Hope. Less
Estephano's arm tightly wraps around Stephanie's waist pulling her to his chest catching her from the push she had just received from her father, who had taken the bullet meant to take away her breath for all of eternity.
Her father had saved her life taking the bullet in the shoulder very close to a vein.
Death stood watching pleased with the sight of blood and the sound of Stephanie's screams were like music to the master's ears.
Stephanie who was a thrashing mess watches as her father chokes on his own blood and past memories from many moons back come to haunt her innocent mind like a plague.
"Papa!' She sobs pushing away Estephano and placing pressure onto her fathers oozing wound and her salty tears falling onto her father's cheeks just like her tears had done when hovering over her mother's body for the last time.
Unable to hold back she begins to rock her father with fat tears of despair falling from her eyes and she pays no mind to the yelling and fighting between the officers and Leonardo off in the background.
Estephano watches with soft eyes but shuffles out of his daze when loud sobs continue to come from her.
He quickly goes to help Stephanie by taking off his dress shirt, succesfully exposing his chest but he could care less as right now he needs to make sure the man Stephanie cared for and who was the last family she had in the world would not die in her arms and despite the fear she felt for her father a few moments ago he knew she still cared for him because at the end of the day he was her father and he loved her just as she would always love him.
Eduardo just like her mother had saved her life and Stephanie was not going to lose another person she loved especially when it was to protect her. The past could not repeat itself it just couldn't.
If she losses her father it would destroy her and Estephano knew this so as he helped Stephanie stop the bleeding from Eduardo's left side he cared of nothing more but to make sure the man that had a gun pointed at him earlier would live to see tomorrow.
Estephano was in total concentration and on a mission only for his father to harshly pull him by the shoulder, stopping any attempts of helping a bleeding Eduardo who was being crowded by police officers who knew of not what to do while they waited for the medics to arrive.
Growling in frustration Estephano looks from Eduardo's wide eyes that were looking at Stephanie with love only for the same soft caring eyes of a father to land on Estephano with a harsh glare.
Unable to stand the look of hatred on Eduardo, Estephano grows furious and glares at his own father who he could not look at as it was his fault he could have lost his queen and any respect he could have potentially gotten from Eduardo.
"What!" Estephano roars now noticing his fathers men that were having a gun stare down with the officers in the room.
"Lets go!" Leonardo shouts in a warning telling his son that if he did not listen he would drag him by the hair all the way out.
But Estephano was not having any of his father's unsaid threats. He would not leave Stephanie, he would not abandon her. He promised himself he would not leave this office without knowing he would for sure see her the next day.
"Fuck off!" Estephano roars glancing back down at the dying man who stares at Estephano with curious eyes. The sound of ambulance sirens off in the distance serve as a reminder that the Bandoni's had to go as they could only hold off the cops for so long.
"Estpehano so help me god if you do not get up this instant!!!" His father roars noticing his men were being cornered by the officers and the loud barking dogs.
Shaking his head Estpehano looks at a frightened Stephanie who was already looking at him with sad teary eyes.
"Go..." She mumbles quietly shocking Estpehano who instantly shakes his head defiantly.
Smiling sadly to herself she knows this is it for them and if he doesn't leave now not only will she not be with him but he will be locked away for life and rotting in a cell while she lives her life trying to see him in jail which would never be possible with Eduardo's watchful eye.
She could not let him ruin his own life by staying with her especially when all he was trying to do was help her. She already lost her mother who was trying to save her and now she was on the brink of losing her father for the same reason, she could not let Estpehano do the same.
When Estephano doesn't flee Stephanie frowns and knows she needs to be harsh. So if that was what it took to save him from a caged eternity then so be it.
"Go Estephano Now!" She shouts replacing his hands on her fathers wound with hers.
"No I'm not leaving you!" He shouts back his voice deep with emotions.
This would be goodbye and he would not accept it. He didn't even get the opportunity to try and persuade Eduardo to give him a chance. This was not fair he thought as he watched Stephanie slowly giving up on him...On them but what he didn't know was that she was doing this for him. For them, as she would not allow this to be the last they saw one another. She would find a way to see him again but in order to do so he had to be away from prison where her father had eyes everywhere.
