‹ Prequel: Everything I'm Not
Love's Requiem
The mess we made
The next afternoon the four of us headed to my aunt's house which was only about a half an hour away from where Luka was.
"Wear your bathing suit!" I shouted to Jesse, while I ran in to the bathroom to get dressed. I changed in to the other bathing suit I had brought with me, as well as a long white gauze skirt, and a light blue tank top to wear over my top.
"Don't you look pretty." Jesse smirked as I came downstairs.
"I have to try and show her that I'm not a complete animal. Though I'm pretty sure she's going to see my tattoos and try to kill me." I sighed.
"If you knew that you would get so much shit from your family why would you get so many?"
"For the same reason I got my lip pierced on my 16th birthday."
"To piss everyone off." We both said at the same time.
"Ready?" Niko asked as him and Luka came from the yard.
"Sadly." I said making Niko smile, as he put an arm tightly around my shoulders.
"We could always just go to the beach." He told me as he kissed my temple.
"No, family first." I said more to myself as we left and go in to Niko's car.
"Isabella!" My aunt exclaimed opening the door. "What have you done to your skin?" She exclaimed as her eyes landed first on my collar bone.
"I like art?" I asked wincing as she started lecturing me. "Jesse this is my dad's sister, my aunt Iva." I told him and then introduced him to my aunt in Croatian as well as Niko, she already knew Luka from when we were kids.
After my 20 minute long lecture on my tattoos, she finally welcomed me and hugged me telling me how she can't believe I'm a young lady already. She had a bunch of her and my uncle's friends over, as well as my cousins. We swam in the pool, as well as hung out by the marina outside of their yard.
"Not so bad." Niko said as I took a seat on one of his legs while he was sitting on a the edge of one of the lounge chairs.
"Now it isn't." I told him, making a face that made him laugh.
"23 going on 10" He mumbled as I rested my forehead on his.
"And you love it." I told him liking his nose.
"Occasionally." He laughed as I got up and headed inside.
"You having fun?" I asked Jesse while him and I were waiting for our turn in the bathroom so
we could change in to dry clothes.
"Duh, this has to be the best vacation ever." Jesse laughed.
"Even better than Vegas?" I asked in disbelief.
"Even better than Vegas." He nodded.
"Now you've gone too far, no vacation will ever amount to Vegas." I disagreed.
"That's because you won all that money."
"Indeed I did." I nodded as I headed in to the bathroom.
Around 10 we headed back to Luka's where we played cards and drank as usual. The rest of our time in Zadar we spent at the beach and the old city. Jesse loved it and didn't want to go back to Zagreb two days later, however we had to because we had to start getting ready to go back to America.
"How was Zadar?" My grandma asked as Jesse and I sat down to eat dinner with her.
"Nice." I nodded, "Tetka Iva says hi." I told her.
"How is she?"
"She's doing good, everyone's doing good." I assured her.
"I see you must have spent most of your time there at the beach, you're so tan now Isabella."
She commented.
"I like the beach." I shrugged.
"Is Niko coming over again later?" She asked me with a smile.
"Probably." I nodded.
Niko did come over and the three of us went out to a bar later on that night and met up with Michi and Ivan.
"Come on quit being such a girl!" Jesse whined while I was trying to make up my mind what I was going to wear out that night.
"You don't understand, I have to look nice." I told him.
"You always look nice! Wear a potato sack I'm sure you'll make it look nice!"
"Ugh." I grunted as I still stared down at what I had laid out on my bed.
"I'll never fucking understand women." Jesse mumbled going downstairs.
I finally decided on a strapless purple dress, and black sandals, once I finished getting ready I was in the middle of fixing my lip gloss when Jesse yelled up.
"Come on Bella by the time you're done we'll be going home already!" I heard Jesse's voice.
"I'm coming, I'm coming calm your dick!" I shouted as I trotted down the stairs, "I swear you have the patience of a-hey Niko!" I cut myself off to see Jesse and Niko waiting by the door
with smirks on their face.
"Of a what?" Jesse asked smiling.
"I hate you." I told him bitterly as we left the house.
"So has Zadar changed at all in the past 20 years?" Michi asked giving me a hug once we met up with her and Ivan at the bar.
"Yeah, no bombs." I joked, "Not really, oh you should have heard the lecture I got from my aunt though." I whined as we ordered drinks.
"The tattoos?" She asked me.
"What else would it be? Isabella you're so pretty why would you ruin your skin that way. What does that say? What does it mean? That's disgusting looking! And your feet!" I went on imitating my aunt making her, Niko, and Ivan crack up while Jesse looked confused since I was speaking in Croatian.
"Well in her defense, you have an actual heart with a knife through it on your foot." Niko said in English to me.
"Bleeding through art work."
"Bella's like the super fan when it comes to them she has what... four tattoos involving them?" Jesse asked me.
"You are correct sir." I nodded with a smile.
Like any night out with them it was fun, and filled with drinking, laughing, and dancing.
"I kind of don't want to leave." I told Niko when him and I were getting another drink and were alone.
"You know you have to." He told me as we waited to get the bartender's attention.
"I know I do, but part of me thinks I'm better off just staying with you."
"We can't be together again Isabella and you know that. For us to be together one of us has to give up our dreams and you and I both know neither of us would allow the other to do that." He told me as he pulled me in to his arms.
