Third Time's The Charm

Chapter 20

"Grazie, bambina. Per avermi mandato tuo fratello. Saluta nonna e zio Andrea da parte mia, e ringraziali per uno dei miei regali più belli del mondo. (Thank you, bambina. For sending us your brother. Tell grandma and uncle Andrew that I say hello, and thank them for one of my best gifts in the world)," I said, placing a kiss over the picture and walking out of the room.

I quickly washed my face with cool water before making my way out, in hopes of helping the redness and puffiness in my eyes go down a bit quicker. My drive to Ezra was silent, my mind still racing through all of the what ifs. I came to the conclusion that Lucia was meant to bring us Ezra and that's all that mattered now. If it wasn't for her leaving us so suddenly, we would have never been able to allow this beautiful new life to enter our world.

I arrived at the center, parking in the first spot I saw. Eager to hear all about the bambino's first day. I walked up to the reception where I was greeted by a wonderful lady who helped me sign Ezra out and led me to his class. I peeked my head through the door and watched as he continued to play with some of the kids. The room was filled with laughter and smiles. He seemed to have really fit in. The teacher noticed I was at the door a few seconds later. She greeted me with a kind smile and a wave as she tried to get Ezra's attention. I motioned for her not to, not wanting to interrupt the moment he was having with his new found friends.

"You're more than welcome to come in," stated Miss Williams as she made her way over to where I was standing.

"Oh, no, it's okay. I don't want him to see me just yet. He seems to be having fun," I responded. The teacher nodded and went back to what she was doing.

I watched the group of boys through the small window for a couple more minutes. I noticed Ezra had slowly started to separate himself from the group, making his way over to the bean bag chair on the opposite side of the room. He had placed his thumb in his mouth and brought his free hand up to his ear in an attempt to muffle the noise around him, using his shoulder to cover the other. He laid in the bean bag and curled up as tight as he could, squeezing his eyes shut. It was obvious that something was bothering him. I observed him for a minute before making my way over.

"Ezra? Tesoro?" I said as I kneeled beside him, gently running my fingers through his hair so as to not startle him.

"No touching!" he shouted, swatting my hand away before placing his hand back over his ear. The teacher gave me a concerned look to which I simply shrugged, confused about what was going on.

"Okay, I'm sorry. No more touching. Can you tell me what's wrong?" I asked.

"Too loud," he whispered, squeezing his eyes a little tighter and bringing his knees further up into his chest.

"Okay, do you want to go home?" I questioned. Ezra nodded in agreement and slowly made his way out of the chair. He walked over to his cubby where he attempted to grab his stuff without uncovering his ears.

"I've got it piccolino," I cooed, reaching for his stuff as he continued to struggle. I mouthed a thank you Miss Williams and waved goodbye as we made our way out of the classroom. I observed Ezra as we walked to the car. He covered his ears the best he could while he continued to suck on his thumb, his eyes open only enough for him to see where he was going.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Too bright," he responded. I took mental notes of everything he complained about and what I observed. This was definitely something worth bringing up to Maya and Dr. Karev the next time we saw him.

I made myself comfortable in the driver's seat after helping Ezra get settled in the back. I reached for the radio, turning on some soft Italian music in hopes of helping him relax. It played for about ten seconds before he requested that I turn it off. I felt slightly useless at this point. I didn't know what was wrong or how to help him.