Taken By The Mafia Lord

"Achoo!" Marcel coughed for the third time wondering who was bath mouthing him. He bet it was Victor, that cousin of his had a big mouth.

Right now, Marcel was seated all alone in his room looking over the picture of his mother. Sadly, Victor wasn't here to annoy and keep his attention so he was left to the demons in his head.

But then, unlike other days, the memories of his mother today were a welcomed distraction so he doesn't lean into the other disturbing thought in his head - the thought of Arianna.

Who knew there would come a day when he would happily accept his mother's thought over a stranger's own - thinking about his mother brought nothing but a feeling of unpleasantness.

While memory of his mother was a constant ache in his heart, thinking about Arianna was Iike a two-edged sword piercing into his heart relentlessly.

[He betrayed her!]

Well, he did what he had to do to protect her! That was the least he could do without overstepping the line.

Marcel argued with his mind; there was a war going on inside of his head.

[Arianna would never forgive him]

That was expected. Moreover, he had a long line of enemies waiting to drag him down to hell if given the opportunity. So forgiveness? That was an excessive luxury for him.

[She would hate him for the rest of her life]

Hate is a strong word and Arianna can only hate someone she sees. After he got Elijah and this was over, he was sending her far away where he can't even find her. He couldn't have her by his side; Arianna was too much distraction.

But then the thought of Arianna moving far away had his heart racing. He still craved to know her - which was a very bad idea. Nor was this the first time he had to do something against his wish. Arianna's departure would not break him.

And it was all for good anyway because Marcel knew Arianna wouldn't even be able to look him in the face after he kills Elijah. Yeah, he would kill the love of her life, would she still see him as nothing less than a monster after that?

Marcel was roused from his thought when something or to be precise, Redhead jumped onto his lap, followed by a roar from Samson.

Marcel picked the fragile thing into his arms with a sigh, he still couldn't understand the sibling rivalry between Redhead and Samson. A few times he has seen Redhead try to establish some sort of contact with Samson only to be chased away with his mighty roar.

"Don't mind Samson," Marcel ran his hand through the puppy's fur affectionately, "He doesn't realize what he has until he loses it,"

As if the lion could understand what he was saying, it yawned with its wide mouth and Marcel felt insulted. Yeah, that beast was definitely insulting him.

Marcel ignored it and simply turned his attention to the chihuahua who took over the duty of looking his face - and that again made Samson growl. He was usually the one licking Marcel. Periodically.

"Just learn to share, dude, and stop being grumpy," Marcel added, "Moreover, his kisses are much softer than yours," He grinned.

As much as it looked appealing and cool on television, having a lion lick your face isn't exactly 'painless'.

Their tongues are rough and covered in spines that help them hunt and devour their prey. Those spines are sharp and face backward, almost like a barb, so even a lick or two could cause serious injury. Knowing that, Marcel hardly offers his face - he detests injuries there - offering his arm instead.

"In the end, you would be the only connection between the both of us after she leaves," Marcel hinted at the fact he named him after Arianna.

"The only evidence she existed," he murmured absentmindedly, scratching its belly. On the bright side, he would have something to remember her by.

Almost immediately, his phone rang and Marcel picked it up only to receive a piece of news he wasn't exactly pleased with from his men.

He stood up to check his window, lifting the blinds and seeing how late it was, wondered why she was at his place at this time of the night. Nonetheless, he had a visitor to attend to.

Marcel was just about to tell them to escort her up when he remembered the presence of the lion. As if Samson knew he was on his mind, their gaze connected but Samson was the first to throw his face the other way. Marcel rolled his eyes towards heaven, that lion was definitely on his period!

"Fine, I'll see her downstairs then," Marcel decided.

If Clara were to come to his place and see Samson, he didn't even want to imagine it. But Marcel was sure of one thing, he would be the one driving the unconscious drama queen back to her place.

Since he was bare, Marcel got to his closet and picked a top that he wore over his head before pulling it down his body. He didn't bother looking over the mirror to know how he looked. There were people he bothered to look presentable for and Clara wasn't one of them.

Marcel was about to leave when he felt like he was forgetting something and it wasn't until Redhead purred that he remembered him. Samson has already lifted his head, Marcel had no doubt the beast would have begun his bullying as soon as he left.

"Sorry buddy, but I can't spend my fortune replacing destroyed properties out of your jealousy," Marcel picked the chihuahua else they began another round of "chase" in his room.

Samson growled.

"I love you too," He blew an air kiss to the lion before leaving, making sure the door was properly locked.

On his way down, Marcel couldn't help but wonder the intention behind Clara coming here this night and each time coming up with nothing. They couldn't even stand the sight of each other, so why was she here?

Marcel spotted her from the last stair before he arrived and as soon as Clara saw him, she stood at first, then started towards him while he stared, puzzled.

As if Redhead knew what would happen, the puppy jumped out of his arms right before Clara threw herself on him and hugged him.

Marcel stood at the spot, struck speechlessly. What was going on? But before he could ask the question, Clara pulled away and announced happily, "Let's date properly, this time,"

Marcel blinked. Thrice.

And that, my friend, just became a nightmare.