leoxgioia¡:
Eyebrows knitting into a deep frown, Leo took his time inhaling the smoke from his cigarette as she spoke. What happened that night was far from her fault. In fact, she was the victim. She was the one being harassed, then she was the one who had to watch as fists were thrown. He shook his head, nearly confused by her apology. âNo. No, please donât apologize. I wish that piece of shit guy hadnât approached you in the first place,â with his words he felt anger begin to boil in the pit of his stomach again, âbut I also know that I took it too far.â What Leo failed to mention was that for a brief moment during the fight, he didnât remember nor did he care about what he was fighting for. The fight itself, the punches, the blood, the pain- thatâs what drove him to keep going. Like a drug addiction, just a little taste of it had Leo craving more. He summarized by quickly adding: âI sometimes have a hard time controlling my angerâ. He let out a nervous chuckle at the end of his sentence, hoping sheâd maybe laugh along. But Leo knew it was a serious issue, and it affected his life immensely. It was a product of his past, his upbringing, his father. And he worried every single day that he was on a path to follow right in his fatherâs footsteps, to becoming the monster that he is. His pursed lips chain smoked the burning cigarette desperately, hoping just like he did every time that it would suffice to give him what he needed to chase away his thoughts. Alas, nicotine barely came close to satisfying Leo anymore, and his body knew he was just about due for something stronger. âSo, uh⌠Howâs your family?â he asked awkwardly, scratching at the skin behind his neck as he tried to distract himself.
âi know, but you just canât control other people sometimes,â simply shrugging the thought of the stranger from that night away. though a part of her was intimidated by the new image of leo that was painted for her that night, another couldnât help but worry of his safety the entire time. she knew he was more than capable and there was no point during the fight that she wondered if the other would have âwonâ, but it remained in the back of her mind regardless up until now as she confessed, slowing down her tracks per the dogâs wishes, left hand grabbing onto his right upper arm slightly, âiâm really glad youâre okay.â before adding, âbut please, never do that again,â the seriousness in her tone evident, âi do not want to see you hurt like that.â pulling her hand away and continuing their previous pace, a small smile was brought onto her lips at the thought of her family, âtheyâre doing really well,â she began and next thing she knew, she couldnât help but divulge. âiâve been trying to tell my parents to retire for years now but they both loves their patients too much to quit,â her free left hand waving in the air as she got lost in the unnecessary details, âbut i think my momâs just going to see the pregnancies she has through and then sheâs done so at least thatâs good. my brotherâs doing well also; he only has a few more months 'til graduation so heâs pretty excited. other than that, same old. you should meet them sometime,â ending the story with a shrug. âhow about you? howâs your mom? have you called her lately?â she inquired jokingly with teasingly narrowed eyes.
Standing at just over a foot taller than her, Leo stared down at Dia as the tone in her voice shifted. The warm hand she placed on his arm confirmed that things between them were in fact salvageable and Leo immediately felt relief. He nodded simply, knowing very well that he was incapable of making any promises of the sort. She couldnât understand that, though, and Leo far from blamed her for it. For just a mere second, Leo thought of telling her everything. All of his trauma, his pain, his rage. He wanted someone to know, someone to understand. He stared down at his dirty sneakers and followed her pace as they continued their walk, knowing that things would be better for both of them if he just kept his shit to himself. âThatâs great. They must work very hard, I understand where you get that from now,â he smiled at her as he tried hard to focus on the conversation. âIâm sure they know all about me, hm? If not from you then from your Abuela. I sure made an impression on her,â he raised his eyebrows and flashed a convincing smirk. Leo shuttered as she asked about his mother. âSheâs good. I call her twice a day, you donât need to worry about that,â he laughed, reminding her what a mamaâs boy he is. Truth be told, Leo had no idea how his mother was really doing. When heâd call he knew sheâd lie and say everything was fine. Leo had no idea what was going on at home anymore and whether she spent her days covering bruises or not. It killed him to be so far from her for so long, to not be able to protect her from him. âItâs hard being so far away,â he shrugged, digging his hands into his pockets nervously, âNot knowing whatâs going on or if sheâs okay. I know she wouldnât tell me if something was wrong. So itâs pretty much just a guessing game with her. But Iâll probably go visit soon- I have to.â His voice trailed off as he made a mental note to book a flight to Rome in the coming weeks and see what the situation was with his own eyes. Leo knew he wasnât allowed to go back as per his fatherâs rules, but the consequences heâd receive would be well worth checking up on his mother. âThatâs if I can take time off from the restaurant.â














