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MARIA

"Romeo is cute."

I had just finished showering and was sitting in front of the mirror, rubbing my hands together with some hand cream. The silence between us was broken by my simple attempt to spark a conversation.

I felt nervous for some reason. It was the first time in a while that Leonardo and I were sharing the same room—the same bed since Romeo had made Leonardo's makeshift room his own. I rubbed my lips together and swallowed, taking as much time as possible on my nighttime routine to avoid getting into bed with Leonardo.

He took his concentration away from his phone and placed it on the side. For once, I wished he was actually working so I could at least sleep alone.

Leonardo grumbled in Italian something about Romeo being annoying under his breath. I smiled, slowly brushing my hair as I noticed the amount of marks on my neck. To think that I was sat there with them at the table made my cheeks redden. I stared into the mirror. He was shirtless.

From the corner of my eye, I watched as Leonardo sat up, his back against the headrest with his tanned, muscular torso on full display. He couldn't sleep shirtless before; Leonardo had slowly let go of the long-sleeved tops. That man was trying to make me have a heart attack. I deeply inhaled, unable to force myself to look away; Leonardo's personality was attractive, but his physical attractiveness was something I could never get over.

I was never one to take in physical looks first and preferred personality. I wasn't someone who placed sex as a priority in a relationship. But that night, my hidden desires had gone wild. My eyes, through the mirror, ran up and down those rock-hard abs of his that he had managed to maintain so well. They practically shone under the light. His prominent pecs, the bulging veins across his huge arms—to think that I was so close to having that on top of me again made the butterflies in my stomach swirl again, tingling down to my legs.

Then I thought about it: Leonardo, looking ravishing and handsome, giving me the evening of my life again with the same passion he had shown me earlier. What if he pulled me in bed? What if we started touching? There was never much space in the bed when it was the two of us. Leonardo's muscles took over most of the space, and we were always somehow touching. What if we faced the same way and one thing led to another and—

"His mom knows he's here. She was so worried." Leonardo broke the chain of lust-tainted thoughts running through my mind. I blinked, finally dispersing the secret images I had of him in my head. "It looks like he was acting out again." He sighed, disappointing me as he pulled the duvet higher up his body. "I'll speak to him tomorrow."

I nodded, placing the brush down as I realised I couldn't continue longer pretending that I had a reason to be sitting there.

Slowly, I rose from the chair and tucked it in before approaching the bed. I met Leonardo's wandering eyes and immediately felt the heat rush to my face once again. "What?" I quietly said, looking down at myself as I came closer.

He shook his head, "Nothing. You just haven't worn that in a while." I glanced at my silk, purple evening dress. I would've shot back a flirty comment if we were like before, but I strongly refrained from it, immediately replacing that thought with silence. He noticed before I even had. I moved the duvet and put myself on the bed.

My eyes dropped down to his shoulder, the most recent dark scar resting from his shoulder blade over his shoulder. My breath hitched at the reminder of the fire, the extent he went to save me. I felt guilty to have added yet another mark on his abused body. Leonardo noticed my stare on the burn, and he placed his hand on top of mine under the duvet, gently squeezing it to appease all the regret inside me. "Does it still hurt?" I quietly asked.

He shook his head, giving me a reassuring smile. "I'd do it over and over, Maria." With a soft intake of breath, I pushed away the thoughts of that fire again. If we started talking about it, I knew that it would lead to a conversation about us.

Once again, I tried to shift the topic away from myself before he could get started. "Do you ever feel like you take up the father role for your brothers?" I was sitting as close to the edge as I could, my legs kept together, wanting to avoid any physical contact with him. I slowly slid my hand out of his, playing with my hair. Thankfully, that created a noticeable gap between us.

He didn't let me see a reaction from him. Leonardo replied, "Sometimes, I guess. They're not the sharpest tools in the box, that's why." I softly chuckled, thinking about them. Even Lulu came into my mind, my cute little sister.

Then there was another silence for longer than a few seconds. I swallowed before striking up the courage to speak again.

"The last time we shared a bed..."

"About Dream..."

Our eyes slowly found each other. We both looked a little awkward. My heart was racing at his words. He mentioned a dangerous topic for the both of us.

Since he didn't continue, I pushed forward, "I was...I was thinking about going back to work," I mentioned, looking back down at my hands for a moment as I tried to form sentences in my head. "I can walk a lot better now and longer. I wouldn't be alone at Dream either. I won't be dancing. I'll be in management, and I feel less horrible about the situation...so I think I'll have the mentality to be surrounded by dancers again. Obviously, I know it'll be hard and they'll be bad days, but the longer I'm stuck at home—"

"Go for it," Leonardo encouraged, a gentle tone to his words. A little shocked, my wide eyes met his again. "I think it'll make you really happy. You got Dream back for a reason."

I smiled, feeling the confidence fill in me. "Thanks," I genuinely said, not realising how important his thoughts were to me. I felt a lot better about going back to Dream, beginning to think of everything I needed to do once I got back. "And you're right."
I carefully agreed, feeling bad for ignoring what he said before. "It's been a while, hasn't it? Me and you sharing a bed."

