The Tomato of My Heart~Chapter 13

"N-n-no." Lovino stuttered the words. Although it was entirely cliched, Antonio felt his heart shatter at the Italian's response.
"No?" Antonio's voice was cracked and dry, trying to hold back the tears that were dying to pour out. "Why? I mean, I'm p-perfectly okay with it..." He lied, feeling his eyes water up more and more. "It's just.. I want to know w-why..."

Antonio tried to look at him, but Lovino turned away, as if not daring to make eye contact. "I can't... It's not safe, not for you, not for me. I can't. It would be better if I just left..." Lovino replied, getting up off the couch and heading towards the door.

"No! Lovino! Wait, don't leave!" Antonio tried to persuade him, although the attempt was futile. Lovino was gone, and the Spaniard was left alone to wallow in his woe and self-pity. He wasn't that kind of person though. He had a cheerful nature, always laughing and smiling... So, why was he just sitting there crying, all alone, staring at the spot where Lovino was.

"You know, self-pity doesn't get you anywhere." A voice came from behind. He turned around to see Isabela standing there, although she was thinner and actually sick-looking. "Believe me, I know. I've been using pity this entire time, and look where it got me."

"Shut up..." Antonio told her half-heartedly. "It's your fault, isn't it?"

Isabela looked into his eyes and sighed. "Well... Yes. It is. But, I feel terrible about it. I've realized something. The look you have in your eyes when you're with him, it's something you never had with me. You really love him, don't you?" Antonio didn't want to talk to her. He didn't want anything to do with her. All he did was nod.

"Then go after him. I hate seeing you all depressed like this. You're supposed to be cheerful and upbeat. Listen, I don't have much time left here, but screw my own selfish desires, I want to see you happy again. Go find him and bring him back with you."

"But... I can't. He won't come back... He probably hates me now. He won't come back to me. There isn't anything special to come back to. He ran away, and even if I do chase him, he'll just say no again... And what do you mean you don't have much time left?"

"I'm dying, from an uncurable sickness, I've got about 2 weeks left at most. But, that's not the main focus!" The Peruvian girl slapped him, causing him to look at her.

"But it is, you're dying and I've been to much of an egotistical jerk to realize. I'm an idiot... A good for nothing bastard, no wonder Lovi hates me." BAM. Another slap across his face.

"Antonio Fernandez Carriedo! I will not stand here and listen to you talk bad about yourself!" She yelled. "You're amazing, charming, sweet, and anyone would be lucky to have you! Lovino knows that! He's still in love with you, dammit! He's important to you, go chase after him." Antonio shook his head. "No? Fine then. If you're going to be a cowardly bastard, than I'll go and get him myself!"

She started to run out the door, her red dress bouncing after her. "Wait, where are you going?" Antonio asked.

"I'm getting Lovi. I'm bringing him home." Isabela ran out of the house, onto the streets, looking for the auburn-haired Italian.

She had been searching for around fifteen minutes when she saw a man slumping in his chair outside a cafe, his rust-colored hair the only thing you could see. Isabela spotted that peculiar curl again, only it was drooping. Now... How to get his attention? I know! I'll just pull that odd little curl... I mean, it's not like it does anything. She walked over to him took the piece of hair in her hands and twirled it around her finger. She could tell he stifled a moan.

"Antonio?" He looked up, the look on his face priceless. "You! What do you want with me? I said no! And DON'T pull my curl!" He gave a pissed off, yet frightened, look and ran off.

"Dammit! Lovino, come back!" She looked ahead. He's not looking where he' going is he? Lovino's going to get hurt! She saw a bus driving down the streets.

Yet, Lovino kept walking, not knowing what was about to come. Isabela ran, ready to save the Italian. The large vehicle was still barreling down the roads, paying no attention to the man walking in front of it. It was now or never.

"NO!" Isabela screeched, pushing the Italian forward and out of the way, taking the hit full on. She let out shocked scream. The bus stopped, she heard something crack, felt a few seconds of unbearable pain until everything faded to black.

She woke up in a hospital, sore and confused, the steady beeps on her heart monitor were the only noise filling the room. She looked to her side and saw Lovino sitting there, the look in his eyes had a very readable bewilderment in them.

"You're awake." He said, his expression not changing. It made Isabela wonder all of the thoughts that were swirling in his head. "But I have one question..."

"Go on." The Peruvian woman told him.

"Why the hell did you save me?" He asked the question that caused the silence to fall. Minutes passed while Isabela just sat there, speechless and pondering.

"Well... I had a sudden realization." She started to explain what was happening. "So, I was dwelling on the dream that told me to keep chasing after him no matter what. Then once I saw how he was after you rejected him, I felt like a bitch..."

"I'm with you so far." Lovino gave a small chuckle.

"As I was saying, while I was holding onto my own selfish dream, I was destroying a true, destined love... That dream caused so much pain. I wasted all of this time, where I should have been doing things that I've always wanted to do... Instead I was so focused on getting Antonio. I learned something, it does not do well to dwell on dreams, and forget to live." Isabela looked up at the ceiling and closed her eyes, as if praying. "I'm sorry Lovino, and tell Antonio I'm sorry too. Take good care of Daniela for me, and if you want to tell her how much of a monster I really am than do it."

