feliciano and Lovino arrived despite the time only being eight o'clock at night. The Italian parked his car in the covered parking lot and they traipsed into the building after presenting their ID's to the bouncer.
Lights were flashing from the DJ's stage set up on the far left wall of the club causing the high-ceilinged room to appear as one giant, pulsating rainbow. A bouncy pop beat was streaming out of the enormous speakers interspersed throughout the dance floor. People were everywhere and, no, that was not just an exaggeration. Bodies could be found in every crevice of the building from the hundreds on the dance floor, to the drunks sitting at the bar, and the couples making out not so surreptitiously in a corner. There was even someone sitting on top of the wooden cabana above the bar.
Pounding bass notes reverberated into Lovino's bones, making it seem like his heart was going to beat right out of his chest. The dancing crowd of people looked like a hungry beast waiting to snap its jaws on him at the first chance it got. He shuffled away from the monstrous sea of bodies, his breath already rapidly increasing, to a table to wait as Feliciano got drinks.
Situations like this made Lovino nervous. He wasn't a natural people person, so when placed into positions where there are several humans in one concentrated area he tended to freak out. He could already feel panic clawing it way up the back of his throat, searching for a release from the over-crowded atmosphere. It was like a caged rabid animal in his mind scrambling for a way out before it was consumed entirely.
Lovino had known this feeling before. The onset of a panic attack was near. Fortunately for him, though, after gulping in a few lungful's of air, the sensation went away and his attention returned to the golden-eyed man before him balancing six shots in his small hands.
"Hey, Lovi! No better way to get the party started than tequila shots! One of Ludwig's clients taught me that," Feliciano loudly announced, banging the glasses down on the small table closest to them, pale yellow liquid sloshing over the brim.
"Feli, how many of those have you had so far?" the young author wondered, eyeing his brother with suspicion. Carefree laughter rumbled in the brunette's chest.
"Just like one… or three. Yeah, something like that." Lovino shot his brother an exasperated glare to which he responded by lightly tapping the author's shoulder.
"Liven up, Lovi! Besides, you said yourself that you needed some time away from the world," Feliciano finished in a sing-songy tone, grabbing the first of his three shots and throwing it back with ease.
"That German bastard is a terrible influence on you," Lovino grumbled, scanning his intense hazel eyes around the lively surroundings, "I just wanted to get out, not shoot back tequila in some seedy night-club." Feliciano snorted as he rose up his second and third shots and swallowed them one right after the other.
"Part of getting out is getting drunk at a random nightclub. Tonight it's you and me, Lovi. Taking on the world together. Just soak in the experience and enjoy it!"
"I hate this experience," Lovino grumbled as he collapsed into one of the fold up chairs at their tiny table.
Of course, he'd humor Feliciano and go along with whatever crazy shenanigans he planned on getting up to tonight. He always did, but his no-drinking policy wasn't changing simply because his brother suggested that he "soak in the experience". If he let a single drop of that deadly juice pass his careful lips he would never forgive himself. Despite everyone's tries to get him drunk, the author remained steadfast in his ways; for, after all, past memories of a painful time could not be easily forgotten.
"Don't be such a party pooper," Feliciano joked, sticking his tongue out. After Lovino sent a deadly stare in his direction, he held up his palms in a peace gesture and let the subject drop.
A bouncy pop beat courtesy of Katy Perry was currently permeating the club. The dance floor was drenched in muted neon laser lights and the stench of stale beer clung to everything and everyone. A general sense of craziness hung in the air, seemingly affecting everyone just by simply being in a 100 yard radius. Everyone except Lovino, that is.
The author felt like a fish out of water as he sat watching the bodies press against each other in time to the beat of the catchy song. His hair fell dejectedly into his face but he didn't bother with pushing it back. Watching humans dance made him so physically sick that his complexion was turning a pale green. The filthy way people rubbed against each other made the author want to run home to his books and spend the night reading about a tale of actual romance instead of viewing these disturbing misconceptions of love.
The Katy Perry song faded out and the DJ took to the microphone, still clutching his headphones close to his ears.
