Chapter 20

Adrian

"I'm heading downstairs, babe," I tell Luna and kiss his forehead as he continues to look through his closet. I make my way out of the bedroom and downstairs, into the living room. I spot Mrs. Petit sitting on the couch, combing through Willow's light brown curly hair. As I walk into the room, Willow spots me and waves. I'd met her the morning that I had arrived at the house.

"Hey, Adrian," she greets me. Mrs. Petit looks at me with a smile before going back to doing her daughter's hair.

"Hi, Willow. Hi Mrs. Petit," I say, taking a seat on the other couch.

Mrs. Petit looks at me again, this time her smile is much wider and much warmer. "Adrian, you can call me by my first name. You're apart of the family now."

"Really?" I question, my eyes widening. That was quicker and easier than I expected.

"Of course," Luna's father says as he enters the room. He places a kiss on his wife's forehead before taking a seat next to her on the couch. I sit there, stunned for a bit as they let out a light laugh.

"Thank you," I tell them, finally being able to stumble out a few words. Willow giggles and grabs a notebook where she begins to draw small pictures. I watch her struggle to sketch out a nose for a bit before suggesting, "you should try starting from the tip. That always helps me."

She uses my suggestion and successfully sketches out the base of a nose before giving me a small smile. "Thanks, Adrian."

"No problem," I say. "So you're into art?"

She nods her head, shyly. "Yeah, I've been doing it for a few years now. What about you?"

"I started when I was a little kid," I shoot her a smile. "It's been my passion ever since."

"Is that why you got into architecture?" Alyssa asks me.

"A large part of it, yeah," I nod my head. "It's a great way to keep doing what I love while also maintaining a good source of income."

"Do you only draw?" Willow questions.

"Nope. I draw, paint, and I've also started to get into sculpting a bit as well."

"Aw, I want to get into painting so badly! I'm not very good at it," she pouts, looking down at her sketchbook.

"Just keep practicing. It'll get easier for you," I smile as I hear small footsteps pattering down the steps.

"Mama, what is this for?" Luna asks as he walks into the room with a small pink bottle in his hands.

Alyssa glances at the bottle before looking back down at Willow who's sat in front of her. "It's hair removal cream," she tells him, brushing Willow's curly hair into a ponytail.

"That's a thing?" I mutter, reading the label on the bottle in Luna's hand as he takes a seat on my lap.

"Of course it is," Willow nods. "You can use it anywhere. Even your butt."

"Why would anyone want to put this on their butt? What's the point?"

"To get rid of butt hair, Lu," Angelo, Luna's father, interjects.

"People do that?"

"Do you not?" Willow giggles. "Do you just have sex with your boyfriend with a hairy butt?"

"No!" Luna squeaks, his face starting to turn red. "We don't do that type of stuff!"

"Wait..." Willow takes a pause. "So this attractive man is with you for your personality?"

I scoff. "Of course not. I'm with him because he has a face that's pretty enough to match mine."

"Excuse me?!" Luna crosses his arms over his chest and frowns.

"He's a popular man, Luna," Angelo chuckles, continuing on with my joke. "He has a reputation to keep up with." Almost instantly, Luna's mouth drops open. He looks between me and his father before climbing out of my lap with a pout.

I laugh and try to grab his hand as he walks away. "Babe it's a joke!"

"Ooh! Somebody's in trouble!" Willow giggles as I get up to follow him. I playfully roll my eyes and head to the kitchen where Luna is sitting on the counter, a pout still on his face as he plays with his hands.

"Baby it was a joke," I say, grabbing his small hands.

Luna looks at me and snatches his hands away. "It wasn't funny," he mumbles. "You can't be mean to me, it's my birthday."

"Your birthday was yesterday."

"Shut up..." he whines.

"Okay, okay. You're right. It wasn't funny. I'm sorry," I softly kiss his cheek. His notorious pout remains on his face as I grab his hands again. "I love you."

