Now that she thought about it, she thought of their date together when they were young and her very first kiss from him. Delia never thought that anything else would come after that date because she always thought he was just doing it to make her happy. But it seemed that after that date, after that kiss, that things seemed to change for them.
The telephone rang and she picked it up quickly, “Hello?”
“Hey there, Deedlebug, do you want to go to the theatre to see a movie tonight?”
It was Saturday afternoon and it had been about four months since their ‘date’. She thought that the time they had spent together was something out of a dream. In a way it was something that she always had wanted to have, Simone alone. Whenever she was with him, it was like paradise. “What’s playing?”
“Freaks, Creature from the Black Lagoon and Invasion of the Body Snatchers.”
“Wow, a triple creature feature, I see. Well, I am all for it, when are you coming to pick me up?”
“I’m down the street at this pay phone, come on out and I’ll be there to pick you up.”
“Lord. All right, let me get my shoes and purse.”
“No need for a purse, I’m buying.”
“All right, I’ll be out then.” Hanging up the phone, she grabbed her white sneakers and headed out of her room. “Mom, I’m going out with Simone to the movies!”
“All right, sweetie, make sure you’re back before ten.”
“I’ll try momma, it’s going to be a triple monster feature. So we might be just a bit late, though.”
“All right then, have a good time.”
Leaving the house, she waited for Simone at the end of the driveway. She soon could see his red Mustang coming from up the street then he was pulling up beside her, waving and smiling. Once she got in, they drove off and headed into town to the theatre. Every other Saturday, the theatre would play old movies from the silent era onto the sixties. Most of them were pretty cheesy but the two of them didn’t care how cheesy they were, just as long as they were worth watching, it was all good.
“I can’t believe they’re playing a triple feature tonight.” Delia told Simone, looking at one of the movie posters along the wall.
“Come on.” He grabbed her by the hand as they walked inside but she soon realized that something was wrong.
Where was everybody else?
“Simone, why are we the only ones in here?” But he never did answer her question as they walked into the movie and found absolutely no one here except for them. “What the hell Simone, no one is in here.”
They both sat in the middle row and in the middle seats, which is where they normally sat as the lights began to slowly dim. She kept looking around and it felt really weird that they were the only ones in the place. “Simone, why are we the only ones in here tonight?”
He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and smiled, leaning in toward her to plant a soft kiss on her forehead, “I just thought it would be neat to have the whole place to ourselves tonight.”
Delia smiled at him, leaning against his chest while watching Creature from the Black Lagoon. She couldn’t believe that he would have done this for her. The entire evening he catered to her every beck and call--when she got hungry, he went and got her popcorn, soda and her favorite candy Milk Duds. She always had the habit of putting her candy within her bag of popcorn, and shaking it up before she ate it. It was the salty, buttery sweetness that she loved and it made for a good snack. The entire time they were together he had been so affectionate with her, always making silly comments here and there, which was something they would frequently do when watching the movies. He would take her hand in his; sometime he would kiss it softly. The feel of his lips along her skin sent shivers through her body every time they touched. Sometimes when they got together like this, Delia often thought that maybe he was only doing this to just be kind, show her what she was missing, just doing it because he and her brother were friends.
After the movie, he decided to take her over to the only drive-in restaurant in town, Stokey’s, which was more like the ones from back in the 50’s where a carhop on roller skates would take your order at your car. They both decided to grab something to eat and head back to her house since it was starting to get a bit late. When they got to her house, they sat out on the swinging bench out in the yard to eat. At first they didn’t say very much while they ate but while munching on her onion rings, Delia had to ask him, “Simone, why are you being so nice to me?”
He looked puzzled by her comment and wiped his mouth, “Why do you ask that?”
“I know that you took me out on a date because you said you wanted to. It’s just that lately I’ve felt like even though we go out to the movies and hang out and stuff, you’ve never at least told me that you love me. I know you like me, you’ve always said you liked me but not one time have you said that you loved me.”
Taking a sip of his drink, he told her, “I do care deeply for you Delia,”
“But do you love me, Simone?”
“Even though we’ve known each other for years and years, I’ve always known you like you were my sister. I care so much for you and about you that I honestly wanted to show you that I cared for you even more. I can’t say that I love you just yet, Deedlebug.”
It wasn’t the words she had wanted to hear from him at that moment. She wanted to hear him say those words that she always remembered saying to him. All she wanted to hear him say was, “I love you Delia.” When he didn’t, it made her feel as if she was just a charity case or something. Now she realized that basically that’s all she was to him…a charity case. “I think you better head on home, Simone, and I think this will be our last time going to the movies.”
“What do you mean?”
