JESSICA
The morning after being out most of the night is hard on a pregnant woman, I’ve gotta say. I feel groggy and sick most of the morning, but for some reason, Vince insists that I go to work today, at least until lunch. Usually, he doesn’t want me to lift a finger if I feel even remotely off, so I do find it kind of strange that he’s being so persistent.
We arrived at work early,as usual. Vince helps me to the office, and I hobble like my bones are breaking. My bump feels ever bigger today than usual. I guess that’s to be expected. We share an office now. I’m on one side of the room, and he’s on the other. I enjoy the sweetness of glancing up throughout the day and making faces at one another.
He grabs me water from the fridge.
“You can prop your feet up if you’d like, love.” He rubs circles in my back, but I shake my head.
“That’s okay.” I take small sips of my water. I learned not to gulp it first thing in the morning the hard way. Pregnancy is weird— but also beautiful and all that jazz. Today it doesn’t feel beautiful, though. Today I want to stay in bed.
The morning progresses rather slowly, and my growing tiredness doesn’t help with focusing on anything but leaving. At exactly noon, Vince stands up from his desk, helps me up from mine, and laces his fingers with mine.
“I think we should go out to lunch today.” He smiles and leads us to the elevator.
It is not my intention to be ungrateful, but his spritely mood isn’t working for me. I would much rather have stayed home, and he knows that now he wants me to go out to lunch? A little tone-deaf, buddy.
We climb in the car— another arduous activity for me— and take off to this random spot he says is wonderful.
“It’s in the hills.” He notes, like that’s super important. It’s actually confusing because all there is in the hills area is residential properties plus a few coffee shops. But I doubt we’d go all the way to the hills for a coffee shop sandwich.
We eventually stop on a long street filled with quaint townhouses. Each has its fence and gate and stairs leading up to a small porch with unique touches to each. The trees are tall and remind me of oaks, and the entire essence is very old-English.
“What are we doing?” I ask, and he doesn’t answer, slinging out of the car, then crossing to my side to help me down. He holds my hand and leads me to a beautiful red brick one. The shutters and door are a sage green, and resting on the front porch are two adorable matching rocking chairs with thick cushions.
We walk through the gate and up the stairs.
“Vince,” I whisper, so he knows that we really shouldn’t be walking onto some random person's property like this. He ignores me, knocking on the door gently before waiting. A bigger dog begins to bark, and I squeeze his hand, long and hard.
“Let’s go, why are-“ the door opens, and I nearly burst into tears.
Luca is standing in the doorway, nice thick sweater, long black jeans, freshly shaven face, and nicely cut hair. I cup my hand over my mouth as tears fill my eyes.
“Well, are you just gonna stand there, baby sis?” He opens his arms wide, and a black lab squeezes between us gleefully as I throw my arms around his neck.
“How?” I'm crying into his sweater, and he chuckles. Vince is rubbing my back, and I let go to ask him again.
“How?” I repeat myself, and he chuckles, embracing Luca like they’re longtime friends.
“Come in. We’ll explain.” I follow them both into a beautifully furnished home— warm golden wood, cream walls with plants hanging everywhere, comfort and style mixed with modern and antique. It’s very Luca.
We sit down at a soft wooden table, and he brings us some tea in fine china that looks like our mothers from when we were growing up. More tears stream when I think of her and the memories the painted glass carries.
“So?” I ask impatiently, accepting the tea Luca is pouring.
“Well, Vince tells it better than I do.” He sets the tea down and walks back to the kitchen, grabbing a large platter stacked with different sandwiches. After he sits down, Vince begins.
“Well, I knew a couple of people who owed me a favor. Some inside and out of jail. When I heard about your real story, I knew I had to help. I was able to find out enough information to get Luca here out of jail and turn the feds to another lead that had promising proof. It’s unclear how the case will turn out, but Luca has been cleared with no charges and his record completely expunged. I didn’t know what to do with the duffle bag I had ready for you… so I thought who better than your brother. I found this apartment, furnished it, and gave him the remaining cash to get his feet firmly planted on this side of reality.”
I’m gobsmacked as Luca beams proudly between us.
“Yep. And I’ll be working with Neptune Holdings in the tech department. Picked up a few skills while I was in jail, and I think I’ve got a real shot at taking over the whole department one day.” I haven’t seen him this happy since we were children. I nod along, tears in my eyes.
Vince is truly a dream come true. I don’t know what to say or how to react, but I’m beyond happy. This feeling burns bright like a thousand stars leaking from my pores and lighting up everything in sight.
He’s free. Our family is one step closer to mourning the past and moving forward for good.
“I think you could do even more than the tech area, Luca. You’ve got great leadership skills.” Vince takes a bite out of his sandwich.
“I appreciate that, boss.” Luca grins widely.
I thinklife isn’t something you fight for; I think it’s something you’re gifted with. Sitting here in the dining room of my free brother, with the love of my life by my side, I couldn’t be happier. It’s the moments that make up life— good and bad— that we deal with as they come. Roll with the punches, get knocked down, get back up, climb a mountain, see the other side and rejoice. It’s in cycles and waves, patterns and rhythms.
I no longer want to fight for what I already have. Instead, I want to fight to keep it. Because the only things in life worth living for are the things that were with us all along.