Chapter 1: Out In The Wild Wild West
Chapter Text
"Alberto? Alberto, wake up!" Alberto immediately woke from his nap to Giulia nudging his arm. "You've been snoring again. Just wanted to give you a heads up that we're almost there." She smiled. Alberto looked out the window of the train cart they were sitting in. The skies were blue with white, fluffy clouds spread out everywhere as the partly cloudy sky connects with the greened soiled ground with nothing but trees and bushes. "Wow, there's actually nature out here and not rocks and sand." Alberto sarcastically joked, "Oh relax, Alberto. You guys are gonna love it here! Trust me!" Giulia said excitedly. Luca was tapping his foot while trembling with his fingers.
"Luca, you're doing that twitching thing again." Giulia said,
"Oh, sorry, it's just that... I'm a little nervous."
"Aw, don't be! She's a great person once you get to know her! Sometimes, she can be a tease, but I promise you'll love her!"
"You sound a little more excited than us. Is she really that special?" Alberto asked,
"Of course she is! She's the best cousin I've ever had! It's been so long since I've seen her!" Giulia's face lit up with excitement.
"Calm down, Giulietta," Massimo chuckled, patting her shoulder
"I know, I'm just so happy to see her after so long!" Giulia stared out the window "Look! We're here!"
The gang looked out the train's window at the beautiful view of the ranch. There were fields of grass and crops for farming, trees surrounding beautiful, decorated wooden homes, and a stadium directly in the center of everything. The train screeched to a halt and everyone started grabbing their bags. They hopped off the train and onto the wooden stationed platform. Giulia took a deep breath smelling the fresh air, "Already feels like home." She smiled widely. "Giulia and Massimo Marcovaldo?" A person on a wagon with horses called, he looked like a cowboy and had a high-pitched voice, "That is us." Massimo called, "Mr. Wilson had me fetch ya a wagon for ya, he wants me to take y'all to your new home if that's okay?" "That is fine." Massimo motioned for everyone to the wagon. They placed their luggage inside and climbed onto the wagon. The rider snapped with his whip and motioned the horses to start heading to their new 'home.'
A few hours passed by, and they were able to see beautiful sceneries of landscapes spread out across the valley as if they were in a fairytale traveling on an adventure. "Whoa, it's amazing out here!" Luca said in awe, "It sure is, this here ranch been here through 50 generations." Said the rider, "Wow, really?" Luca's jaw dropped, "Yes sir, she's the prize jewel of our country."
Giulia took another breath and smiled warmly. She looked over at Alberto and noticed he wasn't that much excited. "Look Al, I know you're upset that I've been at school for a long time, but I promise that this summer here will be fun. If you just wanna spend some quality time, I can show you a few cowboy moves I know. Maybe that'll improve your reflex skills that you can show off to the ladies." She smirked, "What do ya mean? I'll always impress 'em. skill or no skill." He gave a cocky smirk "But I might be interested."
The wagon came to a halt, "Well, here we are!" Said the rider. Everyone got out with their luggage and was greeted with an exterior western home that was made out of wood and bricks. A man approached from the porch towards the family as he opened his arms embracing for a hug.
"Massimo! You made it!" The man said hugging Massimo as they both laugh and pat each other on the shoulder.
"Henry! So good to see you again, my friend!"
"You haven't changed one bit! I swear you're getting bigger each day!" The man joked,
"Nah, you're just short. And what's this?" Massimo held up what appeared to be a badge on the man's black vest "Sherriff?"
"Yes sir, seven years runnin' and still going."
"Congratulations, my friend! Hope those robbers and gunslingers haven't gotten you into trouble."
"Naw, they ain't nothin' special." Henry looked behind Massimo and immediately noticed Giulia,
"Well, I'll be damned. Giulia? Is that you?" He said with a surprised face while slowly walking over to her,
"Si, senior." She smiled widely,
"Why, look how big you've gotten! You're just as beautiful as your mother!" He placed his hands on her cheeks and her shoulders,
"Thanks."
The Man then looked at the boys, "And who do we have here?" He said putting his hands on his waist
"This is my friend, Luca Paguro. And this is my brother, Alberto Scorfano." Giulia stood in between the two,
"Alberto Scorfano? The Rodeo star with a record of 8.8 seconds?" He asked,
"Have we met?" Alberto asked,
"No, but I heard about you on the radio. You got some talent in you, boy."
"Thanks, Henry." Alberto shook his hand,
"However, you and the young one haven't earned your way to call me Henry yet. So that's Mr. Wilson to you."
"Right, sorry Mr. Wilson." Alberto shamefully shook his hand,
"Now, why don't we get y'all settled inside, hm?" He said as he walked into the exterior house.
The house looked very comforting and homey, there was enough space for anything to fit, bathrooms for each room, and a big kitchen and dining room with smooth wooden tables and chairs, the couch looked soft as well as the beds. "Bedrooms are upstairs, the garage on the left, basement downstairs, guest bedrooms just across the hall in case y'all plan on having any more friends over, and bathrooms are next to everyone's bedroom." Said Mr. Wilson as he pointed to where everything was. Giulia, Alberto, and Luca went upstairs with their bags and looked at each of the rooms, one had a king-sized bed with navy blue blankets and pearly-white sheets and pillows, and a nightstand next to it, a dresser next to the door in front of the bed, a big mirror on the right side of the bed, a closet on the left side of the bed next to the nightstand, and a big window with its blinds open displaying a beautiful view outside of a grass field and the light of the sunset on the green ground. "I guess I'll take this one," Luca said as he walked into the room and set his bags down, "At least you'll be next to us if you need anything." Giulia gave a reassuring look as Luca nodded. Alberto and Giulia walked to the room next door, it had another king-sized bed with smooth and polished wooden stands underneath it, a nightstand and closet next to it, a wooden dresser with a big mirror on top in front of the bed, and another big window displaying a view of the outside world, but had no blinds, the floor was a soft rug of wool. Alberto and Giulia looked at each other, "DIBS!" They shouted in sync as they raced to sit on the bed first,
"Move, Giulia! I was here first!" Alberto shouted trying to push her off the bed,
"No, I was closest! This is my room!" Giulia shouted trying to push Alberto off of her,
Not even a minute to settle down and they're already fighting with each other. Massimo thought, "Hey, you two quit fighting! Alberto, get off your sister!" Massimo called,
"What!?" Alberto said defeatedly
"Ha, loser!" Giulia teased,
"Don't make fun of him Giulia."
"Ha, sucker!" Alberto teased back as he walked out of the room to the one next door. The bed was bigger than the other ones, it had a dark, velvet red blanket with white sheets and pillows, it had a wooden stand underneath it, black bed curtains that surrounded it, a nightstand and closet on its left, a dresser with a big mirror on top in front, brown rugged floor, and another big window on the right side but with some fabric sheets for curtains. Alberto set his bags down and walked over to the window, there was another house just across from them, it wasn't that far, just one or two blocks away. Alberto sat down on the bed, it was bouncy as soon as he sat on it.
"Ya snooze ya lose, Giulia!" He called out,
"What do you mean?" She replied,
"Come check out my room!"
Giulia got up from her bed and walked over to Alberto's room and was amazed by how better his room looked, "Jealous?" Alberto smirked
"Move, we're switching." She demanded as she tried to push Alberto off the bed,
"What? No! I had this here first!" He argued,
"Aye, children..." Massimo sighed as he stopped unpacking and walked to the room, "Hey, no fighting in here."
"But Papa! That's not fair! Why does he get to have to better room?" Giulia pouted,
"Don't be greedy, Giulietta. Get off him."
"Heh, sucker." Alberto smirked as Giulia got off him with a defeated look,
"You three hurry up and get dressed, we're heading to the arena." Said Mr. Wilson,
"Why are we going to the arena?" Luca asked,
"To pick up my daughter after her show." He said, putting his black cowboy hat on,
"Show? What, is she pulling an Alberto move now?" Giulia teased as she walked down the stairs towards the door. She passed a glass, wooden case that was filled with awards, medals, and trophies. "Holy cow, are these hers?" Giulia asked, surprised, "Yes ma'am, and I bet ya she's gonna add another to her collection today if we don't hurry now." Mr. Wilson opened the front door and hurried to the truck. The others soon hopped into the passenger and back seats and they started driving to the arena. After a few hours, they made it to the parking lot and hopped out of the truck, "Y'all go on ahead, I'll park the truck." Said Mr. Wilson as he started driving through the parking lot as the other cars blocked the views of the gang. "Woo sounds like there's a party goin' on in there!" Alberto said, looking at the arena that was filled with crowds roaring and cheering, "C'mon! We're gonna miss it!" Giulia yelled as she started rushing through the crowd of people making her way to the rodeo pen. Luca could feel everyone's glares at him and Giulia as they pushed past the crowd, Giulia looked over the railing and saw one of the competitors riding a bull trying to hang on for dear life as they held their hat in the air. The crowd began to countdown, "Five. Four. Three. Two. One!" The announcer's voice started blaring out of the speakers, "Amazing! 13.9 seconds!" The crowd's roar rose higher in enthrallment, "Psh, he just got lucky." Alberto scolded, still a bit upset from his last bull incident. "I got us some seats, let's go find our seats in the bleachers." Massimo said, "Y'all go ahead, I gotta go to the restroom." Alberto said as he stormed off, "U-Uhh, me too." Luca followed, "Don't take too long!" Giulia called out to them as they disappeared into the crowd.
