-- be the death of me

[Luca Giovanni]

----AFTER THE NIGHT LUCA AND MAGGIE HAD HAD, you'd think they'd never want to be in the same room with each other ever again. once maggie had left his loft that day, luca just felt uncomfortable. already wet, thanks to her, he still had to just take a shower and wash away everything that had happened. luca couldn't understand how they could go from completely hating each other at the los angeles benefit to making out on his sofa.if you could make sense of that, plese tell him because the only explanation he was able to come up with was that it was some weird tension that had been building up for a long time and had leaked out that night. the logical side of his brain was telling him that he neeeded to nix this before it got further. though his body had gotten the best of him, he had stopped before it had gotten far enough to severly mess things up. but who was he kidding? everything was fucked.

he still went back to his laptop long after she left and pulled up what he had sought out earlier that morning. the picture in the los angeles times witht he corresponding article that basically announced his engagement. he was still shocked that they looked so comfortable with each other. besides that fact that it looked like they were some hollywood power couple, there were no hidden glares or any other body language that gave away that they weren't in love or happily enegaged. he tried looking at in unbiasely. like he was one of his family members, an ally, or even someone that was shocked to see a giovanni and a corinthos getting married. every point of view looked the same. there was no 'jig,' maggie and luca looked legit, the real deal. it only scared him that he knew he hadn't been entirely acting that night, but he wasn't ready to admit that to himself let alone anyone else.

fasuto had called later that day, told luca that he did well that night with maggie. the dancing was a nice touch. then, luca had to give him the rundown of what maggie had told him about the castillos possibly coming to town if not in town already. this caused fausto to curse out every bad word in the dictionary. both in english and in italian. he wasn't mad at luca or maggie for that matter, he was just pissed that they had to worry about another mexican cartel in the area. as if they hadn't had their hands tied with the irish. looks like the alliance with the corinthos family came at a good time, despite the fact that it was at his expense. then fausto told him that he wanted luca and maggie in los angeles at the end of the week. he was going to give them a job to do.

so he called maggie, because talking on the phone was a lot easier than to see her in person. he fought the urge to ask her what she was wearing as he told her that fausto had a job for them and he was going to de-brief them in los angeles at the end of the week. surprisingly, they had a lot more to talk about on the way down making the two hours more bearable than the last time they had driven to and from los angeles. by the time they had gotten into los angeles it was later and fausto insisted on taking them out to dinner with a few other people. then it was back to the giovanni mansion where luca played the gentleman card and insisted they sleep in separate rooms. fausto just waved his hands and called him a pansy in italian. luca didn't want to go down that road again, so he took the insult and slept in a separate bed. the next morning, after breakfast, fausto sat them down and told them about his idea. the giovannis were big into the underground gambling. but really, it was the horse races and professional fighting that they had in valkyrie. fasuto wanted to expand it a little and run an illegal casino comeplete with poker, black jack, and craps tables. but what he wanted maggie and luca to do was investigate another one in san fran. so that meant they were going to have to go undercover and pretend to be high rollers. supossedly, there was this big famous illegal casino there and he wanted them to scope it out and report back to him. it wasn't too bad. the job could be worse, but it was just a check out one and come back. luca wouldn't say it wasn't dangerous because any undercover job had potential to be dangerous. when luca asked when they should go, fausto told them not until the following week. he then told the two that they should stay here for another night because they were expecting bad weather. when fausto said there was a chance of snow, luca laughed and said they would take their chances. ever few years there was rumors of snow in their area of california. these rumors never really did pan out. he told maggie to pack up her stuff. they were just going to leave and get back to valkyrie by the afternoon. within the half hour, they were back on the road to valkyrie, by noon. not bad.

the sky wasn't it's usual clear blue with big, white clouds in the sky. it was gray, an overcast. luca wasn't really that worried about it. but almost an hour into the drive, he noticed white specks on the windshield. they melted on the glasses and he furrowed his eyebrows. "is that... snow?" he asked maggie who was seated next to him. how strange was it that it was snowing in california? he had driven in snow before. being all around the country he had experienced all four of the seasons at once point, but he wasn't used to driving in snow. but from what he could tell, the roads weren't bad, even though as the minutes ticked by the snow was coming down more frequent.

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, yayyy. hope everything sounded ok.
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[Magdelena "Maggie" Corinthos]

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, HIGHWAY, DECEMBER 2007

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-----her head was spinning ever since yesterday. reeling even. what. in. the. hell. was. going. on?! she couldn't even tell you if she tried. the day before was like a total out of body experience, one that maggie couldn't describe for many reasons. she didn't know what the hell she was feeling right now. it was now obvious to her that something else was going on. something inside her head was telling her that what she was feeling for luca was not just hate and she believed herself. maggie wasn't sure just how long she had been trying to deny it. did she actually have feelings for him way back when? no, she was pretty sure than up until recently she'd pretty much hated luca. he got under her skin, drove her to the point of drinking, drove her to the point where she wasn't sure she could control the urge to kill him. now? had that changed now? well a lot of those feelings still remained. there was something about luca that she just couldn't explain. he knew how to rattle her in ways that no one else knew how. you see maggie was the queen of keeping it cool. she could keep her head straight, she could stare down the barrel of a gun and feel nothing, that is until she met luca. now it just seemed like all of her self control went out the window. the only thing she was good at right now was acting like she loved him. she had gotten pretty good at that for reasons she didn't want to say out loud. that reason was that it was getting easier and easier to act that way. damn it since when had that happened? maggie wasn't used to this. she wasn't used to being off her game like this. she was always the cool and collected one. that had made her the brilliant individual she was today. she could forgo all emotions to look at a situation rationally. that is up until she met luca.

-----they hadn't even worked together yet. seriously this had to be one of the slowest businesses maggie could have gotten herself involved in. she'd figured that they would have had at least three or four assignments under their belt by now. luca was the go-to guy for fausto was he not? she shouldn't have expected some action but she craved it. this was the closest to an "in" she'd ever had in a business before. eager was not a good enough word to express what she was feeling. she was antsy. she wanted to get up and go. to do something useful other than sitting around with luca and playing house. well basically she wanted to get out of sitting around and playing house with luca. it was getting far too easy to be around him as of late and that kind of thing needed to change. she didn't need to feel this way about him. she didn't need to feel anything toward him. and yet she did. she didn't want to say the words out loud but could it be possible that maggie actually -gulp- liked luca? could she have really fallen for the tricks of this man who she's repeatedly referred to as pompous, sexist, a bastard, a buffoon, a lug, stupid, ignorant, and a slew of other vocabulary words? what was she doing? she knew very well that feelings for this man were not only bad, very bad, but they were ridiculous. he'd called her a hooker the first time they'd met. he'd put a gun to her head too. albeit she had a knife to his throat but damn it she shouldn't be feeling a damn thing for him!

-----not even a day later and they were back in luca's car, on a frigid, damn near arctic day. they were headed to faustos because what he had to say couldn't be said over the phone apparently. what ever. she could handle being stuck in a car with him for two plus hours. that was fine. it was actually much better than the last time. things had seemed to thaw between the two of them since the last car ride they'd had to los angeles. that last one had been the night of the benefit with paolo sitting in the back as maggie and luca were a silent as graves in the front seats. it was hard to believe they'd acted so well that night after how things had even started. it was no wonder that by the end of their little show paolo had pretty much figured something was up. the acting should have begun the minute paolo was in that car. maggie should have remembered that but truthfully? acting hadn't been her biggest concern at the time. this ride however was much nicer. they found things to talk about and had passed the time rather well. well anything was better than the last time they'd tried. once they'd gotten to los angeles it was all about the show. luca and maggie went to dinner and played up their romance to the people at the table. once again maggie found that it wasn't nearly as difficult as the last time they tried. her smiles were more and more real and less scripted the more the night wore on. luckily they'd gotten separate rooms by the time the night was over and maggie slept as soundly as she possibly could sleep...which for her wasn't as soundly as she would have liked it to be.

-----she listened intently the next morning as fausto went over his plans for their first ever assignment. it sounded easy enough. maggie had grown up with money all her life so acting as though she had it wasn't difficult. acting like a high roller meant she could pamper herself at a table with liquor and basically demand anything she pleased. that much was simple enough. she could do that no problem. maggie didn't really pay too much attention to the back and forth between fausto and luca as they tried to figure out what the hell was going to happen next. by the end of it it was determined that they were leaving. that was fine with her. she snuggled into the front seat of luca's car, the heat turned on in the car and pointed in her direction as they meandered down the highway. it was absolutely freezing outside and she could see why people thought it might snow. they idea actually kind of thrilled her. what? she grew up in mexico. she'd never seen snow before in her life. i mean she'd seen pictures and she'd seen it in movies so she kind of knew what to expect, but she'd never really experienced it before. she wasn't paying too too much attention as they drove along the highway, that is until she'd heard luca pipe up. "what? no way." maggie said with disbelief as she looked at the windshield and sure enough, white flakes were slapping the glass and melting into little pools of water before the whoosh of air forced them back toward the roof of the car. "dios mío" she said under her breath, a little glimmer of a smile there. "and you said there would be no snow." she snickered, watching eagerly like a kid in a candy store as the flakes came down.

-----but her excitement waned slightly as time went by and the flakes started coming down with a fury. she watched as the patches of grass that lined the highway began to grow white, meaning that it was cold enough for the snow to stick. meaning that it wasn't just going to come down and melt away. it was planning on staying a while. "watch out!" she said as the cars in front of them skidded back and forth, finally giving up the fight and pulling over to the side of the road. "that kind of looks like a good idea." well it was what maggie would have done. she'd never driven in snow before. it seemed like right before her eyes, the highway started growing stark white, the flakes coating the pavement so quickly that they couldn't melt fast enough. "it's really coming down." it was about that moment that maggie felt the car lurch, the tires losing traction against the snow and spinning helplessly as they tried to find their footing. "crap!" maggie hiked her knees up to her chest, hugging them close as luca fought with the steering wheel, trying to get them back on the road and free the wheels from the clutches of the snow to no avail.

