28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Cattleya Cardona

M y eyelids feel heavy, and it takes me a couple of tries to open them. It's hard to focus on figuring out where I am, so I try to speak instead, but my mouth is so dry that it feels like I have a ton of cotton balls inside. With a lot of effort, my eyes adjust to the light in the room, finally focusing on who's next to me.

"Bae," I rasp, and his eyes immediately find mine.

"Oh thank fuck, Cattleya. I thought I'd lost you," he says as he jumps from where he's sitting, and comes to stand next to my bed.

"Water," I say, and I try to smile at him but even my face hurts. What the fuck happened?

"Here, mi ángel. " Mati reaches for a cup of water and brings it to my lips with a straw. I take a few small sips, and the cold water feels so good going down my throat.

"What happened?" I ask, and Mati takes a deep breath before answering me.

"Remember my friend, Esteban?" I nod because I remember him well from our failed attempt at getting our piercings. "Well, apparently he knew about the threats and bet his tattoo shop on you guys losing. When you won, he lost everything. I don't know all the details since the investigation just started, but he was able to pass all the police checkpoints because he's a family member of an Alumnas de La Plata player. When he saw the mafia dude speaking with you guys, he lost it and started shooting up your locker room." I close my eyes, reliving the pain of seeing Stefa go down like a rag doll. And then the pain I felt on my leg before the world blacked out for me.

"Stefa?" I ask next, and Mati simply closes his eyes, confirming the worst. I start crying, I can't believe Stefa is gone. What the fuck is wrong with this world?

"Cattleya, you need to calm down. You lost a lot of blood, you're still very weak, mi ángel ." The monitors attached to my body start beeping, and nurses come rushing into the room, removing Mati. I extend my arm, not wanting to lose his touch but it's in vain. My man is gone in the blink of an eye. Tears wet my face and my world goes dark again.

This time it's easier to wake up. Somehow, even before opening my eyes I know Mati isn't here.

"Hey, Mom," I say, not even sure if my mom is going to hear me.

" Mi amor , you're awake." Mom rushes to my side after opening the door, and shouting, " ?Despertó! (She woke up!). " I laugh at my mom's antics, but immediately wince in pain, so I take a couple of deep breaths trying to calm myself down. A throng of people barrels into my room, making me feel like I'm in a Colombian novela when the entire family comes to visit whoever is a sick relative. The only thing we're missing is the pot full of sancocho and a couple of hens flying around. I close my eyes trying to avoid laughing at the image in my head, but my action only causes a massive panic and everyone hurries to see what's wrong with me.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. I was just thinking how hilarious this scene is, everyone coming in like in the novelas back home."

Dad is the first one to laugh, and everyone joins in, making me feel a little bit better about scaring. Mom and Dad stand on one side of the bed, and Sofi and Franco on the other, while Mati is near the door.

"What are you doing all the way over there?" I ask him, this time being able to give him a smile.

He smiles back at me and shrugs. "Just giving the family a chance to talk to you. I was the lucky one who saw you awake the last time." I wonder how long I've been sleeping.

"When was that?" I look around, but no one speaks.

"It's been three days, mija ," my mom says, and I'm stunned.

"Three days? How long before I can walk then?" Again, my questions are met with silence. "Mati?" I ask him because I know he won't lie to me. Releasing a deep breath, he makes his way closer to me. Sofi and Franco make room so he can stand up next to me.

"The doctors need to run more tests. Everything is going to depend on how your leg heals and how physical therapy goes, but they think it'd be around six to eight months," Mati says in a low voice, almost afraid to scare me.

"You mean weeks?" I ask, not believing what I just heard .

"No, mi ángel . Months," Mati says, confirming my worst nightmare. I won't be able to play for the next year. I start crying, feeling my dreams slipping out of reach.

"But we will be with you every step of the way," Sofi says, and everyone nods their agreement.

"I don't want to stay here, I need to leave. Now." I shout the last part, and the monitors start beeping frantically again.

" Mi ángel , you need to be strong enough for the doctors to release you from the hospital. We are in no rush. You're getting great care here."

I can't believe I need to say this out loud, but I guess no one sees things like I do. "You don't understand. I don't feel safe here. I don't want to fall asleep again and wake up a week or a month from now. I want to go home, my real home." I look at Mom and Dad, who are struggling to keep their tears at bay. When I look at Mati, I see hurt in his gaze. "I didn't mean to say anything against you, bae. I just want to go back home. To Colombia."

Mati nods his head as he releases a deep breath.

"As soon as the doctors give us the okay, we'll take you home, mi amor. I promise." Dad is the one who speaks up this time.

"What happened to Esteban?" I ask even though I'm scared shitless to hear what they have to say about him.

"The police shot him once they saw him with the gun in the locker room. He was brought to the hospital, too, and is under police custody now." I wish I could say the news makes me breathe a little easier, but I'd be lying. I'm still terrified that I got shot, that Stefa is gone. All that blood on the floor, the panicked screams, everyone trying to seek shelter. And all because someone was irresponsible enough to bet their livelihood? How is this fair ?

The shrill ring of the hospital phone jars me out of my thoughts. My mom is quick to answer, and her face immediately hardens.

"Who is it?" I ask, still reeling from my grief.