There's a long silence between us before Luna's face finally breaks into a bright grin. "You better." He hops off of the counter and begins to put his shoes on. "I'm going next door to Gio's house. I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, of course. Have fun, love," I tell him and gently peck his lips before heading back into the living room. I spot Willow looking in the mirror at her hair, which is now slicked back into a bun. Alyssa and Angelo are cuddled on the loveseat, enjoying a movie that is playing on the television. I instantly pull out my phone and begin to answer text messages that I had received from my family. As I'm sitting there, I hear Alyssa quietly clear her throat.

"Hey Adrian..." she starts. I instantly look up at her with curiosity. "Do you and Luna have a plan for yourselves?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well you live in America and Luna technically still lives here..."

"We haven't really talked it about it much, no," I tell her, shrugging a bit.

"Here's the deal," Angelo says. "We can't afford to keep Luna over there for such a long period of time. We have a lot going on, financially."

"We're sorry, Adrian. We just have a lot on our plate," Alyssa adds on.

I take a deep breath and nod slowly before finally responding, "I'll talk to him about it. We'll figure something out." They nod and express their thankfulness before going back to the television. I continue watching for a while before deciding to head upstairs to wind down before dinner time. I grab my laptop from my suitcase and plop down onto Luna's bed. The next few hours of my life are spent checking emails and making business calls, including one to Janet, the head of the finance department at the company.

"Hello?" I answer my phone with a sigh.

"Hi, Mr. Hafler. Is there something you need?"

"I need to talk to you about the payments from one of our clients."

"Of course, Mr. Hafler. Who am I taking care of today?"

"Petít."

"Upper East Side restaurant?"

"Yes, ma'am. I'd like to release their charges."

"Uh...Mr. Hafler I'm not sure if that's the best idea. Lots of things need to be paid off and we can't give things out for free..."

"Just do what I ask, please. I'll handle everything else," I tell her, rolling my eyes as I adjust myself in the bed. Aurora strolls over to me and cuddles into my lap causing a small smile to form on my face.

I hear Janet clear her throat before she responds, "Sure thing. Enjoy your vacation," and hangs up. Almost instinctively, I allow a smile to fall onto my face.

"Good gosh..." I mutter under my breath and turn my laptop off. I place Aurora on the floor and climb out of the bed, heading into the bathroom to shower. Most of my time in the shower is spent thinking about my relationship and how to make it work. As much as I would love to pretend that I'm not worried, I absolutely am. Luna is the best thing that has ever happened to me and losing him would be heartbreaking.

Thinking about our relationship puts me into a daze, causes my shower to take longer than expected. I try my best to quickly finish washing myself and get out of the shower. I towel dry my hair before throwing it in the hamper and changing into a pair of sweatpants. As I prepare to leave the bathroom, I hear a familiar voice softly singing outside of the door. I quickly fling open the door to see Luna changing into a pair of spandex shorts as he sings to himself, oblivious to everything around him. It takes a while before he notices I'm in the room but when he does, he speeds over to me and jumps into my arms.

"Adrian!" he squeals, wrapping his arms and legs around me. "I missed you..."

I give him a quick spin and softly kiss his cheek before responding, "I missed you too, Love. Did you have fun with your friends?" I ask as I gently place him down on the bed.

"Eh...I'll tell you about it while I put lotion on your back," he says with a wink as he grabs the lotion off of his dresser.

"Wow I didn't even have to ask," I chuckle and lay down down on my stomach. Luna straddles my waist and begins to rub the lotion into my back. "So tell me about what happened at Gio's house."

We spend a while talking about his time with his friends as he massages my back. He explains, in detail, about the many adventures they'd gone on in the long hours that they'd been together. Every once in a while, he has to stop talking to let out a laugh as he tries his best to get the stories out. It doesn't take much for his adorable antics to bring a smile to my face the entire time he speaks. After about twenty minutes, he is finished talking and massaging lotion into my back. I flip myself over so I'm lying on my back, causing Luna to gently cuddle into my chest. I slip my arms around his waist and press a soft kiss to his temple as he smiles at me. We stay like this for a while before I  look him in the eyes and finally speak. "Come live with me," I blurt out.

