Welcome to My World

Chapter 11

A few days later Dino was allowed to come home. He was perfectly fine and the doctor had described his heart attack as a "freak occurrence". Dino had vowed to eat better and start taking daily walks. He had also agreed to limit his liquor and cigarette consumption. Caroline had read an article that red wine was healthy for the heart so they both had a glass with dinner every night and Dino occasionally treated himself to a Jack Daniels nightcap.

Frank and Sammy had decided to stay with Dean and Caroline until the tour to help Dino get back on his feet. They knew Caroline would take good care of him, but she also was worn down just from running to the hospital and home for the five days he was there.

Finally, the night before the tour came. Per his doctor's request, Dino was asked to not lift anything over five pounds until he was cleared to do so. That meant Frank, Sammy, and Caroline had to get everything ready for the trip which he hated.

He sat on the edge of the bed as he directed Frank and Caroline what to pack. Sammy was downstairs on the phone confirming hotels and flights for the next morning.

Caroline and Frank mostly goofed around trying to make him smile. He loved having them all here, but he had gotten a little depressed after his health scare.

"I see London, I see France, I see Dino's underpants!" Frank laughed.

"Ah Christ," Dino laughed at them.

"I don't know, Frank. Maybe I'll conveniently forget his cologne so he's stinky and none of the girls will even look at him."

"Hey, Kid, that's not a bad idea," Frank said to Caroline, "That way they'll throw themselves at me instead."

"You two are really awful at packing," Dino grinned.

"You're really awful at not scaring the shit out of us," Frank mumbled, "Alright, I gotta go pack my stuff. Caroline, you good?"

"Yeah, I think. Thanks, Frank." Caroline sat down next to Dino after Frank left and rested her hand on his chest and her head on his shoulder, "I think this is the first time we've been alone since you went into the hospital."

"Yeah, Frank and Sammy are like having to five year olds running around."

Caroline sighed and took a deep breath of Dino's cologne, "I love you, Dino."

"I love you too. Are you okay, Baby? You haven't been the same since I had the heart attack."

Tears started streaming down Caroline's face as they held each other on the bed, "I guess I was just so scared of losing you and I have been since it happened. I can't do it again, Dino... I can't be alone again. You mean everything to me. You and your family. I feel like I have a place again." 

He held onto her as she cried, "Listen," he said in that deep calming voice that vibrated through his chest, "I'm not goin' anywhere. That was my wake-up call. I'm gonna be here. We're gonna have a helluva wedding. We're gonna have a ton of kids and I'm gonna watch them grow up and have their own babies. We're gonna do everything together. I'm not leaving you, Baby."

"You think about that?"

"About what?"

"Having babies and watching them grow up... Spending our lives together..."

"All the time. Especially, lately... I think about how lucky I am to have you in my life. I can't wait for the years to come with you."

Caroline hugged him and whispered, "I love you." 

Dino kissed the top of her head and hugged her tightly, "I love you too, Cara."

"I'm excited for the tour. We're gonna have a grand ole time."