What Goes Around

[Dante Santino]

Dante knew better than to get in the middle of this. He was still on tenuous ground as it was, having just come back after 8 years of absence. He was a little shocked that sweet Gabriella, who had been so young when he left, was so bold and defiant as to start a business with the Rossi girl.... even he had never been that bold. All he had done was announce that he didn't want to join the family business. He wasn't cut out for it, he knew that. He was too sensitive; he'd never be able to do the things his father needed done.

Dante knew a little about the Rossis as well. Mateo Rossi was a few years older than Dante, and his reputation was well known. He was the good little soldier, doing whatever his father told him to do. He was tough, he was cold, and he was known to be brutal at times. He was what a mobster's son should be. Dante was not, and he couldn't imagine that he would ever be. Mobsters did not write poetry.

Dante put his fork down as well, watching what unfolded quietly. There wasn't anything he could add to this conversation. And he knew that his mother would fight for Gaby. If the last argument between him and his father had happened at home, he was pretty certain that Clarice would never have allowed him to leave. But his "betrayal" was so much smaller than Gaby's.

[Marcello Santino]

The fact that his daughter wasn't ashamed in what she had done, that she was looking at him straight in the eye without fear or regret, only angered Marcello more. He was standing now, ignoring his wife's plea to stay calm.

"I will NOT STAY CALM!" Marcello yelled. "My daughter has gone into BUSINESS with a BLOODY ROSSI!" His face grew warmer as his temper rose off the charts. "I will not have this in my home," his glare bore into Gabriella. "You WILL stop this....this nonsence at once or..." he looked around his dining room table and then back to Gabriella. "Or you are not welcome in my home."

He turned toward Declin, his face not leaving his filled dinner plate. "Did you know about this!?" he gestured with a swaying arm toward Gabriella.

[Declin Martin]

Declin wanted to disappear. He still wasn't sure Gabriella would understand the magnitude of anger Marcello Santino could unleash when angry. He was a MOB BOSS for godric's sake!

And he was also Declin's boss, he remembered as Marcello turned to look at him.

"I...uh...no, I didn't....she..." all he could think of is the first day he began working for Mr. Santino, when he was told that people didn't get fired from their line of business, they get worse.

[Gabriella Santino]

Gabriella swallowed as her father stood up, but she never changed her facial expression. Sure, she was doing something that would be really looked down upon, but it was what she wanted to do. There were going to be bumps in the road, yes, but this, this was more than just a bump in the road.

She had hit hard when her father told her that she wasn't going to be welcomed there if she didn't change her mind. Gabriella didn't bother to look at anyone but her father. Yes, it upset her more than anything that her father didn't see her welcome anymore, but it also angered her. There was a mixture of sadness and anger that started brewing. Gabriella didn't think her father would go this far.

As he pointed toward Declin, Gabriella stood up quickly, holding back the tears that threatened to fall. "No," she said defensively. "He knew nothing." She attempted to keep her voice even, but there was a mixture of the anger and sadness in her voice. Gabriella bit her lip to keep from falling apart right there. "I never told him anything." Her eyes were still on her father, knowing if she turned to anyone else, the tears would fall.

[Marcello Santino]

He glared at his daughter. A mixture of shame and anger and betrayal curculated through him. How could she have done this to him? What had he done to make his little girl, his Gabriella, hate him so much that she would do this to him?

"Get out," he said. His voice was no longer booming, but quiet and sullen. "Now." and he sat back down to his plate.

[Gabriella Santino]

When Gabriella first met Sedona, she had no idea what the girl's last name was for the longest time. They had become fairly close in school, and even after Gabriella learned her last name, she continued to be friends with her. After all, Gabriella wasn't involved in the family business.

The feeling finally hit her and she finally blinked. When she did her vision became blurred with tears. Gabriella turned away from her father and left the table quickly, making her way to the stairs. Luckily, she and Sedona already had their apartment. Without a word and Gabriella holding back all the tears that wanted to fall, she made her way to her room and grabbed her bag that she had charmed earlier to fit everything in while still being lightweight.

She started finishing up throwing things in her bag. Gabriella felt bad for not saying anything to anyone else, but it was going to be impossible without crying. The picture she had of her on her father's shoulder when she was younger, she flipped face down. There was no reasoning with her father now and Gabriella hated it. She grabbed the last few things that she needed that she didn't already have in her apartment.

[Clarice Santino]

If anyone had been looking at Clarice during this time, they would have seen that her anger could be just as frightening as her husband's. Her face, usually a translucent white, was flushed red, and her lips were pressed into a thin white line. Her eyes, fixed on her husband, flashed with fury. But she didn't speak. Even when Gabriella rushed from the table and up to her room, Clarice didn't make a sound.

