Danger and Tattoos

A Year

               River's POV::

    Xander walks out of the hospital room and back over at me. I've been avoiding seeing him and he hasn't asked for me. The words he said before he lost consciousness run through my head.
    I love you.
For some reason the thought of loving each other hasn't crossed my mind. Maybe the blood loss made him say things he doesn't mean. Maybe he doesn't even remember what he said.
    "You can go in and see him now. I'll come back in a few minutes and bring you some clothes to wear. That way you don't have to stay in a bloody dress." I thank him and walk in the room.
     Vito lays in the bed, not wearing a hospital gown, but sweats that look too large around the waist and a T-shirt. His eyes land on me, but he soon looks away.
    "I'm sorry, I can leave," I say, turning to walk out.
    "No, stay. I want you with me," he says. I walk over to him and sit in the seat next to his bed. His eyes are dull and red under.
    "Red?" I ask.
    "Nickname," he says. He touches the tattoo on his beck that has red ink. "This is the only colored tattoo I have and it's in a obvious place. Xander and Fin make fun of it." I lean over and kiss his lips. "What was that for?" He asks.
  "Not dying."
   ××××××××
      
    I wake to the sound of someone walking around the room. My eyes open in fear. Vito looks over at me with a grin, walking back to the bed. "You scared me."
    "Sorry," he says. He lays down with a wince.
   "How're you feeling?" I ask. He only looks at me, taking in a deep breath. I take his hand in mine, but he takes it away. "Sorry."
    "No, its fine. I'm just not feeling so great," he says. "Can you lay down next to me?" I do as asked, making sure not to hurt him. "I love you."
    "Do you remember saying that before you passed out?" I ask him. He shakes his head.
   "I thought this was the first time saying it," he say with a chuckle then groans. "They came in and gave me medication about twenty minutes ago. It should start kicking in."
    "That's good," I say, looking at my knuckles and hands that still have blood stuck in the cracks. He takes it and kisses my palm.
    "I apologize for scaring you and you having to see all this. This is why I wanted to wait to claim you. So you wouldn't have to deal with this shit." My expression falla further.
    "You regret it?" I ask. He shakes his head, grinning.
    "There's no way in hell I can ever regret that. The other night was...the best I've ever had. I knew it was going to happen sooner than later. I don't regret that night at all," he tells me. He leans in the best he can and kisses me hard. My lips move in synch with his.
      A knock in the door makes me pull back. Two police officers walk in. "You Vito Reign?" One says.
    "Yeah," he answers, tensing. "River you should go back out to the lobby for a little bit."
    "No, she stays; she was with you when it happened. You have a history of gang activities on your record," the other says. "We're guessing this was involve with that, but you were the victim this time. What we do have is the murder of a young women named Julia Williams last week. You were there that night at the club and were said to leave moments after her body was noticed. Looking at the other things you've been involved in, there's a pattern. What your involved in has hoi deal with the women and you stab them in the back. Your a back stabber," he finishes. I look down.
    "Easy spot to get the job done," Vito tells him. He doesn't eventually and deny it.
    "Because your fingerprints couldn't be traced, but your the number one suspect, you will be getting a year in maximum security prison," one of them says.
   "Sounds fun. See you guys there," he says. The door closing makes me look up again. "You okay, baby?"
    "No," I say. "How am I supposed to be okay when I just found out that you're going to prison for a year."
   "I've been in there before for two years. I know people, we have connections, I'll be fine. We will be fine," he finishes, wiping my tear away.
    "I love you." His eyes lock with mine.
    "I love you too."

AN: "Another one" 😂. Please comment and share! Believe in yourself -Vaeh