Lost Love, Second Chances
I know Ugly Betty got canceled years ago, but in discovering another under appreciated show, Chaos, I fell in love with Freddy Rodriguez. I learned that he played Gio Rossi and promptly fell in love yet again. Since I felt Betty should have chosen Gio, this is my Romeo and Juliet scenario. Hope you enjoy it.
Betty felt her heart swell and break all at the same time. She had always harbored the belief that she would love only one man, have that man be the love of her life, and have her Romeo and Juliet fantasy. She never thought that she could have been so wrong about who that man would be. Henry, as much as she could proclaim him her first love, he hadn't been "the one", not after he had betrayed her by having a child with Charlie. She tried to look past it, be the forgiving girlfriend, had fooled herself into thinking that she was doing the right thing because she thought she could love Henry enough to do it. But she had been fooling herself, lying to herself, and worst of all, had been shortchanging the man who had truly been by her side all along, who had loved her through all the hurt she had thrown his way. Now that man, a man she now realized she really loved and who really was "the one" was dying.
Gio had been working long hours establishing his sandwich shop, a shop that he had credited her for inspiring by getting him fired at his old job, moments after they had met, but he had always made time for her, no matter what time of day it had been, to talk to her, to listen to her, to make her laugh when all she had wanted to do was cry. She had taken all of that for granted. Until one night, while stopping by the shop, she noticed that it was dark and closed. It wasn't like the hard working Gio to close up early. It had sent a shiver of foreboding into Betty. Then she got the call. It was from his sister, Antonella. Gio was in the hospital. He had tried to save a little girl from getting hit by a car, but had gotten hit instead. He had been injured badly and wasn't expected to survive the night. Antonella begged Betty to come because she knew that he loved her and needed her even though he had made her promise not to call her. Antonella told her that he would try to live for her, that if anyone could give Gio the will to live, it would be Betty. She pleaded for her to try. Betty didn't hesitate and rushed there. Her heart beating madly, her eyes flowing with tears. He couldn't die, now that she had realized she loved him, that he was "the one".
She walked into his room and seeing the vital and virile man who had always challenged her, teased her and loved her chained to machines keeping him alive scared her, made her want to run away and she hated her cowardice because if it had been her, he would have never have those fears. He would never consider leaving her side.
As if sensing her there, he woke up. It amazed her how intuned he was to her. It hurt knowing how selfishly not intune she had been to his wants and needs. Every time he had expressed them, open hearted and emotionally bare, she had cruelly dismissed and shot him down.
"Betty?" His voice weak and raspy. "No, I told Toni not to call you."
"No, no, I'm glad she did. How could you think that I wouldn't want to know, to be here?"
"I'm dying, Betty. My life's over. You still have a life ahead of you. You should be living it. I don't want you to waste it watching me die."
"Don't say that, Gio! You're not dying."
"I must be if you're here," Gio teased, but saw the tears in Betty's eyes. He reached up to wipe them. "Hey, hey, I'm sorry. Don't cry. I didn't mean to make you cry. I hate to see you cry."
Betty grabbed his hand and kept to her face.
"No, no, don't be sorry, I'm the one who should be sorry," Betty said quickly in the flustered way that Gio loved about her.
"For what? You have nothing to be sorry for."
"Yeh, I do. For SO many things, but mostly for not realizing sooner that it's you that I love."
Gio's face clenched in pain. He squeezed her hand then stroked her face.
"You don't have to say that because I'm dying. I'm okay with what we have...our friendship means the world to me."
"I'm not just saying it, Gio. I know my timing sucks, it always sucks and I'm always slow to come to these realizations, but it's really true. Don't die and I'll prove it to you," she bargained desperately. Please give me a chance to prove it to you."
Gio saw the sincerity in Betty's eyes and knew she was telling him the truth. She was so easy to read. It was yet another one of those things that had made him fall in love with her so easily. She was always seeing the good in people, always doing the right thing even though it hurt her sometimes, like what she did for Henry. He had wanted to give her everything that she had denied herself even if it meant never having her as anything more than just being a friend.
"You don't have to prove it to me. I see it in your eyes," Gio said with a smile.
"Then don't die, Gio, please don't die."
Gio took in a shaky breath.
"Don't know if I can make that promise, Bee," Gio said, using the endearment that belonged only to her.
Betty's tears flowed freely.
"Please, Gio. I can't lose you now. I know my heart will really break if I do. You're so strong. You told me that I could do anything I wanted to do, but not without you, Gio. Not without you. I know that now. You challenge me, make me brave when I don't feel very brave. Please live for me. Can you try, please, for me?"
