sing sing correctional facility, ossining
december, 1925

-

A clock was ticking somewhere in the room. And for some reason, it irked him. 

Standing stiffly before the double doors, Nico Changretta swallowed just a little. This wasn't his first visit to Sing Sing; not too many years ago, it had been him behind those doors, and his brother waiting on the other side instead. 

Tick. Tick. Tick.

He glanced at the clock on the wall beside him. 10:57am. Luca would be striding out of those doors any minute now, like the arrogant bastard he was. 

He could practically picture it: he'd be smirking, and swaggering along as if he was walking out of a whore house rather than of one of the most notorious prisons in America. Nico scoffed at the image, shaking his head. 

But the smirk slid off his face as the doors before him remained closed. He wasn't the most patient of men. He liked things to happen fast - a preference that made the mafia business the perfect line of work for him. 

Waiting - standing still, remaining silent, and worst of all, being patient - even for a mere few minutes, was excruciating for him.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

To distract himself, he adjusted his cuff links, and thought of how the prison had treated his brother. While Luca was a leather-willed man, Sing Sing wasn't kind on the nerves. Or kind in any sense, in fact. 

Nico himself had entered those doors with a grin on his face, his measurable record of time spent behind bars as a lad making him cocky. But Sing Sing wasn't like those local Manhattan penitentiaries, where he would spend a few days after a violent bender. He emerged the facility two years later timid, nervous, wary. He had flinched when Angel had clapped him upon the shoulder when he came to collect him. No-one would have guessed he had been imprisoned for double homicide. 

He would have had a longer sentence, had his brothers not stepped in at his trial. Lord knows what he would have ended up like after serving the full twenty-five years. But still, it had taken him months to build back up to his old self.

If a man like Nico could have been whittled down by Sing Sing, he wondered what it could have done to his older brother.

Then, an impertinent buzz sounded from the intercom, and his head whipped up. 

Moments after, the doors swung open. And there stood Luca Changretta, flanked by security guards.

Nico had wondered if he would cry at the sight of his brother walking free, or if his mind would go straight to Gianna. 

But instead, he found himself wanting to laugh.

The guards hauled his brother down the walkway. And just as Nico had guessed he would, Luca walked with a cocky strut, his lips were twisted into that knowing smirk. 

The former marvelled as he took in the sight of his brother; the man may as well have been imprisoned the day before. Aside from his prison clothes - unfortunate, baggy white garments - the handcuffs restraining his wrists, and his overgrown hair, he was still the Luca he knew. He still had that glint in his eyes.

Prison hadn't broken him like it had broken Nico. Hell, it had barely broken the surface of his leathery skin.

As the man was stopped right before Nico, there was a moment where the guards removed his shackles, muttering something to him that Nico couldn't hear. But, still, he waited, hands folded before him.

Then, the shackles were gone, and the wardens turned away, disappearing  into the prison doors once more.

Clearing his throat, Nico shifted on his feet, suppressing his almost delirious grin as best as he could. It was so surreal to see his brother without bars or a screen obstructing him. He was tempted to reach out and prod him, just because he could.

Instead, though, he merely stood silently, eyeing his brother up and down in a critical manner.

Unphased, Luca bowed his head, examining his brother in the exact way Nico was. 

"Quella é la mia giacca?" <Is that my jacket?> he said suddenly, his drawling, heavily accented voice wonderfully familiar. 

Nico scoffed, and looked down at himself, smoothing the sharp tailored blazer down on his lanky frame. "Non più," <Not anymore.> he replied humorously, raising his head to meet his brother's eyes. It was all he could do to stop his grin from re-emerging.

"Bastardo arrogante," <Arrogant bastard.> Luca shot back.

At last, Nico broke. A smile flickered across his face. "Mi sei mancato anche tu, fratello mio." <I've missed you too, brother.>

Then, Luca's poker face fell too, giving way to that knowing grin of his. 

Before Luca could even open his arms, Nico closed the gap between them, and flung his arms around his brother, encasing him in a bone-crushing embrace. Luca wheezed half-seriously, muttering about not being able to breathe as he wound his long arms around his brother's torso. Nico snorted, patting his brother on the back. The brothers had always embraced with ardour. Seeing that they hadn't been within arms reach of one another for almost two years, their exchange was even more so. 

His hand now gripping the back of his brother's head, Nico drew back and kissed Luca's cheek, just as they had done when they were still living in Sicily. Then, grinning briefly, he released him with another clap on the back. 

"Dai, andiamo a sistemare quella zazzera che ti trovi come pettinatura," <Come on, let's go and get that mop on your head fixed.> he said, beginning to walk towards the exit, where a car was waiting for them.

"Oh, grazie a dio," <Oh, thank God.>  Luca groaned, falling into step with him as he walked to freedom. 

-

changretta residence, new york city

-

Gianna had been waiting in the kitchen for them for what had seemed like hours. Her head was in her hands, eyes fixed on the weaving patterns of the wooden table. She couldn't drink or smoke to pass the time or calm her nerves in fear of being caught, or the smell lingering. 

She could only sit and wait, feeling more and more sick by the minute.

She had expected to be on the brink of vomiting when they arrived. But when she heard the car pull up, she found herself feeling oddly calm.

Sounds of muffled conversations with the guards and the locks on the gate releasing came from outside. Gianna listened as two sets of footsteps led up the driveway and ascended the front steps. 

And when the door cracked open, she swallowed her nerves, and rose from her chair, moving towards the foyer as if she were in a dream.

Her sick, delusive feeling only worsened when she reached the front door and met eyes with Luca Changretta. 

She didn't dare look at Nico. She could only stare at her father as he stood there before her, doing everything she could to keep her breathing steady.

After two years, he was home. There were no bars to separate them anymore. Gianna could hardly grasp the fact that he was stood just a few inches before her. He could reach out and touch her if he wanted. She felt as if her throat was about to close up. 

He was giving her that look, one she surely hadn't missed - an unreadable, frustrating look that somehow combined endearment, superiority, and even a little disappointment. Gianna didn't break away from his gaze; she stared back at him, forcing her features into neutrality. 

Then, he spoke.

"Ciao, mio teroso," he drawled. 

There were a few moments of silence, where neither father nor daughter broke eye contact. 

Then, a smile tugged at Gianna's lips, almost against her will.

It was irrevocably sad. 

Then, slowly, reluctantly, she moved forward and closed the distance between them. It was Luca's turn to smile as his arms folded around her, one hand resting at the back of her neck, the other resting across her shoulder blades. And as she bowed her head into him, she finally broke away from his gaze. 

"Benvenuti a casa, padre," <Welcome home, father.> she murmured into his chest. 

Luca said nothing. Instead, he pressed a kiss to the top of his daughter's head. 

And at the same time, he ever so slightly tightened his grip around her. 

this needs editing eek

anyway yet again i have to apologise for my lack of activity recently, and also apologise in advance because i won't be active a lot in the future. college just keeps me so busy, and i'm possibly getting a job that will take up all my time on weekday nights. plus, i'm having some personal ~issues~ which i won't go into because you've all heard it before, but it just means that i don't have motivation to write or it just doesn't cross my mind :)) just pls be patient i will update whenever i can.