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status • finished
words • 1715
tagged • laggie !
clothes • minus glasses and necklace. !
listening to • -- - --.
notes • i hope you don't mind me getting into the spinning out of control part. i want them in that motel xD.

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[Luca Giovanni]

----HE KNEW WELL ENOUGH THAT as the usually black road of the high way started growing white with snow, he had to slow down. other cars were doing the same, but they wanted to get home as much as he did. he could bet that most people on the highway were born and bred in california. never had seen snow in their whole life. it was funny. the preconceptions of the american dream. not even the whole country experienced snow, and yet, you always saw books and movies of a house by itself, lit up, as white snow fell around it. a family inside drinking hot cholocate while thinking about making snowmen and sleigh riding the nexxt day. luca had a hard time thinking about families. snow or not because the teenager sitting next to him was suppose to be his new family. they knew they were getting married. it was a topic on their minds since the moment it was decided, but... was he suppose to, you know, be a family with her? like, with kids and a dog, and a house that wasn't a loft with a picket fence?

luca shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he tightened his grip on the wheel and stared out ahead. he was so wrapped up in the road leading up to the 'getting married' part that he never really thought about the after. and it sucked that he had no one he could talk to about this. the only person he could would be maggie, but that would be awkward and strained. luca wanted to talk to fausto about this, but he had already assumed the role that he was beginning to like her. if he backtracked and asked fausto about the specifics, luca would get a back-hand. so this was just becoming a thing he would have to suffer silently with himself. maybe eventually he would come to terms that this marriage thing was a forever deal.

he still believed that they were oil and water. he was focused, collective, maybe a bit of a hardass, but he got shit done with being a bastard. maggie was reckless, unpredictable, and knew how to use her persuasion skills if you knew what he meant. they were complete opposites, she was still in high school, and he graduated almost four years ago. she liked to be defiant while luca took his orders. he could be a prick, she could be a bitch. if we were going to get technically, she was mexican while he was italian. he could start a fire, while she liked to play with it. their personalities clearly did not mix well and they both drove the other crazy. luca thought she was a prostitute the first time they met. there are just a lot of things that contributed to getting off on the wrong foot. despite the fact that they have warmed up to each other, did that mean they could forget about the beginning, or would that always be in the back of their minds?

luca knew it was bad right when she yelled 'watch out!' he felt the steering wheel jerk to the left. he tried to steady it but he knew the back wheels were fishtailing out behind him. he tried to remember what to do when you were fishtailing. was it steer the wheel towards the way you were sliding or the opposite way? shit, he couldn't remember. the roads were beginning to get covered with snow so the only way he could see where he was going was following the tracks the car in front of them left behind. but the more luca lost control of the car, the more he saw himself straying away from the tracks he was following. another quick jerk to the left by the steering wheel and the car sharply turned and ran directly off the road... and into the ditch along side of it. their bodies flew forward. "ah, fuck," he muttered. "are you ok?" he asked maggie turning to her. he didn't see any immediate injuries on her or him. the car was still running so he thought he might as well try and getting out of there. "hold on, i'm going to see if i can back up." trying to move forward would be a stupid idea. the car was already tilted towards the ground, the only possible way of maybe getting out was backing back up. he shifted the car into reverse and tapped the gas pedal. they didn't move but he could hear the back tired spinning. he sighed. "wait here," he told her and cut the engine. luca got out, greeted with a frigid wave of blowing snow. quickly walking to the back, he shoved his hands in the pockets of his sweatshirt he was wearing. damn, it was cold. the back tired were undoubtedly stuck in the muddy ground. ughh, this was bad. he shook the snow as he got back into the car.

"yeah, we're stuck," he told her. he reached in his pocket and pulled out his cellphone. "fuck. of course," he shook the useless phone and looked at maggie. "it's dead." what were they going to do now? hang out until they were unstuck? it stopped snowing? someone came to help them? he doubted someone would stop. they were deep enough in the ditch to not noticed it as you were approaching them. and the snow was going to make it hard to see. damnit. of course this would be his luck, of course. he sighed. they were still a ways from valkyrie and walking would get them killed from the cold for sure. "maybe," he started, "we could hitch a ride to the latest gas station and call someone, or a tow truck. if we stay here, we'll probably freeze our asses off." he made sure the car's keys were in his pocket and he reached across from her and took his gun out the glove compartment. he made sure the saftey was on before getting out of the car, the cold chilling him once more. luca put the gun in the waist band and locked the doors to the car. "come on," he told her. "the sooner we find a ride to the gas station, the sooner we can get home.

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, i didn't want to go too far ahead. hope it was ok.
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[Magdelena "Maggie" Corinthos]

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, HIGHWAY, DECEMBER 2007

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-----maggie didn't really know what luca was all worried about. it wasn't like they were going to actually be forced to marry one another...she hoped. you had to think about it logically though. a marriage to the corinthos would solidify things, yeah, but would it not screw with the whole giovanni way of thinking? the idea was that you go out into the world, find a nice italian girl who likes to cook, clean, and play baby machine, and then you're golden. did luca really think that fausto was going to force him to add a mexican into the mix? she was pretty damn sure it would never go so far. well maybe it would get as far as the wedding but someone would stand up and object...wouldn't they? well damn it if it got to that point maggie would make sure j.r. did it. they both objected, that much was obvious. no matter how much time had passed and no matter how civil they were getting with one another, that did not mean that she wanted to go running to the alter with him, nor he with her. it was ridiculous. they could never...right? maggie couldn't stand the back and forth going on in her head. it made it spin faster than when luca was nice to her. she couldn't possibly imagine having real, tangible feelings for him and yet there it was. she wasn't really sure to what extent and she was kicking herself for admitting it, but there they were. feelings. damn them. she didn't want to have feelings for him. civility didn't require she actually start liking him. tolerance? yes. understanding? most likely. actual emotions? red flag, sirens, alerts, bad bad bad! she shouldn't be feeling a damn thing for him because first and foremost, he would never reciprocate them. he still saw her as a child, like everyone else in her god forsaken family. she was eighteen, legally an adult, but no one would see her that way because she was still in high school. because next to this sham of a wedding she'd be planning graduation parties and picking out colleges. ugh.

-----yeah from an outsiders perspective it sounded like she was a child. it sounded like she was immature and had no control over herself. but was she really like any other high school kid? while normal teenagers were out on the weekends planning parties and getting piss drunk maggie was at home planning shipping routes for her father's heroin and planning raids on other organizations in a show of power. maggie hadn't been a kid since before she'd started working in her father's organization. anything before that, yeah she was a child, but now she had experienced more than any normal person out there could dream of. she had strayed a little off the beaten path, true, and around luca she was a bit less composed then when she was around anyone else. she still couldn't explain that. she had no idea why luca got to her so much. and though he would point out all of their differences, maggie couldn't help but see more of the same. she must be a glutton for punishment. no other sane woman would feel an attraction for someone who had thought her a hooker or someone who got under her skin like no one else could. she didn't want to imagine what would happen if they were actually forced to get married. would there be that constant back and forth? would it just be a sullen depression of a marriage or would they get over it and just embrace it? would they be expected to be producing little heirs? oh ew. now that she couldn't possibly imagine. it wasn't like they could order them to have sex with one another. that was a little ridiculous don't you think? maggie may have been slightly attracted to him, but that didn't mean she wanted to go around making little luca babies...ick.

-----she definitely didn't like the look of the road as they continued driving. with people swerving and skidding all over the road ahead of them it was obvious that what they were doing was dangerous. maggie wasn't in the mood to die of hypothermia and with the way things were looking it was likely she should start expecting to be chipped out of an ice block years down the road. nothing about the road felt right so she really should have been surprised that their own car started fishtailing and that luca couldn't find a way to control the damn thing. she'd never been in a car crash before, so aside from her "watch out!" outburst, maggie was surprised by how quiet she was. was tucked her knees into her chest a good idea? she hadn't a clue but she did it anyways. her knees were the only thing to hit the dash when the car toppled into the ditch. other than that she was okay. "yeah i'm fine." she said to luca before he hopped out of the car. brilliant. that frozen death was calling her name now. but she didn't feel cold. she didn't feel it because her blood was boiling. she was pissed. "can't possibly stay in los angeles for one more night. no you have to scoff at the weather and be all manly and go out in a snow storm. idiot." luca wasn't in the car so maggie could grumble all she wanted. she raked her fingers through her hair as she undid her seat belt. the car wasn't moving anywhere, she could hear it in the tires as luca had tried backing up. she stuck out her hands to the air flow coming from the car, soaking up the last bit of heat before she opened up her car door and got out. "there's no 'could' about it. i'm not sitting in this car freezing to death. we're getting a ride."

-----the snowy wind was like a damn slap to the face. she wasn't fucking prepared for snow. maggie tightened the blazer around her body, buttoning it so her hands would be free. she heaved herself out of the ditch, looking down the road to see if headlights were coming. she could see snow flakes getting stuck in her hair as the wind blew, matting to her brunette locks before they melted and just chilled her further. "you go hide in the ditch. i know the kind of audience i need to grab and i can't do that with you by my side. get!" she said with a shooing motion as she watched the road. "i need a trucker with a hard on for lost little hitch hikers and no one's going to stop with king stupid by my side." she shivered, the cold blasting right through her clothes and damn near sinking to her bones. "brilliant fucking bastard thinks he can drive through snow. idiot." she grumbled under her breath as luca made himself scarce. she hoped he could still hear her. his idiocy had put them in this situation and she wasn't going to let him live it down. by the time maggie saw the headlights she was praying for the snow had wet her hair completely and it stuck to her face and her neck as she stuck out an arm and made the stereotypical hitchhiker's sign. she smiled happily as the eighteen wheeler began to slow, coming to a halt right in front of her. maggie hopped up on the steps as the window rolled down. "hey baby. willing to save a girl from the snow?" she said with a shiver, pushing her hair out of her face. the cabin was warm, she could feel the heat hitting her face and her knees damn near crumpled. "my car's in the ditch. me and my friend need a ride back into town so we can call a tow. mind helping a girl out?"

