I wasn’t ashamed to admit that I was dragging my feet as I walked through the kitchen and out the back to follow after Riccardo. When I spied people at the ping pong table setting up another game of beer pong, I had to resist the urge to join them.
But unfortunately, I needed to be an adult and confront the situation.
Riccardo was sat on one of the sun beds by the swimming pool. Yes, there was a swimming pool. If it wasn’t covered at the moment, and the weather was absolutely freezing, I was sure that it would have been filled by college students.
I dragged my feet some more until I stood next to him.
“Are you alright?” I asked in a small voice, peachy.
“I’m just peachy,” Riccardo chuckled bitterly.
“You don’t seem just peachy,” I murmured, my face slowly beginning to drop as I realised that this wasn’t going to be a quick conversation like I hoped it would be. He was going to make this long and uncomfortable, and so I was forced to take a seat on the sun bed next to him. “You look like my dare really bothered you.”
“It didn’t bother me,” Riccardo continued to insist that everything was just fine and peachy, but the deep scowl on his face told me otherwise.
“Are you sure?” I asked quietly, expecting this to be the moment that he snapped at me.
“Can’t you imagine why it bothered me?” he groaned as he turned to face me and surprisingly, he looked more bothered than angry. When I gently shook my head, he exhaled deeply before explaining. “I like you, Yasemin. That’s the reason I was happy to see you waiting outside the bathroom for me. I was really excited about getting you a drink. But then you go and call that guy and start talking about the last time that you two had sex. Recently, too.”
“It was a dare,” I reminded him. “I was literally dared to call him. I didn’t choose to do it out of my own free will.”
“You could have just said no.”
“But then that would have ruined the game,” I groaned, really starting to get frustrated with him now. I had never been the most patient person, and Riccardo was really starting to push my buttons. “What’s wrong with you? Do you think that getting me a drink, which was free, by the way, entitles you to some sort of exclusivity? Like making me your girlfriend or something?”
“Of course, not, but it’s supposed to show you that I’m interested,” he huffed.
“Well, good for you, but that has nothing to do with me,” I snapped at him, but was quick to catch myself. I didn’t come out here for an argument. I came out here to talk.
“Tell me more about this guy.”
“Why would I do that?” I asked, doubting that it would end on a happy note if I were to do as he said. Riccardo was clearly very insecure, something that I hadn’t picked up on when it was just the two of us, talking outside the bathroom upstairs.
“Because I’m interested in you, Yasemin.”
“And what?” I shrugged, ignoring him. “I’m supposed to tell you all about my ex’s now that you’re interested in me?”
“No, but you had sex with this man on Tuesday.”
“I didn’t know you on Tuesday,” I snorted, but had to remind myself to play nice. Why? I couldn’t exactly remember but the sooner this conversation was over, the sooner I could return to my friends and forget all about Riccardo. “Besides, it was only a one-night stand.”
“It sure didn’t sound like a one-night stand,” Riccardo snorted and had the nerve to roll his eyes. Like, actually roll his eyes.
I had to pause and take a deep breath before I let my frustrations and anger get the better of me. I hated attitude, and I hated it when people spoke to me with such attitude, especially when I believed I didn’t deserve it.
“How am I supposed to prove to you that it was a one-night stand?” I groaned and threw my hands up in the air in disbelief. “You’re being really impossible! Do you know that?” I spat at him before moving to get up and leave, but he was quick to reach out and circle his fingers around my wrist.
“Sorry,” Riccardo was quick to apologise with an alarmed expression on his face. He tugged on my wrist, guiding me to take a seat again.
“I don’t like having to explain myself,” I told him, my lips tugged down at the corners. “I don’t like the way you’re talking to me.”
“I’m sorry, Yasemin,” he was quick to apologise again. “But he calls you Cara. What am I supposed to think?”
“And?” I deadpanned.
“It sounds like he’s staking his claim on you.”
“What does it even mean?”
“Beloved, or darling. Something along those lines,” Riccardo explained, his words catching me off by surprise. “I know you say that it was only a one-night stand, but are you interested in pursuing anything further?”