Alberto swung the bathroom doors open and went to one of the sinks. "Fucking hot as hell out here." He splashed some water on his face that turned into a purple, scaly sea monster one with his hands now bigger and clawed, Luca soon followed rolling his sleeves up and allowing the cold, soothing water to reach up to his forearms as green-jaded scales appeared on his arms, "Ugh, that's much better. My scales are killing me." He whined, "You can say that again." Alberto said, "I hope they have some sort of lake or river where we can dip into later." They heard two men talking approaching the bathroom and quickly grabbed as many paper towels as they could and dried whatever scales showed on their arms and face. And just in the nick of time, just as the door swung open their scales disappeared back into their skins. The men eyed their figures as they walked past them to the stalls, "See something you like, gentlemen?" Alberto glared which they knew that it meant to mind their own business as Luca and Alberto left the stalls and hurried back to the arena.
They waged through the sea of people until they found Massimo and Giulia. "Took y'all long enough! It's about to start!" Giulia shouted as she pointed to the rodeo pen. The announcer's voice roared through the speakers, "Alrighty, ladies and gentlemen! The moment you've been waiting for! For our last contestant in the chute, it's a match red hot!" The crowd started uprooting with whistles and cheers, mostly from the men who were standing straight up off their seats. "What're they so stoked about?" Alberto asked seeing the men cheer wildly as if they just won the lottery. " It's the grand finale! Can our last competitor win first place and take home 30,000 dollars and a gold medal?" The crowd roared in excitement at the announcer's rebound. A gunshot was heard and a black calf bolted out of the chute and a gate opened revealing a winning brew and a brunette-haired woman running right next to it chasing after the calf, isn't the lady supposed to be on the horse? She started running faster till she was ahead of the horse, Luca and Alberto's jaws dropped, they have never seen anyone that fast before. The woman started running towards a stack of hay, she jumped on it while quickly doing a backflip which almost made it look like she was in slow-motion as she successfully landed on the back of her horse. Giulia jumped out of her seat and cheered off the talented woman. Alberto and Luca were speechless, they were astonished by her quick reflexes and moves. They were close to the running wild calf, the woman took her rope out and swung it in the air, as soon as it was in the air she brought it back down onto the calf lassoing it as it fell on the hard ground. The lady quickly got off her horse and tied the critter down, then waved her hat in the air signaling her completion.
The timer on the clock stopped and the crowd, mostly the men, were counting down from five.
"Five." Alberto felt his stomach knot and his jaw drop, mostly at the close-up he got of the lady. She was more closer to their side of the bleachers that they were able to get a decent look at her. She had brunette hair that looked silky smooth just by the glisten of it by the light, and it covered her right eye. She wore a tan cowboy hat, a purple flannel shirt that's bottom half was tied in a knot around her chest, some blue jeans with a leather belt, black cowboy boots with their tips pointed up, a red scarf tied around her neck, and a tan brown vest.
"Four." Giulia was jumping up and down screaming at the top of her lungs and cheering uncontrollably.
"Three." Her clothes weren't the ones making Alberto blush like crazy, it was her figure. Her waist and hips were wide, her breasts looked as if they were ready to burst out of her shirt.
"Two." The men in the crowd started throwing roses and other flowers in the pen
"One." Alberto's face flushed with heat once he saw her slowly move her head in his general direction with, what Alberto could only describe what looked like a seductive glare as her blue eye gave an eerie glow to it.
"Zero!" The countdown came to an end and the scorekeeper placed the new score at the very top of the list. Alberto looked at the score and it felt like his soul left his body for a moment. 6.2 seconds.
The lady then untied the calf and gave it pets to calm it down before sending it back to the other side of the pen and disappearing through a gate. The lady followed behind, blowing kisses at the crowd and taking a few bows before disappearing into the darkness. Alberto felt all sorts of shivers running up and down his spine, especially with that look she gave him. "Come on, guys. You can stop daydreaming. Let's go find my cousin so I can go to sleep." Giulia tapped their shoulders waking them from their trance.
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They went back outside and waited for Giulia's cousin as Mr. Wilson went to go get the truck. Giulia and Luca were talking about astronomy stuff that only seemed boring to Alberto. He looked up at the stars in the sky and could only see that glare the woman gave him. Not just the glare but the way she moved, her hips swaying side to side so effortlessly, her breasts bouncing with every step, the sweat on her tan-peached skin glistening every part of skin that showed. By dawn's light and the sun's burning rays, ain't she just a hotspot. Alberto thought.
"Ciao, Giulia!"
Alberto snapped back into reality and stopped to look at who just said his sisters name. It was the lady again, and she was running towards them as if desperate to reach them. "Ciao, Maria!" Giulia said running to the lady and they embraced into a big hug with the lady picking Giulia up off of the ground like she had no weight.
"How's my favorite lil' cuz doin'?" She said giving Giulia a noogie as they both chuckle and laugh,
"Haha, it's been good. I'm so happy to see you again!" Giulia said hugging her cousin again.
That's Giulia's cousin!? Alberto said to himself in shock. No way were they related.
Maria took one good look at Giulia, "Damn have you gotten big. You're just as pretty as your mama." She stroked her hair.
"You were amazing out there! I've never seen you so fast! Especially faster than the fastest horse in the world!" Giulia smiled excitedly,
"It takes practice, and I manage." She smirked, she looked behind Giulia to see Mr. Wilson and raced into his arms.
"Did ya see me, daddy?" She sounded like a toddler,
"I sure did! Look at those stars on the solid gold! That's my girl." He hugged her.
"You've gotten so big, Signora." Massimo said with a warm smile,
"Massimo! You came!" She cheered and jump on him giving him a big hug, "You girls look so much like your mothers." He smiled warmly,
"Maria, I'd like you to meet my brother, Alberto Scorfano, and our childhood friend, Luca Paguro." Giulia said motioning herself in between the boys. "Boys, this is my cousin, Maria Rosetta."
"Alberto Scorfano? You mean the rodeo star with a record of 8.8 seconds?" She asked as if she was interested,
Alberto sweated nervously, "Hehe, yep that's me." He tried to play it off,
"Wow, I didn't know your brother was a star. I'm impressed." She said placing her hands on her hips,
"Not as impressive as yours, I'm afraid. Looks like I still need practice." He gave a sly smirk,
"I'm sure you'll catch up to me... In about a decade or two." She teased.
"All right, y'all. Let's head home, it's starting to get late." Called Mr. Wilson as everyone started walking to the truck before Maria stopped Alberto.
"Listen here, boy. You may be some big shot rodeo star in your hometown, but now your in my town and I'm the only one who calls the shots." She said tugging at his shirt down to her eye level despite her being almost as tall as he was. Almost. "Maria." Giulia said sternly, "I'm just joking with him! C'mon, look at his face! He's scared shitless!" She bursted out laughing, "Stop teasing him and let's go. I'm tired and I wanna go to sleep." Giulia pouted, "Alright, let me go get Blossom so I can put her in the horse trailer." Maria started walking back to the stables to fetch her horse, "Don't take too long." Giulia called.
A few moments later, Maria came back out with the horse following behind her. She brought the horse inside the trailer and locked it in to make sure she didn't run off. "All right, we're good to go!" She said banging on the side of the truck as she climbed in and sat in between Giulia and Alberto. Mr. Wilson started the truck and drove for miles back to their homes.
((Song: "Take me home, Country Roads" by John Denver))
It was quiet. not a sound heard except for the truck's engine. The stars sparkling in the twilight sky with the moon as big as ever glowing brightly. Maria stared in awe at the night sky, how the stars lined up perfectly as if they were another galaxy just right there next to them. Giulia fell asleep on Alberto's shoulder, Luca also was staring at the stars, probably thinking about the astronomy thing he and Giulia were talking about earlier.
"So, how did my daddy greet you?" She asked Alberto not turning her head,
"He was cool, i just haven't earned the right to call him 'Henry' yet." Alberto smirked,
"Be careful, he's smarter than he looks. And he's not exactly fond of boys like you, especially the ones closest to my age."
"Why? How old are you?"
"25."
Wow. What coincidence.
"How old are you." She asked turning her head to look at Alberto,
"25."
She gave him an odd look as if he was either mocking her or joking with her, but he looked serious about it.
"Well then, I wish you luck. If my daddy don't kill you first." She said turning her head back to the view outside the window,
"That's a joke, right?" Alberto said nervously,
"Maybe." She smirked.
After hours went by, they made it to their destination, but at another house. It was the same house Alberto saw from his bedroom window. "We're here." Said Mr. Wilson as he stopped in front of the house. A Sheppard dog came running towards Maria as soon as she hopped out the truck, "Hey there, Tucker!" She started petting the dog then looked up at a golden retriever dog and noticed something surprised her, "SHE GAVE BIRTH!?" She shouted excitedly as she raced towards the golden retriever and noticed puppies feasting on her milk, "Yep, I already brought out the colored collars for them to pick and for you to name." Mr. Wilson smiled, "Bring her and the pups inside, I gotta take Massimo and his kids home." "Okay. Night, Massimo!" Maria waved, she looked at Alberto and winked at him which made his face red with embarrassment as she giggled at him, "See y'all in the mornin'!" She said as she headed inside with the mama dog and her pups with the Sheppard dog following behind cautiously.
"Huh, guess we're neighbors." Giulia smiled seeing that their house is just across from theirs.
"Yep. Y'all stop by anytime if you need something." Mr. Wilson said as he stopped the truck in front of Massimo's house. They all hopped out and started heading inside as Mr. Wilson drove the truck back to his home.