-----the chubby man damn near slobbered, probably thinking that maggie's friend was another girl who wasn't ready to brave the snow. "o'course little lady. you go get your gal pal and i'll be right here a'waitin'." oh such bad english. maggie looked back toward the snowy white ditch, waving a hand as she opened up the door. she glanced at the man's face as luca came lumbering up. "i thought you said you and your friend-" "yeah my friend here got us stuck in that ditch there. we need a ride. you're still willing to help me right?" maggie gave him a little pout and the man nodded. "oh goody." the man patted the seat beside him and maggie slid herself in, holding the door open and luca hopped inside. "we really appreciate it." she said giving the man a little smirk as luca shut the door and they were ready to drive off. "remember the mile marker or the tow truck will never find that car." she shivered slightly, pushing her hair back as it dripped icy runoff down her back. damn she was cold. the trucked cranked the heat and turned his air in her direction. "thank you" she said with a small smile as she wrapped her arms around her body and closed her eyes. she fought the shivers, trying to still her body and just recover from standing out in the snow. thankfully the nearest town wasn't but a few miles away.

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status • finished
words • 1860
tagged • laggie !
clothes • minus glasses and necklace. !
listening to • -- - --.
notes • --.

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[Luca Giovanni]

----IT TOOK HIM TO BE FORCIBLY engaged to someone to make him realize how much he wanted to be in a relationship. i know, right? luca in a relationship for a long-term thing. he still wanted to wait. it wasn't like he wanted to rush into a relationship right now but he wanted to wait and do it his way. he may have a hard time admitting his feelings but he wanted his freedom back. he was behind, he was aware that almost all his uncles at this age already had a kid. maggie told him how hard her life was. maybe a lot of his jobs were handed to him, but luca was trying to live up to his predecessors here and that was proving to be really hard. he was trying to advance himself in the giovanni career path. then there was his 'joe schmo' job of being a fashion photographer. he'd photograph editorials for united states magazines like vogue and elle. even this cover-up job took up a lot of his time in addition to the huge job he had with his family. now, add on trying to find a wife. too bad he couldn't have a day of rest.

santino "sonny" giovanni was his father. he was called the great mediator with his own brothers and sisters. right now, santino wasn't even in los angeles. he was in new york on business with luca's mother, mona, tagging along. his father called luca not too long ago. sonny had already known the path his older brother had mapped out for sonny's only child. it would have been different if luca decided long ago not to get into the organized crime business. if luca wanted to walk among the normal, he'd probably be still traveling around europe. he'd make his money by selling his photographs where he went. he was a simple man. he lived in a one-room (literally, one room) loft above an abandoned art gallery when he could be living in the giovanni mansion across town. sonny had asked how he was doing, with everything. he hadn't been able to talk to his father due to sonny being unreachable for a few weeks now. all fausto told him was that sonny agreed to this marital arrangement. luca could be honest with his father. that this plan could all backfire, someone could get hurt or killed and luca wasn't ready to jump ship and just get married. though sonny had no answers to any of these questions, it just frustrated him more. it was a fifteen minute phone call before sonny cut him off when luca started asking him about what they were suppose to act like after they got married. sonny had to get back to work. sonny had left luca more confused than when he started and once again, leaving everything up to luca to interpret and handle.

he wasn't handling himself well since he got their asses stuck in a ditch. it was a freak snow storm too. what were the chances of that as well? snow storm, in california. the highway was covered in a blanket of white, so taboo to california standards. luca couldn't even see the sun. it was hidden behind the gray clouds that was causing the snow. he was too use to damn california. he had been in chicago not long before where the temperature dipped below the 50s. and here he was now, pulling his little zip-up sweatshirt tighter around his upper half. with every exhale he could see his breath forming like cigarette smoke in front of him before being carried away by the wind. and then maggie came out looking ready to bust his balls. yeah, like riding into the ditch was his fault... like he did it on purpose or something. he was confident if she had been driving they would have flipped the damn car fifty miles back. she told him that she would need her damn space to get them a ride. he rolled his eyes and slid back down into the ditch. he heard her mention him as king stupid and scowled at her. yeah. well, maybe she should strip down to her underwear, that would sure bring everyone to help her. he grumbled back to the car to make sure all the doors were locked. he didn't want strangers rummaging through their shit.

it sucked that his phone was dead too. when people say they live through their phones, luca could be included in that group too. his entire life was on his phone. dates, addresses, numbers, pictures. everything he needed to do his job was in the piece of technology that had no batteries left. what if someone tried calling him? a client trying to place a bet? or a client that was paying him to protect the their business, was getting bothered by another gang? or even fausto wondering if he got home all in one piece? whenever they got to the next town, luca was first calling fausto, telling him what was up and he shouldn't be worried something happened. then luca would call the tow truck.

luca heard the slow of tires and turned around. a big eighteen-wheeler was stopped right in front of maggie. of. course. he saw maggie climb up and talk to the trucker. luca already knew the truck driver was going to let her in. it was whether the trucker was going to let luca in. those truckers must not look in the mirror very often. they were probably guessing they were about fifty pounds lighter and better looking than they were if they thought a girl like maggie would sleep with them. he started walking up the hill and maggie waved at him to join them. luca climbed in right after maggie. she had the privilege of sitting in the middle. "i got it," he told her when she told him to remembered where they were at. the trucker grinned and just nodded at him. and luca just nodded back at him. the trucker started lugging the truck forward but not before looking maggie up and down. luca narrowed his eyes. he didn't want to piss the trucker off too much that he'd pull over and kick them off, but someone had to put him in his place. though it was very tempting to pull the gun out and just shoot him, he refrained himself. instead, he put a hand on her leg. a simple gesture, but showed the trucker that they were more than just friends.

the trucker's eyes fell on luca's hand and shot quickly to the road. "so, how far till the next town?" luca asked. they were all bouncing greatly, even if the trucker was going much slower than usual. "errrrr, few miles maybe. where are ya folks goin'?" would it sound crazy if luca was expecting this trucker to pull out a beer? "valkyrie," he stated. the driver snickered, or snorted, it was hard to tell. "yeah, i ain't going that far. the best i can do for y'all is drop ya off at the next town." of course he wasn't going to valkyrie. "these roads are really bad anyway. i don't think ya'll will find another driver that'd pick ya up. maybe you little lady," he turned his head and winked at maggie. untentionally, luca gripped her leg. knowing what he was doing, he let go. "i think we'll make do," he told the trucker. "right, baby?" he asked maggie. the trucker glared at luca. and turned his head back to the road. "oh look," he said flatly, "the gas station."

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, -
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[Magdelena "Maggie" Corinthos]

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, HIGHWAY, DECEMBER 2007

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-----this was no where near fun town. if maggie had her way right now she'd be sitting in front, on inside, a fire, just trying to get some feeling back into her numb fingers and toes. she honestly had never been so cold in her life, and she'd taken a tour of the meat locker in one of their contact's shops. that was cold but this? this was a natural kind of cold. it wasn't a man made cold. for some reason that made things different. man made cold was intended for cooling houses, or in the case of the meat locker freezing huge hunks of cow until they were ready to go to market. this natural brand of cold seeped into every single crevice of your body and seemed to quite literally suck the life right out of you. one gust of wind could blow away any semblance of cold your body may have been able to generate, leaving you to suffer once again. god it was miserable. feeling the warmth from that stupid heater inside the cab of that eighteen wheeler was practically orgasmic. maggie had never had to live anywhere where the weather conditions never dipped below, oh say forty. she'd never seen snow before unless it was in the shape of a shaved ice cone you bought at the fair, even those never lasted all that long. winter? oh winter in tijuana was what happened when the temperature dropped to fifty and you had to break out a light jacket. she'd never experienced anything so cold in her life. it was like making a bed out of scoops of ice cream and laying on it. it was like the effect of sealing yourself inside a walk in freezer for days at a time. it was effing miserable. and what was maggie wearing on this joyously cold occasion? not enough layers. had she imagined herself being stranded in the middle of a nor'easter, well maybe she would have packed her parka.

-----they were both unprepared for this abysmal cold but at least thank to her...erm feminine wiles, they were working on a ride. anyone would pick up a girl who was frozen on the side of the road. it all depended on how high a moral standard they had. maggie wasn't necessarily against having to kill some guy when he groped her, but to be honest the cold had done a number on her and she just wanted to get to a place that was warm and dry. that didn't seem like all that much to ask, but hey, who really knew. she smiled over at the trucker as she opened the door, giving luca enough time to lumber up. no doubt if she'd immediately hopped in the cab this plump man would have tried taking off and leaving luca behind. as much as that tempted her as payback for getting them into this situation, she didn't need a luca-popsicle to thaw later on. it was best that he traveled with her. once luca was close enough to reach the cab maggie slid herself inside. though she wasn't sure just how much she enjoyed a trucker/mobster sandwich, it was much warmer than her previous situation so she would suck it up for the time being. she could always sterilize the left half of her body that would graze the truckers every once so often. ick. there had to be three days worth of grime on that man. for some reason he brought up flashbacks of the first time maggie had met luca back in that utterly filthy apartment owned by one nine-fingered paul. she was still surprised she hadn't ended up with hepatitis after leaving that place and having rolled around on the floor with luca. the thought of it made her shiver, which was hard to discern from the other cold-induced shivers she had going on.

-----she could slowly start to feel her fingers, and once she was sure her body was producing a little bit of heat she stuck her hands between the seat and her damp jean clad butt. at least it was warm. the truck was moving far too slow for her tastes but at this point only one near death ditch experience was enough for her. the man could go as slow as he liked, but did he have to hit every pot hole. she was sure that he planned it because every time they hit one those beady, greasy little eyes went to her chest and watched maggie's goods bounce. wow. sick bastard. he must really be hard up for a good time. well she definitely wasn't volunteering. it was then that she felt the hand on her leg. had it been on her other leg, maggie would have swatted it away so fast it would make the man's head spin. but this hand came from luca and though the thought still slightly remained, at least she knew where this hand had been recently. plus, and she hated to admit it, but the hand was warm too so it stayed. it was pathetic what she was doing just for a little warmth, but it wasn't like she had a layer of blubber. maggie worked really hard to stay as thin (yet toned) as she was and though it was usually good for california weather, that didn't mean it suited the occasionally freak snow storm. with the warm came a sense of relief and to her surprise, a need to fall asleep. every so often the back and forth between the men would wake up her senses, but maggie wasn't quite keeping tabs on the conversation. she didn't make too many answers and since luca was doing a fine job of it, she didn't argue. "at this point just any town would make me happy." she looked over at the trucker as he gave her a smile and a wink. maggie smiled back slightly, looking down at her leg as she felt luca's grip. what the?

