❝ 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞. ❞
When Ricardo Esposito bursts through a door and finds a girl handcuffed on the floor, he decides to take her in and give her something she never had.
A fam...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Angelina Moretti; hername was on a constant loop in my head.
Several hours later, as I struggled to get up from the floor, aware that no one was coming to help me, a voice in my head whispered her name. In my imagination that Vincent would burst through my bedroom door because I had not done what he told me to do, she walked in after him.
When my phone rang at dawn and Antonio's name appeared, I wondered if she had already told him her version of what happened with Marcel.
If my sense of time was accurate, about ten hours had passed since it happened. After calls from Antonio and Ricardo, which I declined, and a message from Alessandro, I didn't dare look at my phone anymore, swallowed one painkiller after the other and sat on my floor.
My undivided concentration was on my bedroom door. Like a coward, I jumped up every time someone knocked, afraid Vincent and Marcel would come back, but my heart started to pound when I heard someone put a key in the lock.
I jumped up, ignoring the burning pain that flashed through me, ran into the bathroom and locked the door behind me.
I was aware that I couldn't live like this forever, but it was a good short-term solution.
"Alessia?" I exhaled when I heard Rafael's voice.
I sat down on the floor and leaned against the door. "Yes?"
"Is everything alright?"
"Yes," I replied, "Why?"
Back then, I told Rafael that I forgave him, but trust was another matter. Over time, however, Rafael grew on me, but I could never tell if he really wanted me here or if he simply accepted me under the circumstances.
Therefore, a part of me hoped he had thought of me or was worried, and that was why he came, but my hope was dashed.
"Papà said he called you, but you didn't answer, so he told me to check on you," he said after a while. "Can you open the door?"
"I'm taking a shower. I'll call Ricardo back afterwards." I expected that to be enough for Rafael and that he would leave, but his answer caused my stress level to rise.
"I'll wait here until you're finished."
I tried to convince him a few times that he didn't have to wait in my room and that I would find him when I finished, but he wouldn't let me persuade him.
Reluctantly, I turned on the shower and turned my attention to my reflection. Covering everything felt like betraying myself, protecting Vincent and Marcel from the consequences of their misdeed.
It took me two hours to cover the bruises on my face, but I took comfort in knowing I had done it so well that Rafael didn't notice anything.
While applying the make-up, the stupid thought of telling Rafael everything crossed my mind the whole time.