Everyone started settling down to rest after an exciting, exhausting day. Every time Giulia walked past Alberto's room she would give him a jealous glare which would only receive a cocky smirk from Alberto. Alberto put on his night clothes and layed down on the bouncy bed. He turned towards the window and viewed the house across from them. So... Maria Rosetta is her name. And she's my sister's cousin. He turned to the ceiling and sighed. This is going to be a long, wild summer.
Chapter 2: An Angel Sent From Heaven
Chapter Text
The morning roosters clucked loud enough for it to be heard for miles as the rising sun's light spread across the land. Over acres and farm fields, the dawn's light peered through the windows of the ranch's homes bringing warmth and light inside the closed enclosures. The sun's light flashed in Alberto's eyes blinding him awake as he woke up, stretched, and yawned. He looked out his window at the house across from them still thinking of Maria. Maybe I'll visit her later... He thought. He looked a little more outside and noticed his horse had just been delivered to their home, it was hanging around their barn with the other animals. Alberto got out of bed, he was currently wearing a yellow tank top with some brown shorts as he went downstairs to make some breakfast for the early morning. But as soon as he was just about to enter the kitchen, "In the evening..." Huh? Someone was singing... It was a female's voice, and it sounded... familiar.
"When the kettle's on for tea, an old familiar feeling settles over me, and it's your face I see, and I believe that you are there." Alberto peeked behind the corner and saw a familiar-looking brunette-haired woman, she was wearing a white T-shirt and some of the shortest blue-jean shorts Alberto's ever seen as they looked like they could be a pair of underwear.
"In a garden, when I stopped to touch a rose, and feel the petal-soft and sweet against my nose, I smile and I suppose that somehow maybe you are there." Her voice sounded happy, yet sad. Alberto watched as she sang her lullaby while scrambling some eggs and adding other ingredients.
"When I'm dreaming, and I find myself awake without a warning, then I rub my eyes and fantasize, and all at once, I realize... He couldn't help but stare at the way she cooked the food in the dawn's light as it shimmered and shine on her like a spotlight, and the color made it look like it was some sort of dream Alberto was having like he was visited by an angel.
"It's morning and my fantasy is fading, like a distant star at dawn, my dearest dream is gone, I often think there's just one thing to do..." She moved to another counter in the kitchen and started placing the food on some plates. Alberto's eyes were locked on her like she was his prey that he's been trying to catch.
"Pretend that dream is true, and tell myself that you are there~" She sprinkled some seasonings onto the food and placed the pot in the sink. Her voice sounded soft, sweet, gentle. Like a caring mother's soothing voice.
She looked up and looked at the reflection in the window of the cupboard where the plates were and saw Alberto. "You just gonna stand there or are you ready to eat?" She said adding the finishing touches on the food. "What? Oh, uhh, sure..." Alberto said snapping out of his trance and sitting at the table. "Wow, you're the only one awake?" She said turning around with two plates in her hands, "If I don't wanna hear Giulia's trumpet noise, then yeah." Alberto said as Maria placed a plate of food in front of him, "Oh my god, she's still doing that?" Maria sat in front of Alberto, "Has she done it to you?" Alberto asked taking a bite of his breakfast, "Every single day. Especially when she's excited about something." Maria said taking a bite out of her food, "Oh, trust me, I know the feeling." Alberto said remembering the first time they met and were training for Portorroso's race, Giulia would always open the window door to her tree hideout and start making trumpet noises startling him and Luca awake. They heard footsteps coming from upstairs, a tired Luca and a wide-awake Giulia came downstairs to the kitchen.
"Mornin' cuz." Maria greeted,
"Maria? What are you doing here?" Giulia asked a bit surprised,
"I made y'all some breakfast. Sausages with ground beef and shredded cheese mixed into some scrambled eggs with a side of pancakes and syrup."
"Whoa." Luca exhaled in surprise seeing the spread on the table,
"Woohoo! My favorite!" Giulia cheered sitting in between Maria and Alberto as Luca soon followed sitting across from Giulia.
"You didn't have to do this for us." Luca said, softly,
"It's fine. I like cooking! Consider this as a welcome-to-my-ranch breakfast greeting!" Maria smiled warmly.
After finishing their breakfast, Maria gathered everyone's plates and placed them in the sink. "I'll do the dishes." Giulia said, "You sure?" Maria asked, "Of course! Consider it as a thank-you-for-your-hospitality!" Giulia said as she started the water. Maria smiled warmly at her and then started walking towards the front door before stopping in front of Alberto, "Did you see your horse?" She asked, "Yeah, she's in the barn with the other animals." Alberto replied, "Ok, good, I was trying to make sure cause the guy that was still delivering the rest of your luggage got a little lost so I had to come out there and help." "Where is the rest of our luggage?" Luca asked, "I placed them in your living room. I'm surprised y'all didn't bring much." Maria said as she continued to the front door, "Well, we're not moving in. We're just visiting you for the summer." Giulia said. Maria stopped as soon as she creaked open the door. She slowly turned to Giulia, "The whole summer?" She asked as if she was scared of something, "Maybe not the whole summer, but it does look like it'll be a while. If that's okay with you, that is..." Giulia said. Maria hesitated a bit, "Y-Yeah! That's fine." Giulia gave her a suspicious look, "Is everything okay?" She asked, "Y-Yeah, it's just that-" She started tilting her head at Alberto and Luca. "Oh." Giulia sighed, "You know how my daddy is, and I don't wanna cause any trouble to your brother and your friend." Maria said, "I mean, I'll try my best to tell him to go easy on them." Giulia nodded and Maria left out the front door. "Is everything okay?" Luca asked, "Yeah, she just has some... Family complications with her father." Giulia smiled, awkwardly, "So, she got daddy issues?" Alberto asked, "Kind of. Especially when she starts getting along with boys." Alberto and Luca looked at each other.
"Anyways, about us staying the whole summer..." Alberto said crossing his arms and leaning against the counter,
"What about it?" Giulia questioned,
"Have you forgotten me and Luca's condition? You really expect us to keep our secret hidden the whole summer? We can barely survive in this heat! It's messing up our scales!" Alberto argued,
"I'm sorry! Why don't you guys take a shower? I'm sure that'll help moisturize your scales."
"Okay, but you didn't answer my question." Alberto yelled starting to get annoyed, "How are we supposed to keep ourselves from being wet for them to see us as freaks of nature?"
"I... I don't know. We'll... just say you have a skin condition." Giulia shrugged,
"Really? That's the best you got? You invite us to your cousin's ranch and expect us to keep our true identities a secret for the whole summer?" Alberto mocked,
"I just thought we could spend some time together here away from the busy streets of Genova."
"You should've thought about that after you came up with a better plan to keep ourselves hidden."
"Why are you getting worked up about it anyway? You've done it before at the race."
"That was before we started getting attached to you and Massimo. All we wanted was to get a Vespa so we could get away from everyone."
"Well... If we do get caught, maybe Maria will understand?" Luca said daring to break up the tension,
"And what about her dad, Luca? You heard what he said, we haven't earned his respect yet."
"Wait, that's a great idea!" Giulia exclaimed,
"What?" Alberto asked,
"Maybe if you earn his respect, he'll probably trust you guys and you won't have to hide anymore!"
"Right." Alberto scoffed, "We'll just make him like us and then spill the beans of our little secret and he'll totally not freak out or try to kill us."
"Yeah!" Giulia said, "You just have to be friends with him."
Alberto shook his head and then looked out the kitchen window, Maria was feeding their hens and chickens with a bucket of corn while putting on a bright smile as if she was enjoying herself. Alberto sighed, "Fine. But if this all goes downhill, we're leaving and never coming back." Alberto growled getting in Giulia's face, "Deal." Giulia said.
After a few hours, they all got dressed and started with their daily chores around the barn. Alberto wore a yellow shirt with a green patch on the shoulder tips down towards his chest, some blue jeans with weaver leather chinks with floral yoke, and some brown cowboy boots with a green patch at the top with a design, he put his hair in a braid and wore a dark brown cowboy hat. Giulia went to go feed the pigs with Luca while Alberto went to go check on his horse. The barn was on the right side of their house a bit in a distance between his and Maria's houses like they were connected. He entered the barn and saw a bunch of horses of different species in their stalls behind wooden gates. He quickly recognized his horse and started walking towards it, "Hey, girl. Did ya miss me?" He said petting the horse's mane as it leaned its head forward onto his shoulder. Another horse started making a sound as if it was trying to get his attention. Alberto approached the animal and noticed it looked familiar, it had the same dark brown colored fur with a black mane and some white fur on its hooves and forehead. The horse immediately relaxed under his gentle touch, "There we go. It's alright, girl." He said softly, soothing the beast. "Wow." Alberto quickly turned around to face Maria behind him, "You're a pretty good horse whisperer." She joked. She was wearing the same outfit she wore on the night of her show, "Well, I have lived with them almost my entire life." He continued petting the horse, "Where'd you get a winning brew? I thought they only used them for racing." Alberto said, "She was just a baby. They were mistreating the horses in racing. They were neglecting them and giving them poor treatment. Their hooves hurt them from racing too much and every time they would cry from the pain their owners would either hurt them or threaten them to keep quiet. Blossom's mom was at her limit, she couldn't take it anymore. She got sick and passed. I wasn't about to let them give Blossom the same fate, so I stole her and raised her myself, I never left her side and she never left mine." She walked up to her horse and butted heads with it while petting it. "Damn, I'm so sorry. How were you able to steal her?" Alberto asked, "Oh, it wasn't easy. I'll tell you later." She smiled as she unlocks the gate and lets her horse out, "Best if you let your horse out too so that they could get properly acquainted." Alberto opened the gate to his horse and let her out while grabbing a saddle. "That won't be necessary. Just the reins. My daddy insists these horses get their quality time together. That way they could feel comfortable here." She said as she walked her horse to the side of the barn where there was a giant metal fence as if to keep the horses in when they run around. Alberto soon followed with his horse and took it inside with Maria's horse and closed the gate locking it.
