Page 15 of Bratva, Baby
“I’ll pick you up and bring you if you’re cool with that?”
“Hell yeah, that’s better than the Uber I was going to take because my car is broke down and I am not getting on the bus that late at night,” I reply. “But until tonight, I have somehousecleaning I need to get done, and I’ll talk to you later, text me,” I say as I hang up the phone.
It’s not even half an hour later that I am onto my next chore, and someone is banging on my door.What the hell?Going to answer the door, I peek out the window to see that it's Mario, and who I assume is Ivan, since I’ve never actually seen the man.
Answering the door, I jokingly say, “Hey Mario, what’s up? Long time, no see.”
“Hey Ava, I just wanted to come introduce Ivan to you, just so you know who to look for in case you ever need anything, and I am not around.” He states.
“Thank you both, that’s very sweet of you,” I respond. Turning to Ivan, I say, “Hey Ivan, I am Ava, nice to meet you.”
“Hello.” He says, not seeming to be very talkative.Ok then.
“Would you guys like to come in?” I ask, trying to break the awkwardness.
“Thank you, we’d love to,” Mario says, though Ivan shows no signs of wanting to.
I open the door and let them pass, though I don’t necessarily love the idea of having new people in my home. Not wanting to come across as a rude neighbor, I ask, “So what are you guys up to?”
“Oh, you know, just in the neighborhood.” Mario jokes.
“Do you know how cheesy you just sounded? That was like the ultimate ‘dad joke’.” I say through a giggle.
“But it made you laugh, so it’s valid.” He argues. Mario seems like a great guy from just these few interactions; the judgment is still out on Ivan since he has yet to say a word.Maybe he’s just the strong, silent type.
We sit and talk for a bit longer about mundane things, feeling each other, but until he offers, “I noticed the other morning your car didn’t start, I'll take a look at it for you if you’d like? I used to work on cars with my pops.”
“Are you sure? I don’t have a lot of spare cash, but I can pay you.” I'm relieved I don’t also have to find a tow truck to pull it to a garage.
“Yeah, working on cars is easy. I can start working on it today if you’d like.”
“Today would be great, but I have plans for this evening with a friend of mine.” This seems to bother Mario for some reason.
“Oh? Are you going out tonight? Got a hot date?” He tries to joke, but I can suddenly sense the tension.
“No. I’m going to get a new piercing with a friend of mine.” I reply questioningly.
“Oh, that sounds interesting. Where are you going?” He asks, sounding too interested in my plans.
“I don’t know the name of the place, just that the piercer's name is Aless,” I respond.
“You should do better research about the places that you’re allowing to stick you with needles,” Ivan states in a deep voice, laced with irritation.
“He comes highly recommended from my friend,” I say back, trying not to catch an attitude with him. Technically, he’s not wrong.
“He? You said their name is Alice.” Ivan says.
“No, I said their name is Aless, short for Alessandro,” I reply with an eyeroll. At my reply, Ivan and Mario share a look.
“You really should do more research about the place before going.” Mario decidedly agrees. “Ready for me to take a look at your car before the evening?”
At eleven o’clock, Olivia picks me up after texting me and asking me for my address. As we drive over to the tattoo shop, which I found out is called Dark Visions, we have a comfortable conversation about our past boyfriends; we both find out we are equally inexperienced. We have a lot in common.
As we arrive, I see a black SUV that reminds me of Andy’s, but I tell myself that’s ridiculous. Why would he be here, andhow would he know where I was planning to go? Entering the tattoo parlor, I stop dead in my tracks when I see Andy waiting inside.What the fuck? What would he be doing here?
“Andy?” I question.
“I guess now would be a good time to talk,” He says ominously.