“There’s nothing going on between us,” I said, avoiding answering yes or no. Not just because I didn’t know the answer, but because I was still thinking of Massimo despite how hard I tried to stop myself.
Riccardo didn’t need to know that Massimo was the one that wasn’t interested in pursuing us further. That he had gotten what he wanted and then stopped seeing me – not that we had seen each other on more than two occasions. That was none of his business and I was still already slightly upset about it.
“I’m glad to hear that,” Riccardo explained deeply and smiled widely.
“Why is that?”
Instead of answering my question, Riccardo leaned closer to me. I was surprised at first, not sure of where he was going with this but when he got closer and his eyes fluttered close, I knew he intended to kiss me.
My eyes widened in alarm, but I didn’t move. Instead, I allowed him to lean in closer until finally, his lips pressed softly against mine. The kiss started off soft and gentle. It wasn’t completely repulsive and the longer it lasted, the better it started to feel. But it was still far from the best kiss of my life.
My eyebrows furrowed together in the middle when his tongue licked against my bottom lip, clearly wanting entrance.
That’s when things started feeling strange. I couldn’t explain it, but something didn’t feel quite right. I couldn’t feel quite right. I couldn’t bring myself to move or do anything, let alone kiss him back, and all I could focus on was the increasing feeling of being sick until I could bare it no longer.
I had never felt sick from kissing someone before.
Before I could be sick in his mouth, I pressed my hands hard against his chest to push him away from me.
“Yasemin?” Riccardo called out to me, surprised, but I didn’t stick around to answer him. I couldn’t answer him. Not when there was a real danger that I would be sick if I opened my mouth right now.
I kept my head down and the back of my hand pressed against my mouth as I walked through the party and headed out the front door. The music was still loud but there were less people here. I got off the property and only stopped walking when I reached the side of the road.
I was on my knees on the side of the street, my head bowed, and my lips parted as I focused on the sick feelings. Thankfully, the fresh air did me some good and I felt it begin to settle down.
I couldn’t explain what had happened for me to suddenly feel so sick, but frankly, it couldn’t have come at a better time. The kiss with Riccardo hadn’t been entirely bad, but it sure hadn’t felt natural. Far from it, actually.
“Here’s some water,” someone murmured from behind me, and I didn’t glanced back to reach for it.
I was quick to take large gulps, hoping that it would aid in keeping away the sick feeling.
“Sip the water,” he told me. “You don’t want to make yourself feel sick again.”
I nodded but still didn’t glance back as I sipped at the water. By the time I felt nearly completely better, I had only managed to drink half the water in the cup.
Dabbing my mouth against the back of my mouth, I stood up and turned around. For a moment, I had feared that it would Riccardo that had followed me out here but thankfully, it wasn’t.
It was the guy that I had kissed during the game of spin the bottle earlier.
“Thanks for the water,” I smiled gratefully at him. “I don’t know what came over me, but I felt like I was going to be sick. The water really helped settle my stomach.”
“Do you think you drank too much?” he frowned, his eyebrows furrowing together in concern.
“No,” I denied, quick to shake my head. “I’ve drank more than three times what I drank today and never felt this sick before. I’m not sure what happened but maybe it was something I ate.”
“Maybe,” he frowned, still not looking all that convinced. “I’m Dino, by the way.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Dino,” I smiled warmly at him, accepting his outstretched hand and giving it a firm shake. “I’m Yasemin.”
Dino let go of my hand and opened his mouth to say something, but someone else beat him to it.
“You’re talking to a taken woman, Dino. I hope you know that,” a deep, husky voice chuckled, sounding louder as the person approached us.
My breath hitched in my throat at the familiar voice, one that I had heard on the phone not even an hour ago, and I was quick to turn my head in its direction, glancing up the street.
I had to blink several times to make sure I wasn’t seeing things, that this wasn’t a figment of my imagination, but nothing changed. The image of a man walking toward us still remained, and he only got closer to us each time.
What was wrong with me? Why was I hallucinating?
Why did it look like Massimo was stood in front of me right now?
-
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Layla Knight
29.01.2022