-----the pressure was gone about as soon as she felt it, her reaction time slow because of, well, the cold. freakish nature. it had her all befuddled. she looked out the window as the trucker spoke. looked like this was their stop. the truck slowed as it turned off the highway and into the small little town. it had a gas station, a motel, and what looked like a little diner or two down the road. either way, it was definitely their stop. the truck pulled into the diesel station, despite the fact that the dial on the dash read a half a tank. maggie nodded for luca to open the door and chuckled. "off we go baby" she said mocking him slightly as the massive door opened and luca slid down to the pavement. maggie turned back to the trucker with a smile. "thank you sir. we both appreciate you stopping." she didn't give the man a chance to ask for some kind of favor in return. instead she just crawled to the open door and begrudgingly stepped out into the cold yet again. "baby? really? psh." she said with a chuckle as she closed the door, gave the trucker a little wave, and huddled close to luca as they crossed the street to the motel. she scowled at the full parking lot. damn it they better have something available or she was going to have to actually bribe the trucker with something for a further ride. "looks full. cross your fingers they've got something." she said as they reached the front door. maggie heaved the door against the wind and rushed inside, shaking the new snow flakes from the locks of hair which had tangled and frozen in place. god she looked like a wreck but under the circumstances she didn't care.

-----she walked up to the counter with luca close on her heels as she looked at the man who looked to be about fourteen years old, futzing around with a computer that looked like it had been in use since the early '90s. "hey sweetheart. we need a room." the boy looked up from the computer and damn near dropped the mouse. "why yes'm. let me see what we've got left." the motel was a small one so she prayed there was something. "alrighty well it looks like we've only got one room left. queen bed. that alright with you?" of course. of freaking course. "looks like i don't have much of a choice now do i. mind giving me the keys while my fiancee here pays? i need me a hot shower and fast." she could see the boy swallow hard as his shaking hand held out the keys. "you are so cute. thank you." she looked down at the keys, number five. "room five sweetie." she said as she looked over at luca. he looked like he was shooting bullets from his eyes. oh this ought to be good by the time they were alone in a room together. maybe she should go lock it behind her now and save herself the trouble. she gave luca a little pat on the arm before she palmed the keys and walked out the door to their room. once there she unlocked it, leaving it locked, and walked inside. immediately she went to the heater and set it on full blast. she then stripped herself of her soaking wet blazer and set it over the heater to dry.

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status • finished
words • 1834
tagged • laggie !
clothes • minus glasses and necklace. !
listening to • -- - --.
notes • you gotta love 'em. seriously. i do.

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[Luca Giovanni]

----FOR SAYING THAT HE DIDN'T LIKE HER, he sure felt rather possessive of her. maybe it came with that little word of 'engaged.' in the literal sense of that word, he was hers and she was his. was that why he felt uncomfortable when that trucker was looking at her the way a lion looks at it's prey before it pounces? he didn't know why he was so jealous. it was just jealousy, wasn't it? but, if she still sent his blood in a boil, shouldn't his jealousy just be a big act? why was he acting on the instincts by placing a hand on her leg? luca just didn't understand. all he knew was that he wanted to get the fuck out of this truck. the smell that lingered in the cab made him want to throw up. the trucker's grimey smile was sick and the wife beater tank was far too small for him as his beer belly was spilling out from underneath it. luca sighed and looked out at the snowy view. it was surprising that the roads got so covered so quickly. luca could only imagine the news channels having a field day on this one.

when they reached the town, luca saw there was a gas station, a couple diners, and a motel. it was the perfect city travelers would stop at to fill up on gas and get a bite to eat. but if the snow was all gone and you saw the town for what it really was, it was probably one of those you didn't want to stay in too long. the set up looked like the early stages of a little town with a secret. serial killers lurked in the run-down farm house on the hill. luca looked to his left. yeah, and it all started with that seemingly nice (slightly pervy) truck driver that delivered them here.

the truck rolled to a stop and luca barely mumbled a thanks as he opened up the door and climbed down. the cold cut through him and chilled him right to the bone. damn it was so fucking cold. he waited until she was successfully out of the truck. no use if the fat slob decided to drive away once he knew luca was definitely out of the truck. because then, on top of running his car into a ditch and winding up into a town he hadn't immediately recognized, he'd have to go after her and the guy that had been mentally undressing her in his mind. he cocked his head to the side and said to her, "well it was either that, or mentioning this..." he grabbed her frigid cold left hand with his and looked down at the engagement ring fausto made him give her. "i didn't want to get kicked out of truck. though, there were times i was ready to just pull the trigger." he rolled his eyes and let go of her hand. they turned and started walking towards the motel. cars lined the small parking lot. luca was guessing this motel wasn't use to a lot of people staying there for the night. great.

it was growing steadily darker. not being able to see the sun all day didn't help as the gray sky was just turning a dark gray, and eventually black. the snow was still going strong however. it whipped across his eyes making him squint to be able to see. if this place didn't have a room, maggie and luca were screwed. they were stranded. they didn't have a car, a working phone, and now not even a place to rest. this was just a picture perfect day wasn't it? he didn't even want to think of a possible plan 'b' if finding an available room failed. he kept thinking that things couldn't possibly get any worse than what it was, and life just kept proving him wrong. let's see. partners, engagement, london, couch, snow storm, ditch, trucker, motel and in that order too. this was just not luca's year. he was suppose to have that art gallery up by now. he was suppose to finish his job up in chicago ages ago. could he blame it on that maybe he was just slightly off his game at the moment?

maggie opened the door to the motel open and they both entered. it was a lot warmer in here. luca shook the excess snow off his sweatshirt and hair. damn, was he cold. he almost wished he looked in his suitcase before they left the car for his coat. anything you feel better than the vinyl sweatshirt he was wearing now. he even felt bad for maggie who was (of course) wearing less than him. but really, a blazer would barely keep you warm. she always wore such weird outfits. trenchcoat and underwear sounded sexy until you put her in paul's apartment. then there was that terrible looking corset thing she wore that he thought for sure she would pass out in. then there was his shirt, but that didn't count because he offered that. luca shook his head. maggie was talking to the desk clerk. he lingered by the desk but was really surveying the place. he was use to shitty motels. he'd stay in them all the time when he was working out of state. the good thing about these small motels was that they often let you pay cash. luca didn't like leaving trails about his whereabouts to whichever los angeles police department officer was assigned to him at the moment.

he overheard that there was only one room left. it was a one bed room. perfect. really, just what he wanted. another night where they had the opportunity to share a bed. maggie on the other hand seemed to be enjoying this. flirting with the desk clerk who's face was decorated with acne. she'd just flip her hair, wink, and be on her way. she left him to pay though. now that he was up, luca asked how much. "sixty for the night." luca pulled his wallet out and gave the boy the money. the boy gave luca the extra key. "say, do you have a phone i could borrow?" the boy pointed. "it's a pay phone." luca followed the line of vision and tucked to the side at the beginning of a hallway hung a pay phone. luca walked over to it and put the coins in. first, he called the tow truck service, told them were to find the car and where to take it. after that business was squared away, he called fausto. "finally, you call. i've been trying to reach you for hours." luca nodded even if fausto couldn't see him. "we ran off the road. we're fine. we're in this town right now. no one's moving. the roads are bad so we just decided to stay the night." luca listened fausto for a few more minutes and then said, "right. i'll call you when we leave again. yup. uh-uh. bye."

luca didn't really want to go to the room just quiet yet. maggie probably didn't even care he was taking his time. he was taking care of business anyway. he decided to run across the street, braving the cold weather, and went into the gas station to buy some food. couple bottles of pop, some chips. just things that he wasn't going to have to wait around to make. he paid the clerk there and headed back to the motel. it was room five right? that was easy to remember. when he got in, he heard the heater on full blast. the glow of the bathroom light was seen underneath the door. the water was off though, so she must have been close to done. "i got food," he called out. he placed the bag on the table and turned on the lamp that was on top of it. she shook as his body adjusted to being cold to warm. he took his wet sweatshirt off and put it next to her blazer on the heater. "i called the tow truck. they're taking care of it," he said, trying to make conversation. from about his shins on down were completely wet from trekking through the snow. ugh. he was just gonna be using a towel to help dry it faster. this whole situation had the potential to be awkward, and he knew it was going to be.

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, hottnesssss coming!
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[Magdelena "Maggie" Corinthos]

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, HIGHWAY, DECEMBER 2007

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-----nothing, absolutely nothing, felt better than a hot, steamy shower after a day like they'd had. maggie couldn't believe what a stream of hot water could do to her body but the effects were incredible. like a live wire running through her body, the heat worked to first get feeling back into her extremities, getting the feeling back in her fingers, her toes, then finally she felt the warmth on her arms. her ears her no longer frozen, her nose felt sensations when she moved it when before it hadn't. it was amazing to say the least. everything about it felt good. maggie had come to find out as she'd stripped in the bathroom that she actually had ice clumps in her hair. seeing as it had been down at the time that the car had gone careening into a ditch, maggie hadn't put much thought into pulling it back until it was too late. it had caught snow much like a fence on the shore would catch sand in order to make dunes. so it stuck to what seemed like every individual hair, melting so to clump those individual hairs together, and then refroze giving her wonderful looking dreads. god she looked like hell, and yet at the same time she still looked good. strange. she's had to work her fingers through her hair, untangling each bit she could because of course, her hair brush was in her toiletries bag that was locked in the drunk of that mother loving stranded car! she palmed the minute bottle of complimentary shampoo and worked a dab into her hair, listening happily to the pop of bubbles as she soaked up the shower's warmth like a sponge. she groaned as the water cascaded over her entire body, washing the suds down the drain and leaving her body impeccably clean. oh yes. you've just got to love that.

