Sunshine (Take Two Sequel)

Chapter 28: Joe

I was standing in the kitchen with Ben. We were cooking breakfast together. I was making eggs and Ben wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed my cheek.

"Good morning, my love," he whispered softly. I smiled and turned my head slightly so I could kiss his lips. We both smiled as we kept cooking. It was a perfect morning, but it was suddenly interrupted when we heard a loud bang at the front door. We both looked over and saw Nick standing there.

"You!" Ben yelled. "You get out of my house and leave Joe alone!"

"Oh I'm not here for him," Nick said. Before either of us could even respond, Nick punched Ben hard across the face. Ben fell to the ground and Nick held him down with one foot while he pulled out a knife.

"No!" I yelled. "Don't hurt him!"

"Joe!" I heard Ben yell to me.

"Just stop please!" I yelled at Nick.

"Joe," Ben said. "Wake up."

"What?" I questioned. Nick was about to stab Ben, but my vision started to get blurry.

"Joe," I heard Ben say a little clearer. I suddenly started to feel him shaking my arm. "Baby, it's alright. Wake up, Joe. Just wake up." My eyes suddenly shot home and I sat straight up as the nightmare ended. I turned my head and saw Ben sitting in bed next to me with a concerned look on his face.

"Was I asleep?" I asked him.

"Yes," he said. "You were having a pretty bad nightmare, so I woke you up. It's alright, you're home safe." He softly rubbed my back as I sighed. "Do you want to tell me what happened?" Ben asked.

"Not really," I said. "I just... I just wish I could sleep without that happening."

"I know, love," Ben said softly. "I'm sorry."

"I don't understand it," I continued. "Nick literally tried to murder Lilly and she seems perfectly fine. What's wrong with me?"

"Nothing is wrong with you, honey," Ben said. "You went through something really traumatic. Lilly did too, but I think she just has other things on her mind to focus on. She's going to be a mother of two soon. She's probably stressing about getting her nursery ready and... pushing two humans out of her vagina."

"Real nice, Ben," I said. Ben chuckled softly and kissed my cheek.

"Maybe you just need closure," Ben said. "Maybe... maybe we should go see them in prison." I shoot Ben an angry look.

"You can't be serious," I said. "That's crazy."

"Maybe," Ben said. "But it may help. You can give him a piece of your mind with a barrier between you. It might make you feel better." I sighed.

"I suppose," I said. "But you have to come with me."

"Of course," Ben said with a smile. We lied back down and tried to fall back asleep.

The next day, we decided to go to the prison to see Nick. The guards let us in and I sat on one side of the glass while Ben stood back against the wall. Nick walked in and sat down. We both picked up the phones as he stared me down.

"I see you brought protection," Nick said. "You didn't think the guards would be enough?"

"I didn't come here to take abuse from you," I said. "I came here to try and get some closure." Nick scoffed.

"Closure," he said. "Who are you kidding, Mazzello? It doesn't matter what you say to me. I'll always be in your head, no matter how long I'm in here for." I swallowed as he glared at me. I was just about to give up when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up expected to see Ben, but instead, I saw Freddie.

"Don't let him scare you, darling," he said. "That's what he wants." I nodded and picked the phone back up, turning back towards Nick.

"You're a terrible person, Nick," I said firmly. "You're a sexist, racist, homophobic bigot who gets off on hurting people. You beat Freddie up and left him to die in the snow. You attacked Roger when he was just walking down the street. You kidnapped and raped me and you thought it was hilarious and perhaps worst of all, you tried to murder Lilly, who is not only pregnant but also one of the nicest people I have ever met. I hate you more than you know, and I hope you get a taste of your own medicine in here." I quickly hung up the phone before he could respond and turned around to see Freddie and Ben smiling at me.

"That was incredible," Ben said.

"Perfect, darling," Freddie said. "Couldn't have said it better myself."

"How do you feel?" Ben asked.

"I can't feel my hands," I said. "But I do feel better, honestly. Even if he doesn't care about anything he said, I'm glad I said it." I stood up and walked over to Ben. He kissed me and grabbed my hand. Freddie put his hand on my shoulder as we all walked out.