The Last Superhero (43 page)

“
Remember
what he said? 'Giana, your mother's anger issues are out of control'
and Mom shouting 'I'm not angry!' at the top of her lungs. God!”

The chuckle that escapes my
lips makes me pause.

“
I
held on to you while you cried that night.” A smile filled with
apprehension brightens his face. “Just like you held on to me
years later when I went cold turkey.”

A glance at our surroundings
and I'm instantly reminded of where I'm standing.

This is Simon's backyard
with the grass and the trees and the pool and the fountain.

This is Simon's house with
the terrace and the bay windows and the elegant furnishings.

This is Simon's family with
his wife and his children who fill the walls with laughter and
drawings.

“
When
did you become the object of my envy?”

My question takes him aback.
“What?”

“
This,
Simon. All this. I never thought I wanted a house and a husband, a
family. I was against all that until Steven came along. And I think I
didn't even know it then, what I know now... That I really, really
wanted our relationship to grow. That I really wanted to save him
from his nightmares and give him what he craved the most: love.
Simon. That man didn't want anything more than someone who loved him
and who he could love back.”

He's looking at me all
tender and sweet and not angry at all.

“
If
only you believed in an interventionist god, huh?”

“
I'm
not the praying kind anyway.”

“
I
don't expect you to stand still and, sincerely, it's surprised me how
you've taken this.”

“
How
I've taken what?”

“
This.
You're acting like it's the end. The Giana I know gets up no matter
how many times she's down.”

“
Now
you're just taunting me.”

Don't curve that eyebrow
like you're looking through me!

“
You've
got to finish what you started, only then will you find peace.”

He starts for the house.

“
Oh,
don't try and fuck me with some new-age philosophy!”

He stops. Turns. “I
was missing the fucks in your vocabulary.”

“
That
I don't say them as much doesn't mean I've stopped giving them.”

“
Prove
it then. That's what they're all waiting for. You've got to prove
it.”

Flabbergasted could be the
word I'm looking for, the one that doesn't let me walk really fast
and slap that grin off his face.

A grin that is not about
enjoying anything. A grin that comes from the satisfaction brought on
by the knowledge of having pushed the right buttons.

47

When Dr. Morgan calls, I'm
more than prepared to tell her all I want to tell her: that she can't
keep me away from the man I love and that I'll do everything in my
power to get to him and save him and I don't care what she's saying
because I'm determined, no I don't care...

“
Excuse me?”

“
Can I come to your
meeting tonight? Kenneth told me about it and I'd prefer we speak in
person.”

Oh. “Has something
happened?”

A pause. Something
has
happened.

“
It can wait until
tonight. I promise to give you every detail.”

“
Wouldn't it be better
if I know at least a bit?”

“
Not really.”

But I want to know NAO!
“Okay. I'll see you tonight.”

I hang up when all I want to
do is throw a tantrum.

“
Everything okay?”
Dad asks, concerned, as he steps out of the bathroom since I'm
standing in the middle of the hallway staring at my phone's blank
screen.

“
Dr. Morgan asked if
she could come to the meeting tonight.”

He's drying his hair with a
towel and pauses for a second. “Did you say yes? Any particular
reason?”

“
Yeah. I told her she
could come. She says she wants to speak to me in-person.”

He curves his lips
downwards, averting my gaze.

And is about to turn away
and towards his room...

“
You know something.”

“
Me?” He doesn't
even stop. “No, I don't.”

“
You know something!”
is all I can shout as I go for his arm, but he pulls back and ends up
against the wall. “You know, don't you?”

“
Maybe I know
something...”

“
What? Tell me.”

“
I'm not supposed to
tell you anything, baby.”

“
Don't 'baby' me! This
is serious! Tell me what it is you know! Have you spoken to her? To
Dr. Morgan? Or is it Ross?”

“
Dr. Fletcher has been
kind enough to keep me up-to-date.”

“
And you were going to
tell me about this when?”

“
Giana...”

“
When?!”

“
They made me swear I
wouldn't tell! Baby, please...”

“
Is this why you've
stayed all this time? Is this why you haven't gone back to Madrid?”

“
No!” He pulls
back even further, as if I'd just insulted him. “I'm here
because you need me. I'm here because I'm your father and you need me
right now. You are the only thing I have and God knows I'll do
whatever I have to do to see you happy again.”

Stares locked, I can see the
worry in his saddened eyes. “I'm sorry.”

“
Come here.” And
he's quick to pull me into his arms and hug me tight against his
chest that smells so much of soap. “You're my everything,
Giana. I can't help but care for you and yes, that's why I'm here and
why I've kept contact with Dr. Fletcher. I need to make sure that
whatever happens, I'm here to help.”

