by Anna Park
“Thank you Lia. I…I love you too.”
Lia beckoned for Alex to follow her.
“Come here, you should sleep.”
She opened the sheets on her bed for Alex.
“Lie down.”
Alex climbed in. She sank into her bed.
“Are you sure about this?”
“You need to rest. We’ll get your stuff here this weekend.”
Lia stood there after she had closed the door to her room. Wow. Alex. Pregnant.
She fell down onto the couch. I’ll make sure she’s okay. I have to make sure my niece or nephew is okay. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
CHAPTER TEN
Colin pushed harder on the pedals. Noah was getting away from him. This is a first. Colin frowned and wiped his sweaty forehead. Let’s go. He crisscrossed the yellow line of the bike path to get past the other riders obstructing him. Finally, he caught up to Noah. He slowed his pace to ride next to his friend.
“Hey, man.”
Noah gasped for breath.
“Let’s ride at a more leisurely pace,” said Colin. Noah’s face was red and drenched in sweat.
“Sounds good. You wanted to talk?”
Colin had wanted to do this bike right with Noah so that they would have a chance to talk. It was much easier to have a conversation when he was in motion.
“You know the girl I’ve been talking about, right?”
“Lia?”
“Yeah, so she came over to my house the other night and we had the most amazing time.”
“As in, you slept together?”
“Yeah. And it was her first time and it was really, really sweet.” Colin looked off to the horizon as he was talking.
“Afterwards we both cuddled and I thought she was going to spend the night. But I wake up early that morning and she was gone. She left me a note saying thanks for the great time.”
“That’s weird.”
“Well that’s the sort of thing I used to do.”
“Uh, huh.”
“But this experience was different. I felt so connected. Never felt like this before. I just know that I want more.”
“And?”
“She’s hot and cold. I’m not sure if she’s playing with me, or if she wants more. I want more.”
“So tell her how you feel.”
Aaron turned to look at Colin as he was riding.
“You don’t think I’ll look like a dumb ass?”
“You might, I guess. But if you really like her, what is stopping you?”
Colin gaped at Noah, his mouth half-open.
“I…I guess…fear?”
Noah stopped his bike by putting his feet down. Colin squeezed his brakes and pulled in next to him. The sun shone straight into his eyes and he had to squint to see Noah.
“Look at you. You’ve never lacked for hot women, and now you’re afraid to go for the one you actually like?”
“I guess they never mattered like this.”
Colin felt his hands tighten around the handlebars.
“Come on, man.”
Colin looked out at the flowing water of the river for a few seconds. His hands relaxed.
“Yeah. She’s worth it. Screw the fear.”
Colin slapped Noah’s back.
“Yeah, man.”
“So how about you, are you taking your own advice?”
Noah’s eyes grew big. He started to say something but closed his mouth. He sat there for a minute, picking at his nails.
“Um. I’m thinking about it.”
“No offense, but what’s taking you so long?”
“Hey man, you’re busting my chops. I don’t know.”
“Well, if you want her, you should probably decide soon. She’s probably going to move on if you don’t.”
Noah turned his head so that Colin couldn’t see his eyes. Colin knew his friend was crazy about Anu. Noah rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. His analytical mind wasn’t used to deal with such strong, irrational feelings.
“Race you to the bridge!” Noah shot off, trying to get a head start on Colin. Colin narrowed his eyes. I’m going to kick his ass this time.
*************
Lia walked into the kitchen and saw Gianna already sitting at the table, flipping through the Boston Globe.
“Hey, good morning.” Gianna looked up. Her face looked bright and she saw that the pink had returned to her skin.
“How are you feeling this morning?”
“A lot better.”
Lia went over to Gianna and give her a hug. Her aunt was tiny and she was careful not to hug too hard.
“I want to make you something. How about a cheese and spinach omelette?”
Gianna replied, “I’m hungry today for the first time in a couple days. That sounds good.”
Lia looked in Gianna’s fridge and found the eggs, spinach, and some cheese.
“Maybe I’ll add some avocado, too.”
Gianna smiled at Lia. “Thank you for taking such good care of me.”
Lia cooked up the omelette and served a generous portions to Gianna.
“Mmm, that’s so good.” She paused, between bites. “So what are your plans today?”
“I’m going to get a crib and some other baby things for Alex so that we can get the room set up for her and the baby.”
“Oh, good. So you’re moving the rest of her stuff in tomorrow?”
“Yup.”
Lia felt a fluttering in her stomach. She hoped that she and Alex would get along again. It had been a long time, and so much had happened.
RIIIING RIIING.
“Oh, it’s Anu.” Lia answered, “Hey.”
“Wanna hang out today?”
“I’m going to Babies ‘R Us if you want to come.”
“Sure, why not?”
Lia and Anu agreed to meet at 2 o’clock at the downtown Babies ‘R Us.
The rest of the morning Lia cleaned up around the apartment and did some much-needed laundry. She kept asking Gianna to sit down and relax. Gianna sat on the edge of the couch, watching Lia and looking at her watch.
“Oh, it’s noon. We should go downstairs.”
