Chapter 6.2 - Valentina
1620 Words
New York, United States – November 21st, 2020
Matteo: Do you have any notes in corp social responsibility so far?
The text comes while I'm reading on Sunday.
Valentina: *eye roll emoji*
Valentina: yes I do
Matteo: please?
Valentina: I'll email you
Matteo: thank uuuu
***
New York, United States – November 22nd, 2020
Matteo: Do we have a paper due tomorrow?
I groan as I read the text. The book is just getting to the part where the main characters get to have s*x, and it's been the most excited I've been about romance in a while.
Valentina: yes
I place my phone upside down so I can focus on finishing the chapter.
Two pages later, the phone starts ringing. I've come to dread this ringtone at this point.
Matteo facetiming
"Yeees?" I sigh.
I can see his cheek and half of his eye, but I can tell he's started grinning.
"What?"
"Valentinaa."
He's like a child bluntly asking something of his parents he knows would take some convincing.
"Whaat."
"Is the essay for tomorrow the one thousand word one? I can see two in the assignments tab."
"Yes."
"Have you written it?"
"Yes."
The camera moves away from half of his face to show his entire face now. He's sitting on a couch, with a headset around his neck.
He was playing video games. Of course he was.
"Can you-"
"I'm not going to write it for you."
He pretends to be offended. "I wasn't going to say that!"
He sounds genuine, and his Italian accent makes everything even funnier. I smile.
"What do you want then?"
"Can I-"
"You're not going to copy-"
"Will you let me finish?!"
I roll my eyes and nod for him to continue.
"Can I copy it?"
"No."
He groans.
"What will it take for you to help me?"
"I never said I wouldn't help you."
He smiles. "How?"
"Just run the assignment through an AI or something. They can do your essays."
"Are you serious?"
"Yeah."
He sets his phone on the table in front of him, which reveals his entire body. He's wearing a simple white tee that reveals some tattoos peeking from under it and sweatpants.
Objectively, he looks good as f**k.
Matteo pulls his laptop over his lap and starts typing. A couple of minutes later, he looks back at the screen.
"s**t, Valentina, this is the best!"
I smile at his excitement.
"Thank youuu. I owe you one."
"I'll keep that in mind."
He winks and ends the call.
I change the ringtone before I put my phone on do not disturb and get back to my book.
***
New York, United States - November 25th, 2020
I'm trying to find ways to keep myself entertained once I'm back from the office.
My phone buzzes when I'm in the bath, high as I smoke a joint and finishing the book I started.
Matteo: I submitted it on time btw
Valentina: Good for u
I smile.
Valentina: you look happy and healthy
Matteo: ?
Valentina: Not me, if you ever cared to ask
This seems like the funniest s**t in the world right now.
Matteo: ask you what
Matteo: you didn't submit the paper?
Valentina: Good for u youre doing great out there without me baby
Matteo: ??
Matteo facetiming
His face comes on the screen.
"I'm taking a bath."
"I can see that."
"I'm high."
He smiles. "That explains the texts."
I take another drag from the joint as I stare at the screen. Judging by his suit, he's definitely not at home.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm on a job with Luca."
"I'm on vacation until next week. Extended Thanksgiving weekend."
"s**t, right. Thanksgiving. Yeah, it's my only job this week too."
We both stare at the phone without saying anything for a while.
"So...what?" I say when he grins at the screen.
"You really are high."
Someone off screen says something in Italian to him, and I know it's Luca without having to see him.
"I have to go."
"Okay."
He ends the call, but I keep staring at the screen for a long time, my mind elsewhere.
Someone rings the doorbell, and I'm in no mood to get out of bed to answer it.
Also, who the f**k can it be at this hour? And how did they get into the building without me buzzing them in?
I groan as I get out of bed and walk out into the hallway to get to the door.
My hand hovers on the doorknob as I look through the peephole.
The hallway is too dark for me to figure out who it is.
"Who is it?" I ask.
"Me."
My body grows instantly hot when I hear Matteo's voice through the door.
I open the door to look at him standing there, still wearing his suit.
"What?"
He walks past me into the hallway, and I close the door, still confused.
His eyes fall on my lace night dress.
"Take your dress off."
My body tenses at his words, shocked that they actually came out of his mouth.
He's less than a meter away from me, and I wonder whether he can feel how much I want to kiss him right now.
His eyebrows raise when he sees me not reacting.
My hands go down to the hem of my dress before it falls to the floor with a soft thud.
"Get on your knees."
"f**k you."
He grins, like he was expecting the reaction from me. "You'd like to, I know."
Excuse you?
My face expresses my thoughts, which makes his grin widen even more.
"But you'd never admit it."
My mouth drops, but I don't deny it. Instead, I watch him cross his hands around his back.
"After you admit it, you can do whatever you want to me."
He says it so bluntly and without shame it makes him even more attractive.
Damn.
I watch him walk down the hallway until he gets to my room.
I follow him just to watch him he sits down on the bed. He leans back against his palms and looks up at me with a daring smile. It's that boyish smile that makes him look youthful.
It's his best one.
My head tilts as we look at each other.
Oh really?
I step closer, wanting to see how long it would take for him to cave and call it off.
One of my knees comes to rest between his thighs, the other foot still firmly planted on the floor.
My hands go to his shoulders, and he places his on my hips. The contact of his palms against my bare skin scorches me.
He's looking at me as if he were daring me to continue because he wants me to be the one to make the first move.
"Stop looking at me."
"Never."
I straddle him without thinking twice about it, and he stiffens under me at the sudden movement.
His hands move under my dress, coming to rest on my thighs. I run my tongue over my dry lips, and his eyes turn to them.
"Your turn." I say.
His fingers press into the skin of my thighs. "Admit it."
"Admit what?"
That conversation seems like it's in the distant past.
"You're attracted to me, Valentina."
I kiss him for the sole purpose of getting him to stop smirking at me like that.
When I finally pull my head away, his grip tightens on my thighs to make sure I'm not going anywhere.
"And what happens if I admit it?"
His eyes fall to my lips.
"Whatever you want."
The doorbell rings again, and I wake up.
I blink for a few moments, the picture of Matteo in my room suddenly gone.
Light is coming through the crack between the curtains.
I make sure to put my robe over the night dress I'm wearing as I walk to the front door.
A USPS delivery guy is looking down at something.
I open the door. "Hello?"
"I have a delivery for..." he looks down at the name on the box. "Valentina Levin?"
"Yes, that's me."
He hands me the box before he turns around and leaves.
I unbox the package in the kitchen. It's some books and other stuff I've asked my mom to send over that I completely forgot about.
As I get the stuff out of the box and place it around the apartment, the only thing I can really focus on is not thinking about the dream I just had.
I haven't dreamt about Matteo since last summer, and I haven't even thought about him in a more-than-an-friend way.
It's from the weed.
By the time the sun sets I'm already bored out of my mind. And it's not even Friday yet, which means that there are three full days left until I will interact with another human being.
Adrik is back in Russia, so there's no one really - except for Matteo – who I can meet with.
The screen of my phone lights up next to me on the bed.
Matteo: Im bored
Valentina: me too
Matteo: want to come over?
I've never actually – actually, I have hung out with him alone before since Italy.
Our short time together in jail or the ride home.
What would we even talk about?
Matteo: I have wine.
Matteo: And weed.
I smile at the message.
You're overthinking it
Nothing has to happen
It was just a dream
We're friends
It's normal
He hangs out with Isabella all the time and they don't do anything
It's okay
Valentina: Okay.
- Writer