"I know." I frowned, "I wish it was easier." I mumbled as I felt him kiss the top of my head.
"Wear your bathing suit!" I shouted to Jesse, while I ran in to the bathroom to get dressed. I changed in to the other bathing suit I had brought with me, as well as a long white gauze skirt, and a light blue tank top to wear over my top.
"Don't you look pretty." Jesse smirked as I came downstairs.
"I have to try and show her that I'm not a complete animal. Though I'm pretty sure she's going to see my tattoos and try to kill me." I sighed.
"If you knew that you would get so much shit from your family why would you get so many?"
"For the same reason I got my lip pierced on my 16th birthday."
"To piss everyone off." We both said at the same time.
"Ready?" Niko asked as him and Luka came from the yard.
"Sadly." I said making Niko smile, as he put an arm tightly around my shoulders.
"We could always just go to the beach." He told me as he kissed my temple.
"No, family first." I said more to myself as we left and go in to Niko's car.
"Isabella!" My aunt exclaimed opening the door. "What have you done to your skin?" She exclaimed as her eyes landed first on my collar bone.
"I like art?" I asked wincing as she started lecturing me. "Jesse this is my dad's sister, my aunt Iva." I told him and then introduced him to my aunt in Croatian as well as Niko, she already knew Luka from when we were kids.
After my 20 minute long lecture on my tattoos, she finally welcomed me and hugged me telling me how she can't believe I'm a young lady already. She had a bunch of her and my uncle's friends over, as well as my cousins. We swam in the pool, as well as hung out by the marina outside of their yard.
"Not so bad." Niko said as I took a seat on one of his legs while he was sitting on a the edge of one of the lounge chairs.
"Now it isn't." I told him, making a face that made him laugh.
"23 going on 10" He mumbled as I rested my forehead on his.
"And you love it." I told him liking his nose.
"Occasionally." He laughed as I got up and headed inside.
"You having fun?" I asked Jesse while him and I were waiting for our turn in the bathroom so
we could change in to dry clothes.
"Duh, this has to be the best vacation ever." Jesse laughed.
"Even better than Vegas?" I asked in disbelief.
"Even better than Vegas." He nodded.
"Now you've gone too far, no vacation will ever amount to Vegas." I disagreed.
"That's because you won all that money."
"Indeed I did." I nodded as I headed in to the bathroom.
Around 10 we headed back to Luka's where we played cards and drank as usual. The rest of our time in Zadar we spent at the beach and the old city. Jesse loved it and didn't want to go back to Zagreb two days later, however we had to because we had to start getting ready to go back to America.
"How was Zadar?" My grandma asked as Jesse and I sat down to eat dinner with her.
"Nice." I nodded, "Tetka Iva says hi." I told her.
"How is she?"
"She's doing good, everyone's doing good." I assured her.
"I see you must have spent most of your time there at the beach, you're so tan now Isabella."
She commented.
"I like the beach." I shrugged.
"Is Niko coming over again later?" She asked me with a smile.
"Probably." I nodded.
Niko did come over and the three of us went out to a bar later on that night and met up with Michi and Ivan.
"Come on quit being such a girl!" Jesse whined while I was trying to make up my mind what I was going to wear out that night.
"You don't understand, I have to look nice." I told him.
"You always look nice! Wear a potato sack I'm sure you'll make it look nice!"
"Ugh." I grunted as I still stared down at what I had laid out on my bed.
"I'll never fucking understand women." Jesse mumbled going downstairs.
I finally decided on a strapless purple dress, and black sandals, once I finished getting ready I was in the middle of fixing my lip gloss when Jesse yelled up.
"Come on Bella by the time you're done we'll be going home already!" I heard Jesse's voice.
"I'm coming, I'm coming calm your dick!" I shouted as I trotted down the stairs, "I swear you have the patience of a-hey Niko!" I cut myself off to see Jesse and Niko waiting by the door
with smirks on their face.
"Of a what?" Jesse asked smiling.
"I hate you." I told him bitterly as we left the house.
"So has Zadar changed at all in the past 20 years?" Michi asked giving me a hug once we met up with her and Ivan at the bar.
"Yeah, no bombs." I joked, "Not really, oh you should have heard the lecture I got from my aunt though." I whined as we ordered drinks.
"The tattoos?" She asked me.
"What else would it be? Isabella you're so pretty why would you ruin your skin that way. What does that say? What does it mean? That's disgusting looking! And your feet!" I went on imitating my aunt making her, Niko, and Ivan crack up while Jesse looked confused since I was speaking in Croatian.
"Well in her defense, you have an actual heart with a knife through it on your foot." Niko said in English to me.
"Bleeding through art work."
"Bella's like the super fan when it comes to them she has what... four tattoos involving them?" Jesse asked me.
"You are correct sir." I nodded with a smile.
Like any night out with them it was fun, and filled with drinking, laughing, and dancing.
"I kind of don't want to leave." I told Niko when him and I were getting another drink and were alone.
"You know you have to." He told me as we waited to get the bartender's attention.
"I know I do, but part of me thinks I'm better off just staying with you."
"We can't be together again Isabella and you know that. For us to be together one of us has to give up our dreams and you and I both know neither of us would allow the other to do that." He told me as he pulled me in to his arms.
"I know." I frowned, "I wish it was easier." I mumbled as I felt him kiss the top of my head.