Chapter 25 - Matteo
2237 Words
Matteo
Palermo, Sicily, 2020 – (nearly) summer
When Matteo decided to call Valentina and ask her to come take the exam together, he realized that begging would be his last option. When they were forced into lockdown in Italy, he didn’t think about the fact that he would be spending more time with his father, and he could see first-hand how much work Matteo was putting into his studies.
His father kept asking about exam dates and upcoming projects, and it all came down to Business Psychology, which was the only course where he didn’t have someone who could help him pass.
During the early hours of Thursday, May 28th, a private jet departed from their landing strip outside Palermo and set off towards Moscow, where it would pick up Valentina at 8am. By the time Matteo wakes up at 12:30, Valentina has already texted him that she’s landing in 30 minutes.
He gets into the shower quickly and lets his siblings know that Valentina’s coming over to take the exam. His parents have been out since yesterday and Matteo has no idea when they’ll return. At least there’s a little peace and quiet in the house, except for the chef and the maid during the day.
The black SUV pulls up in the driveway in the front of the house and Matteo sees Valentina getting out, carrying two bags. She says something to the driver before walking up the pathway leading to the main door and soon enough the doorbell rings throughout the house.
Matteo greets her at the door, and they go up to his room because they must show up on Zoom for attendance and identity verification first.
“We have to write an essay?” Matteo groans twenty minutes into the exam after copying all of the multiple-choice answers from Valentina. He decided to take the desk because Valentina insisted on sitting on the couch by the window with the sea view.
“It’s not that hard.” Valentina reasons, leaning back into the cushions.
“How to best create an effective environment at work.” Matteo reads and looks up at her. “How?”
“You’re the one who runs a club, you should know this.”
“Ha ha. But seriously, give me some tips.”
“Just look into my notes, it’s under motivational factors.”
“Motivational factors, seriously?”
Valentina c***s her head. “What, you have a better idea? That's what I’m writing.”
“How can motivation even make a work environment more effective?”
“If the workers are motivated, then they’re obviously going to operate better.” “You think motivation works best?”
Valentina looks at him confused. “What else?”
Matteo shrugs. He wants to say ‘fear’ and ‘respect’, but he doesn’t. He follows her instructions and looks through her notes. He actually manages to write a decent essay and also copy the rest of the answer off of Valentina an hour later, very pleased with himself.
“There, it’s done.”
Valentina nods but doesn’t look away from her screen, still typing. Matteo looks out at the Tyrrhenian Sea shining in the sun behind her, and thinks about how he’s never had a girl in his bedroom just sitting on her laptop. It feels weird, but at the same time comfortable. Maybe it’s weird because it’s not weird.
“Okay, I’m done too.” She says as she looks him in the eye and smiles, waving her hands around.
Matteo smiles back. “Good. You turned it in already?”
“Yes.”
Matteo clicks on the button to turn the exam in and shuts his laptop, happy to be done with exams from the semester.
“How did you even get through the rest of your exams?” Valentina asks, following him with her eyes as he stands up from the desk and goes over to open the balcony.
“I don’t know, Vinnie helps me with some, I google others. It’s definitely easier online.”
She follows him outside without saying a word and sits down on one of the chairs against the wall. There’s a round table in between two chairs so Matteo sits down on the other one and takes out a cigarette.
He holds out his pack to Valentina, but she waves him off. “No, thanks.” “You quit smoking?” he asks and she just stands up, disappearing inside.
When she comes back outside, she’s holding a Marlboro Gold pack. “No, I brought my own. You definitely smoke truck driver cigarettes.”
Matteo lets out a laugh. “What?”
“The Marlboro Red ones? They’re the strongest. They’re what, a ten?”
Matteo shrugs and lights up his cigarette before offering her the lighter. He watches her face as she looks down at the cigarette between her lips.
They smoke their cigarettes in silence while watching the sea, and Matteo wonders whether he should say something to fill the silence, but Valentina seems to be in her own world staring out at the sea.
“If I had this view every day, I would never have any problems, ever. Just listening to the waves, feeling the sun.” She says after a while, exhaling the last bit of smoke. She puts the cigarette out in the already filled ashtray before bending her right leg up on the chair.
“Ha. You think that, but it’s not true.” Matteo answers, also putting his cigarette out. Valentina turns her head to him, surprised. “Why wouldn’t it be true?”
Matteo suddenly gets the urge to roll and smoke a joint, so he tells her he’ll be right back and stands up to go inside. He finds his rolling stash in its usual spot in his nightstand and brings it outside.
“Yess, good idea.” Valentina smiles.
Matteo rolls a joint as she struggles to take off her hoodie and tie her hair up, saying that it’s way hotter in Palermo than it is in Moscow.
“It’s like thirty degrees here. Back home it’s raining.” She pouts and watches his fingers skillfully rolling the paper into a joint.
Matteo looks up into her eyes as he licks the paper. “What were we talking about before?”
He remembers doing this trick on numerous girls on this very balcony, but unlike the others, Valentina doesn’t seem to notice anything he's doing. She looks like she’s thinking about his question.
“You said you’re sad even though you have a sea view every day.”
Matteo c***s his head and lights the joint. “I didn’t say that. I just meant that people who live here also have problems. When you’re used to the same view since you’re born, it can get…boring.”
