GOLDWING (ing version)

chapter 2

"VIC, NO. I'm NOT SEEING THAT," he said, running to the bathtub where she was sitting.

At that moment, he was simply speechless. I mean, it's understandable, anyone would be. Seeing his best friend sitting in a bathtub with her left arm covered in cuts, he felt one of the first times in his life that he didn't know how to do. With his legs starting to shake even more and his eyes filling with tears, the only impulse he had was to hug her.

"You better not even look at me, Dami. I know, I look awful."

"You don't look awful Vic," he said, holding her hand that wasn't hurt.

They sat in that bathtub hugging each other for about 30 minutes, there was no necessity to speak, they could understand each other by simple looks, or gestures. Her cry spoke, and his hug replied.

"So, do you want to talk about why you do this?", Damiano asked, while observing the wounds.

"Can we not talk about it?"

"Sorry Vic, but no. It doesn't have to be today, but it has to be."

"Just give me some time, ok?"

"Right."

Then, he carried her on his lap to her bed, and he lay there with her, and also managed to put a towel around the cuts, trying to stop the bleeding that was still occurring.

"I know it sounds weird but... can you stay awake? It's just... I'm afraid," she asked, in a trembling voice.

"Sure, you don't have to ask it, Honey," he said, leaning her head against his chest.

After staying awake for 5 hours with his arm around Vic's fragile body, sleep was already showing in Dam's greenish eyes. But meanwhile, she fell asleep, and so did he. When he opened his eyes again, it was already 7 am. He carefully removed his arm from her waist, went to the balcony, and took a cigarette out of his wallet, which is almost with no cigarettes inside. He hadn't quite processed what had happened the night before. That was impossible to process. When he was smoking his 2nd cigarette, he looked back and saw Victoria, already sitting on her bed.

"You can come if you want."

She joined him on the balcony and took a cigarette out of his wallet. He also noticed that her eyes were still red, and her face was very pale. She had a crying attack.

"What happened, Vic?", he asked, worried.

"Can you just hug me?" she glanced at him, with her blue eyes shining.

When a tight hug fits, it's like the world stops there. That's exactly what he felt every time he hugs Vic, and vice versa. One Vic's hug would alleviate Dam's problems, and one Dam's hug would alleviate Vic's problems, no matter how big they were.

"Victoria, it's almost breakfast time, and Nick told us to don't be late for the outfit test... I need to go back to my room to shower and dress another thing."

"I'll be there in a minute. Just pretend that nothing of this has ever happened, okay?"

"Not Vic de Angelis, that was serious.", he sighed worriedly "By the way, I need to see your arm."

"Does it have to be?"

"Yeah, it must be."

When he removed the towel, he noticed that none of the cuts were infected, but they weren't starting to heal, so he put his medical skills into action: he took a healing cream, rubbed her red arm, and put some bandages on it.

"Wow, you're being a good girl, Vicky," he glanced at her, smiling.

"Maybe... but this is some English class? And don't call me Vicky, ok?"

"I'll keep calling it, you know it."

"You're unbearable, right? I hate you," Victoria said, giving a slight smile.

"I love you too," he answered, while replacing one of the bandages

After he went back to his room, he saw that Leo was gone, and took a shower. While the water passed on his body, he couldn't stop thinking about what had just happened. Because it was serious, very serious. After rubbing a bit of his sweater that had a bit of blood, he grabbed on the first clothes he saw, which generally don't happen because he's very vain.

According to his phone's clock, he was 10 minutes late. And when he looked back, he saw Vic, getting out of the lift. So, they went together, until the reception hall.

"Damiano and Victoria, you couldn't be any later?" the manager protested.

"A problem happened," Damiano said, sighing.

"What kind of problem?"

"He... he was voiceless. But now that's already fixed," Vic added, interrupting Dam.

"Ok, you two are excused this time. But it's better if you go to the van, Nick is already there with Chantal, waiting for you."

During the car trip, Dam didn't even know Vic anymore. She was super happy, didn't even look the same as a few hours ago. And that's why he thought she'd been hiding how bad she was until that moment, and neither he nor Ethan nor Thomas haven't noticed that. And the guilt feeling was suffocating him with each second passing by.

The question that was still running in his mind was: why Vic had been so intimidated by that touch from a few days ago? But he still hadn't gained enough courage to go talk to her about it. It could be some not healed scar, some trauma. Everything he wanted to see was her little angel safe, and not causing her any trigger.

While the band was sound testing, he stared at Vic's eyes. They were extremely red and swollen again, just as they had been a few hours ago. But at the same time, she seemed to be happy. Even so, if anything she's good at it's on hiding unpleasant feelings.

The concert was awesome, the fans received them with immense affection, as always. There were only a few things during it that 'warned' Damiano: the way Vic looked when they played Coraline, her tired look, and also some random power spikes. For example, all of a sudden she was super quiet, and then she was already very energetic, and that's not a good sign.

At the end of the gig, Ethan, Vic, Thomas, and Leo went for a walk, but Damiano decided to go to the hotel to get some rest. And there he stayed, in the bed of his bedroom just with a sweater and shorts dressed marathoning The Big Bang Theory for a few good hours.

After a while, Leo ended up going back to the hotel to the room he shared with Dam.

"So, the party was good?", Damiano asked.

"We didn't do anything special, we just walked around the streets, and then we went to the Hard Rock Café," Leo said, a little breathless.

"Where's Victoria?"

"Vic didn't come with us. I haven't seen her since the end of the gig."

"Wait, that's impossible. She told me she was going out with you all. Where is she?"

"Mr. Protective, Victoria is a grown-up. She has the right to go wherever and whenever she wants."

"Leo, you don't understand. She's... sorry, I can't tell you," He says, shaking his voice slightly. "Where did you park the car we rented?"

"I think it was in a cornerstone."

"Where are the car keys?"

"On the table, I guess."

"Thanks, Leo, see you soon."

"Hey Damia, you should wear your shoes, right?" Leo said, mocking.

"Oh, yes."

He put on his Dr. Martens, grabbed the keys and his cell phone, and hurried out of the hotel. Luckily, he could see the car parked outside the hotel. Of the countless bars he passed, there's not even a sign of Victoria de Angelis. He just wanted to know if his light-eyed 'baby girl' was okay and safe.