𝐂𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄, damiano david

━━𝟓𝟖.𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞

Rays of sunlight glared in my eyes as I sat in the passenger seat of Damiano's car and he drove us back to his parents' house. I didn't know how to tell Sophia that our father had died, so I hadn't called her back yet, I had turned off my ringer because she kept calling me.

I felt bad for not answering, but I needed a quiet moment to talk to her, I couldn't just call her during the car ride and tell her the news, at the hospital I had to sign a lot of papers after the doctors had explained to me exactly what had happened.

Apparently my father was under the influence of alcohol when the accident happened, I wasn't surprised, he realised he would lose in court against me and alcohol had always attracted him.

My fingers stroked the outside of the car, my arm hung out of the window because it was already extremely warm, and the wind whipped through my face. I was enjoying the feeling of nature outside, but my thoughts kept circling back to what had happened yesterday and today.

It all felt very surreal, first the joy of probably winning in court and now the certainty that it no longer made a difference whether the judges would rule in my favour or my father's, because he was no longer walking this earth anyway. Apart from the sound of the engine and the whipping wind against the bonnet, everything was silent, but my thoughts felt like the purest hurricane.

The police had been to the hospital but they hadn't spoken to me, a policewoman said she would get back to me over the next few days to sort things out, I wondered what there was to sort out, my father was dead, what could I do now? I knew that as his eldest daughter I was responsible for organising a funeral, but I didn't even know who to invite, I hardly knew my father, he had been like a stranger to me.

"What are you thinking about?" Damiano asked me suddenly, pulling me out of my thoughts. I thought for a moment before answering, I didn't want him to worry, "About everything and nothing, actually. It's so fucking strange, my father died a few hours ago but nothing really changes in my life because of it, I'm even a little relieved."

Damiano waited a long while before saying something again, "I know what you mean. It feels surreal, it's true," he agreed, "For years you were afraid of that man and now suddenly he can never hurt you again, that's relieving, but at the same time he was your father," he said quietly.

"Yes, he was my father, even though he never acted like one, he was still a parent of mine. Now I don't have parents anymore, neither does Sophia, and the ironic thing is that we lost both of them in a car accident," I laughed humourlessly, then I had to swallow.

"You know you still have a family, right?" Damiano said and put his free hand on mine, "We're still your family, the band, my parents, we love you and Sophia, you still have us," he assured me and the tears in my eyes spilled over, I averted my eyes and swallowed again, "Thank you," I whispered softly because I was sure my voice would break if I spoke out loud.

"Don't thank me for that Cora, it's a privilege to love you," I sobbed out loud once after he said that, he stroked my palm with his thumb to calm me down, I knew he didn't like to see me cry.

each of your tears is an ocean on my face

The rest of the way home we were silent, Damiano went to his parents when we got home to tell them what had happened so that I could finally talk to Sophia on the phone, who had called me again at least ten times.

The certainty that Damiano would have to leave again tonight hung over me like a dark storm cloud, but I tried not to think about it yet.

Sophia was so shocked that she didn't say anything for a few minutes when I told her that Dad hadn't made it.