you drew stars
around my scars
____
VALENTINA
____
I was stressed out. We were supposed to go to the beach today and none of my swimsuits look good on me. My stomach, waist and thighs are filled with stretch marks, I've got scars from my C-section on my stomach, I just despise how my body looks.
I'm still young though, and I don't want to fully stop socializing or going out simply because I have a son. I'll gladly take him with me, and if anyone has a problem with my son being with me during outings, they can go fuck themselves.
I'll just wear a dress, and not go swimming. Then I'll be fine.
I sighed, dragging a dress on my body, on top of the bikini I was too lazy to change out of, aand went over to my baby.
"Hi mi vida, you wanna go swimming?" I smiled, "Yeah?" I giggled, as he started giggling and grabbing my fingers.
I dressed him in one of the swimming diapers that Enzo bought, and then put on some clothes for him. I had fed him before, but I would probably have to feed him again. I packed his sunscreen and my own, I packed a cooler bag filled with a few water bottles, and some cokes, for me, Enzo and his friends. I heard my phone ping with a message, so I grabbed it and checked who it was. Enzo.
Big Daddy Enzo
Hey, bella. I was messaging you to ask, if you'd like me to pick you and Alejandro up? We can drive to the beach together.
me
hi, thank you for the offer, but I can walk.
Big Daddy Enzo
No, Valentina. The beach is far from your house and I'm far more trustable than a random Uber driver.
me
fine, thank you. when will you be here to pick us up?
Big Daddy Enzo
Already on my way.
That little bitch. He had no intentions of even letting me have a choice. I really need to change his contact name.
I grabbed the car seat out of the closet, took Alejandro from his little play area, and set him in the seat, buckling him in. I made sure I had everything, before I stepped out the door and locked it, sitting on my porch, waiting for Enzo.
Speaking of the devil, here he comes. He pulled up into my driveway, getting out of his car and flashing me a smile. I stood up, grabbed my bag and cooler in one hand, Alejandros car seat in the other.
"Good afternoon, Valentina." he smirked.
"Hey, Enzo. You had no plans of letting me take and Uber, did you?" I asked, opening the back door and strapped in Alejandros car seat, before setting the bags on the floor of the car.
"No, absolutely not." he chuckled from beside me, as I shut the back door.
"Of course you didn't." I muttered, looking at him.
He opened the passenger side door, "Come on, let's go."
"Thank you." I smiled, sitting inside the car.
He shut the door, quickly rounded the car and got to the driver's seat, and then we were on our way.
15 MINUTES LATER...
"We're here." Enzo said, turning off the car.
I glanced out the window and wow. It was probably the most beautiful beach ever. It was empty too, aside from a few guys. Those are probably Enzos friends. Man, I thought there would've been girls as well.
We got out of the car, Enzo offered to carry my bags, I thanked him and let him do it, and after that, I took Alejandro out of his seat, closed the door and waited for Enzo to lead the way.
"Enzo!" I heard one of the guys say, as we approached the group.
"Hey, Romeo." Enzo said, setting my bags down on the big blanket on the sand.
"Who's this?" one of the guys asked, looking at me.
"This is Valentina. Valentina, this is Romeo, Leonardo, Riccardo and Samuele." Enzo said, pointing to each of the guys.
All of the guys were really buff. Leonardo had a buzzcut, a nose piercing and his eyes were a hazel color. Riccardo had black, fairly short hair, a scar on his eyebrow and blue eyes. Samuele's hair was light brown and in a manbun, his lip was pierced, and his eyes had the same color as Leonardos, hazel. Romeo had blonde hair, that was flopped on his forehead, green eyes and his ears were pierced.
"It's really nice to meet you guys." I smiled.
"It's very great to meet you too, magnifica." Leonardo said, grasping my hand and giving it a kiss. Are they all Italian? (gorgeous)
I smiled bashfully at him, before Alejandro started whining. He had been asleep, but I guess the noise woke him up, which is fine, he also had a short nap at home.
I was kind of scared, if Enzos friends were going to like...judge me, I don't know. People tend to surprise, always.
"And who's this little guy?" Samuele smiled, looking at Alejandro.