“I meant just what I said Simone, I can’t be with someone who thinks of me as nothing more than a charity case. That’s how I think you feel about me, you saw that taking out your best friend’s sister would make her feel good about herself since no one else would take me out. You don’t understand Simone, I love you and I’ve loved you since the first time Andrew brought you and your brothers over to our house. There hasn’t been a day that I haven’t thought about us being a couple, actually dating and letting others know that we were a couple. So, I think that from now on, we’ll just remain the way things were before you found out how much I loved you.”
“But that’s not what I want Delia, I don’t want that for us.”
Getting up from the swing bench, she walked toward the door but not before saying to him, “Goodnight, Simone.”
Chapter Ten
Every time she felt her body relax for a moment to sleep, suddenly Delia found herself tossing and turning in bed. As her head hit the pillow for what felt like the fifth time, the reason why she couldn’t get to sleep like she wanted dawned on her. She still was a bit unnerved by what her brother had told her. When she was finally able to rest her mind and body, her thoughts went back to that dance at the Cipriano home. She remembered the look he’d given her when she introduced Rodger to him. Why hadn’t she picked up on that stare he gave them? It was as if someone had punched him dead in the stomach.
Why couldn’t he have just come right out and told her how he felt?
“Now I can’t get to sleep, dammit!” she shouted while flipping back her comforter to get out of bed. Grabbing the phone, she dialed Simone’s number and waited for him to answer. There was no way in hell she would be able to get any type of rest until she heard it from him directly and not just something relayed by her brother.
“Hello?”
“Question, is it true?”
“What? Is what true? Delia, is this you?”
“Andrew told me the whole story, Simone; about you being in love with me after all these years. I had to hear it from you and not from Andrew. So, is it true or not?”
It was so quiet on his end, she thought, but then he uttered a word that made Delia’s heart stop beating. “Yes.”
�
�Lord have mercy, why in the hell didn’t you tell me, Simone? We’ve known each other too damn long to keep secrets from one another.”
“I know, Delia, but this one I’ve kept for fifteen years now. Do you remember that night when I took you to the movies and afterwards we came back to your house to eat? I remember the look in your eyes when you told me that you loved me but you didn’t think I loved you the same way. Those moments when we were together Delia, those were probably the happiest I had ever been. Like I told Andrew, I didn’t want to jeopardize my friendship with him because of us dating. I care about both of you very much. There were times when I would sit back in my office and remember those days when we were together, going out to the movies, having the carhop bring us burgers and onion rings to the car. I’ve been on many dates over the years, been with many women as well. But the times I spent with you were probably the best I had ever had in my entire life. I think the reason why I never decided to settle down with any of them was because they never were like you.”
“What do you mean they were never like me?”
“I kept comparing most of the women who came into my life to you and honestly, none of them could hold a candle to you, they weren’t you. That’s when I knew right then and there, that I wanted to be with you, to show you that I’ve always loved you from the very first time I kissed you in my mom’s garden on our first date. I was stupid to put friendship over true love and I should have just gone with my heart.”
Delia honestly couldn’t believe all that she was hearing. “Why didn’t you just tell me, Simone? Something could have happened between us even before I had gotten with Rodger or anyone else for that matter. Hell, if you had just confessed your feelings for me when we were young, there is no telling what we could have been doing right about now. We could have gotten together and been together right now, could have gotten married and had kids.”
She remembered when she was young and she would often imagine how it would be to marry Simone. Her wedding day would have been a beautiful one, something along the beach. Everything would be white and lavender and everybody would have to wear white cool clothing since it would be during the summer. They would honeymoon in Italy, where his family lived in Sicily. Over the years she would have his children…at least about three or four. She’d always wanted a big family and would imagine how beautiful the little girls would be and how handsome the little boys they would make together would look.
“You thought about us having children together?”
Suddenly a tear trickled down along her cheek and then another. “I used to think about how wonderful it would be to have your kids when I was young. Hell, you saw my diary that night.”
“I never read your diary that night, only Andrew did. We only got to certain parts but never to anything about us having children together.”
“Well there was plenty in there about all my feelings for you. God, I wish you just would have said something to me, Simone.”
“I am telling you now that I love you Delia, I always have loved you but I was an idiot to keep my feelings to myself. Thinking that maybe it would be for the best. I want us to be together Delia, and now we have the opportunity to do just that, it’s a sign from God letting us know that we were meant to be together. I’m not going to screw this up again for us, Delia; I only want to be with you now and forever.”
Delia was at a loss for words, wiping her tears away. She honestly couldn’t have been happier than she was to hear these words from him. Even though it might have taken him years to acknowledge his true feelings for her, Delia was just happy to finally hear him open up about them. “So we are still on for Saturday, then?”
“You know we are and we’ll have dinner afterwards too.”
“Good, talk with you tomorrow, then. I’m going back to bed.”
“Sweet dreams, Deedlebug.”
Delia smiled, “Goodbye, Simple Simon.” Hanging up the phone, she felt like a fifteen-year weight had been lifted off her chest.
