Good Cop Gone Bad ~ Rewritten

24| emergency

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•POV switch
Aria Marino•

Everyone walked out after Riccardo's request to speak to me privately. I was very confused as to why he would want to speak to me. I had only ever spoken to him once, when I met him, and I had only said my name.
As soon as the door had closed behind the last person who walked out, which was Matteo, Riccardo gestured me to the chair which was next to his hospital bed. His injuries seemed very severe as if he had been brutally beaten. Although, Sofia told me it had been a car accident. If it was, it had to have been a very bad one. His voice sounded rough and weak as he spoke.
"I just want you to know a few things before everything moves on from where it is now." he says, confusing me even more. What did he mean moving on from where we are now? And what exactly did he want me to know?
My eyebrows furrowed before I replied, "Know what?" I asked.
"My son has never believed he is capable of loving or caring for anyone at all, until recently. He never liked showing his feelings at all, which I certainly take blame for. Although recently, he seems to have turned that around, not towards us, but towards you. After he met you, all Alessandro has been talking about is how he suddenly has feelings. Now he obviously always had them, but I think you helped him discover them. I believe you can help him. Aria, I believe that having a kind and caring woman by one's side brings more power to a man than him being alone. It brings more positivity and happiness in life and I genuinely believe both you and my son will benefit from being in each others lives." he said, making me speechless.
I knew I liked Matteo, and I knew he liked me. I also knew he said he had not dated much, but I thought all that meant was that he just never had an official relationship. I mean obviously he had taken women on dates before and had feelings for them. I did not think that meant he had not opened up to absolutely anyone before. If there is anything I did not think of him as, it was unemotional. He was sweet, caring, and kind. That was the only side of him he had ever shown me.
It made me realize that there was still so much I did not know about him. I knew his family. I know his job, the way he acts, how he presents himself. And maybe I did notice it, how his disposition changed when we were in public from when it was just us. In public, he would be in charge, almost demanding attention, everyone knew who he was, and everyone did his bidding, automatically taking his requests and making them happen. When I was there with him, all of his attention seemed to be on me. He took care of the plans for me, made sure I was comfortable, and everything that happened made me happy.
I had seen enough to know that if he had no experience dating, then he had a good example. I had seen the way his father looked at his mother, and I knew why he treated me the way he did. He treated me the way he saw that his father treated his mother.
Matteo and I had never spoken about our parents, but I can only hope he is grateful for having his. I could only wish I had parents like his growing up, that cared for him and each other. I was glad his parents had raised him to be who he was now.
And I could only wish that I was a parent like them in the future.
"Now, I am sure there are a lot of things he has not told you, just as I am sure there are things you have not told him. Just please be patient with each other. Patience can be just as important as communication at times." he continues, and I nod.
"Thank you. For making him who he is." I tell him, making his face slowly morph into a smile.
"It is just my job as a parent." he says. Those words triggered something in me. Because that is how parents should be. But not all of us were so lucky.
I sighed and tried to keep my expression as it was, although I most likely failed. I felt the tears pricking my eyes, but held them back and swallowed the lump in my throat that told me I was about to cry. "One can only hope to have parents like you two. And yet not all of us end up with that kind of luck." I mumbled and he looked at me sadly, seeming to understand what I said in his own manner.
"I raised myself to be who I am now for my children and my wife. And from what I have noticed about you, you did the same for yourself and for your sister. But do not consider yourself a burden when other people try to take care of you because they care for you. I made that mistake many years ago and it almost cost me the love of my life. Take my words of experience and grow, sì?" he asked and I nodded.
"Thank you, signore." I said and he chuckled.
"You can call me papà, tesoro. Just as you call my wife mamma." he said and I smiled widely, still holding back tears. We spent a few minutes discussing random things before he asked me to go get Matteo. I began to walk out but before I did, he called me back. "Oh and tesoro?" I turned to look at him. "They have faith in me, but I truly do not know if I have much fight left in me. Please be there for them? He will try to hide his emotions, but I want him to know that it is okay to feel."
His words struck me like a smack to the face, making me sad once more, but I simply nodded at his request. "Sì, papà." I said, and he smiled.
When I walked out, he was sitting in a chair right by the door. His head was rested on his hand, his elbow on the chair, as a nurse was talking to him. She was young, maybe a year or two younger than me. She was taller than me though, a blue eyed blonde woman. The rest of his family was watching her with pure disgust as she rambled on to him about a random topic he seemed to have no interest in. "Matteo." I called his name, making his head quickly turn to look at me.
His face quickly lit up and he stood out of the chair, making him practically push the nurse out of the way as he bumped into her due to how close she had been standing to him. "Sì, melodia? What did papà want?" he asked, placing a hand on my waist and a kiss to my forehead.
I smiled softly at him, placing a hand on his arm. "Just to talk for a bit, but now he wants to talk to you again." I said and he nodded, placing one last kiss on my lips before entering his fathers hospital room.
I sat on the chair he has just been in which was also right next to his sister. She smiled at me and leaned her head on my shoulder, so I leaned my head on hers. I noticed Laura had shown up with Allegra, which I honestly had been waiting for, seeing how close Allegra is to the family.
The nurse looked at me curiously. "Who are you?" she asked, disgust laced in her voice as she began stepping away since Matteo was no longer there.
Allegra chimed in. "She's his girlfriend. And who are you?" she asked sarcastically. "Oh yes! Just an employee whose name he will not even remember two minutes from now. Leave." she said angrily and the nurse scurried away.
I held back a laugh, but quickly let it go when Alessandro was laughing as well. We all laughed a bit, before calming down. "Technically I am not his girlfriend yet." I said, making most of them roll their eyes.
"He's still too much of a pussy to make it official?" Aless asks jokingly, making me laugh once more. Sofia gives him a look and he stops, thinning his lips and avoiding her eyes.
I sigh before explaining. "I mean, we have only known each other for a little less than a month. And we have gone on a date, but he has not asked yet."
Mamma chuckles before responding. "Well I doubt he can hold out much longer." she says with a suspicious look on her face, making my eyebrows furrow.
"Mamma do you know something?" Aless asks her, making her smile sheepishly.
She shrugs her shoulders innocently. "Maybe, maybe not." we all laugh at her antics before going into other topics of conversation.
For the first time in years, even though there are bad things going on around us, I was not in a bad mood. I found people that could make me feel happy. Friends, family. People who knew how to love each other and did. They cared. They took me in as a loved one simply because I was dating Matteo. I was content in the moment.

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only one school week before thanksgiving break 🙏🙏 im almost there

more coming hopefully soon.

~elle 🌸