Enshrine

by Chelle Bliss

  “Based on the tests we ran a few days ago—” he pauses and I can hear papers shuffling “—it looks like you’re in remission.”

  “Are you sure?” I ask, my eyes moving to Bruno.

  Bruno looks panicked and his lips are parted. “What?” he mouths.

  “I’m sure, Callie. You’re going to have to meet with your oncologist next week, but I can say that, at the moment, you’re cancer-free.”

  My lips start to quiver, and I can’t control the tears. The phone drops to my lap, and I cover my mouth just as a sob breaks free.

  Bruno grabs the phone from my lap. “Doctor, Callie can’t talk. What’s wrong?” He pauses and I can only see his face through my tears. “Yes?” he asks with excitement. I cry harder realizing I heard him right.

  I’m in remission.

  I’m a survivor.

  “You did it, Callie,” Bruno exclaims and hits the steering wheel. “Fuck yeah, baby!”

  I cover my face with my hands and bawl like a baby. The tears keep coming as I replay Dr. Craig’s voice in my head over and over again, saying the words I never thought I would hear.

  Cancer-free.

  “We’re celebrating tonight, Cal,” Bruno says with the biggest smile on his face.

  “I can’t believe it,” I mumble through my tears. “Did I hear him right?” I’m still in shock.

  “You did. You’re in remission, baby.”

  My head falls forward, and I curl into myself. So much sorrow has filled my life since the last time Dr. Craig called me. It feels like ages ago, even though it has only been a few months.

  When Bruno stops the car in front of my building, he reaches around me and unlatches my seatbelt. “Baby,” he whispers and pulls me into his lap. Holding my face in his hands, he smiles at me. “You did it. You beat it.”

  “We did,” I mumble through trembling lips.

  He kisses my forehead. “You’re going to live.”

  “Yeah.”

  His arms wrap around me tightly, and I tuck my head under his chin, cocooning myself against his body. “I’m going to survive,” I repeat over and over again, still in disbelief.

  I don’t remember many things after that. It took me a while to regain my composure. I went back and forth between crying hysterical, happy tears and moments of disbelief and shock.

  Bruno stays by my side and repeats the words I need to hear. “You’re going to live.”

  Sitting in his lap, in the darkness and watching the moonlight stream into the living room, I know he saved me. Not just from the cancer but from myself.

  Lucky for me, the treatment worked. It would have with or without him. But if he hadn’t been by my side during the entire journey, I would be a shell of my former self.

  There’s no way I’d be the person I am today. My mother was wrong when she told me not to count on anyone else. Being able to stand on my own two feet was important, but knowing when to lean on someone for strength was vital.

  Bruno is more than my boyfriend. He is the light that brought me back from the darkness. He chased away my fears and gave me the strength to fight.

  With his help, I have the most important thing in the world—time.

  31

  Five Years Later

  Callie

  Five years have passed since I found out that cancer no longer lived inside me. A week after finding out I would survive, I followed through on my promise to work harder than ever to help find a cure for cancer. I transferred to a new facility, looking for a fresh start and a place where Bruno wouldn’t have to look over his shoulder the entire time.

  I no longer have to worry he won’t come home at night because someone has found out his secret. He took a job with New York State Military and Naval Affairs. He never has to be away from home, and it is just down the street from his parents.

  Not only did I get Bruno, but I also grew close to the entire family. Since I didn’t have one of my own, there was no way I wouldn’t live near his and become part of them.

  The change is good.

  At the lab, we’ve come closer to a cure than ever before. My entire team works relentlessly on the mission. After undergoing chemotherapy, I know the havoc it can have on a system and the way it changes a person. There has to be a better way to eradicate the disease from the face of the earth. Although we haven’t found it yet, I won’t give up. I know if anyone can do it, my team, including myself, won’t rest until we do.

  “Honey, I’m home,” Bruno calls out as he walks through the front door.

  “In here,” I yell back before taking another sip of wine with my feet propped up on the coffee table.

  He’s carrying a few bags in his hands when he walks back inside. “I bought us a few things.”

  “What are you up to?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

  “The doctor said we can start trying now, so I thought we’d have a little fun.”

  My belly flips. Fun to Bruno typically means a stroll through the sex store and some contraptions I’ve never heard of before. The man has a vivid imagination. “And?”

  After he sets the bags down, he rubs his hands together. “Wait until you see this,” he says before reaching into the bag.