Gio saw the look he had dreamed of seeing for months. Betty was being open and sincere like he had been with her and it made his weak heart beat stronger. He had told her that he wasn't a believer in fantasies, but truth be told, he did harbor one fantasy, of her loving him as much as he loved her so to hear her say that she loved him, that it might be coming true, at that moment all he had wanted to do more than anything was to live for her. He stroked her face.
"Okay, Bee. I'll try," Gio said. "I'll try for you."
"I love you, Gio. With all my heart."
Gio smiled and closed his eyes. At first, it scared Betty, but his vitals were strong. She laid her head down, holding onto his hand, feeling the warmth and clinging to the strength it possessed.
GioGioGio
Gio had survived the night. Something he wasn't expected to do so Betty clung to that fact like a lifeline, once again, turning his survival into a fantasy that she had to see come true. The doctors had been "cautiously optimistic", but realistically told her that he had a long road of recovery ahead of him and that anywhere along that road were potential dangers that could, at best set Gio back, at worst, kill him. Betty listened and understood, but still, she refused to let go of the promise Gio had made to her. Gio never broke his promises to her.
She would touch him when he was asleep so that he would always know she was there. Infection had set in, hurdle number one. Fever assailed him and his breathing had become labored. He then began to hallucinate. He'd have vivid dreams, some were memories they had shared and that he was reliving.
"That's just it. I don't want to be the rebound guy. I want to be the guy."
Betty had remembered that night. It had been one of the best nights she had ever had. Her junior prom had been a disaster of crushed hopes and unrealized wishes. She had spent the entire time alone. No one bothering to take a chance on asking her to dance and look uncool for one night, just to be compassionate to another human being. But Gio had fulfilled what she had believed would be forever left unfulfilled. He had asked her to dance that night and had given her back her dream. It was so like him to do that just for her. Gio had never cared about image and he had compassion to spare, especially where she had been concerned. All he had asked of her in return was to not be the rebound guy, but to be THE guy for her and once again, she had let him down and yet he had stayed.
Gio groaned in pain and hallucination and all Betty could do was cool him down with a cold compress and what she had hoped were comforting words.
"Gio? I'm here. It's Betty. I'm not leaving. I'm here for you like you've always been for me. Don't give up. I know it's selfish of me to ask you to do yet another thing for me, but here I am asking. You're not the rebound guy -"
"I want to be the guy," Gio finished with a trembling smile, barely controlled lucidity coming back to him.
Betty spooned some ice chips into a cup then carefully and slowly fed them to him, his mouth struggling to accept each piece.
"Thanks," Gio breathed exhaustedly.
"No problem. Anything else I can do?"
"You're doing it," he said, his dimpled smile shaky, but complete in its honesty.
"I feel so helpless, like I'm not making things any better for you."
"Believe me, you are just being here."
"You're a good liar even with a fever," Betty teased.
"I don't lie. I embellish," Gio teased back. "Besides, I'd never lie to you."
She blushed He always knew the right words of encouragement to say to her even when it came as a tease. He always gave her a longing and supportive gaze no matter how tired he was. Suddenly, her phone began to ring.
"Whoops, sorry. I forgot to turn it off."
Gio exhaled heavily, "Daniel?"
Betty hesitated as she saw who it was on the screen. Gio didn't need any more clues. Betty, in her innocent way, was as transparent as a just cleaned window. He loved that innocence she possessed. He had long lost his ability to view the world that way and she often renewed it with hers.
"Ah, Henry then," Gio teased, fatigue slowly submerging him under. "Better answer it."
Betty disconnected the call.
"No, he doesn't own me. I'm not his anymore. Like it or not, I'm not leaving you. Ever."
Gio smiled at hearing her declare her independence as well as her devotion to him. It had been his one and only admission to entertaining any hope, false or not. His breathing continued to struggle to even out and sputtered.
"I like it," he said, his voice barely a croak.
Betty watched his eyes roll back and the monitors squealed with their warnings.
"GIO!" She screamed.
BettyBettyBetty
Gio had gone into cadiac arrest from the infection. Pneumonia had set in. He had been intubated to keep him breathing, but the longer he stayed on a ventilator, the grimmer his prospects of coming out of it had become. Hurdle number two and three. Betty couldn't stop the panicked feeling creeping into her. She was a Pollyanna. She had confided to Gio that she tended towards fantasy versus reality. She had dealt with plenty of harsh realities in her short life; her mom's death, her father's deportation, losing Henry, but she had to admit that nothing had prepared her for possibly losing Gio and not just for a few days or even weeks with the possibility of running into him again, but for good. She found herself unable to tap into any fantasy that could help her through losing him. Gio living was the only scenario she could envision.
