arrivederci

...At least, that was what most of us could conclude. Much like any other bustling city in the world, there were secret organisations, constantly tucking themselves away from the metropolis, hoping the government would not get involved. Gangs and street fights were present, more often than not. It appeared that the isolated alleys between buildings hid more secrets than any of us have estimated. 

However, to someone like Giorno, it meant home. He was used to it, the way he lived, even before he became Don of the mafia. He remembered how he would use the tricks up his sleeve, robbing tourists of their money as they walked off, unbeknownst to them. It was little things like that which made him who he was today.

Despite having an important role in his gang and being as occupied as ever, Giorno ensured to dedicate time to one person, who meant the entire world to him. His partner was no more than a lithe florist, working part-time at a flower shop/café in a quiet corner of the city, to everyone’s surprise. After all, who would’ve guessed that this sweet, bubbly person was the Don’s love? 

As Giorno made his way through the streets, he couldn’t help but smile at the thought of them, as they’d frolic around the bouquets of flowers and hum happy tunes. He pictured them going from table to table, serving customers freshly brewed coffee with the brightest grin on their face. If Giorno hadn’t had Naples as his home, he was sure his partner would come in a close second.

His footsteps came to an abrupt stop, just before two tinted glass doors. There was a sign hanging above them that read ‘Welcome’, hinting that it was open for business. Without hesitation at all, Giorno pushed the doors and entered the shop. Almost instantaneously, the familiar scents of chamomile and lavender filled his lungs, along with a few bitter traces of coffee. It was from then and there that Giorno felt his heartstrings loosen up, for he was back where he should have been a year ago.

“Good morning! Would you like a table for-” Their voice chirped as they made their way towards Giorno, only to be cut off as they noticed his blonde locks. Their eyes widened in utter disbelief, finding themselves at an absolute loss for words. Their feet stood rooted to the floor, staying like that for several seconds (fortunately, there were only two other customers present who gave their odd looks). Soon right after, they leapt forward with their arms open, landing straight into the boy’s embrace. 

They laughed contentedly into his chest. “You’re back! You’re back...I’ve missed you, where’ve you been?” They muttered, looking up to meet Giorno’s green eyes. However, he only told them to ‘take the conversation inside’, placing a hand on their back and guiding them to an empty table. 

Giorno pulled out chairs for both his partner and himself, settling down into a corner of the shop. He wasn’t sure where to start either, now that he thought about it. After all, it had been an entire year without seeing them. He eventually figured he should play it safe and decided to settle for the basics. “How are you?” He began, resting his chin on his palm.

They beamed enthusiastically, adjusting their blue asphalt apron in a neater fashion before answering. “Well, the shop’s doing great. We’ve gotten a lot more people coming in during the afternoon, and the owner’s been helping me with some of the work, too,” they explained. “What about you?”

Giorno gave a half-smile, unable to ignore the subtle twinkle in their eyes. “It’s good to know you are okay. I’m doing just fine myself, too. Don’t worry about me,” he simply responded, refusing to elaborate on whatever he truly felt at that moment.

However, upon hearing so, they only frowned. “Giorno, you know that’s practically impossible. You’ve been gone for an entire year and you’ve yet to tell me why, of course I’d be worried about you.”

The boy’s heart sank to his stomach and he immediately reached out to grab their slender hands, taking them in his and planting soft kisses on both of them. “I’m sorry, amore. I’ve simply been occupied with my work, that’s all. It’s nothing, really,” Giorno assured softly, and it seemed to convince his partner enough. They let out a long and almost tired-sounding sigh, slipping their hands out. 

“I hope you know how much I love you. It really isn’t the same without you around,” they mumbled softly, their eyes darting to the concrete floor. It made Giorno feel lamentable for leaving and coming back to the shop out of the blue. He wanted to apologise over and over again, and swear that he’d stay by their side forever from then on. In fact, there were many things Giorno wanted to promise that he’d do, but all thoughts eluded his mind when he noticed that his partner looked extremely pale all of a sudden. 

He cupped their face with his warm palms, forcing them to look at him. He began to examine their ghostly white complexion, and he could’ve sworn he felt a sharp tug at his heart. “_____, what happened to you? Are you alright? Do you need me to heal you?” He asked, one question after another. Unfortunately, those questions were left unanswered with a simple wave of dismissal from his partner. Giorno merely brushed that off, and was insistent on using Gold Experience to at least bring some life back into their body. 

Though, it seemed that before he could even place his hands on them, black shadows from his peripheral vision have begun to close in, engulfing his perspective in a matter of seconds. He tried calling for their name, but nothing was received. Giorno started blinking rapidly, hoping that whatever he was seeing was just his mind messing with him.

However, when he opened his eyes for the last time, Giorno found himself in his bedroom with cold sweat trickling down his temples. He was struggling to breathe and his duvet was spread all over the floor, evidently thrown around. The poor boy frantically scanned the room in search of his partner, but all he could find were the velvet curtains and dappled shadows cast on the carpets by dim sunlight. Giorno then turned to glance at the other side of his bed, and finally realised.

No one was there.

Tears started to well up. The numbness in his fingers began to travel up his arm. Everything around him morphed into a blurry mess.