Thereafter: College
Chapter Three- Lifelines
"We are gathered today to celebrate the life of Samuel Toretto."
Letty sat between Dom and Mia during the outdoors service. The minister's words were merely picked up by her ears but were not being processed. She had other things to focus on, like Dom and Mia. She held on to both their hands and they gripped back hers for dear life. She tried to lend herself to both siblings as much as she could. She just hoped it would be enough. Sitting in the first row of mourners, Letty was finding it hard to keep it together for herself much less Mia and Dom.
They had driven back to L.A the morning after Vegh's party. Nobody spoke a word for the whole ride. Letty drove, she didn't trust either Toretto to hold it together that day. Not that they had to. They had every right to be destructive.
Mia cried from the moment she heard the news right up until Letty helped her get dressed for the funeral earlier than morning.
Dom on the other hand, had been a fortress of emotion. His face was set in a grim line the entire time. Letty refused to push him to 'open up' and show some kind of emotion. She couldn't tell him how to grieve. She knew he would when he was ready.
Letty stood with them through the entire ordeal. Like picking out caskets and making calls to family and friends.
Mimi had helped a lot as well. She planed the service when Mia and Dom grew overwhelmed.
Mimi and Dom's aunt had been responsible for catering the wake and Letty was so thankful for their help. It gave her more time to be there for the siblings.
She could not imagine what they were going through.
An aneurysm, the doctor had said. He was here and then he wasn't. Even as she sat in front of the closed casket, she couldn't believe Samuel was gone. It didn't feel real.
They had just had a perfect evening last weekend and now he ceased to exist. She knew if she was hurting so badly, Dom and Mia's pain must have been a thousand times worst.
The minister spoke but Letty couldn't hear a word. All she heard was Dom's labored breathing, trying to keep it together. She felt helpless where he was concerned. What could she do for him in such a situation?
When it came time for him to read the eulogy, she gave his hand a final squeeze before he let go.
Back at the house, Letty and Mimi helped serve food and drinks after the funeral. Dom and Mia stood at the door accepting condolences from family and friends. Everyone asked him how he was but he didn't even know. Since he woke up that morning, he had been numb. Just going through the motions. He didn't have a choice. He had to be strong for Mia.
It was the most unfair thing to ever happen to him. His dad deserved to live a long life, walk Mia down the aisle and meet his and Letty's kids. He clenched his fist at the thought. He was angry more than he was sad.
They had been making plans just last weekend. What would happen to the hardware? He didn't have time to go through the paperwork with planning the funeral. Everything had happened so fast.
That hardware meant a lot to his father, baring his name. His legacy was going to be lost with him. It made Dom want to fall to pieces, instead, he shook his second cousin's hand as he entered the Toretto house.
A lot of things needed to be sorted. The hardware and the house at the top of the list but he couldn't get to any of that yet.
He just had to get through the day. That's all.
The evening flew by. And Dom felt like it all happened without any conscious thought from himself. It was a good thing too because whatever restraint he had left was starting to wear out.
When the last guest left the house, Dom slowly walked up the stairs. He felt weighed down and could barely move his legs.
That night, he had retired to his bedroom. Letty and Mimi were cleaning up downstairs after the last of the guest had gone home.
He was so grateful for them but he had not been able to express it to them. It was all just too much…to overwhelming. He just hoped they knew how much they had appreciated it. He finally heard the knocking of wares stop and the faucet turn off. He also knew she would come to him. Soon after, he felt her climb into bed with him. His face dropped to her neck as she wrapped her arm around him. He felt like he could finally breathe, and with his breath came the tears.
He sobbed into her neck and she held on tight. He clung to her because she was his anchor. He wasn't sure how much time had rolled by with him in her embrace, shaking from grief. She had not spoken a word. They just laid in the dark crying together.
He found it hard to see pass his grief, what life was there for him now? His thoughts wore him out and before he knew it, exhaustion had dragged him into a deep sleep.
Between night and morning, Mia had climbed into bed next to Letty and Dom. The three fell asleep, holding on to each other.
Dom was the first to wake up. He eased up into a sitting position in bed and watched Letty and Mia sleeping. He was in no way feeling better but looking down at the sleeping girls he felt a sense of duty. Must have been what Samuel lived because now he had all the responsibilities left on his shoulder.
He didn't know how but he had to take care of his sister, his finances, finish his degree and live Letty like she deserved. It was all on him.
He touched Letty's cheek tenderly and she stirred awake. She hugged at his chest and nestled into him. He prayed then silently that he could be enough for her. Life was about to pull him every which way and he was going to be stretched thin.
Mia woke a few minutes later next to Letty. His heart ached for his little sister. She was the reason he had to be okay. Not later, he had to be okay now. Because she was now his dependent. And he would not let her down.
Mia sat up in bed next to Letty and Dom and said, "what do we do now?"
The three of them mulled over the question for a few moments before saying, "now, we survive."
Letty tried to call Dom again. She hissed as it went straight to voicemail, again. That had been the tenth none pick up, if she was counting; and she was. She pushed the books off the coffee table in frustration just as Cara came through the door.