-----she heard a voice as she was close to finishing, that familiar timbre keeping her from worrying. it was just luca coming back from...where the hell had he been? had it really taken that long to pay? probably not. he'd probably had to phone a few people to keep the search parties at bay. maggie needed to do so herself. j.r. would probably be worried about her if none of the giovanni's reached out and gave him a call. seeing as they had more important things to attend to the likelihood that they would notify him was slim to none. she'd work in a phone call at some point. hopefully the snow hadn't done similar damage back in valkyrie. well that was a stupid thing to hope for. the snow had come out of no where and blanketed the roads to it was probably hitting valkyrie just as hard. they weren't hugely far away but they were enough so that the snow wouldn't be so bad there, or worse depending on the way the clouds were traveling. maggie hadn't been all that concerned if you can't tell. she finished up her shower with a happy little twist of the knob, stepping out and laughing as the steam from her shower engulfed her. she couldn't even see the mirror. it was so coated with steam, in contrast to the cold the room had previously experienced, that it was actually dripping from condensation. that just made her chuckle. maggie was feeling much more lively now that she was cozy and warm. she dried off, wrapping a towel around her body as she used another to finish off her hair. well it wasn't in as miserable condition as it had before, she noticed as it looked relatively decent. still for good measure she ran her fingers through again to separate big strands, letting it hang in loose, damp waves.

-----she grabbed at the clothes she'd previously been wearing as retracted her hand immediately. they were cold and damp. well fuck. what the hell was she supposed to wear? at this point in time that little ensemble was all she had to her name. aside from the blazer sitting on the heater that was probably dry by now...but that wouldn't cover her. what to do? what to do? maggie finally fished her bra and undies out from the damp pile and slid them back on. they weren't as damp as the rest of the clothes because they had been the layer closest to her body and thus furthest from the cold. they had little patches of cold but for the most part were just skimpy rather than freezing. well this was bound to go over well. maggie wrapped the more dry towel around her body, grabbing the other clothes as she opened up the bathroom door and stepped out into the chillier room. "don't you start about the outfit and how i'm bringing up memories. it was either this or naked. get over it." she said before luca even got a chance to say a word. her damp hair clung to her neck and nearly bare shoulders and she could feel it losing it's heat, making her shiver. she walked over to the heater and moved her blazer over, giving it a flip so the other side could dry as well as setting up her other clothing over the vents from which wonderful heat was pouring. "you should take a shower. compared to outside it feels heavenly." maggie pulled her hair over one shoulder, trying to reduce just how much cold her hair made her feel. she spotted the drinks and other convenience store food and grabbed a soda and bag of chips. yum...

-----she then remembered something about the tow truck. "you said the tow truck's on it's way or something? i couldn't quite here." she kind of asked as she looked over at him. she didn't really want to sit on the bed. in her current condition it might look like she was implying something. instead she just kind of paced the floor, munching on her chips and returning to where her soda sat every once in a while. "so unless there's damage we'll be good to go in the morning right?" bad enough they had to spent the night here. the last time they'd been around a bad together maggie had woken up with luca's arm around her. that wasn't necessarily high on her list of things to discover now that they would knowingly be sleeping in this, the only bed. not to mention the fact that they were alone in this room. they didn't have rocco in the room. they couldn't remember his existence and what the boy could possibly see this time to hold them back. that made for more dangerous of a situation than maggie had ever been in before, and she wasn't sure just how much she liked it.

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status • finished
words • 1365
tagged • laggie !
clothes • minus glasses and necklace. !
listening to • -- - --.
notes • shorter than the others but i didn't have any more situations to hurry them through xD.

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[Luca Giovanni]

----WHY DID IT FEEL LIKE HIS HEART RATE was a few beats faster than it usually was? was it really because they were alone? and in a shitty motel room to say the least. it wasn't exactly a hilton. the room was decorated in gold. a dusty tv on top of a dresser sat in front of the bed and the bed itself looked like a piece of work. the room was dark and in the process of warming up. it was just a stereotypical sixty dollar a night fleapit motel room. it wasn't exactly luca's loft. luca would have had no problem sleeping on his couch back home. but here? first, there was no couch for him to sleep on, and the chair by the table looked like it was ready to fall apart if more than twenty five pounds were put on it. so... that left... the bed. luca shook his head. the first time was accidental. he accidently fell asleep next to her. luca had been tired, he was in the comfort of his own home, and rocco, his godson, was sleeping no more than thirty feet away from his bed.

oh, rocco, what luca would give for the almost five year old to be in the motel room with him right now. he didn't trust himself being alone with maggie. he didn't trust maggie alone with him either. they were adults alone in a motel room. how did situations like this usually end? yeah, luca didn't want to give into any temptations. they were both thinking about what could be happening right now. they had been so close the other night. luca reasoned in his head that she was drunk and he was exhausted. that wasn't the case tonight. they were both in the right mind frame. so, they were a little cold from the weather outside. luca sat on the edge of the bed, but got up a few seconds later. that bed was pretty much a bad omen or whatever. he was looking at it like he would a plague. it was a recipie for diaster. he was almost tempted to just go back to the front desk and ask if there was an extra cot. he could sleep on that and maggie could have the bed. hey, now. that didn't sound like a bad idea. luca went back to the table that had the bag of food on it. he took out the potato chips and opened it and reached for the phone. he pressed the button labeled the front desk and started eating as the phone rang. it picked up on the third ring and luca recognized the voice as the boy who helped them. "front desk." luca cleared his throat and asked, "uh, yeah. i'm calling from room five. i was wondering if you guys had a cot? i don't care if it's extra or -" "sorry, sir, we don't have any extra cots. they've all been rented out." luca sighed, cursing in his head. "oh, ok. um, thanks anyways." luca hung up and put the open bag of chips back on the table. he turned around and nearly choked on the few chips he was still chewing on.

luca had been trying so hard to block the image of maggie in anything less than what she was wearing. but now, here she was, coming out of the bathroom in just her underwear. he forced the food down his throat as she told him that it was either this or naked. hm, well, the true male inside him was saying naked wouldn't be so bad, but the luca in him was saying this was maggie. the first time luca and maggie met, she was in her underwear. he remembered it like it was yesterday. a hot pink number with a trenchcoat overtop. hey, he had every right to think she was some kind of prostitute. no one normal walked around like that. if he hadn't of hated her so much back then, he should be patting himself on the back for walking into a situation like that because most guys would be thanking whichever god they believed in. luca could be one of the luckiest guys on the planet. he'd seen maggie in her underwear, a towel, and his shirt. it was like everyone's top fantasies, and he just overlooked it.

he trained his eyes away from her as she walked over to the heater and flipped her blazer on the other side. she told him that he should take a shower. "yeah, right. wouldn't want to freeze to death." the steam from inside the bathroom hit him as he got closer. she asked him about the tow truck. "uh, yeah. it should be good by tomorrow. promise i won't run into a ditch tomorrow." he closed the bathroom door behind him and pulled his wet jeans off, followed by the equally wet t-shirt. it was like he got stuck in a hail storm. luca still couldn't believe that he got stuck in a freaking snow storm. in california. it was suppose to be a simple drive from los angeles to valkyrie and now look at where he was. at least forty to fifty miles outside of valkyrie stuck in a hotel room with maggie. not to mention, she was already half naked. the hot water hit his cold skin. it was really hot at first but his body temperature adjusted to it after awhile. he wasn't one to waste his time in the shower, but he was trying to put off the inevitable. how would tonight work out?

turning off the shower, he took one of the towels and dried himself off quickly. he put his boxers back on and then picked his t-shirt up. water dripped from it as he attempted to wring it dry. he then tried to wipe it dry with the towel. growing frustrated at how long it was taking he threw it down angerily. this sucked. he leaned over the sink and wiped the steamed from the mirror. it was still a little steamed as he looked at his reflection. nothing was going to happen tonight he coached himself slightly in his head. there was going to be no thoughts of how her skin felt underneath his rough hands. no thoughts of how easy it had been to get so far without stopping. and definitely no thoughts about how much he wanted to taste he lips against his again. he was just going to go out there get into bed. he wasn't going to face her. the sooner the morning came, the sooner they could go back to valkyrie.

luca opened the door, his wet clothes in his arms. he laid them across the chair by the table. he positioned himself so that he was across from her. "this is going to be awkward. but i'm not sleeping on the floor." he started pulling the covers back from the made bed. he pointed to the side closest to him. "my side," he pointed to the side closest to her, "your side. it'll be simple." he could do this. he got in the bed. "morning will come faster than we think." he told himself more than to the both of them.

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, this sucked and i blame the drugs.
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[Magdelena "Maggie" Corinthos]

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, HIGHWAY, DECEMBER 2007

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-----the air was more than tense as she stepped out of the bathroom and into the motel room. she could swear that though the heater was running, the air still ran about ten degrees colder the minute he turned to look at her. still it was funny to watch him try to cover up the fact that he'd just inhaled his potato chips, or whatever it was he was eating. it only solidified what she was thinking. the air may have been tense, but it surely wasn't the angry, dangerous kind of tense they were used to. sure this version of tension was equally dangerous. i mean she wasn't sure just how long she would be able to hold out if he did make a move on her. how scary was that? honestly it was terrifying. the idea that if he stepped in close that she would not be able to fight her urge to pull her body against his and just enjoy. it scared the crap out of her. maggie had never been one to just give in to urges. she'd been stoic and always in control, but she'd be damned if anyone in valkyrie thought of her that way. her family must think she was a totally different person because luca had rattled her so completely that she in fact was acting more human and less like her stone cold self that she was so used to. it was unsettling. to have this one guy who could piss her off and thrill her so completely all at the same time. someone she wanted to strangle and kiss...it was just weird. it wasn't something she was used to feeling. in fact she'd never felt something like that before. there had been the flings, the minor incidents where she gave in and just had a good time, but she was never fully there. she was always detached, always calculated, always in control whether the guy knew it or not. but now? oh now that was all up in the air. slowly but surely maggie could feel the control and cold exterior slipping from her fingertips and she felt more vulnerable than she'd ever felt before.