Alberto and Maria started walking towards the Sherriff's home. "You want some coffee?" Maria asked, "Sure. Anything to keep my eyes open than Giulia's trumpet." He smirked. When they entered the house they were greeted by Tucker, Maria's Sheppard dog. "Hey, bud!" Maria squeaked as she started kissing and petting the dog as it started licking her face. Then it moved to Alberto, sniffing his scent, and then jumping up on all fours to give slobbery kisses to Alberto. "He likes you." Maria giggled, "I can see that." Alberto laughed at the dog's energy as it covered his face in slobber. Maria handed him a towel to wipe the slobber off his face, "Thanks." Alberto chuckled wiping the wet kisses off his face. "How much sugar do you want, Maria?" Mr. Wilson asked from the kitchen, "Just two spoonfuls. Is it okay if Alberto can have a cup of coffee?" Maria asked. Mr. Wilson turned and faced Alberto, Alberto waved at him nervously. And I'm supposed to befriend this guy? It already looks like he doesn't trust me. Alberto thought. Mr. Wilson turned back around, "What kind of coffee would you like, Alberto?" He asked, "Just the original." Alberto replied. Mr. Wilson started pouring some coffee into a mug for Alberto and handed it to him, "The cream is in the cabinet above the left counter if you want any." He said handing Alberto the mug, "Thank you, sir." Alberto said taking the hot mug and blowing it to cool it off. "So, what brings you out here to our ranch?" Mr. Wilson asked, "Dad, please don't start interrogating him." Maria said as she started pouring another brown drink into a mug for herself, "I'm not, I just want to get to know him and his friend a lil' bit more." He said taking a sip, "The last time you wanted to get to know a guy I just met, you scared the dickens out of him. Now he barely talks to me." Maria said with a bit of sass. "I just wanted to see if he could take the suspense." That sounded like a joke, especially when he casually sipped his coffee.
"My sister, Giulia brought us out here to relax. Just to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city." Alberto said as he took a sip of his coffee,
"It does get busy this time of year in the city streets. Which reminds me," He turned to Maria, "I got some business to deal with soon, I'm gonna be taking the train to the nearest city."
"Can I come with you?" Maria asked,
"I'm sorry, sweetheart. Not this time, it's a bit more serious this time." He got closer to Maria's ear, "And you know how delusional you get around water. You start seeing things that aren't real. I don't need you freaking out in public."
"I won't! I promise!" She begged,
Mr. Wilson shook his head, "Maybe next summer, if it's not too serious up there." He said as he started walking out the door, "I'm heading down to my department, be sure to be ready for your show at the festival tonight, you can bring Giulia and her 'friend' with her 'brother' if you want, just stay out of trouble." He said as he stepped outside the door and hopped in his Sherriff car and drove off. Maria gave a frustrated sigh, "I take it he doesn't let you adventure off too much." Alberto walked up to her, "No, he doesn't. He never lets me go anywhere. Not with him on one of his business trips to this 'city,' not on the train, nowhere. I'm stuck here." She complained, "Wait, have you ever been to a city?" Alberto asked. Maria shook her head, "I never saw one in real life."
Alberto's eyes widened
"Is there anywhere you have been to outside the ranch?"
Another shake.
Alberto couldn't believe what he was hearing. She's practically a prisoner in her own home. He thought. Just like how he's a prisoner of hiding from the world too. "How about we do something after your show tonight? Just the two of us?"
"Like what?" She asked,
"Maybe explore a little more of the acres or the valley. Probably head into town and see what we can do for fun. We can take the horses so that we don't have to walk that much, plus I'm sure Blossom's never been into town before." He gave a sly smirk.
Well, that doesn't count as leaving Portorroso... Maria thought.
She looked up at Alberto and smiled, "All right, I'm in."
Chapter 3: The Only Thing We Need To Fear Is Fear Itself
Summary:
SLIGHT SMUT WARNING
Chapter Text
It was a quarter past noon. Maria got dressed in some ripped blue jeans with her leather black boots and her usual purple flannel shirt that was tied around her chest. Alberto was downstairs playing with the golden retriever's puppies as Maria walked downstairs.
"These critters are kinda cute." Alberto said petting one of the puppies,
"I know, they're just so adorable I wanna keep them here." Maria said as she squatted next to Alberto and viewed the sleeping pups.
"Have you named them yet?" He asked,
"Yep. Gabriel, Lilith, Lucky, Adam, Kelpie, Thomas, Fred, Clover, Seabreeze, and Doris." Maria added.
"Wow, I'm surprised you can remember that whole list." Alberto said,
"I learn to remember." Maria smiled, "C'mon, let's hurry and get to the concert. We'll take my car, it'll be faster." She said while standing up and walking towards the door.
"I thought we were taking the horses?" Alberto said following behind her,
"We are, I had Giulia drop them off at the stables earlier." She grabbed her car keys and headed towards a shack next to her house.
((Song: "Alright" by SuperGrass))
She unlocked the shack doors and opened them to reveal a light blue BMW Convertible. It was so clean and shiny that it looked brand new. "Damn. I wish I had a sweet ride like that." Alberto said as he slid his hand on the car's smooth surface, "Well, what are you waiting for? Hop in." Maria said. She was already in the driver's seat. Alberto hopped into the seat next to her as she started the car's engine. "She purrs just like a kitten." She smirked widely, "Let's see if we can hear her roar." Alberto smirked, "You read my mind." Maria stomped her foot on the gas pedal and they sped out of the shack driving fast as they drove through some fields, since there weren't any roads. They were driving past the speed limit. Doing donuts and making drifts as if they were in a NASCAR race. "Woo! She a wild critter, ain't she?" Maria laughed in excitement, "Hell yeah, baby girl's a' hollerin' for some excitement!" Alberto chuckled, "Well then, by all means, let's not keep the party waitin'!" She said as she pulled on the joint stick and pushed the gas pedal and went faster as they sped up towards town.
((Song: "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd))
Everyone was gathered in a rather large red barn, it was decorated with colorful streamers hung on the ceiling and gold lights hung on the walls. Tables were set in different corners for food and drinks, and in case anyone wanted to just sit down while the middle was left as a wide-open space for the guests to dance and get a good view of the stage that had the instruments on it. Maria parked her car in the driveway and got out with Alberto. "There you two are! I was beginning to think y'all were a no-show." Giulia called from a bench near the entrance, "Sorry 'bout that. Just had to take the missy out for a joyride." Maria smirked while pointing to her car. "Wow, that old car of yours is still runnin'? I thought it broke down in a ditch." Giulia said, examining the car. "It did. Luckily I gathered some spare parts from the ol' junkyard and viola! She's up and runnin' again." Maria said as she gave a cocky smirk, "All right, let's head inside and get this party started!" Giulia shouted as everyone cheered along with her. "Wait, where's Luca?" Alberto asked, "Oh, he's over there in the bathrooms." Giulia said, "I'll be right back." Said Alberto, "Don't take too long, or we'll start without you." Maria teased.
Alberto walked over to the bathrooms and entered inside to find Luca relaxing his hands under the water, "Oh, it's just you. You scared me, I thought you were someone else!" Luca said, trying to steady his heart rate,
"Sorry about that. You okay?" Alberto asked,
"Yeah, it's just this heat is killing me." Luca said as he went back to relaxing his webbed hands in the cool water in the sink.
"Yeah, it's like a billion degrees out here." Alberto said as he joins in as he turned on one of the sinks and placed his hands under the cool water as they turned into purple scales with claws,
"You don't seem too bothered by it. You look rather calm. Did I miss something?" Luca asked as he scanned Alberto's expressions on his face,
"Not that I know of." Alberto said, they then hear some voices and whistling coming to the bathrooms. They grabbed as many paper towels as they could and dried their hands as quickly as they could before a trio of men opened the door and walk past them to the stalls. Luca and Alberto quickly walked out and went back to the barn. Maria was standing outside leaning against the side of the barn doors, "Why aren't you inside?" Alberto asked as he walked up to her, "Eh, I got about an hour or two before my showing, so I may as well enjoy as much time to myself as I can. There's a food table over there in the left corner if y'all want something to snack on." She said pointing at a large table with all sorts of snacks and food on it, "No thanks, I'm good." Alberto said. "Maria! Maria!" Two boys, a skinny one and a chubby one, started running over to Maria as if they were panicking about something,
"We need your help! We can't find it!"
"Alright, calm down you two. What have you lost?" Maria asked as she crossed her arms,
"Our dad's wrench! He'll kill us if he found out we lost it!" Said the fat one
"Alright, just show me where you last saw it. Luca, tell Giulia I'll be right back." Maria said as she started following the boys,
"I'll come with you, just in case you need an extra hand." Alberto said as he followed behind her.