I looked at Enzo for a little reassurance, and he just smiled and nodded at me.
"This is Alejandro...my son." I said, slightly turning him around so they could see his cute face.
"Well, isn't he just adorable?" Romeo said, looking at him.
I sighed in relief, "Yeah, he really is."
"How old is he?" Riccardo asked.
"Three months." I smiled.
He nodded in understanding, and I decided to sit down on the big blanket, so I could apply sunscreen on Alejandro and myself. The guys had also brought a shade, so the sun wasn't on us if we were sitting on the blanket. The guys all sat down too, engaged in conversation.
I grabbed Alejandros sunscreen, squeezed the bottle on my hand so I got some of the sunscreen on my hand, and applied it with my fingers on his face, arms, legs, and tummy. I'd add it on his back once I took him to the water, right now his back isn't exposed yet. I gave him a kiss on the nose, before looking at the guys.
"There's waters and sodas in the cooler, if you're thirsty."
"You're a fucking angel." Romeo muttered, instantly grabbing a can of coke. I chuckled at him, as I grabbed my own sunscreen.
I got it everywhere except my back, I couldn't reach properly there.
"Could one of you help me put the sunscreen on my back? I wouldn't ask otherwise, but I can't reach." I chuckled awkwardly.
"I'll do it." Enzo said, standing up and squatting behind me.
"Thank you." I said, handing him the sunscreen. He took some on his hand, spreading it on both of his hands before gently massaging it onto my back and shoulders. He was good as fuck with his hands. I could feel all of my back and shoulder muscles relaxing.
He's going to have to start giving me massages.
"There you go, good?" Enzo asked, almost whispering in my ear and I shivered.
"Perfect." I blushed, grabbing the sunscreen from him and setting it in my bag.
"Let's go swimming. It's hot as fu- frick." Leonardo said, correcting himself as he glanced at Alejandro. It was sweet. That they already cared about him like that.
We all agreed on going swimming, except for Riccardo who wanted to sunbathe for a while. He said he'd join us in a second. I had taken off Alejandros clothes so that he was in his swim diaper now, and I also applied sunscreen to the spots where I didn't before.
I'd just sit on the shore in the shallow water, so I don't really even have to take my dress off. Because I definitely don't want to. I know all the guys have been nice so far but I just...I know my body is not ideal and I really don't want this day to get ruined because of my body, so I'll just keep the dress on. It might get a little wet from the hem, but the sun will dry it.
"You're not gonna swim?" Enzo asked, glancing at me as I was sat by the shore, still in my dress. He was now only in a pair of swimming trunks, and his very muscular torso was in view. He had loads of tattoos. Yum.
I shook my head, "No, I'm just gonna let Alejandro try out sea water a little."
He eyes me suspiciously for a second, before nodding, "Alright."
He headed into the water, where Romeo, Leonardo and Samuele were already swimming. They all had tattoos, but Enzo had the most. I noticed, that they all had one tattoo in common, it was a snake, wrapped around some kind of...sword. I wonder what meaning it has to them.
I was carefully holding Alejandro, making sure I was supporting his head as I dipped his feet in the surprisingly warm sea water. He giggled adorably, enjoying the feeling of the water. Alejandro loved baths. Everytime I even walked into the direction of the bathroom, he'd start giggling and smiling.
"You're enjoying the water, hmm, mi amor?" I smiled at him, giving him a kiss on his forehead.
I sat him down carefully in the shore water, between my legs so it was easy to keep him up and support his head, and the water barely even covered half of his legs. He was giggling like crazy, swinging his tiny feet, splashing the water.
"He seems to be having fun." I heard Riccardos voice, as he sat down next to me.
I smiled, "He loves water, bath time is his favorite time ever."
He chuckled, "That's cute. I'm sorry if this is too personal but, are you...a single mother?"
He seemed awkward to ask it, and I don't mind. I know he doesn't want to cross any boundaries, but he's also interested in getting to know me.
"Don't worry, you're fine. Yes, I'm a single mother." I answered, dipping my hand in the water and bringing some up to Alejandros head, making him giggle more. I turned him sideways, so that his back was resting against my thigh, and he was basically facing Riccardo. It was easier to support his head this way.
