Amore mio 2

41.

Her.

3 hours of nerve-wracking surgery were just the beginning of hell that neither of us was ready for.

I have been throwing up and crying for hours, my mind and senses stained with the smell of burnt metal, blood and the sound of sirens. Leo has been right by my side, not leaving me alone even for a second.

We are exhausted, drained of tears and energy, but none of that seems to matter to us.

All we worry about is our quadruplets.

"I have no idea what is harder: this or telling bambini what happened."- exhaled Leo, wrapping me in his embrace as I sighed, absolutely restless and lifeless.

He kissed my temple, holding me tightly in his warm embrace, his scent being the only sedative my body reacts to. My arms wrapped around his lean waist and I nuzzled into him, battling my tears for the millionth time.

"Shh, our little ones will be okay. They need all of our strength and calmness, amore mio. We got this together."- said my husband gently, tenderly kissing my forehead as I nodded, taking deep breaths to steady my rapid heartbeat and uneven breathing.

"Il signore e la signora Russo, sì?"- said the doctor, approaching us once we nodded hurriedly, meeting him halfway. (Mr and Mrs Russo, yes?)

"Come stanno i nostri quadrupedi? "- we asked in immense worry, having a billion questions and concerns. (How are our quadruplets?)

"È un miracolo che siano vivi dopo quello che hanno sopportato: respirare tanto fumo, tonnellate di sedativi in circolo e disidratazione. Le loro condizioni sono stabili e nel complesso stanno bene. Tuttavia, hanno riportato molte contusioni e alcune ustioni, ognuna di grado diverso."- said the doctor, Leo and I holding onto each other, hearing each word out. (It is a miracle that they are alive after what they endured: breathing in so much smoke, tons of sedatives in their systems and dehydration. Their condition is stable and they are okay overall. However, they got a lot of bruises and a few burns, each of different degree.)

The doctor described the medical condition of our little babies in detail, answered all of our questions and once our small children were in their room, Leo and I dashed to them, needing to be with them.

"Piccoli."- I almost whispered, sobbing as I took the agonising sight in.

Dio, they are so tiny, so innocent and fragile. Those scars, cuts, bruises - they do not deserve any of that.

The sight wasn't hard on me only.

I gently cupped my husband's perfect face, wiping his tears away, both of us on the edge before unleashing goddamn wrath and hell onto everyone, who is involved in this.

Him.

But the revenge is for later.

Right now Lorenzo, Federico, Luise and Eloisa need us more.

Our quadruplets are sleeping the drugs off, Cami and I unable to tear our eyes off the monitors, keeping an eye on their steady, calm heartbeats.

Time ticked by, making my wife's pale green eyes flutter close for longer. I took my jacket off and kissed Cami's forehead, tenderly wrapping her in it before letting her lay her pretty head on my lap.

I took her pin off, letting her satiny, light blonde hair loose, and ran my fingers through the soft, shiny strands, my mind as if frozen after hours of turmoil.

Camila shifted on my lap, bringing me out of my thoughts, and I couldn't help my small, genuine smile, watching her wrap her petite arms around me, not leaving me alone with my thoughts and worries even when asleep.