"Alright, alright, alright! That was Katy Perry with Last Friday Night," his peppy voice rang out, piercing Lovino's eardrums and causing him to wince, "Now its time for a little boyband action. That's right, it's The Bad Touch Trio with Take Me Away! This is DJ Sadiq and you're partying here at the Empire Night Club."
Shouts of 'YOLO' were emitted from the dancing crowd while the first notes of a keyboard riff floated out of the speakers. Lovino groaned, pressing the heels of his hands into his tired eyes. As if the night couldn't have gotten much worse and now one of Antonio's songs was being played. What had he done to deserve this torture? Why had he ever even wanted to go out in the first place?
Suddenly, a commotion broke out over to his right and he momentarily disregarded his bad luck to see what was happening. As he wearily lifted his head from its drooping position, he could see that two men had joined his and Feliciano's group. The blonde one in the hot pink miniskirt was trying to fist pump his brother while the timid looking brunette stood shyly off to the side.
"Feliciano! I, like, haven't seen you around here in ages," the blonde said in an annoying valley-girl accent. That elicited a semi-innocent shrug from the boy in question.
"I haven't been here in a while since Lovino doesn't like to go out much," Feliciano admitted, pointing to Lovino. The author raised his eyebrows in a dissatisfactory acknowledgement. The blonde gave a hearty laugh not even realizing his irritation, which made the author wrinkle his nose in absolute disgust.
"Dude you've totally got to get on the dance floor. It's, like, wicked out there tonight!"
"I don't know, Feliks," Feliciano started to decline the offer, "I promised Lovi this would our night out together."
"What are you, like, his boyfriend?" the blonde smirked and Lovino rolled his golden orbs and said, "You go have fun with them. I'll be fine here."
"Lovi, are you sure? I know how you get when you're alone in large crowds," Feliciano replied already taking steps away from the table. His amount of concern was heart-warming. Really.
"Positive. Just go," Lovino managed to say with an unconvincing smile, but his brother was already running off with the ridiculous boys, fist pumping to the beat.
Lovino scratched the back of his neck, feeling beads of sweat from the stuffy indoor air. Obviously, he didn't want to be left on his own when all he really wanted to do was spend quality time with his brother and get away from life, but he knew he was horribly boring and Feliciano deserved some fun too. Besides, there was plenty to do until his brother came back. He could people watch or make origami with the napkins or listen to the incredibly catchy song blaring out of the speakers…
With a start, he realized that it was still The Bad Touch Trio's over-played hit single still playing and immediately stopped nodding his head along to the drums. Unfortunately, it seemed as though Lovino simply could not escape the green-eyed pop star despite his desperate attempts. Even though he tried to deny it, Antonio's smooth vocals singing a tune about partying until dawn were so alluring that it sent him into a rage. All of a sudden, those three untouched tequila shots were looking quite delicious.
Without thinking, the brunette snatched up one of the cool glass vials and recklessly threw it back, savoring the burning sensation of alcohol trickling down the back of his throat. His thin hand reached out to grab the second but then paused. For a moment, he considered the stupidity of his idea and wondered if he should just hail a taxi home. It would have been the more Lovino-esque thing to do; however, nothing about the past week was exactly 'Lovino-esque'.
So perhaps that is why the author drank the two remaining shots and followed those by three more that he bought, effectively drowning the nagging voice in the back of his mind.
The club was now spinning precariously in his inebriated vision and the dancing colours appeared infinitely more inviting than they had at first. Giggling to himself at how crazy this was, Lovino stood up from the table and shakily walked over to the dance floor. By now the song had changed from The Bad Touch Trio's single to another indeterminate pop tune, but that was okay because for some reason, all he wanted to do was dance.
For a while, he flailed around by himself not having a care in the world and letting loose for the first time in, well, forever. The lively music flowed through his bones, inspiring his long limbs to move about in time with the tune. It was funny how the author could be the most reclusive of people, but the second alcohol began swimming through his veins he became the best dancer the world has ever seen. In his mind, at least.
As time passed, though, many girls made their way over to the mysterious man with the lone curl dancing by himself. For some reason, most women could not resist the allure of someone mysterious, dark, and handsome. In normal circumstances, Lovino would have shied away from the attention, a bright blush blooming on his dimpled cheeks. Yet, his newfound confidence told him to stay with the girls. Besides, all they wanted was a dance right?