-----it was unsettling feeling this way around this man in particular. this man who had thought she was a hooker upon first meeting her. the man who had put a gun to her head when she'd so kindly threatened the survival of his manhood. in a way she couldn't blame herself but all in the same there was that side of her that really just kicked herself. here was the guy who had time and time again threatened her life. he'd pointed a gun at her and probably had happily tucked himself in at night and dreamed about strangling her with the straps of one of her skimpy dresses. this was after all the man who had judged her simply because she lacked a penis. he figured she couldn't cut it because she didn't have testosterone in her veins. given that their first assignment was coming up soon, maggie would be happy to prove him otherwise. of course this job required her to flaunt her feminine wiles so it wasn't so much making the point she wanted to get across, but it was a start. she was happy for that much. aside from the many reasons why she couldn't or shouldn't like him, maggie had the many reasons why she should. despite how many times they both ignored it, they were eerily similar. but stubborn to the core, focused on what they wanted for the future, both absolutely devoted to not having to wed one another despite the current waves of sexual tension, all of it. unfortunately for her maggie had yet been able to prove her usefulness. she wasn't as scatterbrained and short wired as luca liked to think. there was a "mission mode" you could call it that she would slip into whenever she was on a job. she could be completely professional, she just hadn't gotten the opportunity to show him that. though she had no real need to justify just how useful she was, maggie still felt the need to show luca. she wasn't the child he pegged her to be. she'd been an adult for many years now and just because he pushed her buttons didn't mean she couldn't be a real useful member of a group. she could damn it.

-----she had been trying to deny the fact that what she was feeling wasn't just in her head. lets face it they'd come close on more than one occasion, the most recent being the furthest they'd gone. there was groping and kissing involved and yes, oh my god yes, it was hot, but damn it this was a man she was supposed to hate. this was the man she'd come to know as sexist and a whole lot of other equally complimentary terms. she knew that feelings for him were not only bad, they were wrong. it was wrong, (wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong!) to be feeling anything for him. needless to say other than a hankering for her body when she was drunk, there were no other such indicators that he reciprocated her feelings. all she had to go on was the mysterious kiss a few weeks back during their training session, which had been followed by a london fiasco to counterproductive that it was as if they'd taken five steps back. there were other tense times like oh say the damned tango they did in front of a live audience. anyone with eyes could see that that was more real than either of them had intended it to be. there was no mistaking how off putting it had been for maggie who swiftly after getting out of reach of luca had gone off to drown her sorrows in the good, hard tequila. there had been something there for a while now but was it one sided? after all this time maggie couldn't really had started getting to her. had he not, not done a damn thing the morning after she'd gotten hella drunk even though she'd given him the opportunity? he'd played it off as nothing and maybe she should be doing the same. after all, they definitely didn't want to get married, to one another especially, so what was the point?

-----she figured that partly ignoring him might do the trick. avoid the elephant in the room and maybe it would just disappear right? probably not but it was worth a shot. she nodded a bit to him as he spoke about the shower, letting him walk past her as he disappeared behind the door. once there was some separation between the two of them things seemed to get easier. she nibbled on the bag of junk food she'd opened until she felt like she'd eaten enough artery clogging salty goodness to get her through the night. that would have to do yes? at least they could look forward to getting home tomorrow, same that would have happened had luca not had his moment of brilliance and decided that driving home in the snow was more worthwhile. yes, there was no doubt that maggie was not going to let him live that down. just like she'd never let him live down how she'd gotten the upper hand on him in her hot pink undies. now that was priceless. the room quickly got quieter and the air more relaxed as luca settled into a quick shower. maggie simply sat herself down on the bed, running her fingers through her damp hair and listening to the churning sound of the heater. what else was there to do to spend the time? television? boring. there were probably only one or two channels there anyways. no, she wasn't concerned with the television at all. in fact, had luca's shower been any longer than it was, she probably would have already fallen asleep on the bed. she couldn't fight the goosebumps that broke out over her skin as the bathroom door opened and luca walked out in nothing but his boxers. damn it he needed to stop doing that. they now pretty much stood facing one another with merely the bed between them, the bed which both separated and tempted them. boy was she going to get any sleep tonight? "i wouldn't expect you to sleep on the floor. it's stained with god only know what." she heaved a deep breath as she seated herself back down onto the bed. "just don't pull what you did last night and we'll be fine. i woke up that morning with you half on top of me. let's avoid that for both our sakes." she chuckled as she pulled back the sheets and slid underneath. the sheets were cold but there was no doubt that it would be getting hotter under there in no time. hopefully no friction accounted for that heat.

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status • finished
words • 1703
tagged • laggie !
clothes • minus glasses and necklace. + undies!
listening to • -- - --.
notes • kinda scatterbrained so i apologize. oh and i added a pic of her undies for luca to drool over xD.

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[Luca Giovanni]

----HE FELT LIKE HE WAS TAKING AWAY something of hers. he didn't know why. he was feeling selfish and he couldn't think of anything else other than she wasn't suppose to be his and he was taking that away from someone else. the someone else that she was suppose to end up with. he was always complaining that he shouldn't marry her. in reality, there was nothing for him to complain about. maggie was the perfect package. she had a tongue on her, but she was her own person. not someone that would come to depend on him. she was... well, she was beautiful. she had these big lips and a long body. a body that seemed to be a perfect fit against his. but... no... this wasn't suppose to happen like this. he'd fall in love with a nice italian girl, have kids, and die a legend in the giovanni family tree. his younger cousin, violet, knew him the best. she always told him that he wouldn't fall for the stereotype, the kind of girl the male giovannis were suppose to fall for. "just wait, luca. you're all about following the plan. life will throw you one curve ball that screws with everything."

was maggie his... curve ball? it made sense. the fact that it was a surprise that fausto was marrying him away. luca was a nephew. fausto had three sons, one was basically even maggie's age. why was he the one? luca had always been thinking about this since the engagement was announced. he never actually asked his uncle why he was the one to marry the corinthos girl. or maybe he had asked in fewer words. for all luca knew, fausto didn't even need a reason why luca was the one he decided to marry off. it was probably just easier to hand off a nephew than it was a son. if it fell-through... it was just a nephew. it was kind of upsetting. luca always viewed fausto as his second father. luca wasn't asking to be put on the same pedestal as alberto jr. or paolo were on, but... jeeze. luca shook his head. he wasn't a throw-away.

someone should really just take a picture of what they looked like. luca was on one side of the bed, whipping the sheet back from the bed. he wore nothing but his navy boxers. maggie was on the other side, her hair still damp from the shower and cheetah print matching underwear set. was it even possible to tease him anymore than she already had? if luca was to be told that a few weeks after meeting her, he'd be stuck in a snowstorm with her, in a motel room, and already half naked? but it really wasn't what it looked like. there was no way... but it did look like they just skipped about ten steps and were ready to just hop into bed together. luca cleared his throat when she informed him that he had nearly been half on top of her the morning after she was drunk. what? there was no reason for him to argue it, and there was especially no reason for her to lie about it, right? it would make sense then when he was woken up by rocco playing trampoline with his back. luca had been spread out on the bed. ugh, he probably did have his arm around her. it's not like he had done it on purpose. it was just an accident. it had been awhile since luca had been in the position where he actually spent the night in bed with someone. more than just a bang and leave sort of deal.

luca and maggie both got on their respective sides at the same time. he looked at her. "sorry. i must have mistaken you for london, then. i was sleeping with her up until i had to marry you. guess old habits die hard." ok, well, that was a little harsh. and it wasn't all entirely true. maggie knew virtually nothing about luca's old relationship with london. all she knew was that luca and london had had something. it had the potential to be a very serious relationship. ah, well, fuck it. to him, it had been the most serious relationship he was in. but she had the inability to trust guys and luca was just that type of guy that never gave her a reason to trust him. eventually, the secrets just tore them apart and he was again by himself. they had a brief moment of being together again when he was working in chicago. undercover too, and somehow, he found himself in her hotel room having a one night stand... for old time's sake. though, at the time, it wasn't really a one night stand. it could have been more. they could have picked up where they left off, but nope. luca had to go and get himself all engaged to an eighteen year old. maggie ruined that. he'd continue to blame her too. luca wondered quickly if he was with london again if there would be no secrets. would she know... everything? would she care that he boyfriend was one of the most dangerous men on the west coast? would she have cared that luca had always led a double life? fashion photographer was just a cover up. would london have cared, or was this rumored thing about love conquering all really be true? what if she feared him now more than ever? his hands had blood on them. at least with maggie, she knew everything about him up front. it was backwards with her. maggie knew about his dark side first, there was nothing to hide. and later she was slowly discovering the more human... normal things about him. like his photography passion and the fact that he loved a little boy more than anything.

oh, shit. maybe he was a little harsh. even he knew that was kind of rude for him to spew out that comment about london. maggie wasn't going off comparing him to all her ex boyfriends. "i didn't mean it... like... that," he offered but the damage had already been done.

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, my back was cramping up, so i had to wrap it up. hope the mean comment was ok.
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[Magdelena "Maggie" Corinthos]

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, HIGHWAY, DECEMBER 2007

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-----there wasn't much to life that maggie hadn't experienced yet aside from the things that people would deem normal. she'd done everything dangerous. she'd spread herself thin trying to make her father proud and though she'd "failed" at that she'd still proven herself to, well herself. she'd had the adrenaline rushes, the life or death experiences, she'd had responsibility that she'd put on herself rather than having thrust upon her. there were a many things about her that she'd already accomplished, things that most teenagers her age couldn't even dream of. had it changed her? well in a way she had hoped so. maggie could feel that there was a sense of maturity about her, not one that luca had yet to see but it was still there. just think about it. what other thirteen year old could take on a drug cartel's world and their father hating them all at the same time. what other teenager could hold their head up high while their father degraded them and tried to tear their self consciousness to pieces? what other teenager had the smarts and the know how to take on all the planning and stuff necessary for the business? she had lives in the palm of her hand any time she made a shipping route or planned a pay/product trade. she literally accounted for all of the lives of her father's men, men who he had considered expendable, and not only kept them alive but she'd kept them on the job. she'd kept her father's men alive better than he had. that was a huge triumph for someone of her age. as far as she knew no other thirteen year olds were out planning all of the things she'd had control over. no other thirteen year olds had had the power over a man's life. that fact and that fact alone brought on a higher sense of maturity than maggie could ever ask for. luca may have barely seen in just a day ago with rocco, but that was more of a nostalgic sense of motherly that she had going. still, it took a sense of maturity to be that way around children. you didn't see her jumping up and down on luca with rocco trying to wake up the lumbering hulk of a man now did you?

