The Suffering Of Fools (IJ Fanfic, Sal Vulcano X Brian Quinn)

Part 9

It had been a week since she had gone. Sal lay on his bed in the thick, muggy air of the late evening, arms stretched flat before him. In one hand he held his phone, waiting eagerly for her to call, and in the other, he held a small framed picture of her, face half buried in their covers. He traced her printed features with his thumb, lost in her eyes of gun metal grey that glittered blue in the lights.

He stared at her image, and missed her tender embrace. Sal's phone rang in shrill tones, pulling him back to reality. Fumbling, he answered
"Hello?"
"Sally, baby, you have no idea how good it is to hear your voice" she sighed
"Clarabelle, thank God. How are you?" he breathed. "How's Jamie?" he asked, more flatly.
"He's fine. I'm.... Fine." she whispered
"What's wrong? What's happened? Belle, why did you pause?"
She was silent, and he wondered if she had hung up. The only sign that she was still there was her soft breathing that began to shudder slightly.
"Sal, I miss you" she struggled. How he wished to hold her once more in his warm, strong arms.

They spoke for almost an hour. She told him of her new work, and of her charge: the cause of their bitter parting. He spoke little, happy to hear her voice once more.
"So tell me again what the work is? It sounds fantastic!" he breathed
"well, it's for a show the BBC is running - a Shakespeare adaptation of the historical plays. It's the wars of the Roses, so it's brilliant for me in the costume department, what with all the armour and stuff." he could hear the smile in her voice. "But the way they're doing it, there's one person in props for every actor. So it makes it much easier for us, working with the same size dimensions in every new costume. You'll never guess which actor I've been paired with...." she squealed, making no attempt to hide her excitement.
"Who?" he laughed, happy with how joyful she sounded
"The lead role of Richard III-"
"that's fantastic!"
"-acted by Benedict Cumberbatch!!!"
She could hear his jaw drop. After moments of silence, she said "Sal? What do you think?"
"I-I'm so happy for you!" he stammered. "babe, well done."

They continued talking for a little longer, about her excitement, and his hope for her return. They hung up, and he felt warmed. He lay down again and looked at her image, lost once more in her eyes.

Pulled back to reality once more by his phone, he answered, surprised. It was Q.
"come on, open the door" Brian laughed. "I'm outside, and I wanna talk to you."

Sal left the room, leaving his phone and her gentle print alone, half sunk on their bed.