Somebody to Love - A Joe Mazzello FanFiction

Chapter 54 - New York

Notes: I feel like I need to say this before we get into the next few chapters. I have always wanted to keep this story as true to reality as possible. So much so that I have notes about certain days and times when things were filmed and when certain events happened. I keep a record of what time of year each chapter takes place and how long time differences are between places so that everything is as accurate as possible. That being said, it didn't feel right to me to skip over this part of Joe's life. Dealing with his dad's illness. It actually happened to him and I have been through something similar. Seeing someone you love and admire slip away from you, breaks you. It breaks your spirit, your hope, your drive to do anything. I wanted to say that just because I am writing about this part of his life does not mean that I am degrading what he went through. That I'm just using the death of his father as a plot device. I'm not. And I know some people might read this and see a very disrespectful author, but I am trying my best to not be that person. I am writing around it as much as possible, simply focusing on the dynamics of the relationship and the strain of going through such an event. I am trying my hardest to be true to real life and be respectful at the same time. If you still feel like what I'm doing is disrespectful, please tell me. The last thing I want is to be disrespectful to Joe and his family. Joe is such an inspiration to me and the story of him being with his father through that time brought back memories of what I went through. So please, if you feel like anything in these chapters is too much, tell me. I am very open to changing parts of the story. Okay. That's it.

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I stayed in LA for a month. Joe had gone to New York to be with his dad and start setting everything up there. I stayed back to film some more videos for my channel. I had to explain to my audience that they would be getting more pre-recorded videos. I didn't need to tell them, but if I had left them in the dark, I would have felt even worse. I filmed a bunch of videos, FaceTiming Joe every couple of days to see how things were going.

"How are things going there?" I asked. It had been two weeks since he had left. He looked tired. His eyes bloodshot and the bags under his eyes were starting to get a little darker. He was faking a smile while talking to me. I could see his parents in the background. It made me think he was being positive for them, just in case they were listening in.

"It's going pretty well," he said in feign positivity. We kept talking as he walked through the house. At one point, he walked into the bedroom and closed the door behind him.

"Babe, what's really going on?" I asked in a sweet voice, hoping he would tell me. He let out a long sigh as he sat on the edge of the bed. He rubbed his face with his free hand with a small grunt.

"It's been...rough, to say the least," He replied in a low tone of voice.

"Did something happen?" I asked, also taking a seat on my couch.

"Yeah, uh, last night his heart rate was dropping really low and his breathing was weak. And we didn't notice it until about 10 o'clock last night. So we drove him to the hospital 'cause we didn't know what was happening. They were checking him and giving him medication. But, ultimately he got better. We got back at like 6 this morning, so I didn't sleep very well." He was trying to hide his tiredness and pain with a couple of breathy laughs, but I could tell how hard this already was for him.

"Joe, I'm so sorry," I replied.

"Don't be. He's okay. Just a small scare. It's fixed now." He said in return. There wasn't another scare like that when I was away. And thankfully I could rejoin him after a month of preparation. I flew into New York and Joe picked me up at the airport. I ran over to him and threw my arms around him in a hug, dropping all my luggage beforehand. He gave me a small smile and a kiss on the cheek.