“
But you have a life
in Madrid and a wife and a job and I'm old enough to be able to go on
without you.”

He holds my face in his
hands, keeps his eyes on mine. “You are my priority. Have
always been.” I'm about to try and shake off his grip when he
proceeds, “I lost my job back in Madrid.”

“
What?!”

“
It happened before
all this. We've been thinking about moving to the States for a while
now.”

“
Why didn't you tell
me this?” Way to make me feel like a monster!

“
I didn't want to
worry you. You've got enough problems already. And, well, when I got
here I found you so happy with Steven I didn't want to ruin that.”

“
But then it all went
down the drain.”

“
Hey.” He pulls
my face back up when I try to look down. “It isn't over. That's
why I'm here. And tonight I think will turn for the better, for all
of us.”

He kisses me on the forehead
and I'm left feeling so small even his mute footsteps seem to have
the power to shake the ground underneath me.

So I shut up and prepare for
tonight. For whatever it is is going to happen when we're all sitting
together around that living room I used to play in when I was little,
the one that held me for hours while I watched TV or did homework or
played video games with Simon.

The same one that, hours
later, is populated by expectant faces as Dad serves drinks and plays
host and everyone smiles. The only people missing being Ross and Dr.
Morgan.

“
Have one of Frances's
cupcakes, G.” Jake comes to stand beside me at one point,
holding a cupcake to my face.

I shake my wine glass in the
air. “Sugar and alcohol don't mix, J.”

He bites into it.

Wait. Wasn't it for me?

“
That's why I don't
drink.”

I'm about to answer that's
the reason I do drink when there's a knock on the door and in come
Ross and Dr. Morgan, followed by Dr. Fletcher.

Their faces aren't exactly
examples of joy and it triggers an uncomfortable feeling inside me,
like my stomach has dropped from its place or something.

We all greet each other and
Jake and Frances vacate the sofa for the newly arrived, the ones
bearing computers and gifts in the form of bottles of wine.

“
Giana.” Dr.
Morgan hugs me a bit tighter than normal. “How are you? How's
your mother?”

“
She's... holding on,”
I answer, trapped between her hands holding my arms and under her
motherly stare. That she isn't looking like a bitch tonight is
actually scaring me right now.

Ross and Fletcher shake my
hand and Dad's quick to offer them something to drink.

“
I hope you don't mind
that we brought Dr. Fletcher with us.” Are you apologizing,
Ross?

“
Not at all. I suspect
something has happened.” I keep my eyes on Dr. Fletcher because
he seems to be the easiest one to crack, although I don't think we'll
need any of that.

Frances brings a chair from
the dining room so she can sit by my side while Daphne perches
herself on the arm of my chair. The two doctors set their laptops on
the coffee table. No time for pleasantries or lengthy chit chat.

Jake's standing behind
Frances, Ross and Dad stay near, also standing. Wyatt's pulled
himself forward, elbows on his knees.

Expecting.

Anticipating.

“
Something
has
happened, Miss Armstrong,” Dr. Fletcher says. “And I'm
very sorry to be the one to bring you the bad news.”

An invisible force pushes me
down, some cold wave passing through me in a second.

“
Is he dead?” I
spit out and all eyes are on me.

They hesitate. Oh my god,
they hesitate to answer.

“
No,” Dr. Morgan
answers, her fingers entwined over her lap. “Not exactly.”

“
What happened then?
How is he?”

Dr. Fletcher takes a deep
breath before explaining, “During this month, Mr. Waldorf's
condition has worsened. It is our belief that this has been caused by
the abnormal amount of nightmares he's been having ever since he was
released.”

“
Abnormal?”

“
They have gotten
worse.”

Dr. Morgan rotates her
computer's screen towards me and everyone around me gets closer so
they can see the video running on it.

“
These are MRI images
we took of Steven while undergoing a nightmare. Here you can see his
brain activity and I must say we were surprised by how his whole body
responded to this.”

“
And how was that?”

“
His brain, as well as
his whole body, is under constant attack while he's asleep.”

“
It's like he's
getting a beating every time he's sleeping.” Dr. Fletcher
simplifies it for us mere mortals. “It's the same thing that
happened to all of those who were inside his nightmares.”

“
But we already knew
that, didn't we?” Wyatt jabs.

“
Yes.” Dr.
Morgan exhales. “But now think about these 'attacks' becoming
stronger and stronger every single time.”

I bring a hand to my face,
not knowing what to say.

“
For the last month,
he's been subjected to nightmares that have put a considerable dent
in his health.” Dr. Fletcher's eyes seem to be pleading.

Maybe they know my heart's
currently bleeding.

“
How is he?” My
voice is firmer than I thought it'd be. “Tell me how he is.”

“
Right now he's at
another facility, under our care...”