Luna gives me an amused look and chuckles. "Babe.."

"I'm serious," I tell him, sitting up in the bed. "I want you to come live with me."

"As nice as it sounds, isn't it a little too early for that? We've only been together for about a month and a half."

"It's honestly our only option Luna..." I tell him with a sigh. He gives me a confused look and gently grabs my hand. "Your parents can't afford to keep you in the U.S. anymore."

There's a long, dreadful silence for a moment as Luna stares into his lap with a blank expression. Eventually he clears his throat and looks at me. "So we would have to go long distance..."

"Or break up," I shrug. Luna's face twists into a scowl as he hits my arm.

"Don't say that!" he whines. "We're not breaking up."

"I was just giving an alternative option!"

"That was a stupid thing to say," he rolls his eyes at me before turning away. "I don't wanna break up."

"Luna, it was a jo–" I pause as I hear quiet sniffles from him. "Baby..." I pull him into my lap with a sigh. He wipes his eyes and stuffs his face into my chest.

"I-I'm sorry.."

"You don't have to be sorry, sweetheart. I just want to know why you're crying."

"B-Because I don't wanna go long distance a-and I don't want to break up either..."

"Luna you can come live with me."

"I-I don't want to be a burden...and it's a little bit too early for that, isn't it?"

"A little bit. But that's our only option if you wanna stay in America," I tell him.

Luna sighs and finally removes his face from my chest. "Are you sure you're okay with that? I really don't wanna bother you..." he asks, looking up at me.

"I promise you're not going to bother me. I'd love to have you around all the time."

"O-Okay," he whispers, giving me a small smile. "I'll move in with you."

I allow a bright grin to fall over my face. "Yeah?" I ask. Luna nods his head and slides his arms around my neck. "That means free food all the time right?"

Luna gives me a blank stare. "You're lucky I love you or I'd say no." I chuckle and softly kiss his cheek as we hear the door open. Willow pokes her head in a looks at us.

"Dinner is ready, Lovebirds," she announces before leaving the room. I quickly slip on a t-shirt before Luna and I make our way out of the room. Instantly, I'm hit with the smell of food as we walk downstairs. We head into the dining room where I spot Alyssa placing a beautiful array of food on the table. She gives us a small smile before heading back into the kitchen. Luna and I sit down at the table, taking a close look at what is available. Each plate is full of spaghetti and meatballs, along with a slice of garlic bread and a portion of green salad. It doesn't take long for the rest of the family to get seated next to us, around the table. As we eat, Luna's parents make conversation by asking questions to their children.

"I don't know how I feel about attending prom," Willow shrugs, answering her father's question about whether she would go or not. "I don't want my prom to be boring like Luna's."

"Not all prom's are boring, Willow," Luna tells her. "Mine was boring because I didn't have an official date."

"What about you Adrian? How was your prom?"

"I didn't go," I respond, shrugging my shoulders and sipping my water. "I finished school early."

"Really?" Angelo raises an eyebrow at me as he eats his food. "How early did you graduate?"

"I graduated high school at fourteen and college at eighteen."

"Woah!" Willow's eyes widen as she gasps along with Luna who stares at me in shock. "So you're like some sort of child genius?"

"Uh...I guess you could say that," I chuckle. Similar questions are asked throughout the dinner as we laugh and talk about our lives. A bright smile remains on Luna's face the entire time as he enjoys the company of both his family and I. And of course, his energy radiates around the room as the rest of us feel an incredible amount of happiness to spend time with each other.

***

Luna

"Thank you so much! I'll be right back with your change!" I say as the elderly woman hands me a large bill.

