He looks personally attacked. “My nonna would faint if she heard you say that.”
“Tell your nonna I say hi,” I smile innocently.
“Tell her yourself when she haunts you,” he says, completely serious.
I burst out laughing.
Matt plops down on the couch. “Well, a little birdie told me you guys won,” he says, clearly changing the subject before Luca decides to exile me from Italy altogether.
“Oh my God, yes!” Yana lights up instantly, eyes sparkling. “It was insane. In the last round, Tilly dove for the ball, and Zara spiked it so hard it echoed. The crowd went silent, and timeslowed for a second, then suddenly everyone went wild. I swear I could hear my heart beating louder than the cheers.”
As she describes the play, her hands flail around like she’s reliving the moment. Matt leans back, laughing at the funny view.
Luca listens quietly, nodding along, eyes flicking toward me.
I sit beside him, curling my legs up on the sofa, adding in some details that Yana skips.
The laughter fills the room like sunlight.
It feels like breathing again after holding my breath for too long.
I didn’t even realize how much I’ve missed this.
The apartment are my people.
My whole heart.
I look at Luca and smile.
“Ok, stop staring at us like we’re a cheesy sitcom reunion,” Yana says, tossing a pillow at me.
“Sorry,” I laugh as it hits me in the face. “Just missed my weird little family.”
“Weird?” Matt gasps. “I’m perfectly normal.”
“That’s literally the biggest lie I’ve ever heard,” Zara says dryly.
“Wait, guys, I just remembered.” Yana jumps up and disappears into the kitchen for a second.
When she comes back, she has a massive tub of ice cream in her hand. “I bought ice cream! Cookies and cream, strawberry cheesecake, mint choc chip, and vanilla bean.” She reads from each tub.
“Yes!” Matt says instantly, already halfway off the couch. “I needed this. I had no cheat days, and it was torture!”
“Yeah, I agree with the guy.” Luca grunts. “I’ll go for the spoons.
When he gets back, he hands one to each of us, and we dig into the tubs at the same time.
Matt grabs the remote and starts scrolling through our Netflix.
Once we agree on a show, we lie back, and Matt presses play.
I look at Luca and lock my eyes on his when I realize he was already looking at me.
“I really missed you, T,” he whispers.
“I really missed you, too,” I whisper back, then wrap my arms around his torso.
He freezes for a second before laughing under his breath and hugging me back. His hoodie smells like laundry detergent and him.