They walked for a while, not that far from the barn, but to a little tool shed that was surrounded by nothing but a space of sand and a few cacti. "This looks a little small to be a tool shed." Alberto said as he peeked inside, "Besides that, where are the tools? There's just a chair here." Maria added also peeking in until they were both pushed into the small shack as the door closed and locked. "Hey! Open this door!" Maria shouted as she tried kicking the door, "Haha! Losers!" Laughed the skinny one, "Good luck finding a way out of there!" The chubby one yelled as they both started running away laughing while leaving Maria and Alberto trapped in the cramped space shed. "GUIDO! CICCIO! YOU TWO UNLOCK THIS FUCKING DOOR OR I'MA KICK YOUR FUCKING ASS!" Maria shouted only to be greeted by silence, "Damnit! I knew better than to fall for their bullshit again!" Maria growled, "Again? This ain't the first time they trapped you in something like this?" Alberto asked, "Not trapped like this! Those two clowns be pullin' all kinds of pranks!" She shouted still trying to break the door's lock, "Here, let me try." Alberto said moving Maria behind him as he uses all of his force to break the door's lock. No luck. The wood was very stiff. Alberto sighed and then looked around, there was a large gap in the ceiling they could probably climb out of. "How about that hole up there? I could give ya a boost and you can climb out and unlock the door from the outside." Alberto said as he stood on the old, worn-out chair and got into position. "Good idea." Maria said as she climbed on Alberto's shoulders and reached for the hole.
"Almost... There..." She grunted as she struggled to reach the hole. There was a loud SNAP sound and they both fell to the sandy floor. They only blacked out for a brief moment. Alberto slowly opened his eyes as his vision started to adjust and saw Maria on top of him, he tried to talk, but something was on his lips. It felt soft and plush, he then realized... "Oh shit." Maria started opening her eyes to view the same thing Alberto was viewing: Their lips were connected. Maria instinctively sat back up as her face flushed with heat while Alberto sat up a little surprised and shocked. "Not one word about this." She hissed, "Your lip is bleeding." Alberto said. Maria touched her lips and looked at the small droplets of blood on her fingers, "Eh, I'll just put lipstick on it. And yours is bleeding too." She said as she started to stand back up. Alberto copied and looked at the blood on his fingers and stood up. "Better than having a busted lip from getting punched." He said,
"Shh! Do you hear that?" Maria said, they both looked around. There was a loud hissing sound coming from somewhere. Alberto looked down and his eyes went tense. "Maria. Don't. Move." He whispered, "What? Why?" Maria asked as she looked down to where his eyes were dilated and saw the viper. She gasped in fear and leaned against Alberto.
"Alberto, we need to get out of here!" She said in terror,
"Don't move! If you move or make loud noises you'll provoke it!" Alberto demanded.
The snake started slithering towards them as Maria began to panic.
"Maria, look at me. Focus only on me." Alberto said, turning Maria around to face him as she held onto his shoulders. "Maria, just breathe. Focus only on me." He repeated.
The snake began to slither its way up her legs as she began to breathe heavily in panic.
"Maria, don't pay any attention to it, just look at me. Breathe. Just focus only on me." He cupped his hands on her cheeks.
Maria did as he told her and looked into his eyes. "Breathe." He repeated. She tried to calm her breathing as the snake continued to slither upwards on her back. She continued to look at Alberto. She noticed he had a very vivid green color in his eyes, they were so bright and vibrant it was almost like they were glowing. It wasn't just that, his voice was very calm and soothing, and his hands were soft despite them being large. But there was also this smell. It was cool and fresh, there was also a slightly briny scent of salt and air that smelled like the ocean. The same thing happened with Maria to Alberto, she smelled like rosemary and lavender oil with something marine. Alberto snapped out of his trance and looked around, the snake had slithered out of the hole in the ceiling.
"See? It's gone. It didn't attack us as long as we remained calm." He said, trying to calm her down. Maria let out a relieved sigh as she started to ease her breathing. "Maria! Alberto! Where are you guys!?" It was Giulia calling them, "Giulia! We're in here!" Alberto shouted as he banged on the door. Giulia ran over to the small shack and unlocked the door and swung it open letting Alberto and Maria free from the cramped space.
"How the hell did y'all lock yourselves in there?" Giulia asked,
"Ask Guido and Ciccio." Maria snarled as she started walking back to the barn,
"Santa mozzarella, not those two idioti's."
"I'm afraid so." Alberto said,
"Can we please just forget about this and head back to the barn? I just wanna get my show over with and go home." Maria said and stormed off into the barn.
"What's with her? Did something happen?" Giulia asked,
"I'll tell you later." Alberto said as they both entered the barn.
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"All right all you cowboys and girls! The star attraction has arrived!" The announcer roared as the men in the center crowd started howling and whistling. "The desert's flower, the flower's poison, Ms. Rosetta!" The announcer introduced as Maria stepped onto the stage at the microphone. She started bowing and blowing kisses in all sorts of directions then turned towards the band behind her on the stage. "Hit the beat, boys." She said, and the band started playing.
((Song: "Ex's and Oh's" by Elle King))
The lights dimmed and and the spotlights and limelight's were all on Maria as she started tapping her feet to the rhythm of the beat and started to sing.
"Well I had me a boy, turned him into a man. Showed him all the things that he didn't understand. Whoa, then I let him go. Now there's on in California who's been cursin' my name, 'cause I found me a better lover in the UK. Hey, hey, until I made my getaway." She danced around the stage as if she was putting on a little play as she flirted with some of the band members.
"One, two, three, they gonna run back to me. 'Cause I'm the best baby that they never gotta keep. One, two, three, they gonna run back to me. They always wanna come, but they never wanna leave. Ex's and the oh, oh, oh's they haunt me like ghosts they want me to make 'em all. They won't let go. Ex's and oh's." She was at the front edge of the stage as a group of men lifted her off the stage and onto the ground with the rest of the crowd.
"I get high, and I love to get low, so the hearts keep breaking, and the heads just roll. You know that's how the story goes. One, two, three, they gonna run back to me, climbing over mountains and a-sailing over seas." She walked through the crowd and danced a little with Giulia before heading over to Alberto. She slyly walked towards him and pulled his shirt while singing, "One, two, three, they gonna run back to me, they always wanna come, but they never wanna leave!" As she pushed him away and started dancing towards the stage again, Alberto gave a sly smirk when she tugged his shirt. He watched as she singed and danced to the music, she had a very powerful voice, it reminded him of the little lullaby she was singing earlier. Somehow, only that song played instead of the one she was singing now, Alberto pictured the spotlights as the dawn's rays of light just like how it was in the kitchen, like she was an angel. He then remembered feeling her skin. Her skin was so soft and smooth, same thing for her hair, it was like it was silk. And her scent.
"Alberto? Alberto!" Giulia yelled snapping Alberto back into reality.
"Huh? What?" He said,
"Dude, you were dazing off. And your eyes were closing. Are you getting sleepy?" Giulia asked,
"What? No, I'm fine." He said adjusting himself as he turned his direction back to Maria. She was finished with her song and was stepping off the stage.
"Ohhh, I see." Giulia said while giving a wide smirk,
"What?" Alberto asked,
"You're in love~"
"What!? No I'm not!"
"Then why won't you stop staring at Maria?"
Alberto paused for a moment then quickly turned his head while blushing, "It's nothing."
"Ha! You are!"
"Psh, so what if I am? It's none of your business!" Alberto said as he left through the front doors of the barn and leaned against the walls outside. "I need a fucking breather." He sighed. "Is Giulia giving you a hard time?" Maria joked, "Naw, she's just being annoying as usual. I'm surprised Luca can tolerate her. No offense." Alberto said as he walked up to Maria, "So, what's this 'fun' thing you promised we'd do?" She asked. Alberto gave her a sly smile.
They got their horses from the stables and started riding them out into the desert. "Where are we going?" Maria asked, "It's a surprise!" Alberto said. The rode for a while until they were on a large hill as they got off their horses. "Close your eyes." Alberto said, Maria smiled and did as she was told and covered her eyes as Alberto navigated her towards the edge. "Okay, you can look now." He said. Maria opened her eyes and was amazed by the view she was seeing. It was a view of the whole town and in the distance was her ranch and other homes. "Whoa, you can see everything from up here!" She said, amazed. Then she heard a 'click' sound and a bright flash appeared in the corner of her eye.
"One for the memories." Alberto said, he was holding a polaroid camera and gave the photo to Maria. It was a picture of her back turned while watching the view.
"You missed." She said
"What do you mean?" Alberto asked,
Maria grabbed the camera and took a selfie then gave the photo to Alberto, it was a picture of her facing the camera smiling as there was an amazing view in the background. "Okay, your turn." She smiled and pointed the camera to Alberto. He smiled while posing for the camera as the light flashed and a photo popped out through the slot. Maria shook it a few times as the picture came into view, "I'm keeping this one." She smiled, "Oh, wait!" Alberto said as he grabbed the camera and set on a decent height rock and clicked a button then ran back to Maria, they both posed as the camera flashed and another photo popped out. They both took a look at it, "Nice." Alberto said, Maria grabbed the camera and lifted it above her and Alberto's head, "Smile." She said and clicked the button as another bright flash appeared with another photo. Maria looked at the photo and laughed, She was smiling while Alberto looked like he was either confused or staring oddly at you. "I look fucking creepy, let's take it again." He said, "Nah, I'm keeping this one." She laughed, "C'mon I look horrible in that one!" He said as he tried to snatch the photo from her hand but she pulled it away. She accidentally tripped on a rock and nearly fell off the cliff if it wasn't for Alberto and his quick reflexes. "Okay, I think we should start heading back." He said lifting Maria back on her feet, "Hehe, Yeah." Maria said, nervously laughing. The walked back down the hill and got back on their horses and rode them back to town.