"It's great to see you again, Luna," Mrs. Watsby smiles at me. I give her a small nod and a grin before heading over to the counter. I place the old couple's money into the cash register before gently closing it. As I'm ringing up the bill, Mama stands near me and begins to wipe down the counters.

"How's everything going, kiddo?" she asks me.

"It's fine," I shrug. "It's just kinda hard to get used to working here again."

"Give it a couple of weeks and you'll be right back to normal."

"U-Uh...about that..." I clear my throat before looking at her. "Mama, I want to move in with Adrian."

A smile forms on her face. "Okay," she shrugs her shoulders.

"You don't care?" I raise an eyebrow at her, curious about her careless response.

"No. Adrian is an amazing guy and I can tell you two love each other. As long as you're happy, I'm happy, Luna," Mama grins. "I trust you."

"Really?" My eyes widen as I crush her with a tight hug. "Thank you!"

Mama softly chuckles and kisses my forehead before pulling away. "Now, your father may be a different story."

"Mama..." I pout. "Can you talk to him for me? Please?"

"I'll do my best but you know how he is," Mama sighs. A frown makes its way onto my face. "I'll try, Luna. Don't be sad," she tells me before heading into Papa's office. I sigh and head back over to the table I was serving. Quickly, I give the elderly couple their change and bid them a nice goodbye. As they are leaving, I spot my boyfriend and sister entering the restaurant. A smile forms on my face as I swiftly slip out of my apron and head over to them.

"Hey, Beautiful," Adrian wraps his arms around me in a hug and kisses my forehead. "What are you so happy about?"

"Mama said yes!" I squeal.

"To what?"

"Moving in with you!"

"Really? That's great, babe!" he hugs me again.

Willow raises an eyebrow at us. "Wait...you're moving in together?"

"That's the plan," I tell her, leaning into my boyfriend's chest. "What did you guys go do?"

"Adrian took me painting and it was awesome!" Willow bursts with excitement.

"That's great!" I spot Mama exiting my father's office with a small smile on her face. She motions for me to go talk to him before heading into the back room. I sigh and peck Adrian's lips. "I'm gonna go talk to Papa," I say and head into my father's office.

When I enter, Papa is writing things down on a piece of paper near his computer. He looks up when he hears the door before motioning for me to come closer to him. Nervously, I take a few shaky steps towards him and sit on the edge of his desk. "So..." he clears his throat and looks up at me. "The little birdie is leaving the nest, huh?"

"Uh..I guess I am, yeah," I giggle.

"Oh wow..." he sighs, leaning back in his seat. "I definitely expected this to happen but not so soon..."

"What do you mean?" I furrow my brows.

"Well I didn't just choose you to go to America for nothing. You're at the age when you need to be exploring and experimenting with life," he starts. "You were stuck at a point where you didn't know what to do with your life. All it took was a little nudge for you to find something worthy for yourself."

"So you knew I was gonna fall in love with Adrian and try to move in with him?"

"I'm not a psychic, Luna. All I knew was that you would find something that would interest you," Papa lets out a soft chuckle. "But I am very happy for you and very proud of you."

"Thank you, Papa," I smile.

"No problem, bud. But I do need to ask you something, before I allow you to just up and leave."

"What's up?"

"You know that if you move to America, you won't be able to keep your job here, right?"

"Right," I sigh. "I haven't really thought about this."

"I'll give you an offer," Papa declares, grabbing folder from his desk and handing it to me. "How would you like to be the head of our New York branch?"

Almost instantly, I feel my stomach drop as he finishes his sentence. "Seriously?!" I exclaim. "Papa don't joke around like this."

"I'm being serious," he laughs. "You've proven yourself quite a bit over these past few months, Luna. I want to give you full control over that. It's all yours."

A squeal escapes my throat as I throw my arms around Papa in excitement. "Thank you so much!"

"Just don't disappoint me, kiddo," he says, hugging me.

"I promise I won't!" I gush. "I'll do my best, Papa," I tell him with a bright smile. My dreams are finally coming true.