"Mamita, that's not going to help." Cara said. She dropped herself onto the loveseat and tossed a concerned glance at Letty.
"Why won't he pick up?" Letty said.
Cara shrugged, "Give the guy a break, he just lost his dad."
That's why Letty felt all the more anxious. She didn't know what frame of mind he was in. She understood he was grieving but she wanted him to know she was here for him even though she couldn't be there with him physically. She wasn't even calling for attention, she just wanted to make sure he was okay.
"I've been giving him a break Cara, it's been two weeks and I've barely heard from him." Letty said.
Cara cringed a response when Monica blew through the door with some take out food.
"Hey bitches, dinner is served." Monica said. Letty grunted and buried her face in a throw pillow.
"What? You don't like Thai?"
Cara shook her head at Monica and said, "Trouble in paradise,"
Monica nodded and said, "Ahh."
Cara responded with a cocked eyebrow.
"Where's Mia?" Monica asked. Letty flinched under the pillow. Mia was somewhere having grief sex with Brian but Letty had promised to keep her secret. Brian had been really good with Mia through her grieving process so she owed him that much. She had to admit that they were good together. She just wished she didn't have to lie to their friends.
"Mia is on campus, late class," Letty said, to which Monica shrugged.
"Save some dumplings for her, those are her favorite." Monica said, and Letty died of guilt.
Letty picked up her phone again and stared at it. Cara sighed. "Oh for crying out loud, could you just drive down and see him already?"
Letty covered her face with her hands. "I'm afraid of what I'm going to find."
"I'll come with you," Cara offered.
Letty shook her head. She couldn't make the drive down. Not with her slipping grades and her early class the next day.
"He'll reach out when he's ready." Letty said. She had waited on Dom before, she could do it again.
Monica was digging into a box of noodles when she said, "I'm sure it's nothing."
Going back out to school everything had changed for Dom. Nothing seemed important anymore. Not deadlines, not exams…nothing. It was hard to care about any of it.
What he cared about was having to close his father's hardware to finish the last few months at school. The house was empty, and Mia would have to take out student loans to finish college.
Those things mattered now, how was he supposed to come back out to New Mexico and pretend that they didn't.
He was angry. Everything triggered him. He knew he was being a shitty friend and an even shittier boyfriend. He just didn't have the capacity to be anything better at the moment. He just knew he couldn't be here anymore.
There was a knock on his bedroom door before Han and Gisele came in, wearing identical expressions, pity.
"We wish you would change your mind," Gisele said, Han nodded in agreement.
"It wasn't an easy decision." Dom said. His friends approached him and embraced him from either side.
"We're gonna miss you man," Han said.
Dom bit back tears, the world he had created at university was falling around him, brick by brick. All the plans he had made, would be just that.
His other friends filed in bit by bit to say their goodbyes. He knew as hard as this all was. Saying goodbye to Letty would be worst.
"We'll come back later to help you load up, Vegh said she'll see you then." Gisele said. Dom nodded as she and Han left. He turned back to room he was packing up.
He packed the last of his belongs into his box with a deep sigh. It took him all afternoon but he was finally done.
There was a wrapping on his door just then. Assuming it was Vegh coming to talk him out of it, he swung the door open. Letty stood on the other side of the door, damp curls in her face clung to her face.
She looked like he had been ignoring her for two weeks, which he had. He had messaged her the night before saying he would come to see her before he headed back to L.A. It seemed that she couldn't wait.
"Let,"
Her eyes shot past him to the boxes all over his room. They glazed over immediately. He was going to have hell to pay. She ran out of the dorms and he ran after her. He caught up to her outside of block C, where they had gotten together all those months ago.
"Please talk to me," he said.
She whipped around, angry more than hurt in that moment. "Like you've been talking to me? It's been a month and out of the blue you tell me you're leaving."
"I know that was a shitty thing to do but I knew if I spoke you, you would talk me out of it."
Letty was exasperated. "Dropping out? Because it's stupid Dom."
"I can't sleep I can't eat knowing I let my dad's legacy down. I have to go do this for him. Take over the hardware, be the man that Mia needs."
"What about us?" she said.
"Letty, I love you but—this wasn't our time. I can't give you what you deserve and be a man back at home at the same time."
He saw her shudder.
"Please don't do this," she said, tears slowly rolling down her cheeks. Dom's insides crumpled. There was no possible outcome of this that both of them didn't get hurt. Desperately, she gripped the edges of his t-shirt and said, "Can you ride?"
He knew what she wanted, for them to ride it out together, but he felt that he would only drag her down. The only way she had a chance at life was without him.
"I can't, I have to do this."
Letty calmly released her grip on his shirt and said, "drive safe,"
Letty was trembling on her way back to the car. It was the longest walk of her life. Cara was waiting on the hood of her car but dropped the phone when she saw Letty's expression.
"Mamita what's wrong?" Letty hugged her friend as the tears began to flow.
"It's over," she sobbed.