Then, slowly, she put down her fork and stood up. Her movements stuff and precise, she walked over to her son, hugged him silently, and walked out of the room without even glancing at her husband.

[Marcello Santino]

Marcello sat for another couple of minutes and finished his meal as Gabriella went upstairs and Clarice left the room. His decision was final, all of his decisions were final, and he was not going to let Clairce - who just didn't understand the full extent of the situation - judge his decision to throw their daughter out.

He stood up again, leaving Dante and Declin at the table and followed his wife into the living room. "Well," he said to her.

[Declin Martin]

Declin was pretty sure he was going to throw up. He watched the scene unfold, ending with Gabriella running upstairs and Mr. and Mrs. Santino leaving to the living room.

Now he sat awkwardly with Gabriella's brother, who he met maybe 15 minutes ago, and a full palte of food he had no intention of eating. "I uh..." Declin looked at Dante, shook his head, and then left the dining room as well, choosing to take the back stairs to Gabriella's room.

He entered with full intentions of using some "see-what-you-did's" and a lot of "I-told-you-so's" but when he saw the tears in Gabriella's eyes, he couldn't do a thing.

"Gabs..." he closed the door behind him.

[Clarice Santino]

Clarice actually hadn't gone straight to the living room. She had gone upstairs to the linen closet to fetch a spare set of sheets and blankets and a pillow. She was fairly shaking with anger as she pulled the sheets from the closet, and she even had to pause to refold one that she pulled out too quickly. Then she went back downstairs, carrying the linens, and waited for her husband on the sofa.

When he walked in, she was sitting on the couch, her arms folded in front of her and her face expressionless. The spare sheets were sitting next to her in a neat little pile. When he walked in, she picked them up and held them out to him.

"I hope you like the spare room," she said coldly.

[Gabriella Santino]

Before Declin entered, she let tears fall from her eyes. Her throat burned from trying to keep the tears in. After Declin closed the door, Gabriella turned around half expecting him to tell her that it was a horrible idea to tell her father. She knew that it was a bad idea to tell him, but it would have been an even worse one had she not said anything and he found out about it.

Putting her bag on her shoulder, Gabriella walked over to Declin and without a word, she put her arms around him and hugged him. "I'm sorry Dec," she said through a sob. She knew that her father wouldn't do anything to him, so he was safe as far as her father was concerned.

[Declin Martin]

"Gabby," Declin sighed, enveloping his best friend in a hug. How could he think of berating her when she was hurting so badly?

Declin rested his chin on her head and looked around the now very empty room. "Wow you pact quick..." Declin stated. This was going to change everything. Gabriella was his best friend, and became that because his job was to be with her, to watch out for her.

What was he going to do now?

[Marcello Santino]

He knew she wouldn't understand. "Clarice, you don't realize what our dughter has done, do you?" He threw the linen's she handed him on the chair. "She's betrayed us! She's gone behind our backs and...and...and" he was too frusterated to even speak. "What in the world was that girl thinking!"

[Clarice Santino]

What Clarice understood was that her husband was as stubborn as an ox, and right now, just about as pleasant to be around. What she understood was that she had missed out on 8 years of her son's life because of that stubbornness. Now her son was back, and her daughter was leaving. Marcello was very lucky at that moment that Clarice hadn't chosen to pack up her own things and leave with Gabriella. If Dante hadn't come back, she might have done just that. And she still might.

She spoke again, her voice a deadly calm. She sounded almost as though she were discussing dinner plans, and only if one looked at her eyes--which were still flashing--would they realize that she was still very angry. "She's not part of the business. You saw to that. And neither is the Rossi girl. How could she betray you by being friends with a girl who has nothing to do with the rivalry? You know that I never say anything about the business... I leave it to you. I don't care if it's illegal, immoral, or dangerous. But when your business interferes with my business--my children, that is where I draw the line."

[Marcello Santino]

"It doesn't matter if she was part of the business!" Marcello yelled. "She knows, doesn't she? She KNOWS they're the enemy!" He turned to pace a bit away from Clarice. "I'll bet you anything that Rossi girl knows too. It's probably all planned out, some sort of trap to hurt her." He breathed deeply, the very thought making his temper rise.

"Going into busniess, mine or any other kind, with a Rossi is merely the first step." Marcello approached Clarice. "I keep the two of you away from it because they will use you to get to me and destroy everythign I built."

[Clarice Santino]

He wasn't listening to her. He did this all the time, only listened to about half of what she said, and it infuriated her. The calm act she was putting on was on the verge of slipping.