Gianna and Lia went down to the café to help Paulo for the lunch rush. “What are you doing here?” he said to Gianna. “You should be resting upstairs.”
“I’m feeling fine I want to help out down here.” Paulo backed off and said, “Okay, but the minute you start feeling tired you need to go rest.”
“Don’t worry. I promise I’ll take care of myself.”
The restaurant was already pretty busy and some of the Saturday regulars waved to Gianna. Old Italian couples, who had been in Boston as long as Gianna. She went over for the obligatory rounds of kisses. Lia felt relieved. Gianna really seems to be feeling better today.
She gave Gianna a hug and said, “Okay, I’m off. Please call me if you need anything okay?”
It was a really cold fall day, not a good day for a walk outside at all. Oh man I miss the summer. She picked up a hot nonfat latte at Starbucks and got on the T.
When she arrived Anu was waiting for her.
“Let’s go get some baby stuff.”
“You’re really getting into this, huh.” Anu looked at Lia, her head sideways.
“I’m really hoping that Alex and I can be close again.”
Anu’s eyes softened.
“How are things with you?”
“Things things with Noah are over I think. We haven’t talked since that fight.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“And you? Have you seen Colin again?”
“That night after the party I called them up to walk me home. We ended up at his place and one thing led to another.”
“Lia, you’re a telling me he was your first?”
“Yeah. It was really amazing.” Lia felt warm inside as she remembered. God, I want to see him now
.
“So you guys are dating?”
“I’m not sure yet. Too soon to say. I didn’t spend the night or anything. I thought that might be little too fast too soon.” Anu was flipping through the racks, looking for clothes. She stopped.
“Wait. You slept with him but you left after?”
“I’m just taking it slow.”
Anu raised her eyebrow.
“So was it good?” Anu wanted to know more.
“I have never felt so good in my life,” said Lia. “I think I was overwhelmed, maybe that’s why I left. I have never felt so close physically and emotionally to someone.”
“Yeah I know how you feel,” said Anu. “But I guess it didn’t work out for me.”
“You don’t know that for sure. He might still be thinking about things.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“How about that guy at the bar?”
“Oh he was fine but he was more like a friend. I think he might’ve been gay, even.”
“Oh, I was kind of hoping that things would’ve worked out for you.”
“It’s okay was good to get out. I’m kind of disillusioned with guys right now anyway.” Anu looked into the distance, focusing on some high chairs.
“Okay, let’s look for a crib.” Lia pulled out her phone and scrolled through her emails. “There we go. I made a list.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Lia went into lab on Sunday morning. She wanted to get some experiments wrapped up. She enjoyed having the lab all to herself; she was able to get a lot more work done that way. Lia was pouring her protein extract over a purification column and collecting the fractions when she heard the door to the lab open.
Before she even looked, she knew who it was. That smell, that clean just-shampooed smell. She felt a warm tingle inside. In spite of herself, she was excited to see him.
“Hey Lia.”
Colin came up behind her. He put his hand lightly on her shoulder. “Working hard on a Sunday, huh?”
He came and stood right beside her. “Everything okay?” She could hear his shallow breaths.
“Yeah.”
“You look nice today.”
Lia looked up at Colin. His face was very close to hers. He reached in and lightly kissed her gently on the lips.
“Oh Colin, I'm never going to finish if we start.”
He backed off, his eyes flashing. “You want me to stop?”
No, please don't stop. Lia pulled him closer towards her.
She put her hands around his waist and brought him closer to her body. She could feel his growing excitement.
He rested his hands on her hips and leaned his head on her head. Lia nuzzled his neck with her nose. His breathing grew harder and faster. Lia could feel his rapid heartbeat through his flannel shirt.
“We can’t do this in here,” she said.
Colin leaned harder on her. “I know.”
“You going to be okay?”
“I’ll live.” Colin pulled away and looked at Lia with his deep brown eyes.
“You’re so beautiful.”
He tilted Lia’s head towards his and kissed her with light and tender kisses.
“Mmm.”
Colin paused. “I want to ask you something... Would you like to—”
Just then Lia's phone rang. “Hold on a sec Colin.”
He pulled away with a heavy sigh.
“Hello?”
“Lia, good, it’s you. You need to come.”
“Come where? Paulo is that you?”
“Yes. Listen your aunt is at Mass General—”
“What? What happened? Oh my god Paulo, is she okay?”
“Just come here, please, she’s going in for surgery now.”
“On my way.”
Lia stuffed her phone into her purse, turned to Colin and said, “Gianna’s in the hospital, emergency, gotta run.” She grabbed her protein samples and threw them into the -20 deep freezer. Then she ran out, without looking back.
Fortunately Mass General was just a few short T-stops away, but it was the longest train ride Lia had ever taken.
Come on, come on, come on. She willed the train to get there. Finally the train stopped at the MGH stop and Lia dashed out of the train. She almost tripped going down the stairs. She entered through the main lobby of the hospital, and had to take a second to find her bearings. Emergency. Oh there it is.
