Book 1 in the 'Beautiful' Trilogy.
Aria Valenti, a beautiful 27-year-old girl in her 2nd year of residency at NY Medical Center, holding a lot of secrets. Never realizing how a blast from the past can completely alter her whole existence, beliefs an...
I sat with my back against the tree and my head back with my eyes closed. I heard rustling of leaves before their voice.
"Mind if I sit?" I opened one eye to see Ruby standing in front of me.
"If you want to." I shrugged and closed my eye.
I felt her sit next to me. We were silent for a bit and I was thankful that she didn't pressurize the conversation. I opened my eyes and sat forward playing with the blades of grass. That was my sign to her that she could talk.
"Aria, don't be upset with him. He was stuck in a catch 22 and he made the decision he thought to be best at the time. He would rather have you safe and far away from him and his family instead of dead."
"Ruby, I am not upset with what he did. I am upset with the situation and a little upset that I have been lied to. And you both have had ample opportunity to tell me the truth." I gave her a side glance.
"We didn't know how to approach it honestly. We also didn't know what your reaction would have been. I mean look at everything now that you know." She said matter of fact.
"Look, Ruby, let me just put it like this. A lot has happened to me in these past 10 years. A heck of a lot of bullshit which I could have done without. My past is not pretty and to think the reason I left and ran straight into that painful past was all a lie, to begin with. It makes me wonder what would have happened if I knew the truth from the beginning. Would I have stayed? Would I be free from this past? It's just hard to think about the what if's." I sighed.
"Ari, I get it. I won't pry into your past but what I can say is it is in the past. You cannot change it. You need to accept it, learn from it and rewrite your story on a fresh page. It doesn't help to look behind you in the past all the time because you will miss what is in front of you and that could be so many wonderful things."
"Easier said than done. What if your past has left you with visible scars that could possibly affect that future you speak of?" I asked as I looked at her. She slowly nodded as she pondered on my question.
"Wear them with pride." She stated after some time with confidence. I looked back at her and furrowed my eyebrows.
"Wear them like battle scars. Beauty marks. Be proud you have them for whenever you see them you will be reminded of how you fought and survived." She continued. Whoa... Since when was Ruby so philosophical.
"Everybody has their battle scars, Ari. And everyone's scars are different in some way. What matters is what we choose to do with those scars." She gave me a soft smile.
She was serious now and not her usual joking self. I was thankful for her right now. These words made me think of everything in a different light. One that I had never thought of before. I just walked around burying everything. All the emotions and memories. I thought if I forced them deep down then I could just be in life. Not realizing that it would one day burst like a gassed up bottle. And I didn't want to just be. I wanted to live.
"Thank you, Rubes," I said to her tenderly.
"Anytime sweet cheeks. I'm here all week." She said pretending to bow slightly.
And she's back. I chuckled as I shook my head.
"Mind if I have a seat now?" I looked up to see Dominic standing there with his hands in his pockets.
"I'll give you two a minute," Ruby said getting up and walking back towards the house. Dom replaced her seat next to me. He had one leg stretched out and one bent as he leaned his arm on it.
"For what it's worth Ari, I am truly sorry for everything. The lies, the pain. All of it." He said lowly playing with the blades of grass with his free hand.
"I'm not upset with you, Dom. I think I was just shocked to learn that the reason I ran away from my life was based on a lie. And I ran into an even worse life. For the most part of it, I guess." I said to him. I could see the guilt he had.
"It's ok Dom," I said softly. He glanced up at me.
"You could have at least told me sooner. The amount of times I referred to you two being together gave you a lot of opportunities to correct me. Now I know why Ruby would look at me awkwardly like I had grown two heads each time I mentioned your guys' "relationship". The poor girl was subjected to listen to me go on at different times when she doesn't even have the slightest interest in your apparatus, never mind you." I stated flatly.
This made him laugh out deeply. I realized I hadn't heard that laugh yet. Not once since we ran into each other.
"Wow. The big bad Italian mafia leader still has his laugh." I said to him as I bumped his shoulder with mine. He looked at me a bit surprised at our interaction then returned a genuine smile.
He held my gaze and I noticed his eyes change ever so slightly. He was thinking. I could see he was conflicted with his thoughts. He looked at my lips then back to my eyes. I need to stop this in its tracks.
"I am pretty tired though. Quite an eventful day." I said looking away from him and straight ahead.
He got up and extended his hand out for me to take. I took it and he pulled me up to me feet. My hand lingered there a little longer remembering how his touch used to feel. I shook the thoughts and memories from my head as I took my hand away. I grabbed my cardigan and closed it around me as I crossed my arms. He placed his hands in his pockets. We walked back to the house in a comfortable silence.
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Hey everyone.
Sorry for the shorter chapter. Next chapter there is a little bit of drama and I just wanted this scene done separately. Hope you enjoyed it.
