Marco looked at me as if he had no idea what I was talking about. “Rob, you do understand why James is so different from the others, right?”
I let my fingers pass slowly through his golden curls. “I wish I knew what he’s doing do me. Luca said he didn’t recognize me anymore. I don’t recognize myself either.”
A moment of silence followed, before Marco stood up. “Are you going to tell Mom I came home so late?”
I smiled. “Of course not. I hope you had fun.”
“Thanks,” he said, without looking back at me. “I owe you another one.”
JAMES
“You have to tell me everything when you come back,” Mary said while I was getting ready for the wedding.
“Sure, I’ll send you a few pictures, okay?” I said, focused on styling my hair. It looked like a lost cause. The slim-fit blue navy suit Mom got for me fit me perfectly. I was wearing it with a white shirt and a light blue tie with white dots. I looked good, but… “Mary, do I look too gay?” I asked my little sister, who burst out laughing.
“What did I miss?” Mom said, joining us in our room.
“James wonders if he looks too gay,” Mary said, still laughing so hard she had to hold her stomach. I grabbed my pillow and threw it at her. That traitor.
“Sweetie, you look great,” Mom told me. Noticing I wasn’t too convinced, she added, “You and Rob will be the most handsome couple around.”
I felt my stomach drop to the floor. “Rob? Have you seen him? How could I not ask him what he was going to wear? He works for a fucking luxury fashion brand!”
“You’ll see him soon enough. He’s waiting for you downstairs,” Mom added casually.
“What?” I felt my face heating up. “Why? It’s eight. The ceremony at the church won’t start until eleven, right?”
Mom started fixing my tie. “You’re invited to Claudia’s house before the ceremony. There’ll be a buffet, apparently.”
“Another one? I’ve just brushed my teeth. Do these people ever stop eating?” As I said that, I realized I sounded a lot like Francesco.
Mom caressed my face and looked deeply into my eyes. “James, there’s no need to be so nervous. I’ll see you at the church later, okay? I’m really curious to see the ceremony.”
I took a deep breath. “Okay,” I said. I walked downstairs where Rob was talking with Dad about sports. He was wearing a gray suit with a light blue shirt and a diamond-patterned tie a shade darker than the suit. On his wrist he boasted a Rolex, and Armani sunglasses hung from the chest pocket of his jacket. For a moment, I wondered who that man was. Since the day I met him, I always saw him dressed simply, with t-shirts, shorts and worn sneakers. Seeing him now was like waking up from a dream. He was too gorgeous for me. He was catwalk material. He belonged to a shiny, shimmering world that I could never reach. I couldn’t say a word to him as I came down, but when he turned around, he smiled at me like always and his green gaze burned in my chest.
We said goodbye to my parents and went out. Rob explained that we were taking another car instead of going with the rest of the family, so we would be able to leave whenever we wanted. When we got in the car, I still couldn’t look straight at him.
“James, we’re not going until you tell me what’s wrong,” he said sweetly, resting his hand on my thigh.
I looked at him and felt myself blushing. “Is that an Armani suit? You look wonderful, while I…”
Rob tilted my face up. “You are the most handsome young man I’ve ever seen. I’m pretty damn proud to have you by my side today.” He put my hand on his jacket, over his heart. “This is just stuff. Yes, sometimes I like to buy myself nice things, but they don’t make me feel like I’m better than anyone. You do. When you look at me, I feel I’m the world’s luckiest bastard.”
I was so happy I could cry. Instead, I took his sunglasses from his pocket and put them on. “How do I look?” I asked him.
As an answer, Rob pulled me close and kissed me until I was completely breathless. “You’re a menace,” he joked, and finally started the car.
Claudia and Jenn’s house, that I had visited a lot of times already, looked bigger than ever. White roses decorated the living room, all doors and windows were open, and in the natural light of the early morning, the traditional, extremely well-kept furniture shined brightly. I greeted the bride’s parents first, as Rob taught me, and we joined Rob’s family, who had been there for a while already. Giuseppe and Rosa were both incredibly nice to me, doing their best to explain who all the other people in the room were. Without even realizing it, I had a glass of prosecco in my hand and I was chatting with Rob, Marco and Francesco without a care in the world.
“You look like you’re having fun,” Jenn’s voice finally said from behind us. Her usually curly hair was now straight; she was wearing makeup and she was totally rocking her black dress.
“Wow,” I said, taking her hand in mine and laying a kiss on it. “Sweetheart, you’re hot.”
A few people were looking at us and giggling. She glanced at them and turned to me with a fake smile. “What the hell are you doing? I’m fucking killing you when this wedding’s over.”
“No need to be so embarrassed,” Rob said. “There are a few girls in this room that would kill to be in your shoes right now.”
Jenn scoffed, “I’d kill to throw these shoes out of the window right now.”
We all went outside, and Claudia made her grand exit from her family home with her dad. She looked like a princess, or a vintage porcelain doll. Her white dress, tight at the waist with a puffy skirt, highlighted her silhouette. Her hair was wavy and tied in an intricate bun on top of her head to which her veil was pinned. She was beautiful. As we threw the rice at her, I noticed that a lot of people from the town who weren’t coming to the wedding were there anyway, throwing rice as well or simply admiring her. There were a lot of kisses on the cheeks, congratulations and tears.
And the wedding hadn’t even started yet.
ROBERTO
There were moments when I was glad James didn’t speak Italian. When we arrived at the church, we went to say hello to Davide, who was already waiting there with his family and friends. When our relatives started coming, I could hear them whispering behind our back. Some wondered who James was, some gossiped about my breakup with Luca, some even said, “They shouldn’t come into the church.”
“Bigoted assholes,” Francesco told me, careful not to let anyone hear us. “It’s people like them who shouldn’t be allowed in a church,” he continued.
“They can say whatever they want,” I said, “as long as their words don’t hurt James.”
“What about me?” James suddenly asked.
“I was telling Francesco that you look like you’re having a good time,” I lied, and I felt terrible about it.
Something shined in James’ eyes. “This church is so beautiful. The frescos must be at least from the eighteenth century. Who was the artist?”
I blinked a couple of times and looked around. I had never even noticed the artwork decorating the church. “Good question, I have no idea.”