"And since you've had all those marks on your neck." My hand covered my neck as soon as he said that, and he chuckled. I rolled my eyes at him before wiggling down to lie flat on the bed.

"How do you..." Leonardo hesitated before moving down and lying on his side with his head held up by his arm. Facing me. "How do you feel about what we were doing...earlier?" I clutched onto the duvet underneath, feeling myself getting flustered again as I thought about it. I liked it. I didn't want it to stop. I thought I'd struggle with sex after what happened, but not with Leonardo; it just felt right with him. Of course, I wouldn't tell him that.

I turned to face him. "First of all..." I began, feeling the nervousness in me. "I'm sorry for being ridiculous earlier."

"No, I should be apologising," Leonardo injected, "I'm sorry for not telling you."

Leonardo then softly asked, "What did you and your... and he talk about?" I gently sighed with a small shrug.

"Just about my mother. Her death." I slowly nodded to myself, feeling a dark mood loom over me. My chest began to tighten at the reminder of that balcony. I shuddered. I didn't want to relive that conversation again, which Leonardo seemed to understand when I said, "I'll tell you when I'm feeling better."

"As for...afterwards," I slowly began, we were going back to that heated topic. I honestly responded, "I...I think we're forgetting the bigger picture here...if it wasn't for what happened six months ago, we wouldn't be speaking. So let's not let a moment of...sexual frustration change our circumstances. Or we'll just end up getting hurt." I set out a boundary that I didn't even want. I wished things were different and that I could be optimistic about everything. But it just wasn't realistic. We had a huge problem between us that wasn't fully resolved.

Leonardo placed his hand on my cheek, his thumb gently caressing my skin, making my emotions suddenly go wild again. "I want it to change," Leonardo ardently confessed, "I want us to change."

"I bought a new house. Remember you and me? Amalia, Bear? I still love you, Maria," Leonardo softly professed, his voice husky and low. "I really do."

I felt my mind wander to the house, remembering what we were like before, when we were happy but when I was also harbouring such a huge secret from him.

"When you were held captive," Leonardo began to explain, "I got a voice message from Sienna."

My eyes widened, my whole body tensing up. "A message? Sienna never mentioned..." that girl. She hadn't told me about it.

Leonardo continued delicately, "that she doesn't want what happened to drive a wedge between us. That message helped me, Ria."

I couldn't do it. I couldn't let us break each other. I knew it was just a moment of remembering our love. Gently, I sighed, feeling the conflict rise within me. "I love you too, Leo...but sometimes love isn't enough to save what's gone."

I turned around, my back facing him as I closed my eyes, clutching my pillowcase.

"Good night, Leo."

And that was how we left it.

The next morning, I woke up alone in bed. I felt disappointed thinking that I'd wake up with Leonardo by my side.

Downstairs, Leonardo had made breakfast. His head lifted from focusing on the egg rolls he was making; his warm eyes briefly ran over me. "Morning," he greeted first. He looked a little reserved, but I couldn't tell if it was just my guilt overanalysing him. I suddenly felt bad for shutting him down despite holding a small smile on my face.

"Morning," I quietly replied, glad that there wasn't that much of a chill to the air. I went over, bringing out the plates. Leonardo's hand gently went out to my wrist, holding it mid-air. As if he was my crush, I felt my heart race again at his touch. "Don't," Leonardo said, my eyes blinking up at him in confusion.

"You're going to ruin my food," he added, taking the plates away from me. I let out a small breath of what felt like relief.

"Me?" I questioned, my eyes looking at him in shock. "I might not be a top-tier chef, but I can decorate a plate," I defended, going to take one from him.

He gave me a look, and I nodded confidently. "At least you admit it," Leonardo murmured, and I shoved his shoulder, though he didn't budge.

But he was right. The moment I lifted the egg roll and placed it on the plate, it fell apart. Leonardo held a smug look on his face as he folded his arms, shaking his head at me. "It's not my fault," I pathetically continued to defend myself. "You didn't make it right!"

"Your hands are like hammers," Leonardo tutted, showing off by making another plate perfectly. "Wreck-It-Ralph," he muttered as I gave him a petty glare.

Romeo sauntered in with a bounce to his steps as he pulled out a chair and sat down. "Mornin'," he quickly said without looking at us, his eyes fixated on the game in front of him. New generation kids. "You guys aren't eating each other's faces off this time." Leonardo's and my eyes met as my breath hitched. Romeo was never letting go of that.

"Stupid brat," Leonardo muttered under his breath before putting the plates on the table.

I smiled, turning to face the boy as my hands squeezed on the back of the chair. "Sorry you had to see that, Romeo..."

Romeo replied, his eyes stuck on the phone. "It's fine. Hearing it was worse."

Leonardo rolled his eyes and murmured in a stern voice, "Romeo."

"What?"

Leonardo sighed before thinking of something and questioning, "Now that I think of it—what were you doing before we came back?"

