With Monopoly
We were led into a small room that was quite different from the others. It seemed to me that it was much simpler and cozier than those we had passed through before. A long wooden table was surrounded by twelve chairs with black upholstery. In the center of the table lay a prepared game of Monopoly, with twelve metal pieces set up, and I immediately noticed a small cat. "I mustn't forget to sit next to play with it," I mentally noted. To our left was a pyramid of champagne glasses. Several waiters rushed about with various dishes. Right under the chandelier in the candlelight stood four people. It wasn't hard to recognize those in the center: Leo and Nicolas. Both wore designer suits, white and black respectively. They looked like yin and yang and were whispering about something. To Leo's right stood a girl. I had seen her in a picture on De Ville's profile — she was his cousin. It seemed we were on the same wavelength; her shoulders were draped with a burgundy-black jacket, and the ends of her pump shoes peeked out from underneath matching pants. It was hard to tell how old she was; she looked like she could be my peer, but she wore a wedding ring on her finger. I glanced at the man in white. The same wedding ring. So, he was her husband. He had thick red hair and small mustache, and he occasionally stroked them in a way that seemed to draw more attention to them.
Damiano, who was ahead, stopped a few meters away from the group, and it dawned on me that despite being taller than the other women in my five-centimeter heels, I would still barely reach the nose of any of the men in the room. Maybe just the butler. Where do they even make such tall ones?
The host interrupted his conversation and turned to the guests. For a moment, his gaze lingered on me a bit longer than on the others, and a cheeky smile spread across his face, revealing his satisfaction with winning our little game.
"Thank you all for being here," he finally began, bowing slightly. "Allow me to introduce the newcomers — my cousin, Charlotte Monomeri, and her husband, Sir William, as well as my good friend, Nicolas Mathieu," they now bowed in turn, "and Miss Adelina Levytska, Miss Elizabeth Karter, Miss Sol Mendelyuk, and Miss Sara Visconti. And also, Mr. Damiano Gennari," I wasn’t surprised that he didn’t let us introduce ourselves; he had openly shown that he held privileges in his position.
I wasn’t looking at Leo at that moment; my gaze was directed at Nick: he was openly devouring my friend with his eyes. And Elizabeth, in turn, was equally devouring him with her gaze. They were caught in a nonverbal conversation, and I noticed a spark pass between them. But I felt uncomfortable as well; I could almost physically feel someone burning a hole into my back with their stare.
And then my eyes met with gray ones. Only now did I realize they were gray-blue. It was as if I was drowning in clouds. He silently assessed me with his gaze (perhaps waiting for my reaction?) and smiled that same smile. With the same dimples. And then I couldn’t help but do the same. Damn! It shouldn’t be like this. I need to stop smiling. I quickly broke the eye contact and turned away. Leo shifted his gaze to Nick, then back to everyone.
"Well then, let’s start the game!"
When everyone had their champagne and sat down with a clamor, I realized I hadn’t sat where I wanted. I ended up next to Leo. But it was too late to change anything. Everyone knew the rules of the game, so we didn’t waste time on boring explanations.
"Let’s choose which piece to play," Nick said, grabbing the ship. "Well, alright," Ella to my left instantly reacted and took the penguin. A flurry began; Mia took the shoe, Dam the hat, Philipp grabbed the boot, his brother took the dinosaur, I reached for the cat, and Leo went for the dog. Our hands met, and it felt like I was struck by electricity. His hands were so warm; they sharply contrasted with my icy ones... I handed my jacket to Sara because she was very cold, and I didn’t need it just then. I quickly pulled my hand back and glanced subtly at the guy. He probably didn’t even notice because his features seemed unflappable. After a couple of seconds, I was wrapped in the scent of someone’s perfume. Someone draped their jacket over my shoulders. Raising my eyes to find this gentleman, I had no doubt it was him. Leo was left in just a white shirt.
So he really did notice I was cold.
A different kind of jolt ran through me. But it wasn’t painful; on the contrary... Pleasant? The guy sat back in his seat, and I noticed that while my attention was glued to him, Lelija took the princess, Charlotte took the duck, Sara took the car, and Isabel took the crown. I had never seen those types of pieces before; usually, there were only eight of them altogether.
"I suggest we get started," Philip interrupted my thoughts.
And that’s when the most interesting part began. I was having incredible luck, buying up properties left and right. Everyone began to succumb gradually. Ella and Nick ran out of money, so they folded and left the game, effectively going bankrupt and passing all their assets to the bank. Leo and I remained alone. I looked at him, and he looked at me.
Leo rolls the dice and lands on a "Chance" space. The card he draws from the deck sends him straight to jail. Nick laughs at his bad luck, and I smile, satisfied, as I buy real estate and watch his turn.
He rolls the dice again, landing on four, two on each, and his piece lands on the property I just bought.
"Damn! You've already stripped me bare," the blonde protests.
"You're a businessman, so show your skills, or you'll go bankrupt quicker than you can say ‘Monopoly.’"
I didn’t even notice how I switched to the informal “you” with him, but he clearly seemed pleased, gazing at me and smiling like a child. I was starting to hate those dimples. They were too charming, and I was beginning to lose control over myself, which frustrated me greatly! Leo noticed my distress and, while I wasn’t looking, made his move and bought some estate with his last money. I took my turn and, unfortunately, didn’t skip his purchase. His turn... and he bypasses all my properties! I land on his street again and again, as if under a spell. And then I just surrender — I’ve had enough of this humiliation; it’s better to just "put down my arms."
"You’ve won, Mr. De Ville, congratulations," I toss all my money onto the table and lean back in my chair. "Questa è la fine, cara!"
A waiter rushes to the table and begins collecting the game. I look into the eyes of my opponent, and he merely smiles, oh yes, now he can laugh. I feel surprised gazes on me. It seems his brothers didn’t expect such a turn. Ella snorted, and Nick patted his friend on the shoulder.
"Ce n'est que le début, mon amour," Leo replied.
It seems the guy thought I didn’t understand French, and I hadn’t planned to convince him otherwise. Some of the attendees exchanged strange glances. Regardless, I had won, and that pleased me.
I asked Ella in a melodious tone if she understood what he said.
"Of course," a smile spread across her face. "What about you?"
"Yes," I smiled back at her with a firm feeling that, for some reason, I was the winner here.