  I brace myself for something so outlandish that I’ll run out of the room screaming for mercy. It’s all for show, of course. There isn’t a thing he could do to me that I wouldn’t love.

  To my shock, he pulls out the cutest pair of baby tennis shoes. “I thought we could use these as inspiration.” He smiles softly and dangles them in the air.

  “Don’t you think it’s too soon to hope?”

  The couch dips next to me, and he sets the tiny shoes in my lap. “It’s never too soon to hope.”

  “Bruno.” I sigh, setting my hand on top of his and staring down at the tiny tennis shoes. “You know what this year means, right?” I ask and try to swallow back the tears that threaten to fall.

  It’s year five. If I’m given a clean bill of health again next week at my yearly checkup, the likelihood that the cancer will return will be almost nothing. I’ll never entirely be in the clear, but it will no longer be hanging over my head like a time bomb ready to explode without any notice.

  “I know exactly what year it is and what it means.”

  “So.” I swallow hard and sniffle. “Let’s talk about this after we find out,” I tell him.

  He lifts me from the couch and places me in his lap. “I know you’re scared. I am too, but we can’t dwell on what might be. We have to concentrate on what we know is true.”

  I look up at him and study his face. “Who are you?”

  “Your husband.” He smiles down at me.

  I catch myself staring at him sometimes. The moments when he doesn’t know I’m watching him are the best. He’s so opposite of everything I thought him to be. When I should’ve been afraid of him, I found myself needing him.

  Bruno has taught me so many things. No matter how many times I’ve tried to explain what he’s done for me, he always quiets me with a kiss. He doesn’t like to rehash the past. Talking about what I lived through with him by my side stirs too many feelings for both of us.

  He would just say, “Think of the future and don’t look back.” Every time I doubt our future, I’d look down at the starburst on my finger.

  The light that Bruno brought into my life shone brighter than any shadow ever cast by the fear and doubt.

  No matter what the future holds, I know I can face it with him by my side. He’s my beacon, my tether to the now, and my strength to keep moving forward, chasing the light without looking back.

  32

  The Light

  Bruno

  Callie believed the lies about me. That’s probably why it took so long for us to reconnect. By that, I mean busting down her door and never leaving her life again.

  See, that New Year’s Eve I spent the night with Cal, I’d never known as much peace as I did then. I thought we’d have more. That the night meant just as much to her as i
t did to me. Soon after, I realized I was wrong and I thought she’d decided I was a mistake that she didn’t want to repeat. Never did I imagine that she didn’t remember.

  When Becca came to me that night in tears and a complete mess, I knew I had to step in. Even if Callie didn’t want me near her, I wasn’t willing to risk her safety for my pride.

  After finding out she was sick, there was no way I’d walk away or let her push me away. Wouldn’t fucking happen. I’d buried my feelings for too long, and with her life on the line and the real possibility she could die, I wouldn’t leave her side.

  I can’t explain when I knew I loved her. It wasn’t after our first night together. I knew I wanted her in my life, but with my job and her ignoring me, it wasn’t possible. I can’t pinpoint when I knew there would be no one else in my life, but she slowly crept into my heart and consumed my entire soul.

  One thing I know for sure, if she would have died from cancer, I never would’ve recovered. I lost part of myself when Maggie and my unborn child died, and the rest would’ve shattered from losing Callie. There would have been no coming back from another loss.

  When we found out she was in remission, I wanted to give her the world. I left my undercover assignment as soon as I could wrap up my final cases and dragged Callie from the city. It wasn’t hard to convince her. She was in love with my family and chomped at the bit to get to marry me and become one of us. I asked her to marry me on the one-year anniversary of her being cancer free and I never looked back.

  Every year, I held my breath when she’d go in for testing to find out if the cancer had returned. I never feared for my life, but always for hers. When she had her five-year scan, the most important and pivotal one, I almost went out of my mind waiting for the results.

  At our request, Dr. Craig called us to give the results of the five-year scan. He told us we had to come in instead of hearing them over the phone. Callie was almost catatonic by the time we sat down in front of him to hear the news.

  “Your scan is clean, Callie,” he told us, to our surprise.

  We cried, and even Dr. Craig choked up a little. But the news gave us the peace of mind we needed to focus on the future without the black cloud hanging over our heads.

