but no damn strawberry to be found. So after searching for over a week, he gave up, buying the ingredients and a damn pan, baking one in the ancient oven.
It looked like shit. He was almost ashamed. He hadn't waited for it to cool before icing it, so crumbles of chocolate cake coated the top. He covered it with a container of chocolate sprinkles, giving up, hoping it would suffice.
It was the thought that counted, right?
The cake looked dry, like he'd baked it too long, and it came out of a box courtesy of Betty Crocker, but Genna devoured it like Martha Stewart herself had whipped it up in her kitchen.
"For the record: I love you, too," he said, pulling the top off of the ice cream tub. Half of it had melted in the heat, the freezer in the house worthless. Chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry converged, creating a discolored mess. Grabbing a plastic spoon, he dug it in, watching as liquid ran off the sides. "So, you want some soup to go with your cake?"
Genna took a few steps over, pausing behind him, and glanced at the ice cream. She shrugged and dug her cake spoon straight into the carton. "I like it better this way."
Matty leaned back against the counter, regarding her. "You're kidding."
"Nope," she said, giving up pretense and grabbing the entire carton, hugging it to her chest. She stuck her spoon in and stirred, mixing the flavors together. "My brother and I used to eat all of our ice cream like this."
Matty eyed her curiously as she said that. He knew she was talking about Dante, considering she'd been too young to ever remember Joey being alive. Matty remembered him, though. And one thing he never forgot about him was that if you gave Joey ice cream to eat, he'd mix it up until he could drink it. "Really?"
A small, wistful smile ghosted across Genna's lips. "Yeah, we'd wait until it was all melted and just slurp it from the bowl. It drove my parents crazy. I still do it sometimes, but he doesn't..." She paused, her smile falling. "I mean, he didn't . After my mom died, he stopped. He grew up too quick after that."
Genna stared down at the ice cream in silence, lost in a memory. Matty stayed quiet, giving her that, and didn't chime in until she took another bite. "Joey used to eat his ice cream that way."
Her eyes widened. "He did?"
"Galante family trait, I guess. Can't even eat ice cream right. Gotta make things messy."
Genna laughed, her expression brightening just a bit. "I am pretty good at making things messy."
"That you are," Matty agreed. "Might even go so far as to call it your specialty."
Chapter Six
M anhattan found itself in a late summer heat wave.
Dante could feel the passing of time as he sat on the small metal bench along the sidewalk, in front of the hospital, the muggy heat sticking to his sweaty skin. It had barely been August the last time he remembered, but there it was, already September, fall just a few weeks away. Blinked, and he missed it, the days ticking by. It was like sleeping through a month of your life… a month where everything you knew vanished.
It was like waking up in a new world, a different world, a world Dante didn't fucking like.
This world was stifling.
"I see you've been sprung."
The familiar female voice ghosted across Dante's warm skin, so close he damn near shivered. Nurse Russo stood just a few feet beside him, clad in her blue scrubs.
"More like I escaped."
"With the doctor's blessing?"
Dante shrugged. "Figured he was tired of looking at me."
Laughing, Nurse Russo took a step forward, motioning to the metal bench. "Mind if I join you?"
Dante slid over, giving her some room. "By all means, plop your ass on down."
She sat down, not leaving much space between them. A hint of her perfume wafted toward him, subtle but sweet, barely strong enough to be detected yet it was enough to make his head swim. Vanilla . He'd been lightheaded since he signed the release forms, leaving against medical advice. They wanted to keep him a few more days, out of
It looked like shit. He was almost ashamed. He hadn't waited for it to cool before icing it, so crumbles of chocolate cake coated the top. He covered it with a container of chocolate sprinkles, giving up, hoping it would suffice.
It was the thought that counted, right?
The cake looked dry, like he'd baked it too long, and it came out of a box courtesy of Betty Crocker, but Genna devoured it like Martha Stewart herself had whipped it up in her kitchen.
"For the record: I love you, too," he said, pulling the top off of the ice cream tub. Half of it had melted in the heat, the freezer in the house worthless. Chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry converged, creating a discolored mess. Grabbing a plastic spoon, he dug it in, watching as liquid ran off the sides. "So, you want some soup to go with your cake?"
Genna took a few steps over, pausing behind him, and glanced at the ice cream. She shrugged and dug her cake spoon straight into the carton. "I like it better this way."
Matty leaned back against the counter, regarding her. "You're kidding."
"Nope," she said, giving up pretense and grabbing the entire carton, hugging it to her chest. She stuck her spoon in and stirred, mixing the flavors together. "My brother and I used to eat all of our ice cream like this."
Matty eyed her curiously as she said that. He knew she was talking about Dante, considering she'd been too young to ever remember Joey being alive. Matty remembered him, though. And one thing he never forgot about him was that if you gave Joey ice cream to eat, he'd mix it up until he could drink it. "Really?"
A small, wistful smile ghosted across Genna's lips. "Yeah, we'd wait until it was all melted and just slurp it from the bowl. It drove my parents crazy. I still do it sometimes, but he doesn't..." She paused, her smile falling. "I mean, he didn't . After my mom died, he stopped. He grew up too quick after that."
Genna stared down at the ice cream in silence, lost in a memory. Matty stayed quiet, giving her that, and didn't chime in until she took another bite. "Joey used to eat his ice cream that way."
Her eyes widened. "He did?"
"Galante family trait, I guess. Can't even eat ice cream right. Gotta make things messy."
Genna laughed, her expression brightening just a bit. "I am pretty good at making things messy."
"That you are," Matty agreed. "Might even go so far as to call it your specialty."
Chapter Six
M anhattan found itself in a late summer heat wave.
Dante could feel the passing of time as he sat on the small metal bench along the sidewalk, in front of the hospital, the muggy heat sticking to his sweaty skin. It had barely been August the last time he remembered, but there it was, already September, fall just a few weeks away. Blinked, and he missed it, the days ticking by. It was like sleeping through a month of your life… a month where everything you knew vanished.
It was like waking up in a new world, a different world, a world Dante didn't fucking like.
This world was stifling.
"I see you've been sprung."
The familiar female voice ghosted across Dante's warm skin, so close he damn near shivered. Nurse Russo stood just a few feet beside him, clad in her blue scrubs.
"More like I escaped."
"With the doctor's blessing?"
Dante shrugged. "Figured he was tired of looking at me."
Laughing, Nurse Russo took a step forward, motioning to the metal bench. "Mind if I join you?"
Dante slid over, giving her some room. "By all means, plop your ass on down."
She sat down, not leaving much space between them. A hint of her perfume wafted toward him, subtle but sweet, barely strong enough to be detected yet it was enough to make his head swim. Vanilla . He'd been lightheaded since he signed the release forms, leaving against medical advice. They wanted to keep him a few more days, out of
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