Mia and Gio

"You're slightly annoying and chauvinistic for a murdering thug," I mumbled.

He didn't have a comment for that so I closed my eyes and let the feeling I had been hoping for all night wash over me. Only now, even though I wouldn't admit it out loud, I was slightly scared of not waking back up.

"Mia?" Gio sounded miles away. "Mia? Wake up Mia!"

I was already too far gone. I shut him out and let sleep completely wash over me. Goodnight Gio.

I woke up confused. I was very confused. I tried to look around to make sense of my surroundings and came up short. I couldn't even move. I tried to yell and found I couldn't even open my mouth. My body wasn't working. I was paralyzed. I tried to recall what happened but I could only remember lying in the back of his car. Giovanni. Gio's car. It was like a jump cut. One minute I was relaxing in Gio's car playing our own rendered version of 21 questions and the next I know I'm here.

"Who is this girl Gigi?" a hushed voice whispered.

"Why are we whispering? She can't hear us," Gio responded.

"Don't disturb her. Now where did you say you met her?" she asked. Gio groaned. "I'm only asking out of concern. When you brought her here, she looked like she somebody had been hitting her. Son, did you beat this girl up? You can tell me the truth."

"I told you ma. She was walking around the street at 2 am. Me and Tony had just finished leaving the club handling business. I didn't do her nothing ma."

"Tony and I," she corrected. "Not tony and me you say 'tony and I'. You need to tell me the truth Giovanni Reyes. Did you hurt that girl?"

"MAAAAA! I SAID NO!" he yelled.

I heard a slap and Gio groan. "You're up," the woman said softly. "I told you you would wake her up," she whispered hissed at Gio. "Nurse! She's up!"

I looked around for the voice and came up short. I couldn't tell which direction it came from. I tried to speak and found that not only did that make my throat burn, but I couldn't find the words. 2 women came in view. One was a nurse, which was obvious by the face mask and scrubs. The other was an older woman with gray eyes and forehead wrinkles.

"You are ok dear. I'm Sarah, Gio's mom. You are safe. Do you remember the last 24 hours?" The woman who wasn't my nurse asked me. "Blink twice for yes, once for no. 3 times for kinda sorta."

"Don't do that," the nurse informed. She shot Sarah a dirty look and shook her head.

I wondered why I couldn't move or talk.

"You were pretty bad when you get here. We had to stitch you up and slap some casts on you, but you're ok now. You are going to make it. I'm going to remove that tube from your throat and nose. Do you want water?" the nurse asked slowly.

Did she want me to answer that?

"Ok I'm going to sit you up. Are you in any pain?" she asked.

I really hoped these questions were rhetorical. There was no way I could answer.

She removed the necessary tubes and I was thankful for the immediate relief. She pressed a button and the bed slowly folded until I was sitting in an upward position. I could see my surroundings and I could see that I was in fact not at a hospital.

Almost instantly, she held a cup of cold water up to my mouth and tipped. I found with surprise that I could swallow. It was like I hadn't drunk anything in years.

"Can you talk?" she asked. "What is your name?"

Did I know my name? I thought about it. Amiah Gabriella Johnson. "M-mia?" I answered unsure. The voice didn't sound like it belonged to me. It was raspy and sounded like my throat was raw. "Mia." I said again testing the voice out again. It was coming from me.

"Can you tell me what happened the other night Mia?" she asked. "The night you got hurt."

"Did Gio beat you up? You can tell me sweetie!" Sarah said. "I'll get him for you."

"Gio, get your mother," the nurse instructed.

"H-how long was I out?" I asked in a shaky voice.

"Only for 12 hours. It's only 3 pm. You must have been extremely tired. Do you remember what you were doing before you woke up here?" she asked.

I looked at Gio and saw him look away. He knew that I remembered what happened. The murder played back in my head.

"I was walking around the street looking for help. I was hurt," I lied.

I don't know why I lied. I don't know why I didn't just tell the truth and get out of there. Maybe because I thought I owed him a little. He didn't let me die last night. He got me medical help risking himself. Maybe I was just scared that he would kill me too.

"Do you know who hurt you?" She asked.

I nodded. I knew who hurt me but I would never speak his name out loud. They say if you say a demon's name out loud, you give him access to you. I would never say his name willingly.

"Is he in this room?" his mom asked.

"I'm at the end of my rope with you Sarah. Either hush up, or I'm putting you out again," the nurse scolded.

I shook my head no. She was intrusive but she was also comforting me in a motherly way.

"Do you remember screaming when you were brought here?" she asked. This was news to me. I must've looked surprised because she nodded. "You were very much alert and woke. You were crying and begging not to be sent back to him. You were fighting so hard we had to sedate you. Do you remember any of that?"

I shook my head no. I didn't remember any of that. I vaguely remember Gio calling my name before I woke up here. That's all.

"Who is Angel?" Gio blurted. "You kept screaming to keep him away from you."

"GIO! I told you not to ask her that!" his mother yelled.

I stiffened at the sound of his name and saw a dark haze. I didn't speak his name out loud. I hadn't spoken that name in months. I refused to say it. It was Satan's birth name. That man was the reason for my appearance. That man played with my life like a game. He was always him or he to me. Never had I called him by name. Evil had no name, but if it did...

"I need to go," I mumbled.

"Let me go get you something to eat first. Gio, don't upset her anymore," his mom demanded before leaving with the nurse.

He walked over to me and sat on the edge of the bed. "I didn't mean to upset you Mia," he said sweetly.

"I just want to leave," I requested.

"I don't know if I can allow that." He said nonchalantly.

"Allow what? Me to leave?" I asked.