-----that's not to say that she wasn't tempted. after all there was a reason why luca kind of saw the more immature side of her. he'd been probably the first to meet her after she'd gotten away from her family. she'd finally had a chance to get away from her overbearing and degrading father and she'd finally gotten the chance to feel that freedom. what did most kids do their first year of college when they moved out of the house and were finally responsible for themselves? in most cases they partied hard until they got a look at their grades and it scared them straight or they just failed out of the first year of school. you could kind of say that maggie was experiencing her "first year of college." she was away from her father, responsible for a lot of her own things, and she finally got that say in her own life that she was craving so much, well, aside from the fact that she was engaged and she'd never said yes to that. she appeared immature and like a high schooler to luca because maggie was feeling that rush of freedom. she'd screwed up a time or two but she was really starting to get a feel for what she was doing and she was finally starting to calm down and get back to her usual self. sure it was still a little wackier than what luca was probably used to, but he would get over it. after all who knew the real side of luca outside of his family. who would he not have to keep secrets from who wouldn't turn him into the police for confessing to them? who would understand his point of view and even possibly offer some really good advice? and he thought that having a woman around was a nightmare. what other woman in his life was going to contribute as much as she could? what other woman was capable of defending herself mid-mission? she could do it all, he just couldn't seem to see that, or if he had he certainly wasn't making her aware of that.

-----she knew that this looked bad and truthfully, the thoughts of all the possibilities tonight took scared her silly. you could say that maggie hadn't been around the block as much as people probably assumed she had. there was a very short list of guys who's she'd known intimately, approximately three if she remembered correctly. you might not say she was out of practice, but the idea still...well it rattled her. the fact of the matter was that it was rattling her more that she was considering sleeping with him as opposed to the fact that it was a possibility. she was considering it! what the hell? what had the world come to? it was a very awkward picture indeed, staring down one another, each holding a corner of the sheet as they debated laying down. who would be the first in the bed? what would happen thereafter? yada yada yada. she had no idea who would make the first move and quite frankly she just wanted to get it over with now. the tension in the room was horribly think, nearly clogging up the room and making her claustrophobic, but at least if they just hopped into bed and fell asleep they could sleep off a majority of whatever tension there could be. time passed all the easier when you were unconscious for a majority of it, that much was true.

-----she figured she was being civil when she spoke. nothing had lead her to believe that she'd sparked up some horrid reply but apparently she was wrong. she'd thought that it was just a simple mentioning of what had happened the night before, just a friendly little reminder so he wouldn't forget, because it was something she could mildly hold against him like the fact that she'd nearly broken his nose. what had been said after that was a complete shock to her. as the magnitude and attitude of his words hit her, maggie couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with a plethora of anger. there wasn't just anger there. it was like a buffet of different strengths of anger. there was rage, wrath, pissed, angry, livid, furious, and many many more that vocabulary words had yet to describe. regardless, her face turned bright red and from the protrusion of her jaw it could be seen that her teeth were clenched together so hard she damn near cracked the enamel of her teeth. but for all that she was feeling, maggie had surprised herself with how quiet she had remained. she had done nothing do him. she didn't threaten his life, she didn't embed one of her pretty little blades into his flesh, nothing. all she did was turn her back to him and rigidly lay down on the bed, her back to him, naturally. there was your maturity for you. she had yet to kill him no matter how much every cell in her body begged to feel the warm ooze od his blood on her hands. her hands shook as she clenched her corner of the sheet and tugged it over her body. there was the fact that her eyes were watering, but those certainly weren't tears. she offered him nothing in return as he made a half-assed attempt at an apology. he wasn't worth of the spit in her mouth, he wasn't worthy of a knife to his tires, he wasn't worthy of any of it. from this moment on he would get nothing but the cold shoulder, that is, unless he tried something. if he laid his hands on her, well there was no point in giving him the cold shoulder.

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status • finished
words • 1555
tagged • laggie !
clothes • minus glasses and necklace. + undies !
listening to • -- - --.
notes • so much anger!

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[Luca Giovanni]

----HIS MOUTH ALWAYS TENDED TO GET HIM in trouble. it had been like that since he was younger. luca had a filter, he did. you know that little voice in your head that told you, 'hm, maybe you shouldn't say this. it could get you in trouble or hurt somebody's feelings.' oh yeah, he was aware of that voice in his head, he just chose to ignore it. his father told him that it would get him in some trouble someday. his cousin, alberto jr., told him that he'd go too far one day. luca always just ignored them. he couldn't control it. he was always like that. punch now, ask questions later. that was what he grew up feeling he had to act like. you had to just say what you wanted to say and hope you would survive. he just forgot that he was talking to a teenage girl. no matter how often she was always busting his balls, she had feelings and luca tended to over look that.

at least he knew his fault when he told her that he was sleeping with london until he had to marry her. who would want to hear that? luca was expecting maggie to kick him out of the room or force him to sleep on the std-infested floor. the fact that she didn't say anything to him just showed how pissed she was. he was assuming she was a little hurt too. why did he have to mention london's name? things between maggie and him hadn't been terrible. don't get him wrong, he still thought the marriage was a horrible idea and half the time, he really couldn't stand her, but now he was able to go more than fifteen minutes without killing her. it also didn't help that they had some weird heart-to-heart the night she was drunk. if he didn't care, he wouldn't of gone to pick her up at the nightclub, bare. he would have left her there to deal with her own problems. if he didn't care, he wouldn't have been so concerned that the outfit she had been wearing might possible suffocate her if she passed out. if he didn't care, he would have left her on the couch while he took the bed. oh, shit. luca... cared. luca liked maggie.

he looked over at her as she turned her back to him and laid down. the white sheet tugged up to her shoulders. crap, she must really be pissed. he looked at the back of her head, her damp hair now drying. "maggie," he started but stopped. well, he wasn't going to let her go to bed pissed because then they would both wake up pissed and the ride home wouldn't be fun. this assuming that the car would be fine. if it wasn't, then they would probably be more pissed at each other. damn, right when things were semi-civil between the two, he had to go and fuck it up. the room was completely silent for several moments. all he could hear was the wind from outside pressing against the windows and the door. nothing else could be heard. none of the other people in the motel because you know, it was completely full. it was like they were the only ones for miles. luca looked at the blank television and sighed. yeah, luca was ready to apologize, something he didn't do very often so maggie should listen up.

he turned his upper body so at least part of him was facing her. "maggie. come on, i didn't mean that. it just slipped out." he was more mad that she told him she woke up to his arm around her. it would have just been better if she kept that to herself. he didn't want to know that while he was sleeping, he unconsciously put his arm around her. it was... weird that he did that to begin with. so what if she had been sleeping right next to him that night. he shook his head. luca didn't like how confusing everything was when he was around her. he didn't like how confusing he felt when he was around her. he was learning more and more about her, like how she didn't have the perfect little life growing up. he was coming to see that her father really didn't like that she could outsmart him. did she not see that she sometimes needed to just take the backseat and not attract so much attention to herself? her father would surely get fed up with it eventually and off her. the marriage was just a way to get rid of her from the business, luca saw that now. the giovannis were really helping her more than she knew. his family didn't even know they were helping. he was helping her stay alive. why couldn't she see that? she could go back and try and take over her father's company, fine. but at least just sit and weight. luca scratched his head. why was everything so confusing? the web of lies interlaced with this stupid engagement nauseated him. there were so many meaning, loop holes, and lies. and that wasn't even talking about the feelings that involved he and maggie.

he reached out to touch her shoulder, but stopped. how was he going to go about this? just say he was sorry and be done with it? she probably wasn't going to talk to him though. she still hadn't said anything since he made the london comment. he put his hand on the bed and just scooted closer. since she was so stubborn, she probably wasn't going to turn around, but she could hear the bed shifting as luca moved across it. then, he touched her shoulder and gave it a little shake. "i'm sorry, ok? i wasn't thinking." still, nothing from the other side of the bed. she was just going to continue on giving him the silent treatment, wasn't she? hm, what was it going to take for her to talk to him and accept his apology. the corners of his mouth flinched into a small grin. disappearing quickly, luca shifted his body weight so that he was hovering above her. his one hand was planted right by her back and the other steadied himself by gripping the side of the bed. maggie sure liked to tease him. he was a guy, you could only walk in front of him with barely anything on for so long. "what will it take to give me your attention?" he asked. even though she was still turned on her side, he leaned forward and kissed her. half on her mouth, the other half getting her cheek. she'd surely give him her attention now.

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, meant to do this last night but i fell asleep. and i did a little gming
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[Magdelena "Maggie" Corinthos]

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, HIGHWAY, DECEMBER 2007

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-----luca was a bastard. there. she said it. the asshole told had promised her that he was going to lay off the nasty comments because she didn't like it. now granted he had promised that to a person while she was drunk, but she still remembered it. she would have thought that maybe he would have kept to his word, but obviously not. only a day or so after he'd promised her and here he was taking the first opportunity to say something cruel. and cruel it was. london wasn't necessarily a huge sore spot for maggie. why would she be? the bitch was meaningless and completely worthless in her eyes. besides, she would have to actually like luca for that to be an issue and she certainly couldn't stand the sight of him now. no more worries. so why did it get to her so much? why did it anger her so completely? well maybe because if this whole thing didn't work they were going to have to learn to live like...man and wife. oh ew. and she thought the word fiancee was gag worthy enough. the thought of this little arrangement actually following through? it didn't sit well with her. london was no match for maggie in just about every way. in fact if she had anything to say about it, london would be about the equivalent of a life sucking little tick, but hey, who was asking? so his words really shouldn't have gotten to her, so she should have just said a snide little remark back and let it be that. had she not been feeling anything, well maybe that would have happened. truth was, though she was trying desperately to ignore it, maggie was feeling things she didn't like feeling. she had been happy with the night being tense but civil and now it looked like all of that was going out the window.

