Then, Now, Forever (Heartbeat #2)

by Teodora Kostova

  Stepping inside, Gia immediately fell in love – it was small, but cozy and bright. It had an oversize window on one wall, partially covered by lovely purple and silver voile curtains, a double wardrobe on the opposite wall and a huge six drawer dresser by the bed. The bed itself was king size and had an elegant wooden frame in the same chestnut color as the dresser, wardrobe and bedside tables. An stylish throw matching the curtains covered the sheets and a few cushions were scattered at the head of the bed.

  Gia’s heart constricted and she wasn’t exactly sure why. She felt at home in this small room and it didn’t make any sense. It was the first time she’d set foot inside Stella’s house, yet she felt welcomed and at peace, even more so than her own house.

  Shaking her head to dismiss these odd thoughts, Gia focused on what Stella was still saying,

  “Lisa actually brought it with her when they came to visit and I absolutely love it!” Both Stella and Beppe were staring at a framed picture, clearly painted by Lisa. Gia had seen a few of Lisa’s pieces and this one matched her style – it was an abstract painting in soft purple, beige and red colors of a man and a woman hugging in the street under the pouring rain. “She brought three canvases with her. We had them framed while she was here, and hung them. I have one in our room and the last is in the living room, but this one matched this room’s colour scheme and character, so we put it in here.”

  Stella and Beppe chatted a little longer, but Gia suddenly felt so overwhelmed with exhaustion that she wanted nothing more than to lie down on the oh so inviting bed and have a nap. She gave a huge yawn.

  Stella noticed and started backing out of the room.

  “I’ll leave you two to have a rest. The bathroom’s two doors down the hall to the left. Make yourself at home and come down when you feel like it, I’ll keep Max distracted so that he doesn’t come banging on your door in five minutes,” Stella said and winked as she turned to go. Beppe and Gia murmured their thanks as the door closed behind her.

  “You OK?” Beppe asked, sitting down on the bed next to Gia and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She nodded. “Let's take that nap. We’ll need all our strength when we eventually go downstairs and talk to them.”

  “Oh my God! It just occurred to me that they don’t know anything! Not just about this,” she pointed to her injured face, “but about everything! About my relationship with Francesco, although I think I mentioned to Max I was dating him, but didn't go into much detail. Or about your grandfather dying, about the trip to Sicily...” Gia became more and more frantic as she mentally ticked off everything they had to share with Max and Stella. It was a lot of information.

  “Ssh, it’s OK, babe,” Beppe gently put a finger to Gia’s lips, silencing her. “It’s going to be fine, I promise. Let’s get you to bed and we’ll deal with all of it later.” He took her shoes, socks and jacket off, and Gia scooted up on the bed, leaving enough space for Beppe to climb in and snuggle next to her.

  When Beppe and Gia finally came back downstairs after a wonderful and much needed two hour nap, they found Max and Stella cooking dinner in the kitchen. Or rather, Max cooking, Stella chopping vegetables and making him laugh. Gia paused at the door for a moment, watching the pair. She admired what this girl had done for her brother. In the eyes of the world he was the one who had fought for her and had supported her through the most horrible, uncertain time of her life. But Gia knew better – watching Max’s relaxed posture, easy laughter and handsome face glowing with love, she knew it was all Stella’s doing. Max was a strong person, he’d managed to overcome so much in his life, mostly by himself, but Gia knew how much her brother had needed someone to share his life and his dreams with.

  When Stella stumbled into him, he’d been settled into his life, resolved that maybe that was it, maybe that was all he was going to get and he’d been fine with that. He did have plans like going to college and eventually building a career that didn’t require him to wear tiny orange shorts as an uniform or serve cocktails. But from the moment he first set eyes on Stella, a passion for more had been ignited within Max. His eyes now burned with anticipation for the future – a future with Stella. A future where he had her as his life partner, someone who shared his dreams and made them bigger and grander; someone who supported him but wasn’t afraid to speak up. Someone who never took his crap; someone who calmed his fiery temper with just a look; someone who he trusted implicitly and who loved him no matter what.