  Fast forward to today. Callie’s asleep, snoring like crazy and completely glowing. See, right after the doctor gave us the go-ahead, we started to plan a family. Fifteen months later, I’m sitting here with my son wrapped tightly in my arms. Callie pushed for twelve hours, and my heart ached watching her go through the pain of childbirth. She screamed and cried, but she told me if she could get through cancer, bringing my son into the world was worth every excruciating second.

  “What do you want to name him?” the doctor asked us when he came screaming into the world on New Year’s just as the clock struck 12:01 a.m.

  Callie wiped the tears from her eyes and said, “Lee Ray Bruno.” She insisted that we name him after my sister, given everything she’d done to help both of us in our lives. I was given the right to pick his middle name. I couldn’t give him mine, and no, I’m not telling you what it is either. I chose Ray. Because as much as Callie says I’m her light, she’s mine. Our baby is the thing that binds us together for eternity. Forever will a piece of us walk this earth. He gives us hope for the future and chases away the darkness that has clouded our world for five long years.

  “Lee, my son,” I whisper as I trace the lines of his delicate face, and I know I’ll forever be in love with this little man. “Daddy loves you.”

  He lets out a tiny cry, and I glance at Callie. His hand reaches out and curls around my finger. The moment he was born, everything changed.

  I raise him to my face and kiss his soft, chubby cheeks. “I’ll always protect you,” I whisper in his ear.

  I’ve cried very few times in my life. But when Lee was born, I couldn’t stop the tears from flowing. I had everything I’d ever wanted—a wife, a baby, and a future.

  “Do you want a baby brother?” I ask him, as if he’s going to answer me, and I smile about having a small army of kids running around the house.

  “Rocco.” My mom’s voice is a whisper at the door.

  I motion for her to come in and place my finger against my lips, glancing at Callie. Mom smiles and nods before entering the room followed by Gabby, Lucca, and my father.

  They’re all beaming and excited to meet the newest member of the Bruno family. They gather around me, staring down at Lee with love in their eyes.

  “He’s beautiful, son.” My father lays his hand on my shoulder and starts to tear up.

  “Congrats, bro,” Lucca says as he rests his hand on my other shoulder. “You’re a lucky bastard.”

  “I know you love Mallory, Luc. You’ll be sitting where I am soon enough,” I tell him, unable to wipe the smile off my face.

  He scoffs. “Not anytime soon, Roc. I’m not ready.”

  I laugh. I didn’t think I would ever be ready to be a father. After losing my first child, the thought of losing another had paralyzed me. “You’re more ready than you know.”

  He motions to Gabby. “She’ll get knocked up first.”

  “Dude. Unless it’s immaculate conception, there’s no way I’m getting pregnant.” Gabby rolls her eyes. She is still living the lesbian lifestyle, which is great for me because I haven’t had to kick anyone’s ass.

  “Kevin,” Lucca coughs and Gabby stiffens.

  I glare at her, and just as I’m about to go off the rails, Callie says, “Hey,” and I forget all about Kevin and Gabby and the ass I’ll eventually have to beat because she it seems she has recently decided she is no longer a lesbian.

  All eyes turn to Callie, congratulating her and showing her so much love she starts to cry. She’s overwhelmed, and I know the pregnancy hormones are in full batshit-crazy mode.

  She does grabby hands at me with tears streaming uncontrollably down her face. I laugh as I carry Lee to her, and my family watches, cooing over his every movement.

  “Lee,” she whispers through her tears as she holds him tightly. “Isn’t he the most beautiful thing in the world?”

  “We’re proud of you,” my mom tells Callie and kisses her forehead tenderly.

  Callie looks up at her and smiles. My heart squeezes at the sentiment, and I know Callie is beyond words with the amount of love in the room. Being without a mom, she clings to my family. And in usual Bruno fashion, they’ve taken her as one of their own.

  My mom and Callie formed a special bond after we moved to Watkins Glen. When she found out we were having a baby, they became inseparable. I didn’t mind. I’d lived my entire life with my mother hovering over me, and I figured my girl needed that after being without for far too long.

  “Do you want to hold him, Mom?” Callie asks with trembling lips.

  My mother smiles and grabs Lee from Callie’s arms quickly. She carries him around the room, bouncing him lightly and whispering in his ear.

  “Ready for this?” my dad asks, squeezing my shoulder as I sit in the chair and watch my family, knowing nothing will be the same.

  “I’m so ready, Dad.” I glance up at him and smile. Even though he’s half off his rocker at times, he’s always been my favorite