‹ Prequel: Everything I'm Not
Love's Requiem
Stupid kid
“Hey what do you got there?” Alex asked leaning over me while I looked through the pictures.
“My grandma found these old photo albums of me.” I told him, as I got up and got his plate of food from the oven.
“Cool,” He smiled sitting next to me as we looked through them together.
The last few albums were from all the summers and Christmases I’d come to stay here when I was a teenager. That meant that half the pictures if not all had me and Niko in them.
“Wasn’t that guy there last night as well?” Alex asked pointing to a picture of him.
“Yeah, that’s Niko.”
“Like your brother?”
“Close, Niko is just straight up Niko, we call my brother Niko for short his full name is Nikola.”
“Don’t fucking call me that!” I heard Niko shout from the living room.
“See.” I laughed.
“If you guys were such good friends why did you avoid him last night?” He asked me as I let out a sigh.
“Let’s just say him and I were friends and then some.”
“You and him dated?”
“Yeah.” I nodded really not wanting to have this conversation.
“Hmm.” Was all Alex said as he dropped the conversation and turned the page of the book.
“Hey Bella feel like exploring the basement with me?” Niko asked while we were eating dinner later that evening with my
grandma.
“Why?”
“Why not?”
“Cause it’s probably cold, and filled with spiders.”
“Oh Bella I’ll protect you from the spiders.” Alex said stealing a piece of my chicken.
“Fine.” I laughed, as we finished eating.
“Come on Bella stop stalling!” Niko exclaimed waiting by the door that lead down to the basement.
“I hate it down here.” I mumbled as he flicked the light on and Alex and I followed him down the stairs.
“You hate everything.” Alex laughed.
“I know, and I’m very happy that way.” I told him as we got down the stairs.
“Alright troops spread out.” Niko announced.
“What the fuck are we looking for in the first place?” I exclaimed.
“I haven’t really figured that out yet.”
“I now see how you two are brother and sister.” I heard Alex say from wherever he was.
“Hey Bella wasn’t this yours?” Niko asked holding up an old doll.
“Yes and it scared the shit out of me.” I said looking up from the box I was looking through.
“Everything used to scare you. When there was thunder you and Luka would hide under the house together.” He laughed
as I came across something that caught my eye.
“Oh wow, Niko look.” I said holding up the small silver necklace. “This was mine right?” I asked him looking at the small ball on the chain.
“Yeah, if I remember right Luka’s parents gave it to mom for you the day you came back from the hospital.”
“Whose guitar?” Alex exclaimed, causing Niko and me to look in his direction.
“Our grandpa’s.” We said running over to look at it.
“Do you know how old this has to be?” Niko asked no one in particular.
“Probably as old as you.” I laughed.
“Actually despite how that was supposed to be a way of you calling me old, I think you’re right.”
“Deda always did say I was the smart one.” I mumbled.
“Very funny.” Niko said sarcastically as we went back upstairs.
My grandma asked us if we had found anything worthwhile down stairs as we came back in to the living room.
“I found this.” I told her handing her the necklace, as she looked at it and pretty much said the same thing Niko had told me downstairs.
“We also found Deda’s guitar.” Niko said while Alex was tuning it.
“I knew it wouldn’t be long till you did. Isabella used to sit and play with that all the time when she was younger. And when their grandpa was still alive she used to beg him to play it while she danced and sang around.” She said while I translated to Alex.
“More like screeched.” Niko mumbled.
“Oh Nikola how funny you are.” I told him making a face. “Can I see that Alex?” I asked him, as he passed me the guitar.
“Sure thing.” He smiled.
I started playing an old Croatian folk song that my grandpa used to play all time when I was a kid. My grandma laughed and ruffled up my hair while I played. When I finished I handed it back to Alex.
“Play me something pretty.” I said batting my eyelashes at him.
“Do you want your favorite?” He asked me strumming the guitar.
“Yes please.” I laughed, as he nodded and began playing Coffee house soundtrack.
When he finished Niko and my grandma were applauding, and my grandma was raving about how nice Alex sings.
“She says she loves it and your voice is beautiful.” I translated.
“Tell her I said thank you.” He smiled.
For the rest of the night we spent it messing around with the guitar playing songs and singing and I was making up a random song about Niko that had everyone laughing.
