It isn’t fair. Not at all. I hate how obviously attractive he is, hate how easy it is to seeexactlywhy Sophia threw herself at him.
"If you came here just to make me feel even more like shit, Gio, you can leave," I say, avoiding his gaze. "It’s not funny. Not this time."
Gio rolls his eyes, looking annoyed. "You really think I ditched the hot Spanish guy just to come and mess with you? Believe me, I had better things to do."
I swallow, feeling suddenly small again, and stare numbly out at the calm sea. Gio’s eyes move toward the wine bottle beside me.
"Wow," he smirks, nudging it lightly with his foot. "Looks like someone’s had enough fun for tonight."
"Shut up," I mutter.
Gio ignores me, reaching down to pick up the bottle, swirling it briefly before taking a sip. His eyebrows rise slightly as he tastes it.
"Hm, not bad," he teases lightly. "Pretty mild stuff though, Ravioli. How are you even drunk off this?"
I glance at him sideways, feeling a small stab of irritation. "Why are you drinking anyway? Aren’t you driving?"
He shrugs, passing the bottle casually back to me. "Walked here," he replies simply. "No bike tonight."
I take another sip, feeling my throat burn, my head spin.
He keeps staring at me with that confused look, like he wants to say something, or maybe do something, but at the same time wants to do absolutely nothing and leave me to rot in peace.
"You saw the texts, didn’t you?" he asks quietly, already knowing the answer.
I nod slowly, my eyes fixed on the gentle waves rolling onto the shore. I don’t even know what to expect from him now.
A joke? A pity look? Silence? All of it feels terrible.
Suddenly, Gio moves closer, stepping directly in front of me, blocking my view of the sea.
His eyes are almost hesitant now, something I have rarely seen before. He takes a shaky breath, and whispers almost to himself."Can’t fucking believe I’m doing this."
Before I can ask what he means, Gio wraps his arms around my neck, pulling me into a careful, awkward hug.
He actually pulls me into a hug.
A hug.
Out of everything that could’ve happened, a joke, an insult, a "wow bro that sucks," literally anything, that is the last thing I expected from him.
My heart? Yeah, it goes insane. I freeze completely, unsure how to respond, my arms hanging uselessly by my sides.
"For fuck’s sake, Rava," Gio mutters, grabbing my wrists roughly and forcing my arms around his waist. "Hug me back, you idiot."
My head is spinning.
I hold onto him stiffly, barely breathing, terrified he can feel the way my heart races uncontrollably.
"We are never talking about this. Ever. This moment dies with us," he says, and for some reason, I laugh.
Because if this hug is going to be buried in a grave forever, I might as well enjoy it while it exists.
So I hug him back. Properly.
And God… I didn’t realize how badly I needed a hug today. Gio’s hand rises gently to my hair, softly brushing through it, surprising me again with tenderness I absolutely didn’t know he had.
"Don’t get any ideas," he murmurs against my ear. "We’re not friends, and I’m still gonna mess with you whenever I want. But what happened today, was fucked up, even by my standards."
