Chapter 34: Chapter 34: Breathe

“I’m sorry about Mom and Dad, Luna,” Alex said, following me out of the dining room.

“You don’t need to apologize. I stopped expecting stuff from them a long time ago,” I said, giving him a weak smile.

He smiled sadly at me and hugged me tightly. “It’s okay to be disappointed, and don’t say you aren’t because we both know you could never hide your feelings from me,” he whispered.

I hated that he could always tell how I was really feeling. My eyes filled with tears and despite my attempts to keep them in, they began slipping from my eyes and streaming down my cheeks.

“I don’t care how they feel about me, but he’s their grandson despite who his father is,” I said, sniffling.

“It’s not your fault. None of this is your fault. It has never been your fault,” Alex said, pulling away from me to look me in my eyes.

“Isn’t it? Johnathan wouldn’t have forced himself on me if I didn’t say Giovanni’s name. Johnathan killed all those people because of me, because I was with Giovanni.

“I shouldn’t have called you that day,” I whispered.

He tensed, realizing what I was saying, and I turned before walking away from him.

“We’re going out again? At least you aren’t boring,” Luciano joked as I walked out of the house.

“I just needed some air,” I said softly.

He frowned as he realized I was crying but didn’t say anything. He nodded his head and gestured for the guys to follow him before they walked away.

I could see them from where they were and I knew they did that intentionally. As soon as they took their eyes off me, I ran into the garage and took one of Giovanni’s cars.

I could hear the guards yelling from behind me as I drove out. I rolled my eyes as I looked in the rearview mirror and realized they were following me.

I took a deep breath before pressing my foot on the gas. I lost them after a while and I drove to my intended destination.

I parked the car across the street and slowly walked up to the house. I hadn’t been here in a long time and I was grateful Alex took care of it for me.

I used the spare key before going inside to my old room. Alessandro’s room caught my eye and I zoned out as I realized this is how it all started.

I felt a hand touch my shoulder and grabbed it before twisting it and flipping the person over my shoulder. I started to twist the arm but stopped as I realized it was Giovanni.

“I’m so sorry,” I said, dropping to my knees and helping him sit up.

He chuckled and shook his head. “It was my own fault. I kept calling your name, but you weren’t answering. I should’ve known not to touch you,” he said, shrugging.

“What are you doing here?” I asked as he pulled me into him.

He adjusted our bodies so we were leaning against the bed while he held me close to him. “You disappeared without saying anything to me or anybody else,” he said, staring deeply into my eyes.

“I-I-I just needed to breathe,” I whispered.

He frowned as he continued to read my eyes, and I looked away from him. “Alex told me what you said,” he said softly.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “I—” I cut myself off as I realized I didn’t know what to say.

“He said you said you shouldn’t have called him. He said I had to ask you what that meant,” he said gently.

I opened my eyes to look at him and bit my lip hard. “He ended up in a coma because I called him and asked him to come get me.

“If I didn’t call him, he wouldn’t have ended up in a coma and none of the bad things that have happened since because of ~me~—they wouldn’t have happened,” I said softly.

Giovanni tensed as my words sank in. “Don’t ~ever~ say anything like that again. We ~love~ you, Luna—we all do. None of this was your fault.

“It’s not your fault that you were forced into a relationship with Johnathan because your parents wanted to make connections.

“It’s not your fault that Johnathan was so fucking insecure that he took that shit out on you. It’s not your fault that Johnathan stabbed your brother, putting him in a coma.

“It’s not your fault that Johnathan came back years later trying to get you back and decided to kill hundreds of people in the process.

“~It’s not your fault at all—it’s his~,” Giovanni said, taking my face in his hands. By the time he had finished, I was full-on sobbing. He smiled warmly at me and hugged me into him.

I buried my face into the crook of his neck, and he rubbed soothing circles on my back, and my body shook.

“Take me to see him,” I whispered when I had calmed down.

“Okay,” he responded gently. He stood up, taking me with him, and wiped the remaining tears from my cheeks. He gave me a weak smile and started to leave.

I gently grabbed his arm and turned him to face me, earning a confused look in response. I stood on my tiptoes and gently pressed my lips against his.

He smiled and rested his hands on my hips as he kissed me back. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me as I moaned softly into the kiss.

Giovanni pulled away from me and gently pecked my lips. He took my hand in his as he began to lead me out of the room.

My eyes landed on Antonio, Luciano, Dante, and Sergio, who were leaning against a black SUV. They stood up straight as they noticed us walking up to them.

“I’m sorry,” I said softly.

They looked between each other before they shrugged in unison.

“You could have just said you needed space,” Luciano said.

“Would you have let me leave?” I countered.

“We would’ve followed you, but we wouldn’t have bothered you,” Sergio responded.

I frowned, realizing I should’ve given them a chance.

“It’s okay—really,” Antonio said, giving me a small smile.

I smiled back before walking up to Giovanni’s yellow Lambo. I sat down in the passenger seat and buckled up before taking his free hand in my own.

Luciano walked up to the car and Giovanni rolled the window down.

“I need the keys,” he said, holding his hand out.

I handed him the car keys for the car I drove and watched as he walked up to it before sitting down and starting it.

Sergio ran up to the car and sat down in the passenger seat. Antonio and Dante drove off first, with us following behind them, and Sergio and Luciano behind us.

The drive was about forty-five minutes, and when we finally got there, I frowned. Giovanni parked the car and led me into an ~empty~ warehouse.

“Is this supposed to be a joke?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.

Giovanni chuckled and shook his head before leading me to a door. He typed in a pin I barely paid attention to and the door clicked before I heard a sliding noise.

A hole opened up, and Giovanni slightly opened his eyes wider as a light flashed in his eyes.

“Welcome, Don,” the door said before it opened and he stepped inside.

“That was cool,” I said, giggling.

He smiled as he looked over his shoulder at me and led me to a staircase. We walked in silence as I followed behind him like a lost puppy.

We got to the bottom and he typed in another pin before pushing the door open and walking through it. I stepped through the door and gasped softly as I took in the hallway.

The hallway was long and wide and had doors going all the way down.

Giovanni took my hand in his and led me halfway down the hall before stopping in front of one of the rooms and opening the door.

He stepped in and flicked the light on, making the person occupying it hiss.

I stepped from behind Giovanni as I took the person in front of me in. He was littered in all types of wounds and his cheek was swollen.

His right eye was swollen shut while his left eye had been left untouched. I hated how my heart clenched, wanting to reach out for him.

“Hello, petal,” Johnathan said, smirking.