Maybe this was a sign from God, she thought.
* * * *
Jaslyn had told her she didn’t have to come into work the following day, that basically she had the rest of the week off, but Delia needed to be doing something and she needed to keep her mind busy as well.
“So, he told you he loved you?” Jaslyn said, while they were both polishing the furniture. Delia had been all smiles for most of the day and Jaslyn couldn’t help but pick on her because of that.
“And you knew it all along, didn’t you?” Delia told her as Jaslyn smiled bigger than a Cheshire cat.
“Well, Renzo had told me about it. He told me not to say a word until either Andrew or Simone told you. I swear I was itching to let you know but you never told me how deep you both were. Renzo said that Simone had made the biggest mistake of his life when he gave you up. Hell, he said that even Gianni and Federico thought you two would have made a great couple.”
“We would have, if Simone had been more open but maybe now we have a chance. I don’t know why I said maybe, I know we do have a chance to be together now.” Delia told her, still smiling while they continued to polish the furniture.
They walked over to Filomena’s down the street for lunch. Renzo greeted the both of them with a hug but of course a kiss for Jaslyn. “So, what brings two of the loveliest ladies in town to my restaurant today?”
Delia shook her head and smiled while Jaslyn told him, “Easy, tiger, we are only here for lunch.”
Grabbing their arms, he showed them to a booth in the corner of the restaurant. “Here you go, my love,” he seated Jaslyn and then he smiled at Delia, which only made her wonder what he was smiling so much about. “And for my sister-in-law, here we go.”
“Oh my God, you can’t be serious, Ren, sister-in-law?”
“You might as well accept it for you were family from the beginning and you’ll make a wonderful addition to our immediate family, once Simone decides to propose to you, that is.” Giving her a kiss on the forehead she heard him chuckle a bit while she sat down as well.
“Hey there, now, stop kissing on my girl over there.” said a voice from the other booth. Delia peered over the other side, only to feel something smack her square in her forehead. She heard a few people say ‘oooh’ and ‘damn’ real loud as she rubbed her forehead. Then she looked over and heard Renzo asking, “Are you all right?” But she could hear that he was trying not to laugh through the smile on his face.
Wincing a bit, she tried not to laugh herself. “Yeah, but what the hell did I just hit?” Hearing a moan from the other side, Delia looked over, seeing Simone leaning up against the cushion of his booth, rubbing his forehead as well. “Oh my God, Simone, what are you doing?”
“I was going to say the same thing to you, geez.” She sat watching while he rubbed his forehead, squinting just a bit before she saw those beautiful brown eyes of his staring back at her. Eyes she remembered making her melt whenever they would look down at her, eyes that she had always wanted to look at her the way they were at that moment….with love. “I hope I don’t leave a bruise on your forehead, let me see.” He reached over and gently touched her forehead while moving some of her hair. Lightly his lips rested right where they had bumped into each other. Delia closed her eyes and it felt like the kiss just ran through her body. It was that same feeling that she thought had long gone out between them. But it was still there the moment he placed those lips of his on her skin. “Now how’s that?”
She didn’t open her eyes for the longest time. She felt that if she did, the whole moment, much less the feeling would just go away. But soft whispers against her ear told her, “Open up those eyes of yours, Deedlebug.” When she did open them, she saw him smiling down at her and it made her smile just as much. “That feels much better, thanks.”
They both sat up and Delia looked at Renzo who had the biggest smile on his face. She knew that he was enjoying the moment between them too much. “Can you get me some aspirin, Rin Tin Tin?”
He rolled his eyes, looking around to see if anybody heard her say that, “Don’t call me that, Delia, you know I hate it when you call me that god-awful nickname.” He walked away and this time Delia was the one who was smiling as she looked over to see Simone sitting back down in his booth as she went and sat with him.
“When did you get in?”
“I came in last night. I decided to surprise you.”
“Well, you sure do know how to surprise someone with a bop on the forehead.”
“I told you I was sorry.”
Giving him a playful wink, Delia smiled. Renzo came over with a glass of water and aspirin. “Thanks.” Taking it quickly with the water, she closed her eyes for a moment hoping that it would help but of course she felt fingers along her own. Opening her eyes she saw Simone’s fingers capturing hers for a moment, intertwining together as a whole. “So…where do we go from here?”
He brought her hand up to his lips and softly kissed her fingers ever so lightly. “I think I have an idea but we will go out on that date for Saturday, for sure.” His smile was brilliant and beautiful, eyes dancing and sparkling as well. She watched him come from his side of the booth and sit down next to her as he leaned over to quickly kiss her lips. God, those lips of his, she swore she had completely forgotten how they felt after all this time. In between the kisses, soft moans escaped from her mouth. Never had she felt this way when Rodger used to kiss her but of course this was totally different.
Simone (The Ciprianos of Kellington Book 2) Page 8