  “Hey! Did you guys have a nice nap?” asked Stella noticing Gia and Beppe as they entered the kitchen.

  “Yeah, we did. I didn’t realise how much I needed that until my head hit the pillow,” Gia replied, taking the chair next to Stella.

  “She was out like a light,” said Beppe moving closer to Max and peeking into the pot he stirred on the stove.

  “It didn’t take you long to start snoring next to me either,” Gia teased. Beppe looked at her over his shoulder and winked.

  “What are you making?” Beppe asked Max. “It doesn’t look too good.”

  “Gee, thanks,” Max snorted, but a smile threatened to appear on his lips. “It’s chilli, man. It’s not pretty, but it’s damn good.”

  “I’ll take your word for it.”

  “You’ll see. We’ll have it over baked potatoes – it complements it better than rice or mash in my opinion.”

  They chatted about food a bit more, Beppe was teasing Max that he’d forgotten he was Italian and receiving a smack with the spatula for it. Gia and Stella set the table, finished the salad and took out the cold drinks from the fridge. Stella apologised that they hadn’t stocked the fridge with wine or beer, but they didn’t usually buy alcohol and had forgotten about it.

  Just then Helen, Stella’s mum came home from work. Gia’s heart warmed at the affectionate way the woman greeted her daughter and Max, giving each of them a kiss on the cheek and a loving smile. She welcomed Beppe and Gia and assured them they could stay for as long as they wanted. They all sat down to dinner and Gia couldn't help but think about how long it had been since she, her brother and her mother had eaten together as a family. This felt nice. It felt right. Gia was happy they’d decided to come here for a visit, despite the circumstances that had led them here.

  Beppe mumbled his appreciation of Max’s cooking through a full mouth and Max beamed widely. Even Gia had to admit that even though the food on their plates looked quite... ugly and unsophisticated, a far cry from what Gia was used to, it was rather delicious.

  When they were finished, Helen wished them goodnight and retired to her bedroom. Max and Stella stacked the dishwasher quickly and efficiently like a team that did it every night, and then Stella made tea. They retreated to the living room, stretching comfortably on the sofas to accommodate their full tummies.

  “Isn’t your mum going to come watch some TV or something?” Gia asked, finding it odd that Helen had gone to bed so early – it was just 10:00 pm.

  “No, we used to have just this TV in the whole house, but Mum got sick of Max’s ‘Walking Dead’ obsession and got one for her own room,” Stella said.

  “Hey! My ‘Walking Dead’ obsession? How about your ‘True Blood’ obsession? You have all seasons on repeat the whole damn time!” Max protested.

  “OK, Mum got sick of zombies and vampires, and started watching TV in her room. How’s that?”

  “Much better,” Max said and smiling dipped his head and kissed Stella on the nose. An uncomfortable silence descended on the room and Gia knew it was time for them to start talking.

  “So, where do I start?” she asked.

  “How about, since when are you two fucking?” Max asked and Stella gave him a smack on the thigh. He didn’t even flinch.

  “Since we went to Sicily to bury Beppe’s grandfather,” Gia answered, her eyes unwavering as she met Max’s gaze.

  “OK, then start before that. Way before that.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  It was past midnight when Beppe and Gia finished telling Max
and Stella all that had happened. Beppe could see that Max bit his tongue several times during the story, wanting to ask questions or comment. He held back however, and it surprised the shit out of Beppe. Maybe there was hope for his reckless, impulsive friend. Stella had definitely been a good influence on him.

  “And here we are. I honestly have no idea what we’re going to do when we go back to Genoa, but I'm sure we’ll figure something out,” Gia said as she concluded their story.

  “We will, I promise.” Beppe wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He pulled her closer to him, kissing her temple and resting his chin on her head. He could feel Max’s gaze burning through him, his desire to speak overcoming his restraint.

