Welcome new follower Bookworm608!
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"No… Not getting up…" Emily mumbled into her pillow, a distant knocking at the door slowly invading her deep rest.
"Come in!" David called weakly from his position splayed over Emily.
"Davey, come quick – oh – I'm sorry…" Mary turned her back as she entered the room, Emily's naked torso thankfully on it's front in the mattress.
David half up-righted himself and covered her, grinning sleepily. If Emily was too worn out to be embarrassed, his job was well done.
"Davey, mama, she's bad." Mary left the room, closing the door quickly behind her.
Dave jumped out of the bed at once, fear overcoming him. Was this the moment, then? He couldn't bear it… did he have to watch his mother die? "Emily, Emily please…" he asked quickly, pleading in his voice. Could he ask her to come with him? Could he possibly ever tell her she was the only thing holding him together?
"Y-yes, of… of course." Emily replied groggily, a deep haze all about her. How much whiskey had she had last night? Oh Christ have mercy, not now, don't be hungover right now… David needs you… He needed her, he needed her…. Yes that was what he had said again and again last night, whispered in her ears that he needed her badly, so badly, while he had pulled her hair and thrust into her again and again, during their second sex in the night, when he had woken her up by pushing inside of her, and it had been even more furious than the first time, more frenzied and rough. Remembering the clips of the night came in time with her thoroughly exhausted body, muscles aching blissfully in all of her nether parts.
Without donning a shirt, David left the room in just his pants, trusting she would follow.
"Dear lord…" Emily looked about the floor in the mass of discarded clothing articles for her pajama's and quickly clothed herself. The state of the room was in complete shambles, half of the sheets on the floor and pillows strewn about. Groaning as she spotted her panties on the lampshade, Emily mentally attempted to prepare herself for the worst – this could be it, this might be Carlita's last day with her children on earth.
Following the voices, Emily found that Carlita's room was the very last at the end of the long, plantation style home's upstairs corridor. She didn't know if she should just enter, or stand outside – was this a private moment for the family? The door was open, she carefully poked her head inside, her heart stalled until she found David, her new center of the universe. David sat on a stool beside the top of the bed, holding his mothers hand and brushing the hair away from her face, while Janey used a cold rag to wick away the beads of sweat on the poor woman's brow.
"Em…Emily… Co..Come in, child." Mrs. Rossi struggled with her speech, but her eyes had found her, and were kindly smiling.
Emily smiled kindly at the woman, coming forward and feeling David's eyes on her like a scorching beam. She had absolutely no idea what to say, surely not "how are you feeling?" or "can I get you anything?"
"E-everyone, get s-some coffee. I want to be with Emily…. Alone." Even in her state, a warning glare silenced her children's rebuttals. David looked at Emily for a long moment, and back at his mother. Every rebellious muscle in his body wanted to shout like a child, and challenge anyone to even try to move him from his mother's side. She needed him, she needed him to protect her.
"It's okay, Dave, I'll call you if we need you." As if reading his thoughts, Emily took his hand in hers, and squeezed.
For a moment, as he stared at her small hand over his, David lost his voice, lost his words for how to thank her, how to express his gratitude. Nodding, squeezing both his women's small hands at once, he stood and followed his sisters and brother in laws out and closed the door gently behind him.
"Do you... oh, water please?" Carlita coughed hard, holding her chest. Emily quickly spotted the pitcher and filled a glass.
"Here, drink…" Emily felt her tears begin to well, this was looking worse by the minute. Holding the cup to Carlita's lips, Emily tried to smile.
"Thank you deary. Now, tell me." Pausing to catch her breath from the strain of just speaking, Carlita mentally cursed her failing body. "D-do you love him?"
Emily felt a jolt go through her body, a small trace of it in the shock on her face. "Y-yes… I always have. Even before…" A wet drop fell on her hand, and she was surprised to discover she was now crying. "I love him, Mrs. Rossi, I love him so much it scares the shit out of me." Laughing a little at the end of her confession, she knew Carlita wouldn't be offended at her profanity.
