Page 62 of Whispers in the Dark
I dreamt about the day I lost my father. It’s a nightmare I have more often than I’d like to admit. I’m sorry I woke you.
She shakes her head, dropping her hand to her lap. “Don’t be sorry. I was having a hard time sleeping anyway, so I was reading.” She gestures a hand toward the eBook device on her nightstand. A beat of silence passes between us before she says, “I’m sorry you have to live with that memory. I can’t imagine the weight of it on your shoulders after all this time.”
I look off, staring out into the darkness across the mountains. Every time I’ve had this dream, I’ve woken up alone, hating myself for those words I said to my father. I would fill up with guilt and shame, spending the rest of the night wondering if I truly was a disappointment in his eyes. I would let the darkness consume me. I never had someone on the other side of the bed beside me. Someone I could talk to. To let it all out. But for the first time—I glance at Alina—I’m not alone.
I write,Sometimes, I dream of the actual explosion. Other times, I dream I’m trapped with no air, unable to breathe. The experience changed the way I feel in crowds and small spaces. It’s like I can’t get enough oxygen into my lungs. So, I’ve become more cautious of my surroundings.
She nods with sympathy in her eyes. “That’s completely understandable. What you went through was terrible. Awful. Something that would stay with you forever, whether you want it to or not.”
I press the tip of the pen to the paper.My father was a good man. He was always looking out for his family. Always doing whatever he could to keep us safe. But right before he died, we got into an argument. He told me he was disappointed in me, and it hurt. It hurt so much I lashed out at him, and one of the last things I told him was that…I hesitate, my pen hovering over the page before I write,I hate him. Those were the last words I said to him, and I’ve never been able to forgive myself.
“Oh, Mauro.” She places her warm palm on my cheek, grazing her hand across my scruff. My eyes close as I lean into her touch, into the comfort I don’t feel worthy of.I don’t deserve her. “Your father knew you loved him. One little argument wouldn’t affect the years you two shared. I saw the way he looked at you. At all of his children. You five were everything to him.” I open my eyes, seeing a small smile grace her face. “Besides your mother, of course.”
I grin. My parents’ love was something you would read about in books. It was unconquerable. Fully consuming. Something anyone would strive to achieve.
“And Mauro,” she says as tears pool in her eyes. “He loved you so much. Nothing you said could have ever taken that away.”
It’s like a restraint inside me shatters.
A chain that had me bolted down for years releases its hold over me.
And for the first time in a long time, I feel…free.
I reach out, running my thumb under her eye, catching the first tear that drops.
Without thinking… Without overanalyzing… I lean in and press my lips to hers. It’s slow and gentle. Like something steady enough to quiet the ache in my chest.
If only for this moment.
Pulling away, I clear my throat and say, “Thank…you.”
She gazes down at her hand, twisting her wedding band. “I can handle your demons, Mauro,” she whispers. “And I will help you see the light again, even if it’s the last thing I do. You’re not alone anymore.”
Her arms slide around my shoulders as she settles onto my lap, her head buried into the crook of my neck.
I hold her just as tightly, unwilling to leave even a sliver of space between us.
We stay like that for minutes or maybe hours, wrapped in a warm embrace I didn’t know I needed.
And for the first time in a long while, the weight on my chest vanishes.
Because she’s here.
The missing piece to my life I never knew I needed.
And as her breathing evens, her body growing slack against mine, I realize something dangerous.
For the first time, I don’t feel like I’m facing the darkness alone.
Chapter fifteen
Alina
“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re expecting some turbulence, so we ask that you remain seated at this time. Thank you.” The pilot’s voice crackles over the loudspeakers, and the cabin settles as the plane dips slightly.
“This is amazing,” I breathe in awe, staring out the window beside me at the abundance of puffy clouds, my nose pressed against the glass. I’ve never been on a private plane, and the thought of going back to sardine-packed commercial flights makes me cringe. “Mauro, have you ever seen clouds that look like this?” A grin spreads across my face as I peek over my shoulder at Mauro beside me.
But my smile immediately falters as I notice his eyes pinched shut while his fingers dig into his armrests. “Hey, what's wrong?” I lean closer to him, placing my hand over the back of his. The plane jolts with the first hint of turbulence, and his face tightens further, lips pressed into a thin line. That’s when it hitsme. He’s scared. “You…don’t like flying?” I ask softly so no one around us can hear.
