Lover II- ML

335. A Slow Week

In the days that followed, Kaia spent a lot of her time either at the hospital with her father or at home with her family to grieve.

The first league game came and went without the involvement of Mapi and Kaia, but they did watch it from Sicily and were glad to see the team start off the season with a 2-0 win at home to Granada.

On Sunday, Jenni stepped onto the estate for the first time to deliver fresh milk to Giovanna and Antonio.

Mapi saw her through the window of the annex in the early morning, passing the basket over to Giovanna and getting a grateful cheek kiss in return.

It was such a sad way to bring family together, but Jenni had somehow broke down all of her fears to make sure Gia's family knew she cared, knew she wanted to help in any way she could.

On Monday morning, Kaia felt guilty about keeping Mapi and Fabian here because she wanted to be with her father still.

Fabian had nursery which Mapi had to call in to mark his absence, while it was a new training week at the club that they could've easily fit back into.

But it was too soon for Kaia to leave. Almost losing her dad made her realise how precious the time they had together was. She wanted to see him walk again, hear him laugh properly before she could go back to her life in Barcelona.

Mapi was so incredibly patient when she could've complained about not sleeping in her own bed and being completely out of her routine, how their fitness and place on the team was at risk the more time they took away from the club.

But Mapi took Fabian to the park and carried on trying to teach him his abc's, letting Kaia spend the morning with her father before coming back to spend the rest of the day with them at the estate.

Matteo had slowly increased his mobility, meaning he was able to be helped into a wheelchair and taken outside into the fresh air.

The stitches in his neck were almost dissolved, leaving a neat line of healing skin which meant he could finally shower properly again with the help of Elinor to keep his body upright.

His discharge day was getting closer and closer, with the monitoring of his brain, kidney and injuries becoming less regular as he got back to his independence under the care of his family.

But there was still an underlining sadness when he'd wince or needed to take a deep breath, a painful reminder of what he had been through and was still fighting through. 

"Kaia, speak to me, bimba." Matteo urges on Tuesday afternoon.

Kaia looks up from her cards, realising it was her turn but she hadn't made her move. "I'm just thinking."

Matteo nods, urging her to continue. "Do you want to tell me?" He offers.

"We lost Carmelo." Kaia says quietly, putting her cards face down. "He's just... he's gone."

"It's heartbreaking, I know." Matteo says sadly, not bothering to hide his devastation from his daughter who could read him as well as his wife.

"And you..." Kaia looks to her father's cut and bruised face with tears burning her eyes. "I've never been so scared in my life, I don't know what I would've done if you..."

Matteo reaches over the table and places a hand over Kaia's. "I'm right here, bimba." He assures. "I'm going to meet your twins, I'm going to watch you play for your country again, I haven't left you."

Kaia feels her bottom lip tremble, so beyond grateful to feel the warmth of her father's hand on top of hers. "Please visit more." She begs quietly. "I know it's difficult with the horses-"