"Please, just go." She mumbles fresh tears falling from her hazel eyes that show pain and heartache. The sound of medics just outside the building indicate that their time had come to an end.
Estephano hears as his own heart shatters with how upset she was and he glares at her with hatred when he realizes she doesn't love him but that was not the truth. She wasn't letting him go because she hated him and wouldn't try to be with him, rather she was making him leave because she loved him too much to watch him rot away.
Shaking his head in disbelief he gets up and walks out of the room pushing past his father who nods in appreciation to the women coated in blood her eyes glancing from Leonardo's apologetic ones to her father's tired lifeless ones.
'He isn't sorry' she tells herself ridding the image of an apologetic Leonard.
The sound of feet shuffling behind her do not pass her senses she just doesn't bother to look at them. Her eyes are solely focused on her father's eyes which have tears in them
Stephanie frowns her eyes watering with more tears of her own and the loud thunder of lightning makes this moment all the more awful for her, "Papa please hang on I can't lose you too." She pleads through sobs and her father's eyes instantly soften and he places a bloody palm on her right cheek caressing it as that is all he can do.
The sensation of her mothers once cold hand has her breath shuddering and tears increasing. The memories haunting Stephanie's present as she feels someone pull on her shoulder removing her from her father's clutches.
She screams and begs them to let her down as the last time this happened she ended up losing her mother for the rest of her life.
'Not my Papa!' She begs in the darkness of her mind. Her pleas bouncing like an echo of emptiness wanting for any powerful force to hear her plea and grant her her wish.
"No please put me down!" She sobs thrashing in the persons arms punching the officer in the face successfully drawing dark blood from the mans nose.
"I can't lose him..." She sobs in a deafening plead that has everyone in the room looking at her in pity but she doesn't want their god damn pity she just wants her father to be okay again. She wants to take back time and receive the bullet, but she can't as you can not take back time for time does not wait for anyone especially not for Stephanie.
'Why did he have to push me!!' She screams to herself all while she tries to get out of the two officers arms.
People needed her father to protect them and keep order, they don't need her, the world could go without Stephanie Martinez but the world needed Officer Eduardo Martinez.
Unable to control the once calm and collected female the officers where forced to hand cuff her before dragging her to the corner of the room to allow the paramedics the opportunity of doing their job.
Five men in white scrubs enter the room in a hurry and a stretcher trails behind them.
Their once white outfits are quick to stain with the blood that belonged to Eduardo. One of the young handsome officers in the room goes to where his fellow friends had Stephanie restrained with her hands behind her back painfully.
Her face sad and dazed, her lips screwed in a manner that indicates she was hurting and she was her heart was shattered and her hands were burning from how tight the cuffs were around her dainty wrists.
Reaching the two careless officers the blue-eyed officer sneers at his friends cursing them for not being soft on Stephanie. When he looks at her for the third time in the past minute or two, his eyes soften yet again with the sight of a tired Stephanie who looked nothing like she usually did.
Despite the blood coating her sharded dress and the scratches and bruises marinating her skin, she was beautiful in his eyes.
The man with dark blond hair looks down at the women with fondness feeling his heart beat out of his chest when her red watery eyes land on his at last. Her lips quivering as she watched in horror as her father was taken out on a stretcher into the thundering world where chaos was still present in the form of a storm.
"What the fuck Elijah take those hand cuffs off of her!" Stephanie watches as the blue eyes officer suddenly sneers in disgust while glaring at his friend who shakes his head in defiance.
Watching the men argue over her Stephanie sighs and with a quivering lip glance at her purpling wrists before her eyes follow the end of the stretcher which was taking her father away from her.
"Move!" She hears the man roar before he pushes the man to the side and taking the keys from his hands making Elijah's eyes widen in shock but he does nothing to stop his friend from taking the cuffs from the woman.
Once the blue-eyed man removes the cuffs from around her wrists Stephanie looks down and massages the fresh bruises with a frown, "Are you okay?" The man asks her softly while cupping her cheek and looking down at her as if she was the best thing in the world.