"Mmm, that's good love, when it… when it scares the s-shit out of you." Carlita tried to laugh as well, but it came out in a thundering of coughs. Emily held the water to her lips again as she drank.
"T-then you take care of him for me." Carlita nodded at Emily, patted her hand and then finally rested her head heavily in the pillow. "I… I am… tired… tell them…"
"I'll call them right now." Emily stood and quickly reached the door. "Dave!" She tried her best to keep the panic out of her voice, but even she could hear it, this was it, she'd seen death before, and it was indeed on this doorstep.
Seven pairs of footsteps rushed up the stairs, David in the lead, tears already blurring his vision when he saw Emily's expression and he knew. She took his hand as soon as he reached her, and was almost literally drug back into the room by his forced pace.
"Ma, I'm here… It's Davey I'm here… and everyone else…. Look Janey has some tea for you…. Please drink it, ma, I'll help you."
"D-don't… want…a-anymore of that…" Carlita made a comical hand gesture to imply she knew exactly what her children had conspired to put in her tea.
Chuckling despite his freely flowing tears, David smoothed the now thinned hair on his sainted mothers head.
"She loves you, Davey. G-god knows… why… but she d-does. Take good…care of her, Davey."
"I will, Ma. I won't let this one get away." David pulled Emily into his lap on the stool, and kissed her soundly in front of his entire family. "I won't let you get away." He said with conviction, looking into her eyes.
"I know, I tried to last night." Emily was smiling in spite of herself, her tears now both of sadness and joy.
Mary and her sisters laughed at this, and Joe slapped David on the back with an "atta boy."
"G-good. This is good. I don't want… you lot… to cry. Live your l-lives, love your family." Carlita nodded for emphasis, looking around at the grieving faces of her family. "I-I'm…. going… to find your… daddy… and… k-kick his behind!" The room again was filled with laughs, as the Rossi sisters crowded their mother's bedside, and as soon as it had come it was replaced with wails from Mary and Janey, as Carlita Rossi closed her eyes and the last breath left her lips.
David turned his face away, he refused to look at her in death, he would remember her alive. Emily wrapped her arms around his neck and sheltered his view, aching for the pain he was in. She winced when she felt the first wet drops on her chest, and she hoped that if she held him tight it would go away soon, all his sadness.
"I can't… be in here." He said weakly.
"Okay. Let's go back to the room." And she stood, leading her best friend away from his mothers body.
David felt as though the door on his mother's life had closed simply so the door to true love could be opened for him. He stared at the small hand that held his, leading him down the hallway of his childhood home, and knew instinctively there was nothing about chance that had landed him stranded this Christmas, it was fate, and his fate, was Emily.
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Fin!
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SEQUEL PREVIEW: ROSSI'S FATE
"What do you mean? You and Rossi are dating?" JJ asked incredulously at the mischeivious grin on her friends face.
"Not exactly… We're just…together." Emily hated the term "Dating", it seemed juvenile to what she and David had.
"So… one weekend in the backwoods of Virginia and you're sold the Rossi dream? Emily do you even hear yourself? He's a serial husband!" JJ threw up her hands, not quite believing her ears. She'd be god-damned if David fucking Rossi was going to romance her friend then break her heart like he did everyone else. Oh no, not under her watch.
"Have you even HEARD of Morgan's stories when he goes to bars? Morgan has a SYSTEM for picking up women, Emily, it's disgusting, and Rossi is the same kind of guy – I know you've heard the stories about the fraternization rules made just because of him sleeping his way through the FBI."
"JJ, I only told you because I thought you would be happy for me. Please trust my judgement on this? I have heard the stories, that was well before he came back, and you know it. Look, if he breaks my heart and acts like a bastard I'll let you say 'I told you so'." Emily stared at her friends crossed arms, and knew she wasn't convinced.
She twisted the band on her ring finger with her thumb, loving the feel of it, even if she was hiding it in her pocket. Today clearly was not the day to share more news….
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