Page 7 of The Arrival
DISQUIET
[Is something wrong?]
Nino sighs as he stares at his phone. He types his response.
[No. I don’t only call you when something is wrong.]
His brother’s response swiftly pops up.
[Right. Since when?]
Nino glares at the text—the image of Giovanni’s smirking face is crystal clear in his mind.
[Since now. Since you told me off in front of Haru in the back seat of a town car. I just want to check in sometimes. Can you stop ignoring my calls, please?]
His heart in his throat, Nino waits for his brother’s response. He feels as if he’s been waiting like this for the past two months—on edge and increasingly aware of Giovanni’s unresponsiveness when he tries to reach him.
“Are you alright, my love?” Haruka asks. The sapphire makeup radiates against the soft light spilling in through the car windows. The moon is a sharp white crescent set high in a vivid and clear sky—a spectrum of navy blue and stars.
The dreamlike ambience distracts Nino for a moment, and he smiles at his mate. “I’m okay. G is being an ass.”
“This is his perpetual state of being. At least he is responding?”
Nino sighs. “Well, you know I called him yesterday.”
“Yes.”
“He didn’t answer or text back, so I messaged him again before we left. I don’t know… I apologized to him, but it feels like he’s holding a grudge. I don’t know what to do.”
“Did something happen in Italy?” Junichi asks from the front seat, his head turned in Nino’s direction.
“It did, but I’ll tell you about it later.” Nino’s phone buzzes in his palm. He lifts the device to read the incoming message from Giovanni.
[I’m not ignoring you. I’m just busy and have a lot on my mind. I need some space. Let’s talk about it when you’re here for the wedding.]
Nino balks, his jaw dropping.
[That’s SIX MONTHS from now!]
Giovanni’s response comes quick.
[So? That’s like a week in vampire time. You’ll be fine. You’re a big boy now.]
Dropping his head back, Nino takes a deep breath and closes his eyes.What the hell?
“Whoa, the Ito Clan went all out for this,” Asao says, slowing the car to a crawl. When Nino looks beyond the glass, they’re pulling through a black iron gate covered in white cobwebs and decorated with large fake hairy spiders.
The windows of the estate glow with purple light in the darkness, and the surrounding mountains roll in the background like a hoard of shadowy, looming monsters. The front garden is littered with rows and rows of jack-o’-lanterns large and small, their inner flames flickering brightly like laughter in their mouths.
“Is this how they do things in Tokyo?” Nino asks, staring out the window as Asao stops the car at the front double doors.
“Halloween is getting more popular there,” Junichi answers. “I, for one, welcome this enthusiasm.”
Nino sits back, smirking. “Even if Hisaki comes with it?” Ever since this family moved into their realm, the young punk rock star vampire Hisaki relentlessly visits Junichi’s shop, much to the designer’s annoyance.
“No,” Junichi spits. “In that case, they can keep their Halloween parties if it means my shop can return to a Hisaki-free zone… little shit.”
“Alright, kids, let’s do this.” Setting the car in park, Asao pulls something from the dashboard then places and adjusts it on his head. “I told Sydney I’d help him in the kitchen, and we’re late.” When he looks back at them, Nino realizes he’s wearing a wool deerstalker cap with the earflaps fastened to the top.
