Share
Chapter 16.1 - Valentina
Related chapters
Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 16.2 - Valentina
Capo d’Orlando, Sicily – July 23rd, 2020 Everyone sings happy birthday to me at midnight, even though it’s more symbolic that factually accurate, and it makes me uncomfortable but happy. We did some shots after, then Isaac tried to flirt with me for what seemed like forever, before Isabella finally saved me and brought me out by the pool half an hour later. Matteo and Vinnie are in their own world, talking on the other side of the pool. “What do you think they’re talking about?” We’ve been people watching for the past twenty minutes since we sat down. “I don’t know, what do boys even talk about all day?” “No clue. And I have a brother at home.” “They seem to have a very interesting discussion. Matteo looks serious, like he’s scared even.” “How can you even tell?” “I know him.” He turns his head, as if he already knew we were talking about him. We make eye contact before he turns back to Vinnie. “Something’s off with him.” Isabella notices. “You think?” “He’s hiding somet
Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 16.3 - Valentina
Capo d’Orlando, Sicily – July 23rd, 2020Everyone sings happy birthday to me at midnight, even though it’s more symbolic that factually accurate, and it makes me uncomfortable but happy.We did some shots after, then Isaac tried to flirt with me for what seemed like forever, before Isabella finally saved me and brought me out by the pool half an hour later.Matteo and Vinnie are in their own world, talking on the other side of the pool.“What do you think they’re talking about?”We’ve been people watching for the past twenty minutes since we sat down.“I don’t know, what do boys even talk about all day?”“No clue. And I have a brother at home.”“They seem to have a very interesting discussion. Matteo looks serious, like he’s scared even.”“How can you even tell?”
Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 17: Where it all begins
Chapter 17Where it all beginsMatteoCapo d’Orlando, Sicily – July 22ndAs soon as Vinnie and the rest of Valentina’s guests arrive, the atmosphere around Matteo changes. He’s not as relaxed anymore, and he feels like he has to take care of five things at once before he can actually enjoy himself.First, there’s Ariana, who has been texting him more than usual since he woke up this morning. Then there’s Vinnie, who keeps asking him if he’s okay and if he’s having fun, which forces Matteo to smile and assure him that he’s okay.The third reason is the photo he saw in Valentina’s brother’s room, which he now knows he’s seen it before. In Aurora’s room, above her desk. Valentina is also somewhere in the mix, because he’s also consciously aware of her presence now.Ariana is telling him something about her past two days, but all Matteo can focus on now is that Isabella and Valentina are talking about him.“I’ll be right back.” He says to Ariana before walking over to the two of them.“Wh
Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 17.1. - Matteo
“Not really.”Matteo can’t lie and tell him that the description matches no one ever. He thinks about that time after Vinnie’s birthday, when he stayed up until the next evening with Valentina.Just because they enjoyed being around each other. When he didn’t have to check his phone or thinks of ways to entertain himself to avoid awkwardness.She was interesting and she talked about things he’s never talked about with anyone else before. He could be himself around her, and sex wasn’t even on his mind that night, nor on that day when he ended up in bed with Ariana.But she’s also insanely attractive. Not only hot, but beautiful too. And smart.Sure, he’d like to have sex with her, it would probably be enjoyable. And if it never happened, fine. Maybe.“Are you even listening?”“Not really.”“Are you high?”“Aren’t you?”Vinnie laughs at that.Matteo still doesn’t know how to bring up Valentina. They always talk about everything they do, especially when it comes to girls.“Is something g
Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 17.2. - Matteo
“Paulo thought it ended after she ratted him out at your New Year’s Eve party.”The way he uses the verb ‘ratted’ makes Matteo feel sick.“So? He likes her, I guess.”“Has he tried to contact her?”“I think so.”“And did she answer?”“Shouldn’t you already know this is you have a cell tower? Vinnie is right next door.”Matteo suddenly realizes that his father can also probably see everything on his phone.“Don’t worry, we don’t track the phones of our family. Nor the Barone family. I am asking you sincerely.”“I don’t think she replied, no.”“So, it’s obvious she won’t be coming back to him. Get him to stop trying.”“I can’t tell him what to do, and I also don’t want to tell him what to do.”His father looks at his face, as if to check whether Matteo means it or not. He does.“How do you know who Sofia is? And why isn’t Paulo talking to me directly like he usually does?” Matteo asks.“I know her because Paulo told me what happened. And I told you.”“Fine.”“So you’ll talk to Vinnie?”
Games We Play - Awakening Prologue
Prologue Sicily, Italy 2021 – winter The party is starting to get out of hand, as expected. It’s only been two hours since the first guests arrived, and yet people are already talking too loud and gesturing way too much while doing so. No one's violent yet, there are no guns in sight, and I can see familiar faces, which is usually a good enough sign for me to believe the party will be safe. And I know he’s here. He must be. Does he think I’m here? Why do I even care? I grab a glass of champagne from a tray held out by a waiter as I enter the foyer. The giant room overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, giving everyone in the room a view of the cliffs and its waters below. It’s already dark, but the moon stands high above the water and the city below should be lit up in an hour. As I browse the room a second time, I realize that all the familiar faces are just familiar and that’s it. I can’t spot one person here I would be able to hold a conversation with, let alone for anoth
Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 1: Awareness
Palermo, Sicily, Italy 2019 - summerThe phone on the wall in Matteo's room rings around 11am, waking him up from his dreamless sleep. It's his father."Come see me in my office please." Is all he says before hanging up. He sounds serious, like he needs to talk business. Not business in a figurative sense, as in, talk about some shit Matteo pulled, but in the literal sense: business.Matteo started noticing that his father wasn't really a restaurant "manager" when he was around eight years old. One night, after having stayed up past bedtime downstairs in his father's pizzeria, he saw a man coming in with a gun in his hand. He pointed it at one of his father's friends behind the counter, before shooting him point blank.The man didn't even clock Matteo hiding under a table in the corner; he just turned around and left. When his father found him bawling his eyes out as he came in from the back, he told him to stop crying and that it would be taken care of.Matteo didn't know what that m
Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 1.1 - Matteo
Enrique doesn't rip them off, and the total comes out to 10.1kg, which is good enough for Matteo. They let the guy leave through the back because people are already starting to fill up the driveway. He can see familiar people from the window overlooking the driveway. He sees Vinnie climb out of the car with Eddie, their sister and two other girls he doesn't recognize. The one in the red catches his eye first, before he looks at her friend and recognizes Aleksi's sister, Raisa. They only had sex at the end of the school year, before Matteo flew to Palermo for the summer and she did god knows what (Matteo doesn't really text any girls because most of the time it feels like a waste of time). Only when he doesn't have anything to entertain himself with is when he opens messages. Aleksi is not with them though, which means Matteo will just have to wait a little bit longer. A text comes through from the pilot, saying that they've just departed from Capo d'Orlando. He descends down the sta
Latest chapter
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 17.2. - Matteo
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 17.1. - Matteo
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 17: Where it all begins
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 16.3 - Valentina
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 16.2 - Valentina
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 16.1 - Valentina
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 16: The beginning of the end
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 15.3. - Matteo
- Games We Play - Awakening Chapter 15.2. - Matteo
