Enzo may have confessed to Hazel today, but he never thought he would fall in love with someone so deeply. And that it would be Hazel who grew up with him.
His birth was a prominent occasion in the mafia world. No one knew there would be a ruler people would remember for many generations.
Blood from the two strongest mafia families, Santoris and Russo, was flowing in this boy who would be the most coldhearted and cruel ruler they have ever seen. When he was initially born, his mom was a single mother. Aurora fulfilled his every need. Disciplined him when necessary and pampered him so that her son would not experience a painful childhood as she did.
Enzo was born to be a mob boss, so how can he stay away from his roots? So he quickly reunited with his father, Dimitri, and met his family.
As soon as Enzo stepped into the Santoris mansion, his life changed 180 degrees. Even though he was a kid, he noticed everyone feared Dimitri, and his word was the law. Enzo, being the next successor, had the same privilege. He enjoyed that there was always someone at his beck and call.
His childhood differed from other kids. His studies were different, and they also enrolled him in various classes like karate, horse riding, swimming, archery, skeet shooting, and many more. There was never a moment of leisure for him. And because of that, he grew faster than his peers. His father, Dimitri, never forced him to do anything, and Aurora wanted Enzo to stay out of the mafia world as much as possible and have a normal childhood.
But Enzo craved danger and the high adrenaline rush he got, so he refused to settle for normal. Dimitri did not want to disappoint his wife or his son, so he settled in between. Enzo was not allowed to enter their workplace but could learn any activity he wanted.
Enzo quickly got restless and tried to create a mess wherever he went. In class, there were two types of guys, one who worshiped Enzo and wanted to be like him, and then there were the others who were jealous of him and thought he was no better than them.
One guy thought of bullying Enzo in gym class and tried to hit his stomach. Enzo's blood boiled, and all his pent-up frustration came out. He beat that boy so harshly that they had to take him to the medical room. Aurora was furious, so she grounded him. But he could see that even though Dimitri scolded him in front of Aurora, there was a smug expression on his face as if he was proud that he stood up to his bully. Both father and son communicated in a unique language. Enzo also felt his father's appreciation.
At the same time, Nicholas came to visit them and offered to take Enzo with him. The next day, when Nicholas was on his way to work. Enzo ran behind him and gripped his suit coat. When Nicholas asked him what was wrong, Enzo refused to say anything.
Nicholas looked at his face for a few seconds and asked whether he wanted to join him for work. Enzo nodded with a big smile on his face.
He took Enzo to the armory, the meeting hall, where people shivered to even utter a word in front of Nicholas, and his word was verdict there. He also went to the torture cells.
He wanted to decide the fate of people in the future. To punish the evil and uphold justice. For the first time in his life, Enzo felt he had found his true purpose in life.
That entire week he stayed at the Russo mansion, Enzo following his uncle daily to his workplace.
When Enzo returned home, Dimitri noticed there were changes within him. When his father confronted Enzo, he told him everything. Dimitri thought since they already exposed him to the mafia, there was no need to hide anything.
Enzo accompanied his father during his free time and could not wait for when he finally had the authority his father had.
He preferred solace, and his only close friends were the aristocratic kids. Being the eldest kid in the group, he was responsible for the smaller kids and was always there to end their fights.
He still remembered when his father told him that Aunt Ava had given birth to a daughter, so everyone wanted to see her. But he wanted to attend his football session and was annoyed when his father dragged him to the Ambrosio mansion to meet the newborn baby. He was so cross with his father that he refused to give the baby a proper glance.
After lunch, he had gone upstairs to play with Travis's toys. And as he passed by the nursery, somehow, he felt a little curious as to why everyone was praising her. They kept saying they had never seen such a cute and adorable baby. He wanted to check whether all the praises were true, so he slowly walked towards the crib where Hazel was lying wrapped in a pink blanket.
She had an oval face, skin so fair and smooth, black jet hair where a few strands of her hair were falling on her forehead, and her cheeks were so pink, just like the blanket that covered her.
She looked so small. Her face, hands, legs… everything was so tiny he was afraid that if he touched her, she may break.
The baby might have sensed his presence as she opened her eyes. Enzo took a step back, fearing she may start crying. His brother Logan always cried and made such a ruckus when someone wouldn't carry him. Enzo felt a headache hearing his brother's cries, and now he didn't know what to do if the baby started crying.
But after a few seconds, when it was totally silent, Enzo stepped forward, and his gaze went to her eyes. He had never seen such deep eyes making him drown in them. She was truly beautiful, beyond perfection. All those praises did not do justice to her beauty.
Then Hazel did something which made such an impact on him for the rest of his life. She smiled at him.
She gave such a beautiful smile that touched his heart directly. Hazel's eyes crinkled around the edge, her mouth widened, and her giggles were music to his ears.
Her smile was so pure and contagious that Enzo could not stop the smile from appearing on his face.