"What about what I've built?" she said coldly. "The family I've built. The home I maintain for my family, my children? You go off and do whatever it is you do all day, and you think I do nothing all day. I work hard to provide a pleasant, comfortable home for you... good food, clean house... all for you and our children. And eight years ago, you drove Dante away. That's eight years when I couldn't see my son, when I didn't know if he was all right, if he was eating properly, if he was happy. Then tonight, you brought him home, and I thought you realized the mistake you'd made in letting him leave. I thought you'd changed. Now you're doing it all over again with Gabriella. And for what? For your business? Are you telling me that your business is more important to you than your own family is? Than I am?"

By the end of this speech, her calm was gone, and her voice got louder and louder.

[Gabriella Santino]

Mar 20, 2011 16:20:45 GMT -5 Declin Martin said:

"Gabby," Declin sighed, enveloping his best friend in a hug. How could he think of berating her when she was hurting so badly?

Declin rested his chin on her head and looked around the now very empty room. "Wow you pact quick..." Declin stated. This was going to change everything. Gabriella was his best friend, and became that because his job was to be with her, to watch out for her.

What was he going to do now?

Gabriella was very aware of how angry her mother could become. She had always been afraid to do anything against her mother because of the look that she knew her mother could give. If she had to pick, she would say that her mother was a lot more scarier than her father. She hated to leave her mother. After all, the family had just come back together.

She still had her arms around Declin as she tried to calm herself. "I already packed a few things," she said. "I had a feeling he was going to get mad, but not like that." Gabriella never thought that her father would kick her out. It was a good thing that she had already started to save a long time ago so she could end up supporting herself.

After another moment of quietness, Gabriella spoke again. "I should get going before Padre decides to come see if I've gone." She let out a sigh. "Keep an eye on Madre for me, would you?" She pulled away from Declin. "And take care of yourself. I might see you around or something."

Gabriella wasn't sure the next time she would see Declin and that sadden her more. She liked seeing him every day and spending time with him, but she wasn't sure when that would happen again. Feeling a slight bit of courage through the mixture of sadness and anger, Gabriella knew she had to let Declin know something. She leaned in and pressed her lips against his without a word. After a few seconds she pulled away and looked toward the floor. "Bye Dec," she said softly before taking her leave from the room and out of the house.

[Dante Santino]

Well... this was awkward.

Dante was sitting alone at the dining room table, wondering if he should continue eating his plate of manicotti, or if he should attempt to go after his sister... or his mother... or if maybe he should just leave. His initial inclination had been to go after Gaby, but the kid called Declin had gone first, leaving Dante feeling useless. And after all, why shouldn't he? He hadn't been part of Gaby's life for 8 years. Someone had to pick up the slack, and if Declin had done it, then Dante was glad. Still, it hurt a little to realize that he was no longer part of his sister's life, even if it was his own fault.

Going after his mother really wasn't an option. He knew his mother all too well; the stiff cold movements usually meant that she was getting ready to explode. Dante knew she wouldn't explode at him and that it was their father she was angry at, but he also knew that when she got like that, it wasn't wise to be in her path. Explosions, after all, were rarely directed at a single target, and they left vast fields of destruction in their wake.

Which left Dante sitting at the dining room table in front of his half-eaten dinner. He was close enough to hear the fight between his parents, though, and he almost felt sorry for his father. Almost.

[Declin Martin]

Declin stood, alone in Gabbys room, blinking after her. He didn't know how to respond to that, to her kiss, it had come out of no where...hadn't it?

Declin, deciding he had a lot of thinking to do, walked back to the dining room and found that his boss and the missus were still arguing. He shoved his hands in his pockets, not sure if he should stay or go and looked up at Dante. "Welp..."

[Marcello Santino]

Mar 20, 2011 21:58:22 GMT -5 Clarice Santino said:

He wasn't listening to her. He did this all the time, only listened to about half of what she said, and it infuriated her. The calm act she was putting on was on the verge of slipping.

"What about what I've built?" she said coldly. "The family I've built. The home I maintain for my family, my children? You go off and do whatever it is you do all day, and you think I do nothing all day. I work hard to provide a pleasant, comfortable home for you... good food, clean house... all for you and our children. And eight years ago, you drove Dante away. That's eight years when I couldn't see my son, when I didn't know if he was all right, if he was eating properly, if he was happy. Then tonight, you brought him home, and I thought you realized the mistake you'd made in letting him leave. I thought you'd changed. Now you're doing it all over again with Gabriella. And for what? For your business? Are you telling me that your business is more important to you than your own family is? Than I am?"

By the end of this speech, her calm was gone, and her voice got louder and louder.

Marcello looked at her. "Clairce,"he sighed. "What do you expect me to do?" he threw his hands up. "Just apporve of her working with a Rossi? Alright Gabby, have a good time!" He pulled at his hair. "This isn't a matter of whats more important, my family or my business. It's a matter of what THEIR business will do to MY family do destroy MY Business." Sometimes he thought he should have never gotten married, never had children, they just ended up pawns in this game he was playing.