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"What the fuck is this?"
Gabby froze. He wasn't supposed to be home for another two hours. It felt like her blood had turned cold, the pit of fear in her stomach all she could focus on as she felt literally unable to move.
"I said," he said, taking a step closer, already towering over her small frame. "What the fuck is this?"
He lifted her large suitcase with ease and launched it in her direction, leaving her barely enough time to duck out of the way.
She tried to speak, to explain, but nothing came out.
Next thing she knew, she was falling. She didn't know into what – she couldn't see the bottom. It was a pit of darkness all around her with what seemed like no end. Had he killed her? Was this what happens after you die?
She screamed, not knowing if there was no end to this or recognizing she could hit the bottom at any time.
"Gabby…" she heard suddenly, trying to claw her way towards the familiar voice. "Gabby, open your eyes."
"Gabriela!"
She gasped and shot up in bed, hissing as her sore ribs throbbed with the sudden movement.
"You're okay, Gabs, I'm right here. Estas segura okay? Estoy aquí."
Gabby looked around, Antonio's voice grounding her as she began to recognize her surroundings. Her chest continued to pound as the fear she had felt refused to subside. Gabby sighed, leaning back down in the bed and bringing her hand to rub her temple.
"Sorry, Tonio," she said softly, finally looking at him and trying not to resent his look of pity.
"You've got to stop apologizing," he reprimanded, leaning back in his own chair with a sigh of relief as he watched his younger sister slowly catch her breath.
"Hi Gabby," a warm voice said as the smell of coffee filled the room. Gabby was surprised to see Erin Lindsay, the sense of embarrassment she was already experiencing doubling in size.
"I take it Antonio didn't mention I was here… but someone had to be here to keep your brother in check once he heard something had happened," she explained, a soft smile on her face.
Gabby nodded and managed a small smile back, her voice barely audible as she let out a quiet "thank you."
Antonio shifted his chair over, allowing Erin to squeeze into the chair next to him. Gabby immediately felt uncomfortable, the shame of having two people she respected so much staring at her with concern and pity. She was so grateful for her brother, and another part of her wished that no one in her life ever found out about how weak she was.
"It sounds like they'll discharge you this afternoon, we just have to wait for the doctor to come by," Antonio started, and Gabby just nodded. "But first you need to eat something. I figured your first choice wouldn't be hospital food, so I sent Erin on a mission…"
Erin held up two bags, presenting Gabby with a bagel, a breakfast sandwich, and some fruit.
"I'm really not hungry," she said softly, looking down at her hands. The idea of putting any food into her body suddenly making her feel ill. There was no way she could stomach anything right now.
"Gabriela," Antonio said sternly, "you need to at least try to eat something before we go."
Gabby shook her head, knowing that it wouldn't matter if she tried to explain – Antonio was not going to budge.
"Here, the bagel will probably be easiest," Erin finally broke the silence as she opened the bag and placed it in front of the other woman. Gabby just stared at her blankly, then back at the bagel, then back at Erin as she pushed it away.
"I'm not trying to be difficult," Gabby said, especially wary of what the two detectives thought given what they had already learned about her tonight. "I just can't eat right now."
Erin nodded, cutting off Antonio before he had a chance to speak, much to his annoyance.
"As long as you try, we'll leave you alone," she conceded, shooting Antonio a look very clearly indicating to keep her mouth shut.
Gabby nodded as she reached forward and took a tiny bite before placing the bagel back down and pushing it away.
Gabby smiled softly and breathed a sigh of relief the second her foot landed on Chicago soil; she had to really think about the last time she had been home, which meant it had been too long. Her head was a scrambled mess of emotions, and the concussion didn't help anything. After three days of recovery and giving statements, they were finally home.
"You know, I was counting on you doing that stubborn Gabby thing where you try to get your own stuff and I try to stop you, but you ignore me and do it anyways and I end up not having to carry so much," Antonio teased, breaking her from her daze.
"Shit, sorry 'Tonio," she said before turning back to the car and grabbing a few lighter items.
"Alright, put that towards the top of the list of things we need to work on," Antonio said pointedly as he grabbed a suitcase.
Gabby just looked at him confused.
"You've apologized more to me in the past three days than the past 10 years. It's weird," he said honestly, in a joking tone but with a hint of dejection.
Gabby winced at his comment. She hadn't really thought about it, but she guessed he was right. She was always fucking up.
"Yeah yeah," she covered, not having the strength to discuss this one. "Let your concussed sister go inside and take a nap."
Antonio rolled his eyes and simply said, "I guess not saying you're sorry for saying sorry is a good start."
Gabby had settled herself on the large couch as Antonio carried in the rest of her belongings, Gabby finally admitting that she was still quite sore. Antonio realized how much pain she must actually be in to admit that she needed help, and he immediately ushered her to the couch and brought in some pain killers. Gabby had flicked on the TV, but she seemed to be staring past it like she wouldn't even be able to say what was on.
Antonio clapped his hands loudly and started to speak when he saw his sister jump nearly a foot in the air as she began to shake slightly. Of course, being his stubborn sister, Gabby tried unsuccessfully to play it off like she had not reacted that way. Antonio took one look at how anxious she seemed with how much she was trying to act fine, and he decided to leave this one alone.
"Alright Gabs, what should we do for dinner? You have to eat so you may as well choose."
They both knew there was very little chance that Gabby would be eating. Gabby always had trouble eating when she was anxious or upset, which had caused some issues in the past. Antonio knew Gabby wanted him to leave it alone, but he was concerned by how much weight she had clearly already lost.
"I'm not sure, Antonio, it doesn't matter what it is."
Antonio nodded and began rummaging through the fridge, throwing out different ideas with little response from Gabby. It only really took a few minutes before he had exhausted the options in the house, him not anticipating having company.
"Alright, new plan," he announced, turning around to face Gabby again. "Takeout it is. What sounds good? Andrea's is still open, the place around the…"
"I don't fucking care, Antonio!" Gabby yelled, stopping Antonio in his tracks. He couldn't do anything but watch her, surprised at her outburst. Over the few days they had been together, Gabby had barely strung more than a sentence or two together. She was withdrawn and quiet, two words he never would have thought he'd use to describe his sister. Hearing her yell at him was concerning, but in a way a welcome change.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, looking more upset than Antonio felt. "I'm so sorry, I just…"
She trailed off and Antonio was almost certain she was blinking back tears. She looked so small and lost sinking into the large couch, staring at her hands and refusing to meet his eyes. Antonio stood in his place for a moment, unsure how to properly react. He wasn't mad at her, he was worried, and he was trying to be conscious of how Gabby was receiving his actions.
"Hey, it's fine, Gabs," Antonio finally said, walking towards her. He almost sat on the couch next to her, but upon seeing her body tense as he approached, he instead sat on the recliner across from her.
"I shouldn't have yelled at you, you didn't do anything… I don't know why I did that," she said softly, refusing to meet his eye.
"Really, it's fine. I was being kind of annoying," Antonio joked back, glad to see a small smile forming, but she didn't respond.
"I'm really tired, do you mind if I just lie down for a bit?" she finally mumbled, still staring at her hands rather than making eye contact.
Antonio sighed as he watched her carefully, his eyes tracing the just barely remaining bruises on her face, his mind inadvertently flashing back to seeing her marred body in the hospital, a pit of anger forming again in his stomach. He had no idea how to navigate this situation. He had experience working with survivors of violence, but this was his sister. He never thought they'd be in this situation, and he just felt so helpless.
She finally looked up at him, clearly awaiting his response.
"Yeah, okay," he eventually conceded. "But we're eating when you wake up!"