"Is it hard?" he asked, genuinely curious.
I shrugged my shoulders, "Sometimes. Don't get me wrong, I love him with all my heart, but somedays are draining and exhausting, since I don't have much help. My parents do help me financially a bit, so that I can buy everything necessary for Alejandro. But it just, gets a little lonely, you know?" I looked at him.
He nodded his head, "Yeah. My sister had a baby 7 years ago, and the guy was long gone before she gave birth. I decided to move in with her to help her, because I didn't want her to go through it alone."
"That's so kind of you. How is she now?" I asked.
"She's great, she found a proper man, and they got married 2 years ago. They moved, and live about two hours away now, I still see them often." he answered, leaning down on the sand, enjoying the sun.
"Oh, that's amazing." I smiled. In a weird way, it kind of gave me hope. Maybe I'll find someone too.
Alejandro started whining, probably hungry.
"I'm gonna go feed Alejandro." I said, as I stood up, taking Alejandro with me.
"Sure thing." Riccardo mumbled; eyes closed.
I walked back to the blanket, wrapped a towel around Alejandro to dry him, making sure he wasn't too hot or cold. I grabbed a water as well, since I was thirsty.
I pulled the top of my dress slightly down and started feeding him.
____
VINCENZO
____
"So, are you like...into her?" Romeo asked, as we were getting out of the water.
We had probably been swimming for an hour, and I noticed Valentina leaving the shore half an hour ago, she was laying down on the blanket, Alejandro resting on her chest.
"Who? Valentina?" I asked.
"Yeah, dude. She's really sweet." Riccardo said. He had joined us a few minutes after Valentina had left the shore.
"I don't know her well enough to be into her." I answered bluntly.
"Did you guys know that he took her out to lunch yesterday?" Leonardo smirked.
I glared at him, planning on shooting him once we were home. We were all now sitting down on the blanket, towels wrapped around our bodies. Valentina heard us coming, so she slowly sat up, making sure she didn't wake up Alejandro.
Valentina was a beautiful woman, no doubt. The second I saw her in that alleyway I knew I had to have her. I basically found out everything about her that same day, when I headed home. Call me a stalker, if you will, but how could I not want to know this beauty? She has such an amazing personality and a gentle soul, it's impossible to dislike her.
I know she was careful around us for the sake of her son, it was obvious. In the middle of conversations, she'd occasionally glance at Alejandro and hold him closer, and I understand why. He's her son, she will do anything she can to protect him. I just hope we can prove to her that we're not going to hurt them.
"I need to go soon. I promised my neighbor that I'd go over to their house today and have dinner with them." Valentina said, sipping on her water.
I nodded, "We've got work in the evening anyways, I'll drop you off."
We all worked together. In the mafia. My father, Federico Bianchi, handed down the mafia to me, two years ago. The guys were my friends far before it too, but joined the mafia after I became leader, because they wanted to support me in this.
We continued conversing for almost another hour, before finally packing everything up, and making our way home.
Soon after, way too soon, we were already parked in front of Valentinas house.
"Thank you for today, really. It feels refreshing to have more people to talk to. It means alot to me." Valentina said, smiling at me.
"Of course, the guys love you already. Let's meet again soon, yeah?" I smiled at her, turning off the car.
"Definitely. There's actually this new thrift store opening on Friday, and I'd really love to go. Thrift stores have amazing clothes most of the time for super cheap prices." she beamed, seeming excited.
Oh darling, I would buy you everything you need, if you let me.
I nodded, smiling, "Friday it is. Do you need any help carrying your bags inside?"
"No, thank you. I should be fine." she smiled, getting out of the car and opening the back door.
She grabbed the bags and carried them on one shoulder, before grabbing Alejandros car seat in the other. She gently shut the door with her hip, and waved a bye to me, making the bags fall down her arm, which I chuckled at. I waited until she was inside safely, before starting my car and backing out of the driveway, making my way to work.
My mood already dampened, knowing what kind of evening I'd have ahead of me.
I can't wait for Friday.
____
TO BE CONTINUED...