My Angel

CHAPTER 29: COMFORT

Ayla's pov~

      Maddie squealed beside me. "Oh my God!
This is hilarious!" She turned toward me, still chuckling. "You have to admit, this one was pretty funny."

I shrugged and turned back toward the
movie. We were watching Hangover 2. It wasntoo vulgar for my taste.

Although I did find my stomach cramping from laughter when a man found out he had sex with another man whom he thought was a woman. I shivered when the truth was revealed. Too much nudity.

Maddie eventually paused the movie and
turned toward me.
"Okay. What do you want to watch? You
clearly aren't enjoying this. C'mon, pick
something funny and we will watchit," she suggested.

Since my nightmare last night and my
encounter with Alessio this morning, I had been a little down and quiet. I was constantly living in fear.

Maddie noticed and she made it her job to make my day brighter. She succeeded a couple of times. It was hard not to laugh at her enthusiasms and failed attempts.

She embarrassed herself to make me laugh. And I  was thankful for that.
"It's pretty late," I started and then smiled. I think we should go to bed. I'm worn out."

Maddie pouted and leaned against the arm of the couch. "But I barely even got you to laugh."

"And that's where you are wrong. You made me laugh at least five times and that's amazing in my book. You made my day better, Maddie," I said softly. Placing my hand on her knee, I gave it a squeeze.

"Are you going to talk to me?" she replied, her tone just as soft and inviting.
I wanted to. I wanted to tell her. It was
tempting, but the fear instilled in me, it
stopped me from taking a step toward that direction.

So, I shook my head sadly before looking
down. "It's okay," Maddie murmured before wrapping her arms around me. "You can tell me when you are ready."

Hugging her back, I nodded and then
leaned back. She smiled and I felt my lips stretch into another smile.

We got up and made our way to the
kitchen. Turning on the lights, she rummaged through the refrigerator and took out the poutine that Lena made for dessert.

"You want some?" Maddie asked as she
closed the refrigerator.
I shook my head and she shrugged. Putting a spoonful in her mouth, she mumbled, "Let's go."

Maddie and I were about to say goodnight when we heard a door open. We both swiveled around and saw Alessio coming out of the gym.

My eyes widened and my body froze when he approached into the light.
Alessio wasn't wearing his full suit. Instead he had his black linen shirt on,
which was halfway unbuttoned and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. But that wasn't what surprised me.

He was a mess. A bloody mess. There
were cuts on his face and his cheeks were swollen. His left eye was slightly swollen too and his lips were bleeding. He was limping, his body sagging forward.

"Oh my God," Maddie gasped.
He looked lost, deep in thoughts. He held on to the banister and slowly made his way upstairs, his legs dragging. Pain was evident on his face and in his posture.

My forehead creased in confusion and I
turned to Maddie. Her eyes were no longer on Alessio but she was staring at the gym door.

"I don't want know how the other guys
look" she whispered, her eyes wide. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the door opened and they stepped out.

This time I was the one who gasped. They looked even worse. Maddie rushed forward and I quickly followed.

"What happened?" she asked, horrified.