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“OH MY GOD, REALLY?” she exclaims, jumping with sudden energy. I knew this would excite her. I’m glad it did. Seeing her happy is a different kind of peace to me. It means more than anyone else could comprehend.
“Yes, I promise,” I assure her, and she almost squeals.
“Okay, I’ll leave,” Her presence is quickly gone as she vanishes from the room with lightning speed, leaving a smile onmy face. However, it doesn’t last long, and I spin my chair back to my desk, and the many things still awaiting my completion. God help me.
My eyes slowly close, and I take a deep breath. I then start working through my list, giving myself words of affirmation as I move forward. I can do this. This should be easy. I think I’ve repeated each sentence fifteen times in my head. But I’m getting somewhere. When Oliver and I finish planning the trip, a big weight will fall off me. Honestly, when the whole trip is done, it’ll be easier than it is right now.
I sit at my table for hours, the sun setting and the moon appearing through my window. It gets darker, and a breeze comes through the window, forcing me to place my phone on top of papers so they don’t fly away. The exhaustion starts taking over me as time passes. I need coffee. Urgently.
With that exact thought, the doorbell rings, the sound low and muffled through the walls. A voice starts speaking, unclear, and I push my chair back slightly. My body leans back on the chair to peek through the small gap between the door and the frame. A tall figure stands talking to my mom. Lorenzo. He’s still wearing the same brown hoodie as he was before, but his charcoal hair is freer and more flowy now. In his hand is an object, unidentifiable from the distance. He then starts walking to the door, and I turn the chair toward the door. A knock pushes the door forward.
“Come in,” I call. The door creaks open to reveal Lorenzo more vividly, a coffee cup in his hand. Coffee? Lorenzo doesn’t normally drink coffee.
“Hello fiore mio. I got you this, for energy to work on your stack of tasks,” he explains, and holds out the cup.
“Oh my God, you are a lifesaver. Thank you so much.” I reach for the cup, thanking him. I take a small sip before leaning my head back in relief. It’s exactly what I needed. My head adjustsback to Lorenzo, who’s smiling, and I continue, “How did you know about my ‘stack of tasks’?”
“Your mom told me. She also mentioned that you barely slept last night. I thought we talked about that,” he says, and my smile converts to a frown.
“Ma, I never expose your secrets!” I shout to her.
“That is a lie, Vi, Lorenzo knows almost all my secrets,” she counterattacks. I press my lips into a thin line. She’s right, he does. But with permission. This was not consented.
“I have a lot of things to do. The industry is developing, and Oliver says I have to develop with it, and you know my whole problem with not having enough people,” I say, spinning my chair as Lorenzo walks toward the bed to the other side of the desk, sitting on it. He crosses his arms over his chest.
“Develop as in not sleep? How much sleep did you get yesterday?” he questions. I raise my hands to the back of my neck, lowering my head. None. But he doesn’t have to know that.
“That’s not important. I just have to catch up. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine,” I assure him, but he remains sitting in front of me. I bring the cup to my lips again and tilt it upward, trying to savor the bitterness. Black coffee is hard to drink for me because of its taste, but I need energy, so I tolerate it.
“Okay, let me help you out for a bit. I’ve done some of this with you, like, three years ago, I can assist you in catching up,” he suggests, leaning forward. His arms drop onto his knees, holding his body up.
“No, you’re not allowed to help me. I owe you enough already,” I almost demand, making Lorenzo roll his eyes.
“I’m going to help you just because you said that. I will not leave until one of your tasks is done by me,” He insists, straightening his spine. So demanding. I wonder if I’m ever like this. Never mind, I am.
I raise the cup with one hand, the other hovering under it like a stand, as I present it to him. “You already got coffee, that’s one task done.” The coffee drops back down to my lap.
Lorenzo blinks at me, unsatisfied. “You made that up.”Ugh. I can’t win with him. I give up. I surrender.
“Fine, you can help me. One thing only, though.” I raise one finger at him, and his smile returns to his face. He gets up from the bed and walks toward the table. My chair spins, and I use my legs to push back closer to the table. He grabs the extra chair and drags it next to me before dropping onto it.
“You better sleep after I leave.” He looks at me and raises an eyebrow in warning.
“I can’t promise anything. It depends on how much I get done.”
Disappointment instantly appears on his face. I don’t even know if I’ll sleep today either, but I’ll try to get in at least one hour. I have school again tomorrow, and I need to get through it. Although if I sleep, I’ll just need more, which might just make it harder.
“I mean, I could help.”
“I said only one task.”
“You’re so pressing.”
“I get it from you.”
He crosses his arms around his chest, furrowing his eyebrows. “You get nothing good from me.”
“I get a lot of good things from you.”