-----why was she about as responsive as death itself? well because maggie didn't really know what to say or do, most of all she didn't trust herself if she gave into the whim to say or do something. most likely if she let go of that control now, someone would end up dead. she knew that if she were to turn around to face him and see that bullshit of a lie that was his apology, that most likely she would go off like a land mine and no one would be able to recover. you know the saying that they post in movie previews before the film actually starts? you know that whole "silence is golden" slogan? well in this case it might actually be true. maggie wasn't sure just what would happen if she did look at him or if she did open up her mouth to say something. it was bad all around and she was doing everyone a favor by not responding to him, even if it meant laying silent and rigid with the sheets wrapped around her. instead of soothing the hurt, his lame attempts at apologizing only added fuel to the fire. didn't mean it? ha! it had to be the most honest he'd been since their joke of an engagement was cooked up! he couldn't even make a real apology! there was hardly the kind of timbre to his voice that would make his words believable. he was merely covering his ass to make sure he didn't wake up the next day with a body part missing or something. it wasn't helping the situation. every time he tried one of his fake, nonchalant apologies maggie could only feel the level of anger rising more and more. he needed to just shut the fuck up and go to bed before he made this any worse for himself than it already was. as of this moment he was likely to never see her again after they got back to valkyrie. okay so he would see her during their first little mission, but never again. she promised herself that as she felt the bed shake slightly.

-----she had hoped that luca was just giving up and was going to bed, but by the tug of weight she could feel by her side, that wasn't exactly the assumption her mind was making. what the hell was this son of a bitch planning? her teeth clacked together inside her mouth, jaw clenching, as she felt the warmth and pressure of his hand against her shoulder. still she lay still. he had the nerve to touch her after that stunt he'd just pulled! where in the hell were these cojones coming from? she'd yet to see him act like a real man accept when he was doing something stupid, like tempting her while she was so pissed. he had balls, but if he kept it up he was going to be losing them in about five to ten seconds. luca was lucky that maggie hadn't seen him smirk as he came up with whatever little thing he was plotting. had she seen that smile it would have been over. the a-bomb thusly known as maggie would have gone off and there wouldn't have been a trace of luca left except splattered on the walls. she felt the bed shake a second time, this time judging by the feel of it, luca's weight was...what hovering over her? she didn't know, she didn't care, and she didn't dare open her eyes. at this point she was just faking sleep because it sure as hell wasn't going to be happening for her tonight. sleep? oh sleep was a thing of the past, a fond memory, a whim. there was no such thing as sleep for her when she was this angry. usually maggie would have found some way to handle it by now. screaming, throwing knives, a late night jog...anything. well most of those things weren't possible because of the inclement weather that had gotten them stuck in this situation in the first place. she did still have her knives, and they were always hidden but never out of reach. but the only target she had were either live, or things she'd have to pay to replace. right now she wasn't in the mood for either.

-----everything went red the moment she felt those unfortunately familiar lips against her own. she could swear that there was blood in her eyes from how angry she was. if she'd been shaking before it was much more so now. with a ear-piercing screech, maggie moved her hand under the mattress, grabbing her knife, hooked her legs around his body, pushed luca back onto his back, and pressed said knife to his throat all in one singular movement. her brunette curls fluttered around her face with the movement somewhat blocking her line of sight but she didn't care. her eyes locked on his, her hands shaking as one clutched the knife at his throat and the other fisted on his chest. "don't. kiss. me." she said without pause, her voice as smooth as silk despite everything she was feeling. it was the voice of a killer, the voice she'd been missing for so long. last time she'd heard that...well that was another matter. she pressed the blade tighter to his throat. one little flick of her wrist and he'd be gushing blood faster than he could blink. "you don't get to say shit like that to me AND THEN KISS ME!" she screamed, her cheeks flushed from the overwhelming anger and surprise she was feeling at the moment. she was so angry that she couldn't even register the fact that they were both relatively nude, moreso than the last time they were in a similar tangle, this time with only a sheet barring their bodies from touching. and she was straddling him. that didn't happen last time. "give me one reason why i shouldn't end you right now." she said it like she was saying it to him, but really that was more or less a quiz for herself. she really was weighing the pros versus the cons. after the time they'd spent together she was pretty sure luca would be able to sniff out the seriousness in her voice. this wasn't a show like it had been the time maggie had threatened the family jewels. this was a real life or death situation for him and he better react accordingly if he knew what was good for him.

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status • finished
words • 1645
tagged • laggie !
clothes • minus glasses and necklace. + undies !
listening to • -- - --.
notes • --.

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[Luca Giovanni]

----TO SAY THAT HE LIKED HER MADE HIM sound so juvenile. it was like the stupid little kindergarten crushes when you said you like-liked someone. rocco like-liked girls in his pre-school class. six graders had crushes on each other and dated during recess. if luca, a twenty one year old man, wanted to say he like-liked someone, might as well call him a child. he just though how you could tell someone you might like them more than a... wait. they were barely friends. how could he tell someone that irritated him to no end, he liked her. of course, without sounding like a junior high boy asking her to a school dance. and maggie too. he saw the looks. she wouldn't have made the moves on him if she wasn't attracted to him, right? how much acting could they possibly put into it without feeling something a little real. luca could see how co-stars in movies and tv shows were attracted to their love interests. the good ones could ignore it and turn it off. the stupid ones would give it a real-life try. what one was he?

he was trying to think of this logically. could maybe the reason why he felt this way was because he was trying to feel something? that maybe there was something there? they were to get married. was it possible for him to force a feeling, see where it went and hope that he would come to love her like his uncle was hoping for him to do? no, no. that couldn't be it. he knew fake feelings quite well and knew this was not it. luca just didn't believe it was possible for two people like him and maggie, to fall for one another. he heard that opposites could attract, but this definitely wasn't one of those cases. these were two people that had tried to kill each other, how were those hateful and homicidal feelings suddenly pushed away with likeable characteristics between the two. oh, maybe it was just lust. angry lust. that all their sexual tension was just too hard to manage and they should just... get it out of their systems. as in, get the angry sex out of the way and maybe that would solve some problems. eh, but knowing them, that would definitely cause too much trouble than what is was worth. besides, luca was finding these feelings were a bit more than just physical attraction. he was becoming genuinely concerned for her. if she was to get offed tomorrow by her father or any other of the nine people that wanted her dead, he would be extremely upset. was that some sign or something? it felt like one, and if it quacked like a duck...

luca honest to god didn't know what came over him to just go up and kiss her. he sure had the habit now of sudden urges just to kiss her. it first happened during their training session at the loft. he had just grabbed her, leaned down, and kissed her. that day was quite possibly the beginning of the end for the two. that was the day london found out about luca's sudden engagement. he wouldn't have found that too much of a problem, but considering he had slept with her no more than two weeks prior in chicago, you could see the obvious problem and lack of sufficient time to know maggie before suddenly becoming engaged to her. those were type of messes luca always tried to avoid. he was no casanova, and despite being italian, not really loving all kids of ladies at the same time. he loved his job and that was what he lived with. it was also the reason (he was convinced) that fasuto basically signed him up for a mail-order bride. except this one came with instructions to work with him. what happened when they were making out on the couch was both of their faults. she may have kissed him, but he was kissing back, so it was just as much his fault as it was hers. he was surprised that she was letting him kiss her back. it only furthered his suspicion that he wasn't the only one being confused as fuck with these messed up feelings. fate was having the last laugh though. shoving them into a bed with just their underwear. it was like however was planning this was saying, 'i got you this far. time to duke it out.'

the first time they kissed, she was about surprised as he was. the second time, they knew it was so messed up. this time, he was confused as she was livid, (they had no consistency as you can clearly see.) luca was on his back faster than he really had time to think. what kind of pissed him off was that he felt her damn knife against his throat. where the hell did that come from? he also grew a little more pissed when he knew he had his gun on the table next to his drying jeans. he thought, for once, he wouldn't need to sleep by it. no one knew he was here, he wasn't even listed as luca or giovanni as the guest staying in room five, and well, they were going to sleep. can't he have a good night's rest for once? sleep with both eye's closed? nope. maggie was here to make this difficult. she pounded her free fist into his chest and said, "don't. kiss. me." luca could tell by the way she spaced her words apart she was pissed at him. maggie was straddling him again. a position he was fully convinced she liked to be in. only this time, luca was just wearing his boxers when before, he had been wearing shorts, or even before that, a full outfit of jeans, a t-shirt, and a jacket. surely, this could be viewed as a sign. his arms laid lazy at his sides, not trapped under her legs. he had the sneaking temptation to just snake his arms up her legs, past her hips, and around her sides. he wanted to touch the places he didn't the other night. however, she was really yelling at him now, and she wasn't letting up on the pressure she was applying to his neck with the blade. "i said i was sorry!" he yelled back at her, growing more and more irritated that she had the damn knife to his throat.

what was one good reason why she shouldn't kill him? he could tell she was serious and since rage made you do the crazy, he had to get himself out of a possibly tragic ending situation. both his hands were free and he sharply grabbed her hand pulling it first away from his neck and then wrestling the damn thing out of her hand completely. she put up a good attempt, but luca was just simply stronger and was able to free it from her grasp. "don't threaten me with this again," he said evenly and just drove it into the wall behind him. luckily, the walls weren't very thick, so the knife was able to easily embed itself into the wall. he looked back at her and pushed himself up, causing maggie to slide down him a little. he grabbed her on either side of the face. "how about this for a reason?" he asked her and crushed his lips against hers. he knew why he was doing it this time. he just wanted to make sure. make sure that what he was feeling was real.

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STATUS, complete CRED, format and graphics to me LOCATION & TIME, highway to valkyrie, december 2007 LYRICS, "you stupid girl" - framing hanley CLOTHES, here TAGGED, maggie! I SAY, hope this helps your muse =D and gave you enough to go off of.
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