Lunch-hour strikes and a flock of people stream into the diner named Arianna’s.
Amy Douglas, the head server, greets them all in Italian as they come in. “Hey, guys!”
“Amy!”
“Hey, Ames!”
They all respond. Amy smiles as she heads to her first table.
Life in Olivewood was simple; a little hideaway town in Sicily where everyone was more like family. Amy loved it here for that reason. It was home. This town was small and made her happy. Even an ordinary job at the diner didn’t bother her at all. She got to live here and care for her little sister. She was content living the quiet life.
“What’ll it be, guys?” She asks her first patrons, and they all try to order at once, “WOAH, one at a time!” She laughs and poised her pen. The group of four teenagers give their order and she jots it down in her notepad. “Won’t be too long, guys.” She says with a smile and turns around to take the order to the kitchen. As she moved to turn around, she walked straight into a broad chest and almost lost her balance.
“Oof!” She opens her eyes and goes straight to apologize. “Forgive me! I didn’t see you there!” As she peers up, she silently gasps and shot up a silent prayer.
She walked straight into Luciano Russo, a member of one of Olivewood’s wealthiest and most influential families! She draws a deep breath and a blush creeps into her cheeks. Luciano glares at her, pushes her aside, and heads, along with 4 other men, to the back booth. Amy gets a shiver down her spine as they walk past her. She didn’t like the vibe they gave off. Everyone was well aware that this family was dangerous, and everyone kept away.
But what would the Russo’s be doing at Arianna’s? Why would they come to a DINER?
The kitchen staff takes her order and she notices the patrons watching the booth at the back. “They are the Russos.” she thought. Just then she sees Arianna, the owner, heading towards her looking nervous. “Amy, doll?”
“Oh no,” Amy groans and rolls her eyes. Arianna’s ‘doll’ at the end of her sentences means she would ask them to do something they would hate. And they had no choice but to comply.
“Yes?” Amy replied in a polite voice. Arianna looks at her, uneasy and asks, “Could you be a darling and go serve those gents who walked in a few seconds ago?” Amy looked at her in surprise. Arianna established the rules of the servers. She was the one who enforced them.
“What about our server pattern, Ariana? The next patron should be Dorothea’s table.” Arianna sighed. “I am well aware, lovey. She’s just... Ahem... She’s a bit ill. Would you please do it just this once for her?” Dorothea was Arianna’s daughter and never used her mom to do her dirty work for her. “I must speak to her later before this becomes a habit.” Amy thinks to herself. She relents in the end, as she always does. “Alright! But she owes me!” She exclaims and starts walking towards the table where the Russos had sat down.
Ͼ Ͼ Ͼ
“Good afternoon, gents. Welcome to Arianna’s! Ready to order?” Amy asks in her usual pleasant manner and sweet smile. Luciano looks at her and scoffs,
“Leave.”
Taken aback, Amy stared at the rude man in confusion. She was not used to anyone answering her in a tone that cold.
“Um, Okay-”
She picks up a flurry of Italian being spoken, too rapid for her to catch. Her eyes went to the man who spoke and her heart skipped. How did she miss him walking in? Was she dreaming? Seemed to be the case after how this shift started. Olive-green eyes, slicked-back hair, and an amused grin on his face. This must be Antonio Russo all the girls drool about. And she could see why!
As soon as they made eye contact, she felt something akin to static shock. She was staring and failed to catch what he had said.
“... Miss?” He looked at her. She blushed and cleared her throat “Um, I apologize, can you please repeat that?” The man responds, “Five coffees, please. Black.” She jots that down and says, “Be right back!” While giving her usual cheery smile.
The one named Luciano speaks in Italian again and laughs. Amy turns around and walks away, bewildered. The filthy words Luciano had just uttered were uncalled for.
She was busy getting the coffees ready when both the other servers rushed to her and started bombarding her with questions.
“What did they say?”
“Were they rude to you?”
“Did Antonio Russo speak to you?”
Amy looks at them in amusement, “I could give this order to one of you if you’re that interested in them?” She laughs as both of their faces turn pale. Setting the coffees with sugar on a serving tray, she heads back to the table.