After noticing the buzz of the tequila was slowly fading, Lovino snatched another shot from a worker meandering the dance floor with a tray of light up glasses. By now, his mind was so far gone that he couldn't determine what type of liquor it was but, nonetheless, the familiar burn calmed him the second it hit his mouth. Wiping away the layer of sweat on his forehead that had formed from the crowd, the author trained his glazed eyes on the two girls currently vying for his attention.
Lovino smoothly snaked an arm around the curvy blonde on his right, pressing their writhing bodies together in a tight embrace. At his touch, she flashed him a devilish smile and began to gyrate faster on his hipbone. As the desperate girl tried to please him with her filthy dancing, he could feel his heart rate speed up like someone floored the gas pedal to his heart. Granted, this was nothing like how he felt around Antonio, for that emotion was true and this was a frenzied attempt at a one night fling, but he enjoyed the high it gave him anyways, even if it was just the adrenaline talking.
Lovino threw his head back, the soaked strands of hair flying around of his flushed face, and laughed somewhat manically. In this moment, he was completely alive in all senses of the word and nothing, especially not a mass-produced pop star, could bring him down. As far as he was concerned, he had jumped off of the precipice of the world, the wind rushing through his hair, and was freefalling through the exhilaration of life.
"Hey handsome," the girl he'd been dancing with spoke for the first time, "You're pretty great at this dancing thing." Oblivious to the obvious crack at flirting, Lovino replied.
"I'm not that good. I just follow whatever the music tells my body to do, if that makes any sense," he slurred, not quite focusing on the subject.
"Well I think you look sexy," she purred, leaving a light kiss on author's tanned collarbone, goose bumps bubbling up in its wake. A shiver shuddered through Lovino's body and his immediate instinct was to shy away from the touch. He wasn't exactly the most affectionate of people and being drunk was no exception.
"Aw, babe, don't be that way," the curvy girl cooed, entwining a fake-tanned hand in Lovino's dark hair, "I don't bite… much."
With a not-so-subtle wink, she took his hand and led him over to a shadowy corner where their lips crashed together. Nothing about the kiss felt right. It was simply a pretense, an easy escape from their troubles for a bit. The author wasn't so much of a recluse that he hadn't had his first kiss yet, but this one was in the first ten and, had he been sober, it never would have occurred.
Their mouths pummeled into each other, wildly grasping for a connection even if it was fake. The blonde whispered softly into Lovino's ear and he placed his hands on her voluptuous hips, robotically going through the motions. Laughing giddily, she yanked on a strand of his hair to pull his head back and deepen the kiss.
The action had a reverse effect though and Lovino instantly froze, his eyes flying wide open and mind transported to a different place. All around him he could hear screams and the tearing of metal over the distant ringing in his ears. There was a sharp pain on the crown of his head. Everything was so bright. Bright and loud and confusing. What was going on? What was happening?
"Lovino! Lovi, are you ok? Your head is bleeding," a terrified voice cried out.
"Lovino, talk to us please. We need to make sure you're ok," cried someone in deep male tones.
And that's when he saw her. She was crumpled up in the passenger seat of the bashed in car, covered in blood, and had a large gash on her temple that was bleeding profusely. In the distance, he could hear the ambulance sirens rushing to the rescue but he knew they were already too late.
"Mom!" he wailed, his high-pitched tones piercing the atmosphere, "No, mom, please! I need you! Don't leave me, mommy!"
"Lovino, we need to get you out of the car. There's nothing you can do for her. If she can be saved, the ambulances are right here," the male voice spoke again.
"Mommy! No!"
With a jolt, Lovino was catapulted out of the flashback and back into reality where the blonde was working her revolting lips up his collarbone.
"Stop," the author whispered, closing his eyes to prevent the room from spinning out of control. The girl simply chuckled sensually and pursued her attacks.
"Oh, you liked that huh? You want some more?" Lovino felt another tug on his hair and that was enough to make him snap. With a growl, he shoved her off of him and she smashed into the opposite wall.