She ran down the hall, and saw Paulo waiting in the waiting room, his arms crossed as he stared mindlessly at a TV in the corner.
“There you are.” He flopped back in his chair and let out a huge breath.
“Where is she?”
“They’re preparing her for surgery.”
“I want to see her.” Lia ran towards the double doors that looked like an operating room.
“No, we can’t. It’s too late. Only doctors are allowed in there.” The words hit her like a punch in her stomach. She should have been there this morning, she should have been the last person who saw Gianna before surgery. She sat down and buried her face in her arms. Paulo gingerly patted her back.
“What happened?” she looked up, her face all puffy.
“After you left, she suddenly bent over and groaned. She was saying ‘Ow, ow, ow’ and begged me to call for help.”
“Oh my god.”
“I called 911 immediately. They came right away. It’s all a blur now but I sat in the ambulance with her, and she had a few moments of clarity. One thing she said, was ‘Tell Lia I love her.’”
Lia grabbed Paulo and bawled into his chest. He held her, comforting her.
“We got here, and they looked at her and said her liver was failing. Something about the tumor needing to come out now.”
“What? They’re operating on her liver?”
“Guys, there you are.” Alex walked in, looking tired and worried.
“Oh, good, you’re here.” Paulo sounded cold. “Finally you show some support to your aunt.”
“Stay out, this is a family thing.” Alex glared at Paulo and gave Lia a look of ‘Why is this punk giving me attitude?’.
“Your aunt is like a mom to me,” Paulo said. His eyes were teary, and he looked almost broken. “No one ever believed in me until she did.”
Alex turned away. Lia hugged him again. This man had probably saved Gianna’s life. Where had she been? Oh yeah, fooling around in lab.
“Paulo, thank you. Gianna loves you like a son.”
He sat down, slumping down, his head in his hands. Lia went up to the nurses at the nurses’ station. “Can you tell me anything about Gianna Monsanti?”
A friendly-looking nurse looked up at her. “I can find out. Hold on a minute.” She went off to make a phone call.
Lia waited, tense. What if I can’t ever talk to her again? What if I missed the chance to tell her how much I love her?
The nurse came up to Lia. “They’re operating right now, that’s all I can say. The surgeon will come out to talk to you as soon as he can. Are you her next of kin?”
Next of kin? Lia started to cry all over again. She shook and couldn’t stop. The nurse looked at her, “The surgeon will come out as soon as he can.”
Paulo and Alex were behind her. Alex looked paler than Lia had ever seen her. She reached over to Lia and tried to hug her.
“I’ve been such a bad niece and sister.”
Lia didn’t say anything. Her mind was spinning. Next of kin? What is she doesn’t make it? What am I going to do without her?
The double doors opened and a tall doctor in scrubs walked out. “Gianna’s relatives?”
“Yes, yes we are.” Lia answered, desperate for news.
“Your aunt is in critical condition. We had to remove a quarter of her liver, and she lost a lot of blood, so she’s receiving a blood transfusion.”
“Is she going to be okay?”
The doctor chose his words carefully, keeping them emotion-free. �
��If she recovers from the surgery, her prognosis is quite good. She’ll have to continue her chemotherapy, but her liver should retain enough function for her to live fairly normally.”
“Did you remove the whole tumor?” asked Alex.
“We did, but in these cases, there’s always a possibility of fragments being left behind.”
Fragments? You better not have left any fragments in her!
His pager beeped. “I need to go back in. I will come back and update you as soon as we know more.” With that, he rushed back in.
“Is that good news?” asked Paulo, hopefully.
“Didn’t you understand what he said?” said Alex.
“Stop it you two,” said Lia. “What is wrong with you?”
At that moment, Lia saw Colin. He almost hit another person as he rounded the corner. His eyes looked for her.
“Lia.” He turned towards her. Behind him, Lia saw another figure. A woman. Farahnaz? She was wearing a short black dress and her long shiny hair cascaded down her back. Farahnaz caught up to Colin and linked her arm with his.
Lia turned away as her breakfast came back up her throat. She breathed in hard.
A tap on her shoulder made her look up. Colin and Farahnaz stood there.
“Are you okay?”
Lia covered her mouth and ran to find a bathroom. Her breakfast and last night’s dinner came out just as she reached one of the stalls. She sat on the floor, her body cold and shaking. The bastard.
*************
Colin stared at the bathroom door that Lia had disappeared into. His heart was racing and his legs were itching to follow Lia. “Please go,” he asked Farahnaz.
“I think you need some moral support.” Farahnaz looked at him sideways and patted his shoulder.
Colin’s body stiffened. All he could think about was Lia. He just wanted to hold her in his arms and make her feel better.
“Go.” His jaws were clenched.
Farahnaz smiled again. “I’ll go sit and wait for you.”
He stationed himself in front of the bathroom door, waiting for Lia to come back out. He looked around the waiting room. People were slumped over, looking at their phones or reading. Others were laid out along the chairs, sleeping. A big clock on the wall went Tick Tock Tick Tock.
“What are you doing here?” Lia stood in front of him. Her arms were crossed and her body was tense.
