Pieces

5. Heartache

a/n: Dedication to @101SecretsThatIKeep for the amazing trailer on the side :) Also, my sincere apologies for what has turned out to be the worst chapter so far XD Kindly bear with me till I start editing :P

After a quick silent lunch with Antonio and his family, I started towards the room they had kept for me. As I followed Mrs Lachowski up the stairs, the thought of finding something there crossed my mind. 

"They're all in good hands." 

What if he left a "piece" with Antonio as well? Was I supposed to ask him? Then again, Antonio, knowing the purpose of this runaway trip, would have already given it to me. Or maybe he'd just left it in that room, so he wouldn't have to hand it over to me himself. 

What could Marcus have left for me anyway? A letter? A picture? I didn't even know what I was supposed to be looking for.

"I hope you like it." She gave me a small smile as she turned the knob of a wooden door, located on the right side of the staircase. 

I smiled back and after adding a quick 'thank you', I made my way into the room. The first thing I noticed was a painting hanging across the wall. It was a beautiful painting of, what I supposed, must have been Venice. It was detailed, with perfect vintage shades of brown and blue and pink. Awed by the painting, I walked towards it, squinting my eyes to see the artist's name. But there was none. 

I then looked around the room. It wasn't very large, but it wasn't too small either. It had one light pink wall, attached to which was a queen sized bed, perfectly set with cotton bedsheets, three small white cushions and a plain brown quilt. The other walls were covered with green floral wallpapers of varied designs, adding an authentic look to the room. To the left, there was a long European window facing the beach. I went over to have a look and to my delight, found that the beach wasn't too far. 

I couldn't wait to go to the beach. Lose myself in those inviting waves, feel the salt burn against my skin, with nothing more but the vastness of the world around me, the limitless stretch of the ocean confining a world I longed to discover...

"Am I disturbing you?" A voice from behind me, made me jump. 

I turned around to see Antonio standing at the door. I shook my head slowly as I remembered why I was really here.

"Can we talk?" He asked.

"Sure." I said, unsure of what kind of a conversation we would be having.

He closed the door behind him and went and sat on the bed, then tapped on the space next to him. I plopped down next to him. 

"I'm sorry for earlier." He whispered. I looked at him, sensing at once, the guilt in his voice. 

"That's okay. It isn't your fault. I asked you." I said, a bit disappointed that this was what he had wanted to talk about.

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. It's just..." He paused, then looked at me, as if wondering if he could trust me or not.

"If you don't want to talk..." I started.

"No!" He said. Then he buried his face in his hands, before looking at me again. "It's just that... the truth..." He gulped."... It has still not sunk in.... and having you here..." It was easy to see how much of a struggle it was to say these words. "... Having you here just proves it... Like, it is like... a slap in the face, you know... And I'm sorry I haven't been very..." He scratched the back of his head. "Very... hospitable... But it hurts... It hurts so much..." He stopped at that, his eyes already red. He looked at his feet then as if afraid to say anymore.

A silent tear rolled down my cheek, as I thought about Marcus. And how I'd never meet him. How I'd never see him in person again. There was that horrible ache in my chest again, suffocating me from inside. But I could deal with my pain later. I had to be there for Antonio right now, I tried to think rationally.

I placed a hand on his shoulder, as I searched for the right words to say. "It's okay, Antonio. I understand. I'm sorry." I croaked. "And you're right." I gulped. "It hurts so bad." I took my hand away as another tear rolled down my cheek. I could feel his eyes on me and quickly wiped it away. "I guess... I guess I'll just give you time... to... adjust with..." 

"No. If Marcus saw how I made you cry. If he saw how much I hurt you, I don't think he'd forgive me. There was something he told me before he..." 

I flinched and then looked up at him expectantly. Realising how hard it must be for him to tell me, I took his hand in mine, taking us both by surprise, and squeezed it, reassuringly. "You don't have to if you don't want to. It can wait." I told him, quietly, even though I didn't want to wait. But for his sake...

He sighed loudly. Then turned to look at me again, with a hint of a smile on his face, that although, didn't quite reach his eyes, was beautiful all the same. "Antonio Lachowski." He said, as he held his hand out for me to shake.

I looked at him, puzzled. He gave me no answer. I looked at his hand again, seeing how it wasn't shaking this time. Maybe he wanted to start afresh? Be friends? I threw him a small smile as I shook it. "Garima Mehta." 

"So, Garima, what do you say about a walk on the beach?" He asked, casually. "Unless... you'd like some rest first?" 

"Sure, I guess... I'll just... change into something better first." I told him. 

"Alright. I'll be waiting downstairs." He said, before getting up and leaving.

I unpacked my backpack and decided on wearing a white sleeveless dress with floral print, that went up to my knees. I went into the small bathroom at the corner of the room and having quickly changed, was about to head downstairs, when my eyes fell upon a small wooden desk at the other side of the room. A photoframe caught my attention. I went up to the desk, wondering if it was a picture of Antonio and Marcus.

A younger version of Antonio grinned back at me from the picture and standing beside him, was another boy his age, looking shyly at the distance. The other boy had long brownish black hair, that reached his shoulders and he was smiling at Antonio, only half of his face actually visible. He was wearing a grey shirt and was taller than Antonio and lanky. Antonio, meanwhile, was dressed in a striped blue and white T-shirt, a goofy grin on his face. 

They looked so happy in that picture. I wondered what they must have been like at that time... I mean, I already knew about Marcus... Or I thought I did. But what must Antonio have been like? I remembered the time when he'd first mentioned Antonio. They'd had a fight around that time and he'd been really upset about it. 

I took the photo frame in my hand, wondering if it was supposed to be a hint. There was nothing on the desk, except for a lamp and a pen holder. I emptied the contents of the pen holder, hoping to find something there. But there was nothing.

Sighing, I put everything back in it's place and proceeded to put the photo frame back in it's place, when the latch behind it, got opened by mistake. Something fell out of the frame along with the picture. It was a piece of paper and it had been folded neatly. 

I picked it up, wondering if this would be what I'd been looking for. Unfolding the paper, I discovered something printed on it. It looked like a conversation. 

I sat on the bed and began reading.