He sighed like he was talking to a child. "Where are you going to go Amiah? You're parents are dead and you don't have any other family. You don't have any friends and you don't have any money. You can't walk and obviously you can't even take care of yourself."

I stared at him shocked that he knew so much about me.

"I did my work Mia. Listen. I'm your best bet right now. I saved your life. Why would I take it after all this? Are you really so naïve that you can't accept help being blatantly offered?"

"Your intentions are wrong. You are trying to keep me prisoner for your own benefit Giovanni Reyes. You just want to make sure I can't tell anybody anything."

If he was shocked at me using his full name, he didn't show it. Instead he smirked a bit and scratched his chin. Now that it was light I could really see him.

Italian? Pink lips. Brown eyes. Jawline stronger than your wifi connection. Dimples. Deep dimples. Tall. Dressed in Armani. Clean shaved. Handsome. Straight white teeth. Brown hair. Brown hair in a ponytail. Tattoos. The average wannabe gangster. I was unimpressed. Ok maybe I was a little impressed. Why did I want to get away from him again? I had always been a little boy crazy.

Oh yea. He had somebody killed.

"I can't stay here. You're a murderer. I won't tell anyone, but I won't stay here." I insisted.

"You didn't see me pull a trigger. I didn't do a thing. And listen, Mia, think of it as me helping you. Where are you going to go?" he asked sweetly.

I weighed my options. I really didn't have anywhere else to go. I was technically homeless now. I was on the run from a psychotic maniac and I didn't have a dollar to my name.

"Help me help you Mia. I saw that you were going to college for business. I need an assistant. My last quit on me. I could pay you for your work and assure you that no harm would come to you," He smiled. "What have you got to lose?"

"Ok," I agreed.

"Great. You can officially start your first day when you heal up. Don't want you scaring the boys," he said patting my head.

I hadn't exactly been trying to look beauty queen ready when I ran out that house. What a dick. I had no idea how I looked now but I couldn't look that bad. I was naturally pretty. It was in my blood to look beautiful when I looked a mess. That's what he had told me countless times.

"Where's the bathroom?" I asked.

I suddenly had an overwhelming urge to look in a mirror. To see how I looked. I was raised to look my best at all times. My father always told me that I had to be beautiful. My beauty would get me somewhere in life. I could be whatever I wanted as long as I was beautiful. He always said beauty was the key to the world.

"Come on, I'll show you," he said starting for the door.

I laid there and wondered how the heck I would follow him with a big ass cast on my leg. I didn't even know what was wrong with me. I didn't know if it was broken or sprained. At that moment his mother and his nurse decided to come back with my food.

"She's decided she's going to stay here for a while. She doesn't have anywhere else to go, so I was generous enough to let her stay here until she gets herself together." Gio said smugly.

"That's great. I can come over every day to check on you and make sure you're healing properly. No offense, but you look like you could use some motherly guidance," his mother said unsurely. I could tell she was hesitant to say that last part but I didn't take any offense to it.

I smiled at her generosity. I could tell that I would like this woman. I could definitely use motherly guidance. Or at least I thought so.

"I would love that. I do believe some motherly guidance is in store. What all is wrong with me though?" I asked.

My nurse walked over to the chart on the bed stand/ table thing and flipped through the papers. "I didn't work on you last night. I had my team handle you while I overlooked. I had to step out for most of the time. I had some business to discuss with a patient. I was only told that they stitched up your side, but it seems that you were in horrible shape. Your ankle is broken for starters. Clean break. Should heal fine but I'll be monitoring that. They had to stitch up that cut on your side, your lip, and it seems you also had a cut on your forehead bandaged. I see that you also had to have your stomach wrapped. Nothing too bad. I'll be watching that cut closely though. You were cut pretty deep. You would've bled out through the night. You do have bruises and cuts just about everywhere. Face, neck, arms, legs, thighs, back, waist, and wrists are all bruised pretty bad. I just about called the police when I saw you, but I figured you needed help immediately. Should I call them now?"

"No, I'm ok. I don't want the police in my business. I'm ok. I promise," I swore.

And I was. I was safe away from him. Lord knows I would rather die than be back in that apartment with him. I wasn't going to ever go back.

"Gio could you step out for a moment?" she requested. "You too Sarah."

"I'm not leaving my Mia's side. She's the daughter I always wanted Gio to be. I need to be here for her. I love her," Sarah pouted.

"This is confidential," she urged. "Patient doctor confidentiality and all that. So be on your way would you?"

"It's fine," I said. "She can stay. He can go."

He nodded and proceeded to do as asked. Once he was out the room the nurse's faces got more serious and she let out a long sigh while shaking her head. Sarah came over and grabbed my hand.

"While being evaluated, I decided to personally give you a Rape Kit. Since you couldn't consent, I only did an external evaluation. After checking you out, I had to do a full test to make sure you weren't in any danger. Honey, you were and still are torn up down there. Even your cervix was bruised. It looked like you were assaulted with a foreign object. I know you said you're ok, but I want to make sure you are," my nurse said quickly.

I turned my head the other way and closed my eyes. I didn't know what to say to her. Tell her about what he did to me? That day in that apartment was the most humiliating experience in my entire life. I would carry that secret with me forever. There were just some things better left unsaid.

She sighed. "I understand. You'll talk when you're ready," she said with understanding.

She would never understand what I had to do to survive those couple of months. I was down to my last options. Last meal. I had to make some money fast and that's what brought me to him. She would never understand the things he put me through in that one bedroom apartment. I couldn't relate to this woman. She would judge me from her to end of the world.

"I'm not ready," I said shaking my head.

"You're safe sweetheart. Nothing will happen to you," Sarah promised.

Too bad I knew better. It was only a matter of time and resources before he found me. He always found me.