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“Come on, Gio. For her eighteenth birthday, you gave her a car. I gave her a fucking teddy bear and my cologne. Do you remember how hard I worked around here to make money for that Sidekick she wanted? Last year, I gave her a digger I made. You gave her a diamond ankle bracelet.
“You’re getting ready to take over the world, I’m nobody in all of that. My father was killed being who I’m trying to be. What future do I have? I have no family, no real money until my trust kicks in and that’s still nothing next to what you two have. I have nothing and now, I don’t have her.”
“Jace,” he chokes out.
“What?”
“I never knew that’s how you felt. Yeah, I know you want a family but all that other shit. You’re not a nobody. I can’t do this without you.
“Our money has always been yours. I thought…she loved those gifts. I thought you were thinking of shit she’d cherish because it came from your heart. I didn’t know you were saving for that Sidekick. I thought you just wanted to help Nonno out and he always gives us money for doing shit. I didn’t think about it. I never thought about the money.”
“Because you don’t have to worry about the money.”
“Bro, you’ve loved her for as long as I have. You had time before we hooked up to go after her, why didn’t you?”
I scoff and narrow my eyes at him. “You know the answer to this. You have spoken for me most of my life. I was always afraid I wouldn’t use the right words.”
“Bullshit. She learned to speak your language. You could have told her.”
“What good would that have done?”
“We wouldn’t be here.”
“Yes, yes, we would. Gio, I’m not trying to take her from you. That’s not what I want.”
“Then what do you want?” he bellows.
“You have no idea how it is to be one of the ones left behind,” I choke out, tears clogging my throat. “To want what’s gone and will never return. To have your life stripped from you. We get that. It’s tied me to her and you in ways I can’t explain.”
“What I want is for you to allow her to decide if she doesn’t want me. Give her that option. You’re about to hurt her and I can fix that, so we don’t both lose her. Let her decide she doesn’t want to be shared.
“If I’m not what she wants, I promise I’ll get over it. But I can’t take this…this pull. I know you see and feel it. It doesn’t make either of us less of a man to love her together.”
He cracks his knuckles at his sides. A sign he’s restraining his temper. I roll my eyes and go to turn away again.
“Wait.”
“That’s all I know how to do.”
He closes the distance between us and tugs me into a hug. I hug him back because the small eight-year-old boy inside who lost his mom and dad needs this. Gio was the first person to hug me after my parents were killed. He has been my person since.
“I never knew how you felt. You mean as much to me as my family does. We’re setting up some new accounts for you. Never again will you feel like you have nothing.”
“You don’t have to do that. I gain access to my trust next year.”
“Fuck outa here. I’m not allowing another day to go by where you can’t buy anything you want. Buy her something nice. Something you’ve always wanted to give her.”
“Thanks.”
“Don’t thank me yet. Come on. We all should talk.”
* * *
Gio
I have to be out of my mind for what I’m about to do. However, the pain in my friend’s voice and the hurt on his face tugged at something in me, but his words are what hit the mark.
You have no idea how it is to be one of the ones left behind. I get it. It’s exactly what I thought. Their trauma bond gives them something Ny and I will never have. I also understand why he never went after Ny in the first place.