"I said stop!"
The girl's expression quickly shifted to horror and she swiped a hand across her lips.
"What is wrong with you?" she whimpered, already slinking away, "You are such a freak. Just stay away from me." And with that said, she slipped into the convulsing mass of colors and bodies still occupying the dance floor.
Lovino raised a hand to his throbbing head. He could already tell that he was in store for a wicked hangover tomorrow and reliving that painful memory didn't help in the least. As he squeezed his eyes shut, he realized just how stupid he'd been to let himself get this out of control. All of the stress and misery of the week flooded back and a weight that was even heavier than before settled onto his shoulders.
It was time to stop taking the coward's way out of things and face up to his problems. Besides, this wasn't who he was anyways. He needed to find Feliciano and go home so he could sort out his puzzled and somewhat still drunk thoughts in silence.
"Feli? Feli, where are you?" Lovino called out with his hands cupped around his mouth. He was walking through the jostling crowd, attempting to manage a feat similar to finding a needle in a haystack. He knew it was practically impossible to find his brother in this mess just by calling out his name, but he had to start somewhere.
"Feliciano, I know you're out there somewhere. I'll find ya one of these days," he slurred after running into a particularly scary looking fellow. Suddenly, his chest collided with something and he swung his gaze up only to be met with half-lidded golden orbs.
"Lovi! I can't believe I ran into you," Feliciano cooed to no one in particular. It seemed as though the effeminate blonde and his shy crony had left him high and dry a long time ago, "Where've you been off to? Seducing the ladies no doubt."
"Feli, we need to go. Now," Lovino told him, taking both of the other man's shoulders in his hands. The Italian shrugged them off and went back to his sad stab at dancing, which involved him wriggling side to side in a very awkward manner.
"No! Can you see I'm dancing, Lovi?"
"We are leaving this place now and I'm not taking 'no' for an answer."
"Stop be so sour-…"
"I'm not being sour! I had a flashb-… a fl-" Lovino stopped his words, deciding against telling Feliciano what happened in the corner. He was too drunk to understand anyways, "Feli, are you even listening to me?"
The lad in question was indeed zoned out of the world, bobbing his curl along to the music. Typical Feliciano. The author needed to get him to pay attention, but how? There were only a few ways to make a drunk focus and the only method that would be possible right now was…
A grimace etched itself onto Lovino's mouth knowing what he was about to do, but unfortunately for his unsuspecting brother, it needed to be done. The brunette cocked back his arm, used the other hand to steady the target, and threw a moderate punch that snapped Feliciano's head back. He immediately raised a hand to nurse his already bruising cheek and gave Lovino and incredulous look.
"What was that for?" Feliciano whined. Lovino caught the golden eyes with his own, commanding all of his attention.
"We are going to go home now and… No, listen to me," Lovino barked, grabbing Feliciano's chin and holding it in place when he started to protest, "I know this whole night-out thing was my idea but I'm tired and angry. I just want to go home and, so help me God, if you don't give me the keys to the car right now I will punch you again."
For a moment, Feliciano studied him with wary eyes probably to make sure that Lovino wasn't completely insane. When the author didn't let up his glare, his brother's stubbornness shattered and he dug around in his pocket for the keys.
"Fine Lovi, you win," he sighed, handing over the fob. Lovino took it from his brother with a grin and steered them out of the sea of people. If he never partied again, he would not be missing out on anything. This club would certainly not be missed.
For a second, Lovino debated whether or not he had sobered up enough to drive once they had made it safely out of the building and to the parking garage. The answer was probably not, but at this point he didn't care. All he wanted was to escape the madness that the evening had turned to be. So after shoving an almost passed out Feliciano into the passenger seat of the Mini Cooper, Lovino turned the key in the ignition and sped out of the covered lot to firstly drop off his brother and then return to the safety of his home.
So yea, we get to see a flash into Lovi's past and lets just say that its not a good one... then again his present isn't much better so... I'm so sorry I'm taking so long to get Toni and Lovi together but there's a reason for that! Give it a couple more chapters and then you'll get some action I promise :) Rate/review/etc! I'll shower you with undying affection ;)