#lissabio

[theartofdyingrp]

    L I S S A  B R I G A N T I   -

age: thirty-eight years old occupation: surgeon affiliation: solano faceclaim: rachel mcadams availability: taken

Ushered into the world in the height of a legendary power shift within the Sicilian Mafia, Lissa was the source of light in the dark and trying times. Her loose blonde curls and devastating smile won over the hearts of everyone she met. Her brother, fifteen and forced into the slew of training for the position Don, softened and relaxed holding his baby sister. Her father only ever took a break from his coup when little Lissa shed her tears. Her mother, however, was different. She was sad. Distant. Distraught. Everyone around her was far too busy with the takeover to notice. Her postpartum depression became too much to handle on her own. She didn’t want to bother her husband with such trivial matters in the trying time the family was facing. She killed herself a week before Lissa’s first birthday, leaving only a note behind.

Since, the power the Briganti family had rose exponentially. Her father’s coup, a great success and widely anticipated by the loyalists, was well overdue. For a decade, all was well for the Briganti mafia in their little city of Palermo. Though, there were those who remembered the old rulers. The Esposito family, while their patriarch was slaughtered years ago, never lost hope for their want of power. Their rightful power. Lissa was ten years old at the time, and her father sent her away at the first sign of rebellion. He would fight for his family and the empire that he stole, but he was not about to risk the safety of his youngest child and only daughter.

The young, sweet Sicilian girl was sent to live with the Solano family in California. An ocean away, Lissa cried the entire plane ride and didn’t stop when she got to the Solano estate just outside the city. She didn’t eat and could barely sleep her first night. Though, when Adrian came knocking on her door with a plate of warm cookies baked by his mother, Lissa opened up and welcomed him in.

If it weren’t for Adrian, Lissa would have hated living in America. The culture shock was devastating and only receiving letters from her family wasn’t enough to sooth her homesickness. Her family spared the details of the horrors happening back home, but she knew how much danger they were in. Having a friend in Adrian, however, lessened the hardships. They were fast friends and were almost inseparable. So, while Lissa attended her private all girls school, paid for by one of the annual checks her father sent to Luis Solano, she itches to get home to her best friend.

Lissa prevented him from getting himself in trouble, though, he didn’t always listen to her sound and rational advice. They balanced each other out. When they reached their teenage years, Adrian would scare away any boy interested in her that he didn’t deem fit while Lissa scoped out suitable mates for him. When he got stressed with both his school work and the training his father gave him, Lissa snuck him beer or baked him a treat to help calm him down. They scoffed at their friends who teased them. “You two are going to get married one day,” they’d say. At sixteen years old, they thought they couldn’t be more wrong.

With the best possible high school education in California, it was easy for Lissa to get into any school she applied to; Harvard called her name, even if that meant she’d be separated from the Solano family. If she ever wanted to visit, it was just a plane ride away. It was do-able. Though, Lissa wasn’t the first one to really miss the family. It was Adrian who was first to miss her. He came for a visit one weekend, despite his busy class schedule at Stanford.

The chilly nights of late October made for relaxing by the fireplace in her dorm and plenty of drinking at the bar on Campus. Lissa introduced him to all her friends as what he was; a close friend from back home. Her boyfriend at the time, though, didn’t really believe her. She didn’t realize he had much of a temper until he yelled at her outside while the rest of her friends watched from the window. Lissa wasn’t shocked when Adrian came out and punched him square in the jaw. In fact, it made her laugh. She grabbed her friend by his hand and dragged him back to her dorm, drunkenly laughing all the way there.

Her roommate traveled home that weekend, leaving a cheap bottle of sparkling wine behind. Lissa popped it and started drinking right from the bottle when Adrian blurted out I love you. He laughed at her antics and smiled. He kept saying it, too. I love you over and over. She giggled and passed the bottle to him, saying his words right back to him. The first thing Adrian’s ever done that shocked Lissa was when he teared up reading his acceptance letter to Stanford; the second thing happened that night. He took her in his arms and kissed her with a passion that she’s never experienced before. In that moment, Lissa understood their high school friends were right; they would get married one day.

From that night on, Adrian and Lissa were inseparable in a different way; of course, the families approve of the match, but the rules had certainly changed. Adrian and Lissa couldn’t get away with much of anything in the Solano house, but that didn’t matter. By the time Lissa graduated from Harvard, Adrian already had his own apartment in the city as he worked under his father. Lissa moved in immediately. While she attended medical school, Adrian worked as his father’s underboss. Both insanely busy, the idea of getting married or having a family never crossed their minds.

One night, Henry was shot. Lissa had just started her residency at the hospital when Adrian brought his bloodied brother to their apartment. Her adrenaline kept her from panicking and dealt with the wound right away. Sanitizing the hole with vodka she dug into his leg with a pair of tweezers to pull out the small bullet that was lodged in his bone. She was just glad the bullet didn’t shatter. That night, while Lissa knew she’d keep her job at the hospital she demanded that Adrian build a medical room somewhere. It could be the Solano Estate, at the hospital, hell, she didn’t care if it was at the club. All she knew was if something like this happened again, and it would happen again, she wanted the proper setup. All Adrian did in response was smile, nod and ask her to marry her. She smacked his arm, yelled that he should’ve been more romantic, and said yes.

The next few years were seemingly perfect. She and Adrian tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony followed by a rowdy reception, and had a daughter two years later. Sylvia Caroline Solano, named for their two mothers, was the light in everyone’s lives. It was only when Luis was diagnosed with ALS that the couple were brought back to reality; nothing stayed perfect for long. They relocated to the Solano estate and the family watched as Luis’ body deteriorated while his mind stayed in tact.

Lissa wasn’t in the room when he asked, but Lissa knew that Luis made Adrain pull the trigger for him. It wasn’t fair for a father to ask that of his son. It ruined him. For months Adrian couldn’t control his temper or his drinking. He’d yell, scream and punch walls when Lissa knew he wanted to hit her. Though, she stood by him. He was grieving. It wasn’t something Lissa could understand. How awful it must’ve been to carry around the guilt of killing your own father. Finding out he slept with someone else, the same woman multiple times, Lissa couldn’t handle it anymore. Divorce.

Leaving her best friend was the most difficult thing she’d ever have to do in her life. Adrian’s consigliere helped her find a decent lawyer and when she found her own apartment he’d come over and listen to her cry while they shared a bottle of wine. When he confessed his feelings for her, she was shocked. Stunned silent. She didn’t know what to say. All she knew was that love was exactly what she wanted to feel. So, she kissed him. Maybe she wanted to do something to spite Adrian, even if he never found out about it. Eli was there for her. It felt right, no matter how wrong it was.

   C O N N E C T I O N S   -

adrian solano: husband (separated) sylvia solano: daughter (eight years old) elijah deluca: interest

[robybertasmilemaker-blog]

Oddio ma é fantastico!!!!!(preso al Natura sì!) #lissabio #mangiosano #goodfood