Harbinger Of Glory

The next morning, Leo woke up to a pair of eyes, something he wasn’t used to.

The eyes sat wide, unblinking and close to his face.

The only reaction he could manage was a jolt, which was a valid response to the sudden and unfamiliar view, but it made Vittoria smile.

She had gotten the reaction she wanted.

”Good morning,” she said as Leo lay back and exhaled and shook his head at the ceiling for a moment and then rubbed his hands across his face before looking back down at Vittoria, whose head now rested in her palms, while she watched Leo.

In the next moment, he grabbed a bit of the covers and threw them over her head and reached under them and lifted her from her kneeling position beside the bed, which produced a squeal that filled the room immediately.

”Leo. Let go. Let go right now.”

”That,” he said, carrying her, ”is not how you greet someone, good morning.”

He found the gap in the covers and got both hands to her ribs, and she went completely apart, laughing with her legs kicking at nothing.

”Leo, please let go,” she started while laughing, before it soon became threats.

”I will piss on your bed,” she said, between breaths, trying to keep Leo away.

”That would not be a good look for you,” Leo said, doubling down.

”I would never let you forget it. Not once. Not for the rest of your life.”

”STOP. Leo. STOP,” she tried to get him to let go, but that only made him tickle her harder.

It was only after he felt her go limp with laughter that he stopped.

Following that, the laughter from under the covers receded as Vittoria came out, trying to catch her breath while staring at Leo with a pained expression and a little pout.

Despite all that had happened, she still went at Leo again.

This time, she pushed him back onto the bed, got her legs either side of him, then sat right on his abdomen before she grabbed both his wrists.

She attempted to pin them above his head, which lasted around three seconds before the physics of the situation made itself clear.

She tried again but got the same result.

”Okay,” she said, changing strategy. ”Okay, okay, I’m done. You win. Please,” she said, hair falling as she leaned over Leo’s face, who only watched her.

Then just as it seemed he would let it go, he flipped her over.

”LLLEOOO,” Vittoria squealed helplessly as Leo did exactly to her what she’d been meaning to do, grabbing both her wrists and pinning them above her head, before once again running his fingers through her sides, earning another stretch of laughter from his girlfriend.

When he felt satisfied, he let go, got off the bed and went to the bathroom and emerged thirty seconds later with a toothbrush in his mouth and the thought of the day’s schedule in mind.

”Unlike some people,” he said, the brush slightly impairing the delivery, ”I don’t work on vibes.”

Following that, Vittoria launched a pillow at him immediately, which he caught without even looking.

Vittoria sat up on the bed, watching him with the fond irritation that had become one of her attitudes whenever she was around him.

”What are you doing today?” Leo said, setting the pillow down and disappearing back into the bathroom.

”Playing house,” she said, flopping back while stretching across the bed and ruffling the covers and sheets further.

”And keeping your bed warm until you get back.”

Leo reappeared in the doorway and looked at her directly.

”I genuinely don’t know,” he said, ”if it’s Gianna spoiling you or the other way around.”

Vittoria smiled at his words while Leo shook his head and went back to finish getting ready.

Half an hour later, he made his way out of the apartment and quickly, too, because someone was getting too clingy.

”Just a few more minutes,” Vittoria said as she stood by the doorframe.

”I think we’ve done enough,” Leo said before entering his car without waiting for a response from Vittoria, who looked like she might join him in the car at any moment.

As Leo neared the end of his drive to the complex, his phone began to ring, with Sofia’s name flashing right across the screen as the call banner.

”Mia went to yours this morning right after you left,” she started with a squeaky voice when Leo answered.

”Good morning to you too, Aunt Sofi,” Leo said, but Sofia waved away the greeting.

”That’s not important. She went to pick a few things,” Sofia continued, a woman on a mission with all the intent to finish it.

”Yeah,” Leo said as he made another turn.

”She found Vittoria there.”

”Yeah.”

After that, a pause filled the call before Sofia’s voice came through, high-pitched and all giggles while she teased Leo.

”Be careful, Casanova.”

”Sofia.”

”We haven’t even gotten that far. You don’t need to worry.”

”I’m not worried,” she said. ”I’m just saying.”

”I’ll call you later,” Leo said as he pulled into the entrance of the complex, before ending the call after Sofia had ranted a bit more.

Once he found a spot, he got out and immediately noticed something unusual: a flash from across the lot and a lens pointed in the general direction of the arriving players.

He stood there staring until Ezra appeared at his side a moment later.

”It’s a Premier League crew,” he said, before Leo could ask.

”One of those content shoots they do for every club at the start of the season.”

Leo looked at the setup of a small team near the entrance with cameras and lighting equipment moving about as they tried to streamline their work.

”When do we get FIFA 24?” Leo said as the duo began to walk forward.

”Careful now, it’s FC,” Ezra corrected. ”EA and FIFA split. It’s EA FC now.”

”Right, right,” Leo said, looking at Ezra like some nerd.

”So when’s it out?”

”In a couple of weeks, but like always early access before that,” Ezra paused. ”Which I am going to be getting!”

”I wonder what my rating’s going to be,” he added as he turned to look at Leo.

”I don’t know, but higher than Jake’s,” Leo said with a chuckle.

”Definitely higher than Jake’s,” Ezra affirmed as the two went inside laughing side by side.