Romeo's eyes shifted around a little, avoiding his brother's intense glare. "Well, I came in. You weren't home, so I did what I usually do! Watch TV, play games. Then I heard the door open, and at first I heard voices... then sounds..." He glanced between us briefly, his cheeks slowly reddening. "Then I realised the scene was no longer PG, so I tried to leave, but then you caught me."

Leonardo cleared his throat, a disdainful look cast at his brother. "That's why I always say don't fucking walk into the place like it's your own. It's your fault that you saw what you saw."

"But this place is ours," Romeo provoked his brother even more, Leonardo's glare deepening. "What's yours is mine, fratello." He held that same cheeky grin on his face.

Pushing past the embarrassment, I tried to strike a better conversation with him to stop Leonardo from losing his sanity. "What game are you playing?"

"Among Us."

I almost shouted in praise at something I knew I could win him over with. "Hey, I'm pretty good at that. We should do one round together after breakfast," I suggested, which finally made him lift up his head at me with a grin. I did play a few times with Luna, but I wouldn't have called myself an expert. Romeo clearly knew what he was doing.

"Really?" Romeo finally looked excited, his cute eyes widely gazing at me. I nodded with a wider smile, about to reply until Leonardo interrupted sharply, "After breakfast? You're going home after breakfast, Romeo."

Romeo huffed loudly, putting his phone down as Leonardo and I took our seats opposite him. Romeo picked up his fork and started poking around the vegetables. "Home? Can't I just spend the school break with you? I'm always home!" It was cute that Romeo enjoyed being with his brother and felt comfortable around him despite Leonardo's grumpiness.

Leonardo gave him a look. "That's the point of having a house, Romeo. Your own house." Then Romeo looked at me with pleading eyes, surprising me a little. I didn't think I'd get involved. I cleared my throat after sipping some water.

"I don't mind if Romeo stays..." I honestly commented, my eyes slowly reaching Leonardo's small glare. "It'll be fun, won't it, Romeo?" The boy was entertaining.

Leonardo composed himself by eating some more of his breakfast. He then said, "Alright, well, you can stay over on a condition—two conditions." Romeo perked up, sitting up slightly and eagerly looking at his older brother like a puppy. He looked like he'd do anything.

"If your mother agrees and if you finally tell me why you came here in the first place."

Romeo's face immediately lowered into a frown. That wasn't the deal he was expecting. He sighed loudly, looking defeated. "Does it matter? You're just going to get mad at me too."

I let Leonardo handle it. Romeo would be more comfortable speaking to his own brother. Leonardo's face softened; his glare finally diminished at Romeo's words. I recognised that he was always there for his brothers when they needed him, and he never gave them a reason to keep things from him, even if he held a grumpy appearance. Leonardo wanted to be someone different from his father, a brother, a friend, and a protector. "Romeo, tell me. There's no good in avoiding saying what it is when it'll come out anyway."

Romeo sighed, hesitating before finally revealing, "She's annoyed that I won't go to school." Leonardo's eyes became more intrigued.

"I hate it," Romeo quietly said, which surprised me. Initially I thought it was because of social life, though I thought he would've been a popular boy at school. "I don't like science because I keep failing, the teacher sucks, and I have the same class every day. What's the point of going if I can't get it right?"

My heart went out for little Romeo. "It's okay if you don't like a subject," Leonardo told his brother, a mixture of a casual and serious tone to his words. "But that can also contribute to why your grades are lower in it. I'm not saying force yourself to like it, but try and find even the smallest topics to enjoy or work with. Not liking a subject is not a reason to avoid school." Leonardo was always strict but true with his words. He never cut around the edges.

I interjected slightly to empathise more with Romeo, "I understand why you wouldn't want to go. Why go if you're just going to fail at it, right?" Romeo's wide eyes looked at me brightly as though I had understood his inner thoughts. I smiled, feeling a little confidence in that my advice might work. "But it's your mentality that's important." I placed my hands on the table, pulling my chair forward to tuck in.

"Make it a mission to figure out how you can have more positive feelings towards science and get better at it," I suggested optimistically, "that might be through asking other people for help, studying together—" Romeo frowned as if that was the worst idea possible to imagine. "—or finding ways to revise that are more fun. We could even do it together! You know, working around what you hate to get the bigger goal." I questioned myself as soon as I said that. Revise together? I couldn't remember the last time I opened a textbook. I wasn't sure I would be the best help.

Romeo nodded, looking a little more uplifted. "Thanks. I didn't really think that far."

"And Romeo, we're here for you if you need anything," I warmly reminded him, hoping my advice would help him.

Leonardo cleared his throat. "Just be grateful to your mom," Leonardo stiffly said like the usual grump he was, "You're taking it out on her." Romeo nodded, looking remorseful at the mention of his mother. He seemed like a genuine boy at heart.

"Come on, let's eat!" I encouraged, picking up my fork again. I met Romeo's eyes. "You and I have a game to play, don't we?"

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~ Author's Note ~

Boundaries have been set. It looks like Maria isn't willing to pursue anything more with Leonardo despite his eagerness.

Romeo has added some life back to their home.

Next chapter is a beginning of an unfolding secret.

What could it possibly be this time?

Keep reading to find out!

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