He takes three long drags before blowing them out towards the sea, then passes it to Valentina. She takes it and turns back towards the sea, closing her eyes towards the sun. Her face shines in the sun and Matteo feels like he can’t look away for some reason, like he’s seen this before. But he knows he hasn’t.
“Are you bored?” she asks, letting out smoke.
Matteo shrugs, also turning to the sea now.
“I don’t know. Sometimes, maybe.”
If being bored is your biggest problem, then you have it easy in life, Matteo.
That’s what his father always used to tell him every time he would see Matteo in a bad mood. He’d ask him what’s wrong, and Matteo would tell him he’s bored. His father never seemed to understand that being bored was bordering burnout and depression.
“If being bored is the problem, then you have it easy.”
Matteo looks at Valentina, almost shocked. “What?”
She shrugs and takes another drag before passing the joint. “That’s what my dad says.” “So you understand.” Is all he says and leans back into the chair, looking out at the sea.
“Being bored? Yes. I think it’s one of the worst things to be in life. But I feel like sometimes nobody understands.”
“Why?”
“Because rich kids are supposed to have it all, right?”
Matteo smiles at the way she says ‘rich kids’, like the two of them aren’t exactly that. But he gets it. When you have all the money you could ever imagine, even more than you could ever imagine spending, things that once seemed extraordinary become ordinary.
“When you’ve have everything you could possibly want, nothing is exciting anymore.” Valentina adds and takes the joint Matteo is holding out. “It’s sad.”
“That’s why you think this view would make you happy, because you don’t have it every day.” Matteo concludes, proving the point that started the discussion in the first place. The conversation turned deeper and darker than Matteo even expected.
Valentina rolls her eyes, not commenting on the fact that Matteo won the argument. They sit in silence once again, watching the sea create small waves that they can hear, but not see, crashing against the cliffs below Matteo’s house.
“Do you think it’s possible to keep life exciting?” he asks her out of nowhere. “Yes.”
“How?”
Valentina opens her mouth to answer but Matteo’s phone starts ringing. It’s Isabella Facetiming him.
“Hi.”
“Are you done with your exam?” she asks in Italian. Matteo turns the camera to show Valentina. She waves. “Valentinaaa!” Isabella excitedly screams. “Are you in Sicily? This is perfect! Let’s talk about Vinnie and Pia’s birthday because for some reason she thinks I should be helping her with it.”
“Don’t be mean.” Matteo tells her in Italian, then switches to English. “Didn’t she say she wanted to do something in Ibiza?”
“Yes, but everything is closed because of Covid. She was crying when she called.”
Matteo snorts and looks at Valentina, who is too focused on the sea to even listen to their conversation.
“I think I have an idea.” Matteo says after thinking about it for a minute. “I know some guys on the island, I can arrange a yacht.”
“Yacht party?! She’ll love that. I’ll tell Vinnie too.”
At this, Valentina turns her head to look at the phone.
“I’ll call them now.” Matteo says and Isabella ends the call.
Valentina passes the joint and watches Matteo look up someone in his contacts before holding the phone up to his ear. He knows Marcus from the last time he was in Ibiza.
Marcus knows his father because he’s been helped by their company before (Matteo doesn’t know the details), and has sworn his loyalty to their family, telling them he’ll help them anytime when they’re in Ibiza. With anything they could possibly need.
“Ciao Matteo!” he answers in Italian.
“Hi, I need a favor.”
“Anything.”
“My friends’ birthday is tomorrow, and I can’t find anywhere to celebrate it. I need a yacht with a staff and a DJ.”
Valentina looks at him with a look that makes Matteo feel weird, but then he realizes they’re both high. After all, he has access to the best weed in Italy.
Marcus tells him to wait on the line while he makes a call, so Matteo looks down at his slides, listening to the song that plays while he’s on hold. His eyes travel to Valentina’s ankles and he raises his eyebrows when he spots a tattoo peeking out from her sneaker.
“Okay, it’s done.” Marcus says and Matteo can hear the pride in his voice. “There’s a yacht waiting for you in Port Eivissa tomorrow at eight pm. I’ll be waiting with a bus at the airport tomorrow, just let me know what time.”
Matteo smiles and passes the joint. “Perfect. Grazie, Marcus.”
The line goes dead and Matteo places the phone down.
“What? Is it done already?” Valentina asks, surprised.
“Yes. I know a guy.”
Matteo texts their Italian group chat about the details. All of the Barone kids, his own siblings, as well as Isabella and Ariana are in the group.
Isabella: Valentina is obviously invited too, right?
Vinnie: ofc
“You coming too, right?” Matteo asks when he reads the message. Valentina shrugs. “When is it?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Matteeeoooo.” Aurora sings from inside.
“Out here.” Matteo answers in English.
“We’re going to Ibiza- oh, hello.” Aurora says, stopping in her tracks when she sees Valentina. She looks at Matteo for a second, then back at her, smiling. “You’re coming too?”
Valentina looks down at her shirt. “I only have this outfit with me. I planned on going back today.”
“I have an entire closet full of clothes, you can borrow mine.” She offers, waving it off. Matteo frowns at her. Since when is Aurora nice to anyone?
Valentina is looking at him questioningly, as if asking if it’s okay.
“You can stay here until you want to leave, we have enough guest rooms.”
- Writer