  “How did you stop?” Max asked in a rusty voice. Beppe met his gaze and knew exactly what his friend meant.

  “Honestly, I don’t know. I guess my love for Gia is much bigger than the hate I felt for Francesco at that moment. I wouldn't have been able to look her in the eye and told her I'd killed him.”

  Max nodded, his arms instinctively tightening around Stella who was sitting between his legs. He held Beppe’s eyes for a few long moments. What passed between them didn’t need to be said out loud – Max wouldn’t have stopped. Beppe could feel his friend’s body trembling with suppressed rage from where he sat on the other sofa. Stella rubbed her hands all over Max’s thighs, her body stiffening as if she could tell what Max was thinking.

  “OK, now you know everything. Can we not talk about this anymore? I need a break. I’m mentally exhausted. So let’s move on to something else,” Gia said, aware of the dark tension hovering in the air.

  “You’re right, Gia. You guys came here to relax, have fun, see and experience something new. So that’s exactly what we'll do. Right, Max?” Stella tilted her head backwards trying to make eye contact with her boyfriend. The tension in Max’s body drained away at Stella's voice. He kissed her on the tip of her nose, as he replied, “Absolutely.”

  “I think that it'll be good for us, too,” Stella added, her voice growing more serious.

  Earlier, Stella had shared that last week she’d received incredible news – her surgery had been successful and her tumors were all but gone. The doctors believed that in a few months, Stella would be completely cancer free, without the need for a second treatment. She did look amazing, full of life and energy. Her hair was as wild as ever, unaffected by her treatment. The precise injection of chemicals right to her liver did not affect the rest of her organs or have the same side effects as traditional chemotherapy. Her skin glowed and her cheeks were a healthy pink color.

  If Beppe hadn’t known that girl was battling cancer, he’d never have guessed. Not only because of her appearance, but because of her sheer vitality and positive attitude. But he knew, when Stella lay next to Max at night, she was able to take off the mask she put on for the rest of the world and bare her soul to the man she loved. He knew that in those moments, the worry something could still go wrong was there, in both of them.

  So, when she suggested they all could use some fun and new experiences, Beppe wholeheartedly agreed.

  Beppe, Gia and Max were having breakfast in the kitchen the next morning when a scream of joy pierced the air. All three winced as the noise barreled closer and Stella burst into the kitchen, still wearing her pyjamas. Her eyes were crazed with excitement. She couldn’t keep still. She bounced on her feet in some weird celebratory dance and waved her arms above her head.

  “Babe! What the hell’s going on?” Max managed to make himself heard over Stella’s joy. “Did you win the lottery?”

  “No! Better!”

  “Well, if you’re already up and in a good mood, it must be. I honestly can’t remember you waking up like this, ever,” Max said and folded his arms over his chest, a slow smile tugging at his lips.

  “OK, you’ll never believe this. I wake up with the radio, right?” Stella sat down next to Max and faced Beppe and Gia, meeting their confused gazes. “I mean, my alarm clock has a radio, and it switches on when the alarm goes off. Anyway! This morning when I woke up, they had just announced they were giving away free 30 Seconds to Mars tickets for tomorrow’s show at the O2. The show has been sold out for months! I tried getting tickets but they were all gone within an hour,” she rambled on. “But guess what!” She didn’t wait for them to guess. “I won four tickets! Can you believe it? I won!”

  Watching Stella was exhausting. Beppe was tired already. And it was barely 10:00 am.

  “No way!! Oh my God, really? I love them!” Gia exclaimed next to him. She started bouncing in her seat. Beppe turned to face her, bewildered.

  “You do?”

  “Yeah. What’s not to love? Their music is great and they’re sooooo hot!”

  Stella nodded enthusiastically, her smile growing wider.

  “Jared is a rock God! I’ve never seen anyone able to command the audience’s attention like him. And when he pulls off those soggy t-shirts I wish my tongue was long enough to reach the stage and lick…”

  “Hey!” Max blurted out, startling Stella into temporary silence. “I think you’re forgetting something –us!” he gestured between himself and Beppe. “We’re here and we can hear everything you’re saying.”

