My Second Marriage with the Mafia Kingpin

Chapter 368: Dream Jar

"The park is so beautiful from up here."

Ashley stared out the window of the enclosed Ferris wheel cabin in awe.

They hadn’t reached the top yet, but everything below was already slowly shrinking.

Her smile softened as she admired the view.

Colorful.

Magical.

Fun.

That was what she had always imagined amusement parks to be.

The first time she came to one with Lucian and Primo, she had realized she wasn’t wrong.

But tonight felt different. Maybe it was because tonight... tonight was for her.

All for her.

She couldn’t help feeling giddier. More selfish. More energetic.

And strangely... more melancholic.

What a strange combination of emotions.

"Lucian, it’s beautiful, isn’t it?" she whispered, her eyes still fixed outside. "So pretty."

Across from her, Lucian was staring at her.

As though no matter where he looked, there was only one view he truly enjoyed.

That face.

That soft smile.

That mixture of happiness and sadness in her eyes.

A look that made her seem like a girl enjoying herself while simultaneously looking as though she might cry at any moment.

What a beautiful ruin, a beautiful mess.

"Mhm." His lips curved slightly. "It is."

His gaze softened. "Very beautiful."

Ashley’s smile widened as she turned toward him, only to catch him staring. She paused, her brows wrinkling. Her lips parted slightly.

He wasn’t looking outside, but at her.

"Goodness, you." She pursed her lips before smiling quietly and turning her attention back to the view. "Focus. You don’t want to miss this... well, maybe we can do it again."

The Ferris wheel continued its steady climb. Even within a few seconds, everything below looked noticeably smaller.

The rides.

The booths.

The food stalls.

From this height, they were barely larger than her pinky.

Silence settled between them as neither of them talked. She admired the outside view, and he admired her.

Then Ashley spoke softly.

"Why?" Her eyes remained on the view. "Why an amusement park, Lucian?"

Deep down, she was asking because they had already been to one before. Not this one, though. This amusement park was much farther away.

Not that she was disappointed.

But somehow, it felt as though Lucian knew her better than she knew herself.

If she had been the one to choose, she would’ve picked somewhere new. A different activity. Something neither of them had experienced before.

She wouldn’t want to bore him, would she?

Lucian simply shrugged and glanced toward the opposite side of the cabin.

"You like amusement parks." His tone was casual. "Didn’t you use to keep a jar so you could save enough money to visit one?"

Ashley chuckled.

"I did." Her smile softened. "It felt impossible back then."

She laughed quietly.

"I kept calculating the entrance fee, and then someone would remind me that transportation costs money too." As she remembered a part of her past, her smile stretched wider.

But then, just another second later, her smile slowly faded.

A crease appeared between her brows. Confusion spread across her face.

Very slowly, she turned toward him.

"How did you know that?" Her voice came out almost as a whisper. "I don’t remember telling you."

Ashley had kept an old jar.

A dream jar.

Every spare coin she earned from odd jobs on the street went into it.

The street.

The brief period after she escaped the Di Carpios. The brief period she spent living among other street children.

It had been difficult.

But compared to living with the Di Carpios... it was her first taste of freedom.

Ironic, but her time there gave her freedom to dream.

Freedom to look forward to tomorrow.

Freedom to imagine a future that belonged to her.

The hunger was still there.

The poverty was still there.

The uncertainty was still there.

But at least she was free.

Unlike before.

At the Di Carpios’, she was hungry, exhausted, trapped, and worked to the bone.

Nobody knew the details of that Chapter of her life — nobody.

Not even Lucian. At least, she had never told him.

Those memories were precious to her. At the same time, they were painful, bittersweet, and untouchable memories.

They were the only memories she could revisit and genuinely smile about.

So how did he know?

Silence descended once more.

Ashley stared at him. Confusion, shock, disbelief — one emotion layered over another. She searched her memories, trying to remember if she had ever mentioned it.

Nothing.

Not a single thing.

Across from her, Lucian quietly studied her expression.

The corner of his lips lifted. His sharp gaze softened. Darkness filled half the cabin, hiding part of his face.

Yet Ashley could still see it.

The longing in his eyes.

Slowly, his lips parted. As though he was finally about to answer.

But before he could—

BOOM!

A deafening explosion shattered the silence.

Ashley instinctively turned toward the window. Her eyes widened.

Fireworks.

Brilliant bursts of color exploded across the night sky. The Ferris wheel was approaching its highest point. From this height, the fireworks looked impossibly close.

Vivid colors painted the darkness. Their reflections danced across her wide eyes.

"This..." Her voice failed her.

Another explosion bloomed.

Then another.

The higher they climbed, the closer the fireworks seemed.

Like stars erupting around them. Like they were ascending into the sky itself.

The sounds grew louder, the lights brighter.

And yet, for some reason, she still heard it.

"Boo."

Her breath caught. Her eyes widened even further.

Slowly... very slowly... she turned toward Lucian. The source of the call.

Half of his figure remained hidden in shadow.

The fireworks illuminated him only for brief moments.

A flash.

Darkness.

Another flash.

Darkness.

He remained seated exactly where he was. One leg crossed over the other. His gaze never left her.

Every burst of light revealed a little more of the expression in his eyes.

An expression that felt familiar. Yet somehow... different.

Because as she stared at him through the darkness and flickering light... another face slowly overlapped with his.

A boy.

A boy from her past.

A boy she hadn’t thought about in years.

Before she realized it, a tear rolled down her cheek.

"How...?"