“Very funny, good night Bella.” Niko shouted up to me as Alex and I were going to sleep.
“Night Nikola!” I shouted down to him.
The next morning I woke up to my sidekick ringing not only waking me up but Alex as well. I grabbed it to see who it was, there was no name but it was the Croatian country code so I knew already who it was.
“Zdravo.” I said with a yawn as I felt Alex sit up next to me.
“Isabella?” I heard Luka’s voice ask.
“Da.” I said as I looked over at Alex and mouthed “Luka” to him.
He then nodded and went back to sleep.
Luka asked me if I wanted to meet him for lunch today at 1, I told him maybe because Niko and I still had to talk to Alex about it. So Luka agreed and I promised to call him back once I knew. After I got off the phone with him, I checked the time and saw it was 9, so I lay back down and cuddled with Alex until 10.
“So what did he want?” Alex yawned in to my hair.
“He wants me to meet him for lunch today.” I mumbled in to his chest.
“You should go.”
“Why?”
“Why not?”
“Awkward?”
“Bella this guy from what it seems was practically like family to you. You can’t shut the people from your past out
forever.”
“But I can try.” I told him, making him chuckle.
“Go please, for me?” He asked.
“You know,” I began lifting my head up to look at him. “Should I be worried that you’re pushing me to go out to lunch with another guy?”
“Totally.” He said sarcastically.
“Fine I’ll go, but you have to go to the museums with Niko today then.”
“Works for me.” He said giving me a kiss.
“I hate how you always get me to do things I don’t want to do.”
“I love how you actually do them.” He laughed.
While everyone ate breakfast, I called Luka to find out the details for today. He told me what restaurant to meet him at and what time.
“Okay what do I wear?” I announced while Alex and I were upstairs getting dressed.
“Clothes I would hope.” He joked.
“You’re no help.” I huffed sifting through my bag.
About three outfit changes later I finally found one I liked.
“Okay, what do you think of this?” I asked standing in front of Alex in a cream colored silk blouse and black skinny jeans and black flats.
“It’ll look great if you had like a sweater cause it’s really cold.” Alex nodded.
“Already done.” I said grabbing a black stripped sweater and putting it on. “Now?”
“Gorgeous.” He smiled giving me a kiss.
“My grandma found these old photo albums of me.” I told him, as I got up and got his plate of food from the oven.
“Cool,” He smiled sitting next to me as we looked through them together.
The last few albums were from all the summers and Christmases I’d come to stay here when I was a teenager. That meant that half the pictures if not all had me and Niko in them.
“Wasn’t that guy there last night as well?” Alex asked pointing to a picture of him.
“Yeah, that’s Niko.”
“Like your brother?”
“Close, Niko is just straight up Niko, we call my brother Niko for short his full name is Nikola.”
“Don’t fucking call me that!” I heard Niko shout from the living room.
“See.” I laughed.
“If you guys were such good friends why did you avoid him last night?” He asked me as I let out a sigh.
“Let’s just say him and I were friends and then some.”
“You and him dated?”
“Yeah.” I nodded really not wanting to have this conversation.
“Hmm.” Was all Alex said as he dropped the conversation and turned the page of the book.
“Hey Bella feel like exploring the basement with me?” Niko asked while we were eating dinner later that evening with my
grandma.
“Why?”
“Why not?”
“Cause it’s probably cold, and filled with spiders.”
“Oh Bella I’ll protect you from the spiders.” Alex said stealing a piece of my chicken.
“Fine.” I laughed, as we finished eating.
“Come on Bella stop stalling!” Niko exclaimed waiting by the door that lead down to the basement.
“I hate it down here.” I mumbled as he flicked the light on and Alex and I followed him down the stairs.
“You hate everything.” Alex laughed.
“I know, and I’m very happy that way.” I told him as we got down the stairs.
“Alright troops spread out.” Niko announced.
“What the fuck are we looking for in the first place?” I exclaimed.
“I haven’t really figured that out yet.”
“I now see how you two are brother and sister.” I heard Alex say from wherever he was.
“Hey Bella wasn’t this yours?” Niko asked holding up an old doll.
“Yes and it scared the shit out of me.” I said looking up from the box I was looking through.
“Everything used to scare you. When there was thunder you and Luka would hide under the house together.” He laughed
as I came across something that caught my eye.
