intrepidity

Chapter 45

Roman, after toddling over and bonking into his papa's leg, got scooped up into the mix too. Their father pulled him into the pile of limbs and giggles, pressing a kiss to his chubby cheek. "You too, my quiet one. You'll be his shadow, hmm?"

Roman stared at Marcus with wide eyes, then let out a babble and patted his father's face.

Their father laughed. "We're all a mess, aren't we?" he said, his voice thick with love as he held them close. "But this is our family. And Marcus—he just made it even better."

They stayed there like that for a while, all piled together, their baby brother cradled in the heart of it all. Aiden nestled closer, Elias humming softly under his breath, Alec proudly showing Marcus his drawing again even though the baby couldn't see a thing, and Roman yawning into his father's shoulder.

And in that moment, the Valenti house felt like the safest place in the world.

-

The steady beep of the heart monitor was the only sound that filled the room.

Aiden sat unmoving in the chair beside Marcus's bed, elbows on his knees, fingers steepled over his lips. His eyes were locked on the still figure lying under too-white sheets, the wires, the machines—the fragile, terrifying evidence that his little brother was hanging on by a thread.

He looked so small. Still boyish in his features, even at nineteen. His chest rose and fell with the aid of machines, not strength. And that... that gutted Aiden.

It shouldn't have been like this.

The silence pressed against him, too loud, too sharp—and it pulled him backward in time without warning.

Nine years ago -

It had been a quiet night. Too quiet.

Aiden had been lying in bed, reading over files on his laptop, the only light in his room coming from the screen. He was twenty—young, exhausted, already stretched thin with the weight of their father's empire now on his back and the ache of Aurora's disappearance lingering like a phantom limb.

The knock was soft. Barely a whisper.

He didn't even look up. "Come in."

The door creaked open slowly, and there he was—Marcus. Just ten. Standing in the hallway in his pajamas, hair tousled, face red and blotchy like he'd been crying for a while before finally working up the nerve to come find him.

Aiden's brows knit together immediately. "Marcus?"

"I... I had a nightmare," Marcus murmured. His voice was small, hoarse. "I saw Papa. And Rory. And then... they were gone again."

Aiden closed the laptop instantly and sat up straighter, already reaching out a hand. "Come here, bambino."

Marcus hesitated just a second longer—then crossed the room quickly and climbed up onto the bed like he used to when he was younger. Aiden opened his arms without a word, and Marcus melted into him, crawling under his arm, clutching the fabric of Aiden's shirt like he was afraid to let go.

"I miss them," Marcus whispered, voice cracking. "I miss them so bad, Aiden."

"I know," Aiden murmured, pressing his lips to the top of his brother's head. "I know, darling."

He felt Marcus's shoulders start to shake, the tears soaking through his shirt, the way he buried his face against his chest like he was trying to disappear. And Aiden just held him tighter.

"They left," Marcus hiccupped. "Papa's gone and Rory's gone and I don't know why. I didn't get to say goodbye. Papa said he'd take me to the zoo before he left with Rory."

Aiden's throat burned.

"You didn't do anything wrong," he said softly. "You are just a kid, Marcus. It's not your fault. None of it is."

"But I wanted them to stay," Marcus whispered. "I wanted things to be the same."

Aiden shut his eyes. "So did I."

It was quiet after that, the kind of silence where everything was understood and nothing needed to be said out loud. Marcus eventually stopped shaking, but he didn't let go. He curled into Aiden's side like a little boy again, small and grieving and vulnerable in a way he never showed the others.

Aiden didn't sleep that night. He just laid there with his arms around Marcus, staring at the ceiling, listening to his brother's breathing even out... holding the weight of their pain alone.

Just like he always did.

-

Aiden blinked, the memory settling over him like a blanket soaked in cold rain.

He reached out now, brushing Marcus's knuckles with his thumb where his hand rested against the blanket. His voice, when he finally spoke, was barely above a whisper.

"You were just a kid... and you still are, damn it. You're supposed to be out there causing trouble. Not lying here like this."

His throat tightened.

"I told you I'd protect you."

And for a second, Aiden didn't look like the mafia boss. He didn't look like the cold, calculated man the world knew. He just looked like a big brother, breaking in silence beside the one person he couldn't afford to lose.

-

Aiden hadn't moved in hours. His hand still rested near Marcus's, his eyes fixed on the same spot on the wall, like if he blinked, he might lose something.

The door creaked open slowly.

He didn't turn. He didn't need to.

He felt her presence before he saw her—quiet, featherlight footsteps, like she was afraid even the sound of her breathing might disturb the fragile balance holding the moment together.

Aurora stepped inside, her face pale, her eyes rimmed with red. But she didn't cry now. She just moved closer, slowly, until she was beside Aiden's chair. He glanced up, just once.

She didn't say a word.

She simply reached for the spare blanket draped over the back of the chair beside him, wrapped it around herself, and carefully, without asking, slid onto the tiny couch tucked in the corner of the room—right beside his chair. Close enough that her shoulder brushed against his leg, that he could feel the warmth of her.

She tucked her knees to her chest, pulled the blanket up to her chin... and leaned against him.

Aiden looked down at her.

Still, she didn't speak. She just stayed there, silently offering what she could.

It wasn't much. But it was enough.

And for the first time since the call came, Aiden closed his eyes. Just for a moment.

author's note - take kiss <3

love u