plumnovel Chapter 258: Romeo’s old room
Chapter 258: Romeo’s old room
Chapter 258
KATYA POV
The elevator doors slid shut with a muted thud, sealing us inside a pocket of quiet broken only by the soft hum as we began to rise from the kitchen floor.
Elena has given me cookies and milk with some friendly advice not to be like chiara who is next to me now bouncing on the balls of her feet like she was holding in a secret too big for her body.
Her hands clasped behind her back, then in front, then back again. "You’re going to love it," she said, unable to contain herself anymore.
"Like...love love it. I already told Elena I’m stealing it from you when you’re not looking." I offered a small smile, my shoulders still tight despite how warm the house had been.
As soon as I had drank the last sip of milk, chiara had pulled me out of the stool in an instant, telling me it’s time to show me my room.
"What’s it like?" I asked. Chiara grinned. "Big. Bright. Close to Nonna’s room—which is important, because she hates long walks at night. And when she called the house to arrange it?"
Chiara leaned closer, lowering her voice dramatically. "Everyone freaked out."
I frowned slightly. "Why?"
"Because," she said, dragging the word out like she was savoring it, "that room doesn’t get touched. Ever."
The elevator climbed another floor. The hum felt louder now.
"It used to belong to someone important," Chiara continued. "So when Nonna said to prepare it, they knew whoever was coming mattered."
I swallowed. "Who did it belong to?"
"Romeo." My pulse skipped. Chiara opened her mouth, then paused, like the words had just caught up to her. Her eyes widened a fraction.
She waved her hand, casual again. "I mean Don Salvatore."
The world tilted. The air left my lungs so fast it almost hurt. My heart didn’t race. It didn’t pound.
It stopped.
Romeo.
Don Salvatore.
His room?! My fingers curled into my palms, nails pressing hard enough to ground me. I stared at the metal doors like they might open and let me out early.
"I—" My voice came out thin. "His... old room?"
Chiara nodded, completely unaware of the way my chest had locked. "Yeah. He hasn’t stayed here since he was eighteen. Nonna keeps it exactly the same. No one’s allowed in unless she says so."
She laughed lightly. "Guess that means you’re special."
Special. The word echoed wrong.My mind filled with images I didn’t want—dark rooms, control, the weight of his presence pressing in even when he wasn’t there.
The idea of sleeping where he had slept, breathing air that still felt like him....The elevator dinged softly.
We stopped. I forced myself to inhale. Then again.
"Katya?" Chiara tilted her head, finally noticing. "Hey. You okay?" I nodded automatically. Too fast. "Yeah. I’m fine." The doors slid open.
Warm light spilled in, but the comfort from earlier didn’t follow. All I could think about was the room waiting at the end of the hall.
Romeo’s room. And why Nonna had chosen it for me.
Chiara’s brow furrowed the moment she saw me freeze, and she leaned closer. "Hey... you sure you’re okay?"
I nodded quickly, forcing a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. "Yes. I’m fine."
But the closer we stepped out of the elevator doors, the heavier the air felt, like each step we took pressed down on my chest.
When the doors slid closed and we stepped into the corridor, my voice wavered before it could form.
"Um... uh," I stammered, trailing behind Chiara. "Isn’t there... any other room? Don’t you think... maybe it would be wise for me not to stay in... that room? I mean—he’s the Don, isn’t it supposed to be untouched?"
Chiara stopped immediately, her hand gripping my shoulder. She turned me toward her, eyes soft but steady. "Katya... breathe. You’re... rumbling, shaking."
I blinked, confused by the sensation of someone actually noticing. My hands were cold, my fingers trembling at my sides.
I hadn’t realized how tightly I’d been holding them. A deep, shuddering breath escaped me, and for a second I thought I might collapse into her arms.
My eyes had been filling with tears. I blinked rapidly, forcing them back. "I... I..." My voice was barely above a whisper. "I just... don’t want to cause trouble."
Chiara’s grip softened but didn’t release. "Hey... you’re not causing trouble," she said gently. "Nonna wouldn’t have chosen this room for you if she didn’t think it was... right. And neither would I."
Her words were easy, sure, but they anchored something in me I hadn’t expected. I wanted to believe her.
"I just... don’t know..." My voice cracked slightly, and I pressed a hand to my mouth, ashamed for even feeling this exposed.
Chiara crouched slightly to match my height, her hands still on my shoulders. "You’re okay, Katya. I know it’s... a lot. Believe me, I get it. But hey," she said lightly, nudging my arm, "it’s just a room. A room with history, sure, but it’s yours now. And I promise, nothing in there will bite you."
I swallowed, heart still hammering, trying to let her words settle. "I... I just..." My throat tightened. "I don’t want to... I don’t want to upset anyone."
"You won’t," Chiara said firmly, tilting my chin up slightly so our eyes met. "Not here. Not with me. Okay?"
I nodded, blinking hard to blink away the last of my hesitation. Her presence was warm, grounding, and for the first time since we left the elevator, I felt a thread of calm.
Chiara smiled, bouncing lightly on her feet again. "Good. Because you’re going to love it once you see it. I mean, I might be a little jealous, but hey, that’s a me problem."
I gave a tiny, reluctant smile in return. The corridor stretched before us, the door to Romeo’s room waiting like a silent question I wasn’t sure I wanted to answer.
††
Chiara is gonna heal something, ouf, my eyes.