Unaware of the look of admiration the man was giving her Stephanie nods and fresh tears fall from her eyes as she pictures Estephano being the one to asks her this question and holding her like the man with blond hair currently was doing.
'This is wrong,' she tells herself pulling from the mans hold shyly and looking down at the spot where her father's blood was pooled like someone had split punch.
"I want to see my father," Stephanie says with a dazed faraway look on her face making the young handsome man frown but he nods his head and helps her up from the bench in the room.
"Okay I'll take you to him," the man says pressing her plush against his chest but not before taking the bloody suit jacket off her shoulders that belonged to Estephano as of which was also the only thing she had left of him.
The man unaware of the sentimental the silk navy suit jacket meant to Stephanie carelessly deposes the jacket onto the ground like a dirty rag and replaces it with his own heavy tan colored officer jacket.
Stephanie's sad eyes glance at the jacket and her heart shatters just looking at it slumped on the ground. However, she doesn't pick it up and take the strangers jacket off her body like she really wanted to do and this was all because she just had no strength to care at the moment, she just wanted to know if her father was going to be okay.
So instead of doing what her heart asked her to do she simply turns the other cheek and walks away, allowing the man to take her to her father who she could lose at any minute.
She was a fool and she knew it but could not care.
Walking past the frantic people in the room outside her father's office, who no doubt heard her scream and the gunshot that followed before her bleeding father came out.
Evey single one of them looked at Stephanie and began whispering amongst themselves silently blaming her for what had happened.
It is then that Stephanie begins to grow tired with the manner in which they speak of her. She was tired of everyone constantly placing her on a high pedestal when all she wanted was to be treated normal, like any human being. She was no god or any queen she was just a normal girl who wanted a normal life. She was human and she had feeling and flaws like them but they didn't take that into consideration. They were and still are blinded by the jealousy. They just want to find any flaw on her so that they can use it against her for their benefit and she was tired of being idealized as what all of them wanted.
Noticing the female he was attracted to slowly growing angry from the sight of her hand clenching to her side the blue-eyed man places his hand in her fisted one, spreading it open and interlocking their fingers successfully making Stephanie's breath hitch but not from enjoyment but of shock and uncertainty.
She tries to release his hold on her hand but he had tied himself to her like a leech and this made her more upset as the only hand she ever wants to be locked with was Estephano's who she couldn't have.
"Its okay just ignore them," the nameless man assures her and she defiantly shakes her head.
"No, I'm tired of them always judging me." She declares releasing his hold and glaring at everyone in the room.
Looking at the angry Stephanie their breaths hitch and they cower back, the whispers having stopped now that she had enough and was fighting back, "What a bunch of cowards." She sneers glaring at them all.
"You are all jumping at the opportunity to judge me and hate me and as soon as you find something wrong with me you poke at it like a dead bird! Well, I'm tired of not saying anything back. So as of now, I don't want anyone butting into my own personal life and if you guys cross me again I will promise you will all be sorry you ever crossed me!" She shouts clenching her fists before she walks out of the room in fast strides her chin held up high but the moment she reaches outside and the cold wet air hits her face she begins to weep and almost loses her balance if it where not for the pole beside her that she clutched onto like her life support as Estephano was not here to catch her and he never will be.
Stephanie then feels warm arms coaxing her into their warm chest and the smell of musky male cologne fills her nostrils and she closes her eyes picturing Estephano's arms around her and she finds her self giving in to the man's comfort.
In turn, the arm tightens around her waist and with the other hand the blue-eyed officer runs his fingers through her tangled locks while smiling to himself knowing his wishes of finally having a shot of being with the girl he had been secretly crushing on for the past three years was finally in his arms.
The pair are unaware of a pair of dark green pools watching them with jealousy and anger. All the anger the green eyes now permanently held was the cause of deception from the one he loved who was shamelessly hugging another.
Clenching his fists in anger Estephano walks down the dark hallway the tears of the sky blending with the single tear he shed as he walks back to his house with a broken heart and a dead dream clutching onto his heart waiting for a miracle to happen.
With each step Estephano took from the female and male embracing behind, Estephano's heart grew colder until there was nothing left but thick frozen ice surrounding his heart.