Chapter 13
"I know I'll need her till the stars all burn away…And she'll be there…"
"That's pretty," Chloe remarked as she finished braiding my hair. Where did you hear it?"
"Piero sings it," I said, smiling.
"Oh, that boy who was here with you the other day. The Italian one, with the sparkly eyes and the cute smile."
I turned to her and smiled.
She blushed and secured my hair with an elastic band.
"What? I'm thirteen, I notice things like that."
I laughed. There was a knock on the door, and one of the other interns peeked her head in.
"Julia? When you're done with Chloe, can you stop by the lounge?"
"Yeah, sure, what for?"
But she was already gone. I got off of Chloe's bed, and she laid back down and put in her headphones as I pulled the covers to her chest.
"Thank you for singing to me, Julia. I loved it."
"Sure, Chloe."
I kissed her cheek and left the hospital room, heading for the lounge. Maybe there was some meeting or something I had forgotten about. But when I pushed open the door and entered, there was only one other person inside. I froze in surprise. Piero stood up from the sofa and smiled, his eyes lighting up when he saw me. He didn't move toward me, but he held up a bouquet of beautiful red roses and raised his eyebrows and grinned as if inquiring about my next move.
I felt silly standing there staring at him, so I slowly walked up to him. He offered me the roses, and I reached out and cautiously took them and smelled their sweet freshness. I looked up at Piero and smiled softly.
"They're beautiful, Piero."
He grinned and stepped closer to me, reaching out to hug me. He gently pulled me close to him, his hands around my waist. I reached up to put my arm around his neck, the other clutching the roses to my chest. I buried my head in his soft white T-shirt and took in his scent. He kissed the top of my head and held me tightly.
Then he loosened his grip and took my hand.
"Will you come talk with me for a moment?"
I hesitated, but then let him lead me to the couch.
Sitting beside him, I fingered the tender roses and looked at his handsome face so close to mine.
"Julia," he said somberly, "I've been so scared for you since you left. Now that I know he hits you, now that I've seen him move to strike you, it was all I could think about. Every time I close my eyes, I see him leaning over to strike you. I imagine him hurting you over and over, and it's killing me, Julia! I went to your house a few times, looking for you. I...kind of infuriated Ray."
That's when I noticed the gash peeking out from under his sleeve.
"Piero!" I gasped in horror, swiftly reaching out and pulling up the fabric. "Oh, Piero!"
Piero quickly pulled the sleeve back down and took my hand tightly in his.
"He likes to throw glass things, doesn't he?"
He smiled, trying to comfort me, but I didn't smile back. My chest was tight and I felt like crying. Ray had hurt Piero. I swallowed hard and looked at my hand in his. We were quiet, and I tried to stop the tears.
"I stayed away from the house. It wasn't safe this weekend," I finally explained.
"When is it ever?"
I shrugged and turned my eyes down to the bouquet.
"Julia, you need to get out."
"Piero, I can't."
"Why not? Your mother?"
I nodded.
"She'll be heartbroken if I abandon her!"
"And why is that? Why would she be so upset?"
In surprise, I turned my gaze back to his expectant face.
"Because, Piero! I'm her daughter, and whatever happens, we go through it together! Throughout my whole life, we've always been together! If I leave her now, she'll feel like I don't love her, like I'm leaving her behind!"
"So you have her best interests in mind?"
"Yes! Oh, yes, Piero!"
"Then maybe leaving will be the jolt she needs to finally see the severity of the situation, and to fix her mistakes."
I fell silent, staring open-mouthed at him.
Could he be right? Why did he always seem to muddle my philosophies? It sounded reasonable… But did I have to hurt my mother in order to save her? Oh, why did it have to be like this?
I clamped my mouth shut, and my eyes watered.
He reached out and embraced me, putting a hand on the back of my head and gently holding it on his shoulder.
"Look, Julia," he said very softly and gently. "I don't mean to upset you. But the thing is, you're not safe there. You won't ever be in that house with Ray staying there. You need to leave. Protect yourself, Julia. Don't let him hurt you anymore. You can escape, and I'll help you! I'll help you find a good apartment. A really nice one, furnished and peaceful, and best of all, absolutely safe!"
He tenderly moved my hair and pressed his lips to my neck as he rubbed my back.
"I want you to leave that house. Will you let me help you move?"
"I…I don't know."
He sat me up and gripped my shoulders.
"Julia, please! You must get out of there!"
"I don't know, Piero!"
I stood up, pulling out of his grasp.
He stood up also and held out his hands as an invitation to me.
"Please?" he whispered.
"I'll…I'll think about it."
He looked anguished and he stared at me for a moment before sighing and then nodding slowly.
"Okay… Just think quickly. The sooner you're safe, the sooner I can quit being afraid for you."
I watched him silently.
"I didn't want this to happen," I said softly, thinking out loud. "I didn't want you to be afraid for me, and I didn't want you to get hurt."
"I'm only afraid because I love you and I want what's best for you."
He stepped closer to me and leaned forward to kiss me softly and tenderly.
When he pulled back, I smiled to myself as the warm fluttery feeling spread throughout me. I looked up at him and leaned forward to kiss him. When I pulled back, he closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.
"Mmmm…" he sighed contentedly, then opened his eyes and grinned at me.
"Think about it," he said, nodding. Then he stepped back from me and left the lounge, turning back to look at me one last time before the door swung shut behind him.