“Oh wow, Niko look.” I said holding up the small silver necklace. “This was mine right?” I asked him looking at the small ball on the chain.
“Yeah, if I remember right Luka’s parents gave it to mom for you the day you came back from the hospital.”
“Whose guitar?” Alex exclaimed, causing Niko and me to look in his direction.
“Our grandpa’s.” We said running over to look at it.
“Do you know how old this has to be?” Niko asked no one in particular.
“Probably as old as you.” I laughed.
“Actually despite how that was supposed to be a way of you calling me old, I think you’re right.”
“Deda always did say I was the smart one.” I mumbled.
“Very funny.” Niko said sarcastically as we went back upstairs.
My grandma asked us if we had found anything worthwhile down stairs as we came back in to the living room.
“I found this.” I told her handing her the necklace, as she looked at it and pretty much said the same thing Niko had told me downstairs.
“We also found Deda’s guitar.” Niko said while Alex was tuning it.
“I knew it wouldn’t be long till you did. Isabella used to sit and play with that all the time when she was younger. And when their grandpa was still alive she used to beg him to play it while she danced and sang around.” She said while I translated to Alex.
“More like screeched.” Niko mumbled.
“Oh Nikola how funny you are.” I told him making a face. “Can I see that Alex?” I asked him, as he passed me the guitar.
“Sure thing.” He smiled.
I started playing an old Croatian folk song that my grandpa used to play all time when I was a kid. My grandma laughed and ruffled up my hair while I played. When I finished I handed it back to Alex.
“Play me something pretty.” I said batting my eyelashes at him.
“Do you want your favorite?” He asked me strumming the guitar.
“Yes please.” I laughed, as he nodded and began playing Coffee house soundtrack.
When he finished Niko and my grandma were applauding, and my grandma was raving about how nice Alex sings.
“She says she loves it and your voice is beautiful.” I translated.
“Tell her I said thank you.” He smiled.
For the rest of the night we spent it messing around with the guitar playing songs and singing and I was making up a random song about Niko that had everyone laughing.
“Very funny, good night Bella.” Niko shouted up to me as Alex and I were going to sleep.
“Night Nikola!” I shouted down to him.
The next morning I woke up to my sidekick ringing not only waking me up but Alex as well. I grabbed it to see who it was, there was no name but it was the Croatian country code so I knew already who it was.
“Zdravo.” I said with a yawn as I felt Alex sit up next to me.
“Isabella?” I heard Luka’s voice ask.
“Da.” I said as I looked over at Alex and mouthed “Luka” to him.
He then nodded and went back to sleep.
Luka asked me if I wanted to meet him for lunch today at 1, I told him maybe because Niko and I still had to talk to Alex about it. So Luka agreed and I promised to call him back once I knew. After I got off the phone with him, I checked the time and saw it was 9, so I lay back down and cuddled with Alex until 10.
“So what did he want?” Alex yawned in to my hair.
“He wants me to meet him for lunch today.” I mumbled in to his chest.
“You should go.”
“Why?”
“Why not?”
“Awkward?”
“Bella this guy from what it seems was practically like family to you. You can’t shut the people from your past out
forever.”
“But I can try.” I told him, making him chuckle.
“Go please, for me?” He asked.
“You know,” I began lifting my head up to look at him. “Should I be worried that you’re pushing me to go out to lunch with another guy?”
“Totally.” He said sarcastically.
“Fine I’ll go, but you have to go to the museums with Niko today then.”
“Works for me.” He said giving me a kiss.
“I hate how you always get me to do things I don’t want to do.”
“I love how you actually do them.” He laughed.
While everyone ate breakfast, I called Luka to find out the details for today. He told me what restaurant to meet him at and what time.
“Okay what do I wear?” I announced while Alex and I were upstairs getting dressed.
“Clothes I would hope.” He joked.
“You’re no help.” I huffed sifting through my bag.
About three outfit changes later I finally found one I liked.
“Okay, what do you think of this?” I asked standing in front of Alex in a cream colored silk blouse and black skinny jeans and black flats.
“It’ll look great if you had like a sweater cause it’s really cold.” Alex nodded.
“Already done.” I said grabbing a black stripped sweater and putting it on. “Now?”
“Gorgeous.” He smiled giving me a kiss.