They put the horses back in the stables for Giulia to pick them up and return them to the ranch. When Maria got off her horse, she was stumbling a bit. "Are you okay?" Alberto asked, "Y-Yeah, I'm fine. Let's get the car and drive back home real quick, I need to get something." She said as she started stumbling towards the car like she was having trouble walking, "Here, I'll help you." Alberto said as he quickly and easily swept Maria off her feet and carried her bridal style towards the car, "I'll drive you home." He said as he placed her in the passenger's seat then walked to the other side of the car and sat in the driver's seat,
"Alberto, you don't have to do this." Maria said,
"You're in pain, your right leg is hurting. It's fine, I got this." He said as he started the car's engine and began backing up in the driveway and drove off back to the ranch. He turned on the radio hoping some music could sooth Maria. He looked over at Maria, she had a sad expression on her face.
"Is everything okay?" He asked,
"Huh? Yeah, its just that..." She trailed off for a moment "...No one's ever done something like this for me, except my dad."
"Because I'm not a selfless bastard like all those other Gringo's at the barn."
"What do you mean?"
"You've been limping like that since you got off the stage. I even noticed you tired of the other men trying to force you to 'entertain' them more. Maria, you shouldn't push yourself to make them happy."
"I know, I just..." She trailed off again, she couldn't argue with Alberto's answers. He was right.
Alberto sighed, "I'm sorry, I don't mean to be ordering you around or anything, I'm just worried about you, I care about you and your health more than your shows."
"Really?" Maria asked, a bit surprised
Alberto looked at how her expression changed to what he just said to her and blushed hard and quickly turned his head back on the road. Shit. Why did I say that out loud? He thought. Maria turned away blushing, but smiled a bit.
They stopped the car in front of her house and hopped out of the vehicle. Alberto was about to pick her up again when she stopped him, "It's fine, I'll walk the rest of the way inside, it's not that far for me." She said, "Are you sure?" He asked, "Positive." Maria said as she limped all the way inside the house towards the kitchen with Alberto close behind her to make sure she doesn't trip and fall. It was dark in her home, Maria only turned on what seemed to be little nightlights in the outlets on the kitchen counters. She dug through some drawers until she found some gel. She started taking deep breaths as she tried to jump onto the counter, instead Alberto picked her up and placed her on the counter. "Thanks." Maria said, "Where does it hurt?" Alberto asked as he kneeled down to her legs that were dangling over the edge of the kitchen counter, "It doesn't exactly hurt, just weak from walking so much." She said. Alberto took her boot off, then her sock to reveal a red tattoo on her foot, he lifted the leg part of her jeans over her knee, "Slowly." Maria said as she hissed through the pain, "Sorry." Alberto responded as he started lifting it further slowly. He then realized, it wasn't a tattoo on her leg. "What the hell happened?" He asked looking up at Maria, his eyes searching for an answer. The red 'tattoo' was like a red slithery trail leading up above her knee with two dark spots on it.
"It's why I'm afraid of snakes. When I was little girl, I was playing in the tall grass. I didn't notice that there was one right behind me. As you can see from the red marks, it slithered up my leg, almost crushed it, and bit me right where these two dark spots are. I was so scared I thought I was going to die, or get my leg amputated. Thank god, that didn't happen." Alberto looked back down at the red mark, it seriously looked like a tattoo but with scales carved into it. Alberto applied the gel on the red snake mark gently then stood up.
"Does it still hurt?" He asked,
"Not anymore." She smiled while looking at Alberto's vivid green eyes, "I rarely see anyone with eyes like yours." She said placing a gentle hand on his cheek.
"Me too. I never seen blue eyes like yours before." Alberto said, then looked at her covered right eye. "I heard Giulia mention something about you covering your right eye. Why?"
Maria sighed, "I don't like it. People keep making fun of it. Calling me two-faced, an eye infection, and franken-eyed monster." She said while turning away.
Alberto moved the hair that was covering her right eye and saw that it was a very vivid and vibrant purple, "Doesn't look like it to me." He smiled, "What you have is, I think Giulia called it Heterochromia?"
"Hmph, doesn't sound special." Maria said as she turned away again
Alberto lifted her head again, "I think it's special. I think you're special."
Maria smiled warmly at Alberto, "Thanks." She blushed. Just as Alberto was about to put her hair back in place, he noticed something on her neck above her scarf. He looked closer at it and viewed what looked like three claw marks on the side of her neck. "Oh, you see them, don't you? The claw marks?" She chuckled, "Yeah, I was swimming in the lake when I wasn't suppose to and something attacked me... On both sides." She said taking the scarf off and revealing the marks on her neck. She chuckled again, "Yeah, I know, I was a pretty clumsy, trouble-making kid when I was young." "I'm just happy it didn't cut your throat out. Otherwise you wouldn't be here." Alberto said as if he was sad or worried. Maria placed another gentle hand on his cheek, "Hey, it's fine. I'm okay." She smiled, Alberto leaned into her soft palm and brushed some hair away from her face as he caressed her cheek.
"You really are beautiful." He said, smiling warmly,
"You too, huh? You're pretty handsome for an out-of-towner." She smiled. They didn't realize how close they were to each other's faces as their scents pulled them into a passionate kiss. Then the kiss started to turn into taste as their tongues connected and started tasting the others taste. Maria's taste was sweet yet sour while Alberto's was sour with just a little sweetness. Alberto's hand travelled down her back to her hips as he pulled her closer towards his hips and started grinding against her. Maria was too into the sensation to care as she deepened the kiss, letting her tongue enter Alberto's mouth and explore his corners as Alberto did the same. Alberto began to grind a bit harder which Maria got a bit too excited and bit Alberto's neck. Alberto stopped, a bit shocked and surprised by what she just did. Maria snapped out of her fantasy and released Alberto's neck.
"I-I'm so sorry! I-I don't know what got into me!" She was a blushing mess,
"So you like it rough, huh?" Alberto smirked, his voice seductive
"I-I Just..."
Alberto bit Maria's neck, he could feel her breath shaking as she trembled under his touch. He then whispered in her ear, "If you wanna get frisky, then by all means, don't let me stop you." He growled which made Maria get chills and thrills all over her body.
"M-Maybe later. C'mon, let's head back to the others." She said as she hopped down from the counter and put her sock and boot on. After a few hour drive, they caught up with Massimo and the others. "And where have you two been?" Giulia asked as she gave a smirk, "I said that's none of your business, she just needed to relax and get away from the crowd." Alberto said, "It's getting late, let's head home." Massimo said as he, Luca, and Giulia hop into the truck, "Alberto? Aren't you coming?" Massimo asked, "I'll ride with Maria on this one." Alberto said as he got into the car and started the engine and drove right next to Massimo's truck. They drove for another few hours back to the ranch, Alberto mostly had an annoyed expression cause Giulia keeps making faces at him cause he's 'in love' with Maria. "Just ignore her, Alberto. It's fine." Maria chuckled, Alberto sighed, "How's your leg doing?" He asked, "Its fine now. Thanks again." She smiled.
Alberto dropped Maria at her house and parked her car in the same spot as it was in the shack and they both hopped out and locked the shack. Maria's dad was on the porch watching the whole thing. "Oh, hey dad. I didn't see you there." Maria said, "So, he can drive too? Even though you can drive just fine?" He mocked, "Her leg was hurting, I'm trying to let her get some rest on the leg." Alberto said, "Which leg?" Mr. Wilson asked, "The right one, with the snake mark. She can't walk that much otherwise her leg becomes weak." Mr. Wilson stood up from the bench on the porch and walked up to Alberto, "Who decided you could do that? You didn't have to, she could just do it herself." He asked, "Yeah, you're right, I didn't have to, but I did. For her. Not for me." Alberto and Wilson stared daggers at each other, none of them flinched. This kid got some guts. He may be the right one, just need to test him further to prove it. Mr. Wilson thought as he scoffed and went back inside. "I'm so sorry about my dad." Maria said, "No, it's fine. It seems like I need to do a bit more if I'm gonna gain his trust." Alberto sighed, "Try not to overdo yourself." She said as she walked up to Alberto and kissed his cheek, "Goodnight, Alberto. See you tomorrow." She smiled as she went inside her house.
Massimo brought Giulia, Luca, and Alberto back home. They placed the leftover food from the party into the fridge as Massimo prepped for dinner. Alberto was in his room changing into a white tank top and some basketball shorts while staring out the window viewing Maria's house. He smiled warmly as pictures of her danced in his head, which reminded him. He took the photos out and looked at each of them smiling warmly. Massimo then called everyone down for dinner and Alberto quickly hid the photos in his drawer next to his bed. After dinner, Alberto started doing the dishes, his purple scaled hand showing as soon as the water touched his skin. After her was done with dishes, he stared at his clawed hands worriedly. Should he tell Maria? Or should he wait till the end of the summer? Would she like him still or be scared of him? So many things raced around Alberto's mind until Giulia tapped his shoulder and snapped him out of his trance. "You okay, bro?" She asked, "Y-Yeah, I'm fine." He said as he grabbed a towel and dried his hands as they turned back into human hands. Giulia sighed, "I know you're still upset about keeping this a secret, but just give it time-" Alberto stopped her, "I know, Giulia. I heard this conversation a thousand times." Alberto snarled as he went upstairs back into his room. "Give him some time, Giulietta." Massimo said as he placed the leftovers in the fridge, Giulia sighed and looked back to where Alberto disappeared. This is going to be a long summer... She thought.