She had slept in his room most nights. She tried to hold his hand, rested her head on the bed so that she could look up and check on him whenever she could. Gio's heartbeat was steady and it fed into her hope.
Two weeks had past with very little change and though she had vowed not to cry, this night she couldn't stop the tears from coming. She softly sobbed so he wouldn't hear her and think that she had given up on him because she hadn't, she just felt so scared for him. He was struggling so hard and it wasn't fair that a good person like him should be suffering so much. He hadn't done anything to deserve it except maybe to love a selfish woman who didn't realize how good she had it with him in her life. She stroked his hand, touched each finger, caressed his palm. His presence there strengthened her. She felt selfish drawing on what little reserves he had to keep her strong. He was fighting to live for her so she had to fight too. His words came to mind.
"Because love doesn't come around often and I want to make every second count."
"Hang on, Gio. I love you. Please hear me. I love you so much," Betty sobbed.
She then felt his hand twitch. She looked up and saw Gio turn his head, the ventilator blocking her getting a full view. She stood up to line up eye to eye with him so he would know he wasn't alone. They caught each other's gazes and Gio's eyes smiled at her. He spoke so much with his eyes and in spite of his pain, communicated so convincingly with just a look how happy he was to see her.
"Gio, you're back," Betty said as she smiled and stroked his face.
He just nodded and tried to lift his hand to touch her. She felt it and took it into hers then to her face.
"I'm so glad you're back," she said.
The doctors removed the ventilator and Gio continued to sleep. It allowed Betty a moment to breathe with relief. Gio was stable for the moment. The door to Gio's room opened and there stood Henry. Betty was both surprised and a bit angry. She didn't want to be distracted by Henry's problems with Charlie or to deal with him now. Gio came first now. She quietly went out in the hallway, not realizing the door had stayed ajar.
"Henry? What are you doing here?" She whispered.
"I stopped by your house and Hilda told me what happened so I thought I'd come by. "
"Oh, well, yeh. Thanks." she said, letting her anger dissipate.
"You weren't answering your phone."
"I've been here since finding out about Gio."
"How is he?" Henry asked, sincerely concerned.
"Better. He's had some serious setbacks...I thought he was going to die," Betty said, her voice clogged with emotions. "But he made it through them."
Henry saw Betty's expression and realized that her feelings for Gio went beyond friendship. She loved him.
"You love him, don't you?" He asked.
Betty looked up at Henry, the look on her face filled with affection.
"Yeh, Henry, I do, more than I thought I could love anyone. He was there for me -"
"And I wasn't," Henry finished.
"Yeh, and he chose me, Henry. All the times I tried to make it work with you, you
chose Charlie, you chose your baby. I mean I get choosing your son and I thought I could be be second place and be happy, but I can't. I want to be first in someone's life. Gio treats me like that. To be honest, I'm not sure if I deserve it because of all the times I hurt him, but I do know now that I love him and I'm going to do my best to make everything up to him."
Henry listened, his heart breaking, but loving Betty enough to let her go so that she could have the love he couldn't fully give her himself. He knew Gio would do that for her, had seen his fierce protection of her first hand when Gio had lectured him about how he had been hurting her.
"I understand and I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry, just be happy for me," Betty said smiling. "Because I am happy."
Henry nodded and left. Betty went back into Gio's room and sat back down next to him. Gio stirred.
"You do deserve it, you know," Gio said as he opened his eyes and looked at her.
Betty had been taken by surprise.
"What?"
"You deserve to be loved."
"You heard everything?" Betty asked, flushing with embarrassment.
"Couldn't help it...door was open."
"Oh. Oh, sorry I woke you," Betty tried to shift the subject.
"Don't be sorry. I'm not," Gio said. "Be happy. I am."
Betty could only smile.
"Don't let it go to your head," she teased.
"You know I will," Gio teased as he smiled wide, his dimples deeply creasing his cheeks.
Betty could only laugh, then bent down to kiss him.
"Yeh, I know and I'm already sorry I even said it."
"I love you, Betty. I'll never make you regret your choice," Gio said.
Betty looked at him with warmth and stroked his hair back.
"I know you won't. You've never let me down, Gio. I've never been so sure about a choice in my entire life. I want to live up to it, to live up to you, to this second chance you're giving me."
Gio took in a breath.
"I'd give you as many chances as you need to be with you. Just be you. Don't ever change."
She bent down and gave him a long and lingering kiss.
"You, too."
Hope it measured up. It was a fun write. Thanks for reading.
FIN