Hold On To Me (Marina)

28.Let You Down

28.

Just follow what you feel, not what you know
And I won't let you down
(Mega-Let You Down)

It had been two days since Keira's last therapy session and things weren't going smoothly at all. The girl looked nervous, almost embarrassed, as the two women's presence caused her anxiety, but neither Maya, nor Carina could understand why. They were aware of the fact it probably was about something she had discussed with doctor Wyatt, but at the same time the psychiatrist had told them the session hadn't gone badly and that confused them a lot since they hoped for Keira to finally trust them more. Truth was that was exactly why the girl felt so uncomfortable. Feeling safe around someone who wasn't her brother was causing her so much discomfort. She felt scared and guilty at the same time and all she wished was to vanish forever, with everyone forgetting about her. She wasn't stupid and she knew how much her presence had affected Maya and Carina's lives. She didn't deserve that kind of dedication, not when her brother had died for the same exact reason. Someone knocking on the door brought her back to reality.

"Come in." she muttered, sitting up on her bed.

"Hey." Carina softly greeted her, opening the door. "Maya went to the supermarket, is there anything you need?". Maybe new memories, the girl wanted to answer, but just shook her head instead. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Keira said, looking away. She felt nauseous and all she wanted was the woman to leave her alone, but she knew that would never happen. Carina could sense that something was very wrong and let out a sigh, then gazed at the girl, softly, her eyes full of tenderness.

"I'm going to prepare lunch. Would you mind to help me?". Keira bit her lip, pensive. What was she supposed to do?

"Okay.". She jumped off the bed and followed Carina to the kitchen. The woman handed her some potatoes. Keira didn't waste time and silently started to peel them, while Carina was chopping some ball peppers.

"So, what is your favorite food?" the Italian started.

"Oh, erm... I..." Keira stumbled. "I... I don't know.". No one had ever asked her before. Moreover, living on the street hadn't exactly given her the chance to think about what food she liked more. She had learned to just hope to find something edible able to fill her stomach, nothing more.

"Come on, there must be something you really like. I mean, Maya told me about eggplants, but is there a particular way you enjoy them? I'd love to prepare a special meal for you sometime.". Keira shrugged. She really didn't know what to say. "One of these days I will cook you my famous parmigiana di melanzane.". The girl frowned, having not idea of what Carina was talking about. "It's like a lasagna, but layers are made up of fried eggplants and then there is mozzarella, tomato sauce and parmigiano reggiano on top."

"It sounds good."

"It is!" Carina confirmed. "You definitely need to try it!"

"Well, I'm open to it." Keira replied, smirking. Surprisingly, she was feeling way more at ease now, she didn't know why and how. Her gaze met Carina's, who smiled at her with sweetness.

"Okay, now we can put the potatoes in the water." she instructed the girl, who did as told. They waited few minutes, then Carina took the potatoes out of the boiling water and chopped them, under Keira's curious eyes. She transferred them in an oven dish with some oil, salt, pepper and rosemary and put everything in the oven.

"And now let's set the table.". Keira nodded and helped Carina with the table. She was bringing the glasses when Maya suddenly came home.

"Hello girls!". A loud crash resonated in the room. Carina turned around and gasped. Keira was on the floor, surrounded by broken glasses, her hand full of blood. Both women went fully on first responder mode and rushed to the girl, only causing her to flinch and step back, crawling on the ground.