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Maria finished taking a nice, relaxing, warm shower. She hopped out and covered herself in a clean towel as she walked towards the bathroom mirror and wiped the fogginess away to reveal her reflection. She was startled by her reflection as she was taken a step back. Her reflection view an indigo colored sea monster with pierced purple eyes, large, sharp teeth, sharp claws with webbed hands, a long large tail with pointed dorsal fins, there were pointed dorsal fins on her forearms and forelegs, and her 'ears' were fins, and the claw marks on her neck were gills. She started panicking, but then remembered what her dad always told her, "It's just the bacteria in the water making you delusional." She sighed, trying to ease her shaky breaths. She quickly dried herself using the towel that was wrapped around her and the indigo scales and fins disappeared. She returned to the mirror and smiled, "See? A normal human being." She said to herself as she got dressed into some night clothes and got out the bathroom.
"Hey, sweetie. I made your favorite! Shrimp fettuccini!" Mr. Wilson said cheerfully,
"Thanks, daddy." Maria smiled as she sat at the dinner table across from her dad.
Wilson noticed her facial expression, "What's wrong, dear?"
"N-Nothing... It's fine."
He sighed, "Maria, it's an illusion by the water. You're fine."
"I know, but, it feels so real every time-" He quickly cut her off,
"But its not. And that's how it always will be." He said taking a bite out of his pasta
Maria nodded and straightened herself up.
"Hurry and eat your food before it gets cold." Mr. Wilson said,
Maria nodded and started eating her food. After dinner, she went upstairs to her room and layed in her bed, "Remember, just yell if you need anything." Said Wilson as he kissed his daughter goodnight and left her room. Maria sighed and turned her head to the window on her left side viewing Alberto's house just across from hers. Thinking of Alberto made all of her problems melt away as she smiled thinking about him. She took out one of the photos and smiled at the one Alberto didn't like, "See you in the morning." She smiled and kissed the picture then placed it in her drawer with the others and went to sleep. She could still feel Alberto's soft and warm touch on her skin.
Chapter 4: We're Runnin' Wild As The Wildfire Spreads
Chapter Text
It was currently 2:08 in the morning, Alberto couldn't sleep for some reason. Probably the heat of the desert. Alberto got out of bed with a yellow tank top and some brown shorts and went downstairs to the kitchen. He grabbed a small glass cup from the cabinets and started filling it with water from the sink until something caught his eye. He looked out the kitchen window and saw two familiar men walking across the yard. Alberto put the cup of water down on the counter and put his boots on and went after the men thinking they were up to something. He followed the men to a very familiar house as the men hid behind a big tree.
Alberto walked up to them, "What are you two doin'?" He asked, making both men jump two feet off the ground
"Oh, it's just you, Alberto." Said one of the men with a sigh of relief,
"Larry? Tommy? What the hell are y'all doing here?" Alberto asked,
"We'll show you." Said Larry as he gave Alberto a pair of binoculars,
"Look up at the second-story window."
Alberto lifted the binoculars in the direction he said and looked through them to see Maria looking at herself in a mirror, "Maria?"
"Yes sir, she does this every day, every time." Tommy said
Alberto continued to watch Maria through the binoculars and saw her starting to untie the knot on her purple flannel shirt as she flings it over her shoulders and takes it off. "Is... Is she undressing?!" Alberto asked
"Yep, and here's the best part we get to see very clearly." Said Larry as he stared intensely at Maria. Alberto held up the binoculars once again and watched as Maria unclipped her bra and throw it off her body showing a clear view from the mirror of her exposed breasts.
"Never gets old." Larry chuckled,
"How much milk do you think she has in those jugs of hers?" Asked Tommy with a mischievous grin on his face,
"YOU TWO ARE FUCKING DISGUSTING!" Alberto yelled hitting both of them with the binoculars,
"Whoa! Calm down, buddy! We're just joking!" Larry said, taking a few steps back,
"Joking? Joking!? YOU CALL WATCHING A YOUNG LADY STRIP DOWN THROUGH THE WINDOW WITH BINOCULARS A FUCKING JOKE!? Y'ALL AREN'T TRYING TO BLACKMAIL HER, ARE YOU!?" Alberto shouted,
"Dude, shh! She'll hear you!" Tommy said in a whisper,
"I DON'T GIVE A SHIT IF SHE OR HER DADDY HEARS ME! YOU TWO SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES! HAVE YOU TWO NO PRIVACY FOR A WOMAN!?"
"Guys, guys! She's watching us!" Larry said as everyone looked up at the window and saw Maria covering her chest with a towel and looking down at them.
"Shit! SCATTER!" Tommy said as the two boys started running away, "I BETTER NOT CATCH YOU PERVERTS DOING THIS AGAIN, OR HER FATHER AIN'T GONNA BE THE LEAST OF YOUR WORRIES!" Alberto snapped. He sighed and looked back up at Maria's window, it looked like she was laughing. Alberto sighed again and then started walking back to his house. He tried his best to be quiet while walking in through the door as he took his boots off and went back to the sink and drank his cup of water, then another, then another.
After he went back to sleep, the sun rose and shined all across the land. Alberto woke to the blinding of the sun's light as it peered in his window, he got up and closed it as much as he could till there was no light shining on his face. "You're still asleep?" Giulia asked standing in his doorway with a white and orange striped T-shirt and some ripped blue jeans. "Didn't get much sleep last night." Alberto yawned, "That's what you get for ditching us last night. C'mon, Maria made us some more breakfast." Giulia said as she started heading downstairs, "W-W-Wait! She's here!?" Alberto asked a little scared, especially after last night, "Yes? Why?" Giulia asked, "N-Nothing! I just didn't expect her to come back here and cook for us again." Alberto followed Giulia downstairs to the kitchen where he saw Maria cooking some pancakes, bacon, and eggs.
"'Bout time you woke up." She said placing the plates of food on the table where Luca and Massimo were, "Thanks for protecting my privacy last night." Said Maria as she walked up to Alberto and handed him his breakfast while placing a kiss on his cheek. "What do you mean? What did he do?" Giulia asked while eyeing Alberto. Oh boy, here we go.
"He caught two peeping tom's watching me from my room's window strip down into some night clothes." She smiled, "And boy was he cursing them out, even with some fancy words."
"Oooh, fancy? And what words were those?" Giulia teased,
"I remember one was 'y'all have no privacy for a woman' or something. I didn't know your brother was a gentleman." She smirked while placing her hands on her hips.
"Oh really? So you're a gentleman now? Since when did that happen?" Giulia teased with a smirk on her face. "Just so you know, he's not always a gentleman. He's sometimes a bold, cocky, misfit."
"What? No, I'm not!" Alberto blushed,
"Yeah, sure."
"Alright, you two. That's enough, your food is getting cold." Massimo said. Alberto and Giulia took a seat at the table across from each other, Giulia kept making faces at him. "Giulia, quit teasing the man. Besides, he's not the only misfit that teases everyone about vomiting after eating only one plate of pasta." Maria grinned as she sat down next to Alberto with her plate of food. "Wha-? Hey!" Giulia yelled as everyone else just laugh and giggle. "Luca! Who's side are you on?" Giulia said, a little upset, "S-Sorry, Giulia." Luca said trying his hardest to hold back the echoes of laughter escaping his throat.
After breakfast, Giulia decided to wash the remaining dishes to calm her nerves. "When you're done with your pity party, can you drive me and Luca to the nearest store?" Alberto asked while putting on his cowboy hat as he was dressed in his yellow shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of brown boots. "Why?" Giulia asked. Alberto pointed to his skin, "Oh, right..." Giulia said as she dried her hands, "Can I come with? There's a few things I need to get for my art supply." Maria asked, she was dressed in a white tank top that said, "Summer Vibes." While her purple flannel was wrapped around her waist and ripped blue jeans with some ankle cowgirl boots. "Uhh, sure." Giulia said with a small smile, "Great! I'll be waiting in the truck." Maria said as she walked out the door. After they cleaned themselves up and got properly dressed, Giulia, Luca, and Alberto got into the truck, Maria was in the back seat. Alberto sat next to Maria while Luca sat in the passenger's seat next to Giulia. They drove for a while until they reached the town. "Whoa, I didn't expect this many people to be in town!" Maria said, "You're just now noticing? Don't you ever come to town?" Giulia asked, "Sometimes, because of how overprotective my father is. But I do work at the bar down here as a bartender. And usually, when I do come to town, my dad would be the one to drop me off at my job." "You work at a bar?" Alberto asked, "Yeah, that one right there." Maria said pointing to a bar on his left side. "Crazy Q's? The hell kind of a name is that for a bar?" Giulia cringed as she parked the truck at a local store. "I dunno, it's just what the owner decided to name it." Maria said, "Alberto, you and Luca stay here in the car. Me and Maria will go in and get the supplies." Giulia said, "What? Why?" Alberto complained, "I would like some cousin quality time since you've been hogging her to yourself. You're lucky I didn't throw that attack at you at the table, so keep your mouth shut and stay here." Giulia whispered while in Alberto's face. "Alright! We'll be right back!" Giulia said with glee, her expression changing from a threat to a happy smile.
