Page 141 of In Ruins
It’s about an hour later when the door to my room opens softly, and I hear the sound of familiar voices. I look up to see my mother-in-law, father-in-law, and my brother step into my room, their hands filled with balloons and stuffed animals.
“Luca—” I whisper, my words ending in a broken sob. He rushes over to me, handing Enzo the balloons as my husbandmoves out of the way. “I thought I dreamed you. I thought I was dying, and you finally came back to me in my dreams.”
“I’m so sorry for everything that happened, sis,” he murmurs, pulling me into his arms, hugging me while placing a kiss in my hair.
“I missed you so much. Where were you?”
“It’s a long story. A lot happened, and I’ll tell you all about it when you’re better, okay?”
“Okay,” I say, sniffling.
“Ahem,” I hear coming from my mother-in-law, and Luca laughs before stepping away.
She doesn’t waste any time rushing over to me, gently pulling me into her arms. “Oh, my goodness! I was so worried about you, my darling girl.”
“I’m okay,” I tell her, feeling loved while wrapped in her arms. When she moves away, my father-in-law is next. He hugs me and tells me that he’s glad that I’m okay.
There’s a cry from the bassinet, and I watch in amusement as my mother-in-law makes a beeline for it, pushing everyone out of the way.
She picks up my little girl and wraps her up in her arms, cooing to her quietly. The room glows with warmth as the baby is passed around between the three of them, each person holding her like she’s their world and like she’s made of glass.
All the while, my husband hasn’t left my side. He is still holding my hand, like he’s willing all his strength to me. Every few minutes, he checks on me, making sure I’m okay.
The door to my room opens again, and this time it’s Giana. One of the nurses pushes her into my room in a wheelchair. “Oh my God! You’re okay! I was so worried about you!” I tell her when she’s wheeled closer to my bed.
“I was so worried about you, too!” she says as we both sob. When we’ve gotten our emotions under control, she looks at the others, all fawning over my baby girl with a smile on her lips.
The love in this room is so loud, it’s everything I’ve ever wished for. I can already tell from the look of things that my baby will never be without love like I was. She’ll always have someone in her corner.
I take a moment to just watch the three of them with my husband by my side. This is what a real family should look like. Though it’s rare in our world, I’m glad I fell into the right one.
My baby is at the center of it all, and it just feels right. After all the fear, the pain, and the uncertainty in my life… I ended up right where I belong. Where my baby and I were meant to be.
This is one of the memories I’ll always remember, and despite the ache still lingering in my body, I’ve never felt happier than I am right now.
EPILOGUE 1
ENZO
One Week Later
I’ve got to say, this past week has definitely been a learning curve. I took care of my daughter most of the time in the last week, because I wanted my wife to rest and heal from all of her wounds, especially the C-section.
My parents have been a huge help, especially my mom, and I’m so thankful to have amazing parents. Giana has also been helping, even though I have to browbeat her to take it easy since she was also injured, too.
Though I’m glad for all the help, I feel like everyone is just trying to hog mybambinaall the damn time. Everyone has ganged up on me and won’t stop teasing me about the fact that whenever I’m home, I never want to put my little girl down.
I can’t help it. She’s the most precious thing in our lives, and what if she gets lonely in her crib, you know? Every time she’s in my arms, I can’t help but look at her cute little face because I’m always mesmerized.
I love the way she scrunches her face up when she’s crying or when she’s hungry, and Daddy is taking too long to feed her.I spent the week bonding with her, and she definitely likes the sound of my voice.
Feeding her and changing her diaper has felt like going through war. When it comes to the diapers, well, at first I had no idea what I was doing, but I’m happy to say I’ve got it all figured out now. My skills have definitely improved over the last week. When it comes to her feeding, my wife breastfeeds her during the day, then pumps her milk, and I feed my girl at night, so I don’t have to wake my wife up. Thank God, she drinks her milk from the bottle, too.
Right now, we’re sitting in the living room, enjoying some of the quiet. Aurora is sleeping in her baby rocker, and I’m waiting for my parents to get her so I can leave the house for a while.
The door opens and I hear their voices as they walk down the hallway. “Where is my grandbaby?” My mom asks when she comes into view. Her hands are filled with bags, no doubt containing more shit for my wife and daughter.
“Shh,” I tell her quietly. “The little monster is asleep.”
