Locked Out of Heaven [Complete]

Part 10

The click of the door roused Adelina and she buried herself deeper into the blankets.

"Adelina. Get up. Now." Zia's voice was stern. Adelina groaned and grudgingly sat up. Zia bustled around the room, picking up her discarded clothes.

"First, you don't say anything when Parigi is here and then you go sulk in your room afterwards. If you had something to say, then say it. I won't hold it against you, at least, if it's directed against him.

Adelina threw her hands up."What does that mean?"

"It means I don't like him either." She launched into a string of none-too-friendly Italian.

Adelina shook her head. "Anyway, what about Roberto? Did he say anything before he left?"

Zia stopped what she was doing and shot a hard look at Adelina. "Are you two a... a... a thing or what? I can't figure it out. You like him well enough and he looks like a decent fellow so you two disappear into god knows where and then show up late to a marriage meeting-"

"I'm not marrying Parigi!"

"-and then he says, quote 'I don't intend to go after your daughter, sir.' Those were his exact words. What does that mean?" Zia finished, a little out of breath. She went into the bathroom to put the clothes into the hamper.

Adelina flopped back down into the bed and buried her face into her pillow. What did it mean? Was he intimidated by the house, the parents or Parigi? No. Roberto's not like that. When she woke up after that man had drugged her, the first thing she saw was Roberto's face hovering over her. He looked concerned and made sure she was okay to the point of being annoying, but she noticed his hands were trembling and his eyes were newly haunted so she let him fuss over her. When she insisted that they still go to the park, he had resisted gallantly. He wouldn't be scared away that easily. It was something else.

As they progressed towards the park, he had grown visibly calmer and quieter. At the park, their conversation was, to her frustration, of little substance. Once, when he went to the bathroom, she had taken the chance to study him from the back. And on the heels of his shoes, faint red stains reminded her of the stains on the man's suit jacket. She squeezed her eyes shut. No. Roberto's definitely not like that. It could have been red paint or ketchup or... Adelina struggled to come up with more red things. Besides, a million things could have happened between the time she passed out and the time she came to. She shivered. Anything could have happened.

"Aunty!"

A reply came back slightly muffled from the bathroom. "What?"

"Can you fill a bath for me?"

"In the middle of the day?" Zia appeared at the bathroom door.

"Yes. Please. I'm tired."

Zia raised one eyebrow but decided not to push any further. "Alright."

When she heard the faucet turn on, Adelina got up and walked over to her closet. She opened the closet doors and looked at herself in the mirror hanging inside. She took a deep breath. When she was small enough to fit inside, she used to climb into the closet and watch herself in the mirror. The light slanting in from one open door would fall onto one side of her face, and she would smile. The side of her face that she could see would pull up, but the other side remained indistinguishable from the darkness. Everyone has a hidden side. And strangely, that made her feel better. When she was little, she comforted herself with the thought that nobody could truly tell what she is thinking at any time. It gave her a bit of protection against the knowing smiles and the sympathetic looks from the adults. But one day, after a fierce battle against her mother, she had climbed inside only to find that the sun was too far gone and all that remained was the dark part. The nightmares had only stopped several years ago. She shivered again. What was Roberto hiding? Did he really like her? Why didn't he say anything when Parigi put his hands on her? And what happened before she woke up?

"You're not thinking of climbing inside, are you?" Adelina stiffened, then realizing that it was only Zia, relaxed and sighed.

"No, Aunty. I'm not."

A pause. "I don't think Roberto is right for you."

Adelina took her time in answering. She closed the closet doors and turned around to face Zia. "I know nothing about his family and his situation in life. At least, not enough to form an accurate picture. And although he is a funny, good-looking and reasonable lad, that alone will not maintain a sustainable relationship." she recited.

Zia narrowed her eyes. "You're being awfully rational about this."

Adelina continued. "Therefore, I conclude that you are correct. In matters of practicality, at least."

"Adelina..."

"I look forward to being chaperoned by you, Signora." With that, she brushed past Zia and entered the bathroom, closing the door behind her. The click of the lock shook Zia out of her surprise.

She stayed and looked at the closed door for several more minutes. She's locked herself up again. Zia found that, as Adelina grew older, the girl had grown to keep more and more to herself. One of the reasons why Adelina was allowed to mix with the homeless was because of that seclusion. The children made her light up more times in an hour than she would in an entire week with her family. She sighed. Eventually, Adelina would see that she was right. Roberto is not for her nor her for him. But what else would the girl have to go through before she would know that? Zia laid out Adelina's clothes and satisfied that Adelina wouldn't sneak out, left the room.

In the bath, one thought had pushed its way to the front of Adelina's mind. Roberto smelled like candy. Like chocolate. Dark chocolate.