La Vie En Rose |MÅNESKIN|

Chapter 29

TW: ED and abusive parents

2021, Rotterdam, Netherlands

"Dami?"

The boy turned around and Michelle saw his beautiful face covered in blood and bruises, making her gasp loudly. She tried to walk up to him, but some arms kept her far away from him while someone wearing a mask attacked Damiano again.

"No! Dami! Please!"

The person took off her mask and Elle's breath got stuck into her throat. No, it couldn't be possible, no.

"Dad?" Her voice broke when she saw his smirk, the same one he had when he abused her. "Dad! Please don't! Please don't hurt him! Not him!"
"Michelle, Michelle, tu as vraiment cru qu'il t'aimerait encore une fois qu'il réaliserait à quel point tu es folle ? Je ne te croyais pas aussi stupide, mon enfant." (You really thought he would still love you once he realised how much of a freak you were? I didn't think you'd be that stupid, my child.) Her father looked like a maniac, with his hysterical laugh.
"No, no! I love him, and he loves me!"

The brunette was now screaming and crying. It was so painful to see the man she loved being beaten by her father, she wanted it to stop, she needed it to stop.

"Elle! Michelle, wake up!"

Michelle woke up with a start as Damiano was yelling and shaking her arms looking worried sick. She was breathing heavily, sobbing and trembling. It was just a dream, it had only been a bad dream, it was not real. The Italian singer took the French girl in his arms, hugging her tightly and rocking her like a child, trying to comfort her.

"Do you need anything? Your meds? Clara said..." He was definitely worried, she had started moving in her sleep and crying, waking him up, but he was glad he did.
"No, I... I just need you... to stay with me." The brown-haired girl said in between two sobs.
"Shh, it's okay, it's okay, I'm not leaving you, never again."

The two exes cuddled in the bed, Michelle clinging into his body as Damiano was brushing his hand against her skin to calm her down. The boy's head was resting on hers, which was on his chest, he loved this feeling, he loved to have her so close to him, but he wished the circumstance were different. In her sleep, Elle had talked about her dad, begging him to not hurt someone, saying that she loved that someone, and that he loved her too. He was curious, he wanted to know who that person was, secretly hoping that it was him. Damiano sighed in relief when Michelle finally fell asleep again, he wanted her to be happy, to be fine, and she was not. Clara was right about her nightmares, they were bad, worse than he had thought. He knew that Elle always had trouble to sleep, when they were younger, she always used to be the last one awake, no matter how tired she was. Most of the time, she just watched her friends sleep, writing some lyrics in her notebook, but sometimes, she would leave the room and find a space to watch the stars. Did he deserve her? No, Damiano clearly did not deserve Elle and her forgiveness, and he knew it, but he was not going to complain either. He watched her sleep for a while, as Michelle was holding him like he would disappear if she did not, but this time he was not going anywhere, not ever again.

Michelle woke up early the next morning, her memories of the previous night were kind of blurry, then she remembered her talk with Damiano, and her nightmare. It had felt so real, she was scared to look at his face, scared to see that it was real, but when she looked up, she saw his beautiful features and she could not help but smile. The brunette lifted her hand and started to stroke his hair, smiling. She had always loved to woke up next to the Italian singer, he looked so peaceful, like a child.