"That doesn't mean you have the threaten me about it, sheesh." Alberto mumbled,
"Well, at least you and I can hang out for a bit," Luca said, "So, uh, what have you and Maria been doing together? I've never seen you so attached to anyone except Machiavelli."
"Promise you won't tell Giulia or anyone?" Alberto said,
Luca nodded.
"Okay..." He took a deep breath "So, apparently Giulia's right. I have a crush on Maria." He said blushing
"Whoa, really? Have you told her yet?" Luca asked,
"No, not yet at least. I wanna make a good impression, and not the so-called 'bold cocky bastard' Giulia mentioned cause I'm not like that! I leave those words to the fucking Visconti boy."
Luca started rolling up the windows and ducked down a bit, "What? What is it?" Alberto asked, "He's right behind you." Luca said, his voice a bit shaky. Alberto turned around and looked outside the car's window to see Ercole and his minions walking up to the car. "Shit!" He said and quickly ducked down.
"She's not in here, I don't see her." Said Guido
"No, but I do see some live bait inside." Ercole said as he started knocking on the truck's window, "Hey, Ponyboy. Long time no see." Ercole nodded his head for one of his minions to the truck's door as they started picking the lock. Ercole opened the door and pulled Alberto out of his seat and pinned him to the truck, "Hey, stop!" Luca cried, "Wait your turn, picoletto." Ercole hissed, "So, I hear you're hanging out with my desert fruit, Ponyboy." "Who? Your sister? Oh no wait, I think it's your mother." Alberto spat out. Ercole took a swing at Alberto and punched his face causing a bruise on his cheek and a bloody nose. "Listen to me, and I want you to listen very closely. This is now my town number one," He punched Alberto in the gut as Alberto started coughing from the pain of the blow, "And number two, that's my flower you're sniffing around with! She belongs to me!" Ercole growled, "Yeah, well, I don't think she's your type. I mean, have you seen yourself in the mirror lately?" Alberto chuckled, "You think you have a shot with her?" Ercole laughed, "Oh, how I wish that you could if it weren't for the freak of nature you are! Do you really think that she'll love a grotesque monster like you?" He said grabbing Alberto's collar and pulling him towards his face.
"Ercole! Boss! She's right there!" Ciccio whispered as he was pointing behind them. Maria was walking out the store's doorway and walked towards them. "Ah, my beautiful flower-" Ercole said as he started to walk over to Maria and embrace her in a hug when all of a sudden Maria swung her fist hard across Ercole's face breaking his nose, and grabbed his shirt, and threw him down on the ground. "I catch you messing with my cousin's brother ever again, I'll feed you to the gators down by the river and watch as they chew you up and spit your shit back out." Maria growled. That threat sent shivers through Luca and Alberto. "Wait, sweetheart! I can explain!" Ercole pleaded, "I am not your sweetheart! I am not your desert flower! And I sure as hell don't belong to you! Yeah, I heard everything you said to Alberto. You're lucky I ain't sending you to my father's department so he can throw your sorry ass in jail." Maria hissed as she slowly walked closer to Ercole who was instinctively backing up, "S-Signora! C'mon! You can't seriously be attracted to this freakshow!" Ercole chuckled, "Actually, I find him a very fine young man who's got bigger balls of steel than you do." That insult shocked everyone, even Alberto. "I choose who I decide to be my mate. Not a pig like you." She said grabbing his collar again and bringing him to her face only to slam him back down to the ground, "Get the fuck out of here before I regret sparing you, or before I'll kill you myself." She growled. Ercole stood back on his feet and scoffed, "Sure, go ahead and date the freak! I bet when the waterworks start you'll see his real horrific, disgusting, true colors." Ercole snarled as he and his minions back off and ran away.
Alberto and Luca were stunned. Even Luca knew not to mess with her when she gets angry. "Damn, you're a fucking dynamite gal." Alberto said, dazed, blushing hard, and with his jaw opened. Maria walked up to Alberto, "I, um, I-I didn't mean-!" Alberto panicked, worried he might get more than a bruised cheek and bloody nose, "Hold still." Maria said as she grabbed Alberto's face and held it still. She pulled out a napkin and gently cleaned up Alberto's bloody nose, "Hold your head back like this with the napkin on your nose for the bleeding to stop." Alberto tilted his head back while the napkin was in his nose, "Th-Thanks." He said, "We'll put some ice on that bruise when we get back home, okay?" Maria smiled warmly, "Y-Yeah... Okay." Alberto said, still dazed.
"What happened?" Giulia asked coming out of the store with a load of bags full of stuff and supplies, "That dumb jock, Ercole, attacked your brother. Don't worry, I gave him a warning for me not to grant him a death wish." Maria said cracking her knuckles and glaring in the direction Ercole disappeared to. Giulia groaned, "I forgot that jackass has a fucking summer vacay home down here." She said putting the bags in the trunk. They all got back in the truck as Giulia started the engine and drove back to the ranch. Massimo was prepping lunch when the gang entered through the door, "Ah, you're just in time! I made some-!" Massimo froze and almost dropped the food on the floor as his eyes stared intensely at Alberto. "Alberto? What happened?" Massimo said worriedly as he placed the food down on the table and walked to Alberto, "Ercole." Giulia hissed as she and Alberto sat at the table while Maria got the first aid kit, "Yeah, he tried to show up and say that he 'claims me' then starts beating up Alberto just cause he's jealous I'm with another man." "Another man? Who are you with?" Massimo asked. Giulia gave a sly smirk and pointed to Alberto, Massimo's eyes widened. "I-If that's okay with you, of course! I mean, I would ask you first at least!" Alberto stuttered with his face all red, "Will you? Will we? Should we? I mean-" Alberto stuttered, Maria smiled, "You're interesting and funny, to say the least." She said applying alcohol to a piece of tissue. "Really?" Alberto asked surprised.
Giulia busted out laughing, "Aww, that's cute! My big older brother finally has a girlfriend after all the other rejections!" She giggled,
"Other rejections?" Maria asked,
"Yeah, he would try to flirt with a girl and they either slap him, pepper spray him, or yell in his face!"
"Wow, I feel bad." Maria said gently dabbing Alberto's bruised cheek,
"Gee, thanks for the sympathy."
"Not for you, for them other girls cause of how they treat a sweet guy like you. You wanna know the real reason they did those stuff to you?" Maria said as she lifted her leg on a box as if she was standing over Alberto interrogating him,
"Why?"
"Cause they like you, but since you don't have money, they don't like you cause that's all that those types of women want: Men who are rich and famous just so that they steal their money for their own needs. Greedy, selfish, bratty, pretty girls who think they can outsmart a man with their 'slim bodies,' ew, gross!" She gagged, "That's why you don't see me hang out with people a lot cause that's all you see what people want nowadays. Boys want girls just for sex, girls want boys just so that they can have a slave and drain them of their money to get what they want. Here are some words of advice: Money doesn't solve the world's problems. They won't help 'fix' your broken relationship, money can't buy happiness, and it can't give you a better life."
"Maria, you're doing that 'venting' thing again." Giulia said, tapping Maria's shoulder,
"Oh! Shoot, sorry! I get a little carried away sometimes." Maria chuckled nervously,
"Uh, that's fine." Alberto said, fazed a bit by how Maria loomed over him like she was about to do something to him.
Maria finished tending to Alberto's bruised cheek and bloody nose, "Try not to get yourself killed while I'm at work." She said as she handed Giulia the first aid kit and the bloody cloth and headed out the door.
"So, how does it feel to finally have a girlfriend?" Giulia teased,
"She is one hell of a gal. I'm definitely in love." Alberto said, still dazed by what she did to Ercole earlier, "I must be the luckiest man alive to strike a gold jackpot!" Alberto hasn't moved from his spot on the chair, he still had his head was still tilted up at the ceiling like he was daydreaming. "Uh, is he okay?" Luca asked, "He looks like he's in shock."
"He looks like he's having the best dream of his life the way I see it." Giulia said,
"The way she moves, how she acts tough, she's strong as hell, wow she's amazing." Alberto said, dreamingly.
"Yep, he's under a love spell." Giulia said sarcastically,
"A love spell?" Luca asked, a bit worried
"Relax, it's a figure of speech. It's not real." Giulia said leaving the kitchen.
"Alberto? Are you okay?" Luca asked shaking him,
"Huh? What? Oh, y-yeah, I'm fine, I'm fine." Alberto said snapping back to reality, "W-Where's Maria?"
"She went to her job at the bar." Giulia called from the living room,
Alberto looked outside the window, "It's nighttime already?" He asked.
"No shit, Sherlock. It took us hours for your nose to stop bleeding and for your bruised cheek's swelling to go down." Giulia said, peeking behind the wall in the living room.
"Oh, right." Alberto looked outside at her house and then at the barn with his and her horses. "I'm gonna go and check on ol' Nessie for a moment." He said quickly standing up and rushing out the door.
"He must've missed his horse." Luca said,
"Luca, he's not going to see that critter." Giulia said,
"He's not?"
"Look outside."
Luca and Giulia looked out the window and saw Alberto in the truck doing his hair in his usual braid and spraying himself in cologne, then putting on his cowboy hat and starting the truck's engines and driving off. "He's going to see Maria at the bar." Giulia said. "Oh... Oh..." Luca said realizing the situation, "He better pray that Ercole doesn't mess up his date, cause I'm not gonna be a part of whatever's gonna happen to him. He's on his own this time." Giulia said putting her hands up and walking away. "I hope he'll be okay." Luca said, a little worried.