“Here you go!” She says, once again in a cheery demeanour, and sets the coffee down on the table. “If you need anything, I’ll be right over there.” She adds and walks over to the Walker family.
“You all okay?” She asks them. “Amy! Amy! Up! Up!” Little Isabella Ricci exclaims and stretches her arms out for Amy to pick her up. Laughing, she picks the little one up and plants her on her hips. “And how is my Bella doing today?” She asks and rubs noses with Isabella. The little one responds with her toddler talk of broken Italian and giggles. “Not happy! Mama don’t wanna get me some choccy milk!” She pulls a sad face and looks at Amy through her eyelashes. “Hm,” Amy responds with a smile “Mommy must have a good reason, Bella.” She says and looks at Isabella’s mother, Eve, who sighs in exasperation. “I already told you, Bambina. We will have some after you’ve eaten all your lunch like a big girl.” Amy smiles, “See? Mommy wouldn’t do anything without a reason. Now, if you finish all your lunch, I’ll get you choccy milk with extra choccies and sprinkles! What do you say?” Isabella’s eyes light up and she exclaims, “Yes please!” Giggling and giving her a big kiss on her chubby cheeks, Amy sets her down. She whispers in Eve’s ear, “My treat, don’t worry.” And smiles at her. “You’re an angel, Amy-Lou!” Eve exclaims in Italian and beams at her. Amy blushes at her nickname and walks away, giving them a big smile.
As she walks to the bar counter, she felt a pair of eyes on her. Already uncomfortable with her interaction with the Russos. She scans the cafe, and her eyes land on Antonio, his eyes boring into her with an intense stare. As she makes eye contact, she feels that static shock again.
“What the heck...” She thinks to herself and breaks eye contact. Rushing to the kitchen and out the back door, she takes a breath.
“Get a grip, Amy. It’s just a guy staring. You should be used to this by now, working here for all these years.” She caught her breath and composed herself and heads back in after five minutes.
As soon as she opens the back door, she caught the words of an intense argument. All she heard was Italian curses and threats, so it was hard to make out what the argument was about. Heading to the front of the cafe, she also notices that there were at least seven people in the back booth now. Suddenly, one of the new men who joined started getting violent and loud. She saw four of them reach into their coats and knew what was happening. Looking over at the Ricci family and Isabella’s scared expression, Amy decides she has had enough and stomps over to the table.
The one named Antonio caught her walking over. He shakes his head while making eye contact as if to tell her to stay away. She ignores him and proceeds forward.“Excuse me, gentlemen. This is a family establishment. There are a lot of children present here today. If you cannot behave in an orderly manner, please leave.” Amy stands at their table with arms crossed.“What did you just say to us?” Luciano says and starts toward her. Amy feels her heart hammering and suddenly regrets her sudden bravado but stands her ground. “Kindly leave if you cannot behave in a manner befitting a family establishment. Again, there are children here.” Amy says and waves behind her. The man was getting red in the face as he starts towards her. “Um, please, sir. We don’t want any trouble.” Amy begs and backs away, cursing her big mouth.Suddenly the one namedAntonio gets up and whispers in Luciano’s ear.
