Chapter 82: Chapter 82 - My Darling Nephew!
A few minutes later, they finally arrived at the coffee shop.
The cafeteria was nice. The chairs were light wood with cream upholstery. The cafeteria had windows all around, very bright. There were a few potted plants scattered around the place, which made for a cooler environment.
As they got out of the cab, Ethan could see a man who might be Paolo, sitting at an empty table in the corner of the place, sipping hot coffee and reading a newspaper.
He had a serious expression on his face. He looked even a little angry.
Ethan and Alice entered the coffee shop and as they approached the table, the man slowly put the newspaper down, looking at Ethan.
He widened his eyes and raised his eyebrows.
The man looked a little different from the pictures. He had a blond mustache in the middle of his face, and he seemed to be much fatter than in the photos, but he still looked strikingly handsome nonetheless.
"ETHAN?" The man stood up excitedly.
Ethan gave an embarrassed smile, looking to the side and seeing that the others were looking at him.
That uncomfortable feeling of being the center of attention came back to him.
"YOU'RE FINALLY HERE! I AM SO HAPPY, MY DARLING NEPHEW!". Paolo hugged Ethan tightly, lifting him off the ground.
"Hi, uncle. I'm happy to see you too!". Ethan said, his voice being squeezed out by Paolo's hug.
"Oh, and who is this beautiful lady?". Paolo asked, letting go of Ethan and looking at Alice.
"That's Alice. My girlfriend!". Ethan replied.
Alice let out a shy smile and held out her hand to Paolo, who held her hand tightly, rocking up and down quickly.
"Does she...does she know?". Paolo stared at Ethan, trying to whisper, but it was still possible to clearly hear what he was saying.
"She knows, she does!". Ethan replied.
"And how are you guys doing? How was the trip? What about Enid? Why didn't she come?". Paolo began to machine gun Ethan with questions. "Oh, I'm sorry for so many questions. I am happy to see you. It's been a while since I've seen people from my family.". Paolo says, sitting down at the table again.
"Everything is fine! We are fine, uncle. The trip was great... What else did you ask?". Ethan asked, trying to remember.
"Enid! Is she okay, why didn't she come?". Paolo asked, rubbing his hands together. He looked a little worried.
"Oh, she's working. There was no way she could go...". Ethan replied.
"Oh, yes. You're right!". Paolo replied. "Well, are you guys hungry? Why don't you order something to eat?". Paolo asked, handing the menu to them.
Ethan opened the menu, looking for something to eat, while Alice just stared at her own cell phone.
"Don't you want anything, Alice?" Paolo asked.
"Oh, I'm not hungry!". Alice replied.
"Are you on a diet? But you are so small. Are you sure you're not hungry?". Paolo insisted.
"No! Everything is fine!". Alice replied, with a gentle smile.
"My daughter always tries to go on a diet. I get worried, you know? She's so young and already thinking about these things... Women are kind of crazy". Paolo says, looking at the menu again.
Alice was quiet, not knowing what to answer.
"I mean, women aren't crazy. Er... Emy is crazy, Emy is really crazy, but women aren't crazy. I didn't mean that... Er...". Paolo started trying to explain himself.
"I already know what I'm going to ask!". Ethan cut in, trying to change the subject.
"UH, GREAT! WAITER!". Paolo shouted, relieved, raising his hand.
"Good morning! What are you going to order?". A man with long hair in a shade of black asked.
"I'll have a coffee and those pancakes, please!". Ethan asked.
"Uh, Uh! Those pancakes are amazing. I'll have some too!". Paolo asked.
Paolo had the appearance of a brave and strong man, who could not show any intense feelings, but when they talked to him, they realized how caring and concerned he was, like a big daddy. This brought a strange but warm feeling to Ethan, since in this life, he had grown up without a father.
They were silent for a while, not knowing what to talk about. Ethan and Paolo stared at each other. The two looked embarrassed and a little awkward in each other's presence.
"Sooo... Did you have a good relationship with Ethan's father?". Alice asked, breaking the mood.
"Oh, Hayden? BUT OF COURSE! He's my sweet little brother!". Paolo said, slamming his hand on the table, excited.
"Here's your order!". The black-haired waiter approached, handing the pancakes to each.
"And have you heard from him?". Ethan asked, curious.
"Well, it's been many years since I've seen him. After what happened with you, Hayden was extremely frustrated, depressed. He didn't want to eat, he didn't want to go out...he just stayed home, depressed. So he decided to leave." Paolo said, dejected, as he stuffed a piece of the pancake into his mouth.
"Go away? Where to?" Ethan asked.
"Ah... You know... That place...". Paolo said, tapping his fingertips on the table.
"And how can I meet him again?". Ethan asked.
"You can't!". Paolo replied, chewing his pancake hard, expressionless.
"I can't? What do you mean I can't?" Ethan asked. He seemed to get a little irritated.
"Well...." Paolo swallowed his pancake. "The only way you can get to 'you know where', you have to die, go through limbo and then, yes, get to 'you know where'." Paolo said, stuffing another piece of pancake into his mouth.
"Why don't you just say 'hell'? Alice asked, impatiently.
"SHHHHHHHH! You don't say it! It's a curse word!". Paolo whispered shouting.
Alice and Ethan looked at each other, confused.
"Okay, so how do I get in touch with him?". Ethan asked.
"We can call him, but I think it's hard for him to answer...". Paolo said. He seemed to be talking before he thought.
He took his cell phone out of his pocket and started calling someone, putting the phone to his ear.
The cell phone started ringing. Paolo looked at Alice and Ethan, giving a gentle smile, hoping that Hayden would answer.
Alice and Ethan looked at each other. They didn't seem to believe that this was going to work.
A few minutes later, which seemed more like hours, the call dropped.
"Yeah, no answer!" Paolo said, placing the cell phone on the table and stuffing another piece of pancake into his mouth.
Ethan scratched his head, looking out the window.
- I can't believe I came all this way for nothing. Is Paolo crazy? Was his plan really just to call Hayden? That doesn't even make sense. Why didn't he just give me his fucking number? I'm so stressed out about this... - Ethan began to think, watching people walk by.
Paolo stuffed the last piece of pancake into his mouth, wiping it with his napkin.
"Well, we'll have to move on to plan B!". Paolo said, asking the waiter for the bill.
"Plan B?" Alice asked.
Ethan looked at Paolo, curious.
"We need to let Hayden know you're here! And not only that... You controlled your gift!". Paolo said, opening his wallet and placing a few bills of money on the table. "You can keep the change!". Paolo said to the waiter, getting up.
"And how do we do that?". Ethan asked, getting up together to follow him.
"Let's go to my place! I'm going to need you to show me what you know...". Paolo said, walking out of the coffee shop.
Alice tugged lightly on Ethan's arm, looking at him with an expression of denial.
"That doesn't look safe!". Alice whispered.
"Aren't you guys coming?". Paolo poked his head into the cafeteria.
Ethan smiled gently at Alice, taking her hand, and pulled her out of the cafeteria to follow Paolo.
- I don't think that's my best option, but it should help me resolve this more quickly. - Ethan thought next.
As they left, Paolo was standing next to a popular silver car, with the door open, waiting for them to get in.
Ethan and Alice got into the car, and they drove toward Paolo's house.
The whole road was well lit, with many shops and houses around. It didn't look like a dangerous or scary place like the Cullens' house. Many people were strolling through the streets that day.
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