Carlo : Ti salveró amore mio

Chapter 18

"I remember that!" I laugh as I look over to the beautiful women sitting across the cell in front of me.

I pick up a small stone and play with it in my hand.

"Dance with me!" The little girl holds her hand out to me. I go to take it but my hand goes straight through her.

"Maybe another time." I smile. She nods and twirls around the room.

"You're very strong, piccolo topo. I'm proud of you." Mom smiles.

"Thank you." I say sincerely.

"Who are you talking to?"

I look over to the now opened door of the cell and see Axel holding a dress and heels with a big bag. I look back to where my mom was sitting but now she's disappeared.

"What's in the bag?" I change the subject.

"Makeup and hair stuff." He looks around the room cautiously.

I nod my head and stand up weakly following him to the bathroom. Once again he turns his chair and locks the bathroom door to give me privacy whilst I shower and get changed.

Turning on the shower, Axel starts to talk to me and I get into the water immediately sitting down.

"I'm going to miss you." He mumbles, I watch as his head falls down as he looks at his hands.

"I'm not going anywhere ." I whisper, my voice cracking as I feel tears trickle down my face. Axel has non stop been getting my hopes up about them all coming.

"Okay then. If they do come. I'm going to miss you."

I go along with his little fantasy. "Why don't you come with me?" I pick up a sponge and start washing my body with soap

"Rye will get me." He mumbles.

"I'm sure they'll kill him." I look back at his back and feel tears streaming down my face.

They're not coming. Don't get your hopes up.

It's nearly been a year, why would they come get you?

I stare off, looking at a wall ignoring all of Axel's words and just letting the water run down my body as it shakes slightly from my silent crying.

When I look back at Axel, still not listening to him, I notice how his ears are raised a little telling me he's smiling. I place a hand over my mouth and try not to sob and scream into it.

"I bet you're looking forward to seeing them again." He chuckles and that's my breaking point.

"Enough!" I raise my voice, but not loud enough to make someone suspicious. I grab a towel and wrap it around my body whilst turning the water off. "Just stop."

I lean on my hands against the sink and tilt my head down trying to stop crying.

"Stop crying, stop crying," I whisper to myself repeatedly. I hear the chair turn and then Axel walking next to me. He pulls me into a hug and I tense up, my tears stopping.

"I have to get ready." I push him away softly and turn to the mirror, wiping the steam from the hot water off of it so I can see myself a little more clearly.

He watches me as I do my makeup and try to do something with my hair.

"Turn around." I mumble, so I can put my dress on that Rye must have chosen.

He does as I say and pull my underwear on and then the dress. The dress has a huge gap at the back and ties around my neck. The sides are sort of scrunched up to my waist and has strings hanging down.

There's a knock at the bathroom door and Axel quickly unlocks it silently as the door swings open. I turn to the side and face Rye, who is staring at my legs.

He hands me a pair of heels and jewellery. I take them cautiously as he steps closer. "Axel get out." He orders.

I look at Axel and he's glaring at Rye. "No."

Rye goes from looking at me to Axel. "Excuse me? Get. Out."

"I need to help her get ready." Axel persists

Rye grabs the collar of Axel's shirt and tries to push him against the wall but Axel stands still continuing to stare at him.

Rye lets him go and Axel kisses his teeth. "Now you get out."

"No." Rye closes the bathroom door and sits down on the chair. Axel rolls his eyes and turns me to face the mirror before picking up the hairbrush and fixing my hair.

As he does this I grab concealer and try to apply to my new scars on my face that Rye made with his knife.

"They'll get infected if you do that. Just go around it if you want the redness to go down." Axel looks at me in the mirror.

I nod my head and apply little dots around the tiny one just above my forehead and then the one under my eye, I apply a tiny amount on my lip and make sure my black eye isn't noticeable either.

If Rye is going to give me a dress as pretty as this then I'm going to try and make myself look pretty.

Key word try.

I'm lucky this mirror is tiny so I can't see my body and how I look otherwise this would be a whole other story.