"Romina the journalist? She wants to speak to you. I'll just hang up."

"No, let me talk to her. I need it." I need to direct my grief and rage to someone deserving. If she hadn't targeted me and the team, maybe the mafia would have never decided to bet against the Golden Warriors and all this could have been avoided. But we cannot live on the what-ifs.

"Hello?" I say as I feel my blood boiling in my veins just by hearing her voice and reliving all those nasty comments she wrote about me.

"Oh, Cata. Hi. Thank you so much for taking my call," she has the nerve to say, and I decide not to waste time with pleasantries.

"I'm not sure what your motive for calling me is, but I hope from now on, you can make your colleagues proud and actually add something of value to your profession. Be thankful you get a chance to right your wrongs. Stefa would never get a chance to play soccer again. Her family will never see her again. And even though I'm not going to be in Buenos Aires for much longer, I'll make sure to keep tabs on you. The last thing we need is more deaths because of your thirst for money." I say my peace without taking a breath, and the line goes silent. I guess she wasn't expecting me to be so sour, but she lives in delulu-land. I don't even care what she had to say, so I hand the phone to my mom to hang up.

Everyone in the room is silent, clearly taken aback by the strength in my words. I look at Mati whose face looks murderous. I'm sure he's as enraged as I am about all this. I extend my hand to him, and he immediately takes it. I know what I have to do—for Stefa.

"Could you please help me collect all the pictures and documents Oscar, the PI, had gathered, and send them anonymously to the detective who was assigned to the case? One we know isn't involved with the mafia?" I ask, trying to even my breathing. It's time for Romina to pay for her involvement in this tragedy.

"Of course, mi ángel . I'll get on it as soon as I leave here," Mati says as he squeezes my hand gently. I feel a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. Thanks to this incredible man, I get to breathe a little easier. But with each breath, more tears well up in my eyes.

"Cattleya, look at me. I know you're still very upset about the call you just took, but let's try to focus on you and your recovery. You're going to be in both physical and trauma therapy. You'll meet with a psychologist daily until they clear you, too. You need to be strong to face all this, but you won't face it alone. You know we've got your back, hijita ," my mom says, and I wince, tired of hearing everything that has already been planned for me. It's like I no longer control my life.

"But can I do all that at home? When can we leave? I don't want to be here anymore." Tears start running down my face, and my sister who hasn't said a word until now breaks down, crying next to me.

"I'm so fucking sorry this happened to you, Cata. You deserve the world, not this kind of crap." Franco tries to comfort her, squeezing her shoulder, and she leans back on him.

"I promise you I'll do everything in my power to take you home sooner rather than later, but you need to understand that this isn't just a small injury. We cannot risk you in an airplane for an eight-hour flight if your body isn't ready," Dad says. Tears keep running freely as Mati holds my hand.

"You keep saying you want to leave, but please promise me you'll let me go with you. Tinta and I need you." His voice breaks and my tears flow faster.

"Okay, I think Matías and Cata need a few moments alone. We'll be in the waiting room if you need us." Mom leans down to give me a kiss, and quickly wipes the tears off my face. I smile at her and give everyone a little wave as they empty the room.

"Matías, you know I love you. That hasn't changed, but you need to understand I can't ask you to go with me and leave Argentina behind. I'm not sure if I ever want to come back. I know I haven't even started my healing process, but as far as I'm concerned. I don't want to play here anymore. I don't even know if I'm going to be able to play again." Mati holds my hand with both of his and his warmth seeps through my skin, warming me from the inside. I'll always want Mati in my corner.

"Cattleya, wherever you go, I go. Our souls are entangled for eternity," he says, oozing sincerity.

And although I believe him, I need to ask, "We've only been dating for two months, Mati. Most of the time, we were hiding because we weren't supposed to be together. Look at us now: I won't be able to play for an entire year, and you don't have a job. Is this how we want to start the rest of our lives?"

"Absolutely," Mati immediately replies, with no hesitation. I laugh a little, but the pain makes me reconsider my laughter.

"Okay, bae. Let's do it. There's no one else in this world I'd go through hell with than you."

Mati closes the distance between us and whispers against my lips, "I love you for this life and all the rest." Then he kisses me tenderly, savoring this moment. He slowly shows me how much I mean to him.

"I'm so thankful you fucked me before the game. I'm not sure when we will be cleared for that sort of activity, and given that we like it rough, I'm not sure how long it'll be," I say, and Mati barks out a laugh. It's so good to hear him laugh this freely.

"Oh, mi ángel . There are many ways we can still have fun. The only thing you need to worry about right now is healing and getting better. Let me take care of the rest." He gives me a wicked grin, and I just know that he means every single word he just said. I couldn't be in more capable hands. I hope I can laugh again like he just did at some point in life. Right now, I'm still too sad and too conflicted about everything that went down after one of the happiest moments of my life.

"Hey, where did your mind go?" Mati asks quietly like he's trying not to startle me.

I try to muster a smile, but I know it doesn't reach my eyes.

"I know all this is hard to comprehend but at the end of the day, we've still got each other, and we'll get through it. With lots of love, ice cream, and cuddles from a furball that's anxiously waiting for you to get back home."

This time my smile is brighter. I know Mati will help me get back on my feet. With his love and his care, I'll come back stronger than before.