  “What?” She blinked innocently. “He’s hot. And he’s a rock star. We’re allowed to drool over him.”

  “Agreed. There should absolutely be an exception to the rule, allowing women to talk dirty about rock stars in front of their partners,” Gia said with a cheeky grin in Beppe’s direction over her coffee cup.

  “Is that so?” Beppe asked, taking her bait and loving it. “So you’re telling me, you’d sleep with a rock star just because he’s in a band?”

  “Well, there wouldn't be much sleeping going on,” Gia replied and Max choked on his coffee.

  “Gross. My sister wants to fuck a rock star and I have to sit here and listen to her fantasize about it.”

  “See? That's much more accurate,” Gia said and Stella laughed.

  “Let me rephrase then – you’d fuck a rock star, over and over again, all night long, just because he’s in a band?” Beppe relaxed his arm over the back of Gia’s chair and raised an eyebrow at her.

  “It depends on what kind of mood I’m in, I guess,” she said and shrugged as if they were discussing whether they should buy full fat or semi skimmed milk.

  “Is there a ‘fuck a rock star’ kind of mood?” Beppe asked incredulously.

  “Oh, yeah,” Stella and Gia both said in unison and realising what they’d done, burst into giggles.

  “All right, that’s it. You asked for it,” Beppe said and stood up. “Come on Max, let’s go.” Max looked at him as if he’d grown wings out of his ass.

  “Go where?”

  “They want rock stars – they’ll get rock stars. Come on, we’re going shopping.”

  Beppe grabbed Max by the arm and wrestling him out of the chair, dragged him out the kitchen door.

  ******

  The boys had been extremely secretive about their shopping trip, hiding their purchases the minute they came through the door. Gia and Stella had tried and failed to extort information out of them. Both were tight lipped.

  “You’ll see tomorrow,” Beppe had said.

  Well, it was almost time for them to go to the concert and the boys were still upstairs in Stella and Max’s room getting dressed. Gia and Stella, ready to go, were forced to wait while switching through the TV channels randomly.

  “If anyone ever tells me girls take more time to get ready, I’ll kick them in the face,” said Gia and grunted. She passed the remote to Stella. Maybe she could find something to keep their attention until the beauty queens got their asses downstairs.

  Ten minutes later, the bedroom door opened and Gia heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

  “Thank God!” she grumbled and stood up, adjusting her skirt. “Let’s...” the words dying on her lips as she took a look at Beppe coming towards her, “...go.”

  Gia
was so used to the sight of Beppe that his beauty didn’t even register on her all that much. After all, she’d been staring at his face for most of her life. The man that stood before her now looked like Beppe and had his swagger but was a hundred times hotter.

  “Holy fuck!” she exclaimed and continued to stare.

  Beppe was wearing black, leather pants which must have cost him a fortune, because they were made of the softest leather Gia had ever laid eyes on and were molded to his body. His legs were tucked in black, rocker boots and on his hips Beppe had silver chains that swayed enticingly with his every move. He was wearing a black, sleeveless top that left all the tattoos on his arms uncovered and had a crimson dragon swirling up across his chest from a pool of flames. He had thick, leather cuffs on his wrists and a heavy, silver ring on each hand. Most striking of all, Beppe had styled his hair in a messy, rock star kind of way and had put guyliner around his eyes. If anyone could pull off guyliner, it was Beppe. His dark eyes looked even darker and sparkled dangerously.

  Gia swallowed past her dry throat and tried to speak, since she’d been standing there, speechless and drooling for God knows how long.

  “You look... hot! I mean... Jesus! Look at you!”

  Beppe smirked and stepped closer to her, circling her waist with his arms and whispering, “You look hot, too.” He ran his tongue stud over the shell of Gia’s ear. His sexy, low baritone sent shudders through her.