Antonio Russo stood at the door with a smile on his face.“Good evening,” he says to Amy while walking closer to Amy, eyeing her as he does so. “I hope you’re not closed?” Amy looks at him, bewildered. Why was her heart doing jumping jacks??“Uhm, No, no! we’re not closed yet. What can I get you?” She says, gesturing to the counter while walking toward it. She looks at her wristwatch and thinks to herself “Gosh, I need to close soon, or the babysitter leaves!”“I was hoping to catch you here,” He says, “My family and our associates caused quite a scene this morning and I have come to apologize on their part.” Amy’s eyes widened. Antonio Russo is apologizing to her? Was it opposite day? Mercury in retrograde or whatever it is called??“Don’t worry about it, please. I had forgotten about the whole thing already.” She says, flustered. Wh
Arianna looks up from her laptop and smiles warmly at Amy. “Sit down, doll.” She says and gestures for her to sit. “What would you like to chat about, Ariann?” She asks, just wanting to get straight to the point.She couldn’t stand the suspense any longer. Arianna nods at her and replies, “Yesterday you proved to me you have this diner’s best interests at heart. That you care about your patrons. So, I would like to offer you a promotion. How does general manager of Arianna’s sound, Ames?”Amy’s jaw hits her chest at lightning speed. A promotion? “Arianna, are you sure about this?” She asks, not believing what she heard. “Of course, dear. You are the only viable choice and the only one I trust to keep my business afloat. Please say yes?” Arianna begs her.Tears well up in her eyes and she nods, “Yes! I would love the position! Thank you so much!” She
Antonio led her out of the music shop after she said yes to having coffee with him. Her eyes were downcast when she heard him say her name.“Amy?”Her head snaps up with the sound of his voice, and she looks towards him. Her heart was sitting in her throat when she answered, “Yes?”He smiles at her again and repeats his question, “Where is your car parked?” And looks at the only two cars parked in front of the music store. Hers was the only one sticking out like a sore thumb, an old Audi model next to Antonio’s obviously flashy Emperor. She looks at him with sarcasm written all over her face and he smirks, shaking his head. “I had to ask,” he said with a laugh and they walk towards her Audi. She unlocks her car and Antonio gently eases her newly bought cello in. After she locks it again, she stands sheepishly, and looks at him, annoyed at the blush creeping up into her cheeks.He really was
Amy stares down at the expensive cello that was bought for her, feeling undeserving. She didn’t ask for this, didn’t ask for Antonio’s attention, much less his father’s. And for some reason, she knew that having caught the attention of the Russos would never be a good idea.Sighing, she hangs the cello from the old cello crook on the wall and leaves her room. She didn’t want to think about the future or what it held now that she had Antonio’s attention, so she plopped down on the couch and decided to numb her brain with TV.Ͼ Ͼ ϾShe returns to work the following day with worry settling in her heart. The cello hanging in her room was a constant reminder that she was tied to a family she wanted nothing to do with. She knew she should return the instrument, but Antonio had said that his father would see it as a major insult if she had to return the gift. You
AntonioAntonio walks out of the coffee shop and tries to stifle a smile. How had this girl grown on him in such a short space of time? The only woman to ever stand up to his brother Luciano, known in their circles as Luciano "Death Wish" Russo. No one would even dare to talk back to him, yet this little five-foot tall, petite girl stood up to him because he offended her patrons.He smiles and shakes his head as he gets into his Emperor, trying to put Amy out of his mind so he could focus on the task at hand. His half-sister, Emily was getting engaged this Saturday to some billionaire in the States. His father, Giovanni, had decided to marry her off as he didn’t see her suited to marry Italian blood. He left Antonio in charge of everything but made it clear that he wished to have the female cellist there. As he drives to his next stop, he could not help but feel excited at the prospect of listening to Emily play her cello
Antonio watched her cry in the passenger seat next to him. He knew she would react this way, but if she didn't face her trauma now, she would never be able to move on with her life. Her life would be paused on the night her parents died.She looked over at him with hurt clear in her eyes, which left him with a pang of guilt in his chest. "Why did you bring me here, Antonio?" She breathes out, tears streaming down her face. Antonio cocks his head to the side and takes her face in his hand. "Your life was put on hold on the night your parents passed away, Amy. If you do not face your demons now, you will be dragged down by them." He answers her and proceeds to get out of the car.He walks over to her side and opens the door, but she was staring straight ahead with no intention of getting out. Antonio sighs and gets down on his haunches, "Amy..." he trails off and she turns her head to look at him, trying to hide her anger after wiping her tears away. "Why do you care
Amy was watching Serena with a lump in her throat. She needed to tell her friend what had happened, but she was not sure where to start. Antonio had kissed her yesterday and she wasn’t sure what to make of it, or what exactly she was feeling for him. He was nice to her, for no apparent reason. And he valued her music. Everyone had always tip toed around her when it came to her parents' death, but Antonio was blunt about things. Although it was frustrating at times, it was what she needed to hear. Everything he said made sense after she mulled it over in her head.Amy was daydreaming so much, that she didn't even see Serena was storming over to her. She stood in front of Amy, hands on her hips and with a pout playing on her lips. "Okay that's enough, spit it out," she said to Amy, which earned her a frown from the latter."What do you-""You either want to ask or tell me something, I can tell from the way you've been not so subtly staring at me. Now com