"But, you're not a monster." Lovino said. "Sure, you may have been a bitch who made my life miserable, but you're not a bad person. You know your mistakes, and you faced them proudly. You care about Daniela, that I can tell from what you've told me. You took things in the wrong direction... Yet, at the crucial moment you risked your life to save mine. You're not a monster, you've... Changed."

Isabela gave a slight smile. "Are Antonio and Daniela coming?" She asked, hoping to see them, her eyes peering around the corner.

"Yeah, I made sure to get a hold of them. They should be here by now." The Italian checked his watch. As if by magic, Isabela saw two people walking down the halls, a man and a little girl.

"Hola?" Antonio said quietly. "Isabela? Are you awake?" He entered the room, his expression hopeful. He looked around the room and spotted Lovino sitting in the uncomfortable chairs. His expression changed, and suddenly his green eyes filled with a depression that tugged at the heartstrings and made someone who had not known this man before well up with tears. Antonio had that ability to brighten up a room when he smiled, however it also worked when he was sad, making the atmosphere dreary and dismal as well. "Oh... Hello, Lovino."

He didn't make eye contact with the Italian, whether it was because it would cause him to break out crying or because it was just a shallow reflection of his desires, something he couldn't resist. Antonio was easy to read, and it was obvious that the one thing he yearned for was Lovino, to hold him in his arms again and feel their lip brush across one another's again. Lovino replied with a slightly eager "Antonio", as if he wanted to say a bunch of words, dying to spill out.

Daniela entered the room, hugging a small stuffed animal. It was a small wolf, one of her most treasured possessions. Maybe it wasn't what it was, but who had given it to her. It was a present from Lovino, and ever since he had given it to her, she never let it go. "Mami? Are you okay? What happened?" Her eyes were wide and filled with a worry that Isabela had never seen in anyone so young.

"I just got a little hurt, that's all." She smiled, deciding to take what really happened down a notch, not wanting the toddler to worry.

"That's not true." Lovino faced Isabela, an odd look in his eye. Lovino was harder to read than Antonio. "Daniela deserves to know the truth, you said so yourself. She should know what her mother did... And how she saved my life." He faced Daniela. "Your mother is a hero."

Antonio's eyes grew huge. "Y-you saved him? How? What happened?"

"Well, I was walking down the street when a bus came and was like 'Hey! I love your face, so I'm going to run you over because you look like you need a hug!' but then it hit Isabela instead." Lovino tried to bring humor into the topic, either that or he decided to be a total asshole to Antonio on purpose.

Isabela laughed, only to feel a sharp pain shooting at her side. Antonio didn't seem to find it very amusing, if he did then he had a pretty good pokerface. It was the first time Isabela actually noticed the friction between the two. Antonio was stiff and bitter to the Italian, not showing his usual 100-watt smile. "Are you okay, Tonio?" She asked, only to receive a curt nod. That may have been the question that caused the silence to fall, for everything fell into that painful, awkard silence.

The air was tense, filled with hostile glares from the two men. "Listen guys, I'm sorry!" She said as loud as she could. "All of this... It's all my fault. It's my fault he said no, it's my fault you two are like this. I tore you two apart! Tonio... He loves you, so stop acting like an uncharacteristic asshole to him... I've been a bitch, and I hope that one day you'll come to forgive me."

"What's a bitch?" Daniela asked, causing all three of the adults to turn a slight shade of red.

"Nothing really... It's just a female dog." Lovino said, giving a nervous smile and patting her on the head.

"Oh, okay." Daniela shrugged it off.

Lovino sighed out of relief. "Continue what you were saying, Isabela."

"I'm so sorry, for everything. But, for now... I'm so very tired." She felt weak, like all of her energy was fading. No, it was more like it was being sucked out of her. "I feel so weak... I want you guys to know that I regret what I've done to you, and when you look back, you can either remember me as that bitch who tried to seek redemption," Isabela turned to Antonio. "Or you can remember me as the woman who saved your wife." She gave a wink, and gave a faint smile.

Antonio turned back to Lovino and whispered something. The Italian replied with a nod and a "Well, if you must, go ahead. I won't fucking stop you." Antonio grinned and leaned over to Isabela, catching her by surprise. He placed his soft lips onto hers and pulled away.

"Te amo, Antonio." Isabela smiled. "Always. Lo siento..."

"Esta bien... Yo te perdeno." He kissed her forehead. "Adios, Isabela."

She gave a faint smile and closed her eyes, until she felt everything ebb away. It was an odd sensation, painless, yet filled with emotional pain for a second, until it too was lifted away. Her spirit had left her body, and she stood, watching the scene below.

Daniela was crying, begging for her to wake up. "Mami! Mami! Wake up!" She pleaded.

Antonio knelt down and hugged her, trying to soothe his daughter. "It's okay, Dani... But, she won't wake up, mi hija." He tried to tell her. "She's an angel now." He saw a small Euro coin in the ground and picked it up. "See this?" He tried to smile, although his eyes were tearing up. "They say that when you find a coin, an angel's watching over you."

Daniela took the coin and placed it in her pocket. "Really?" Her eyes grew wide, although they were still watery.

"Si... So, keep your eyes open, and I'm sure we'll find a lot of coins in our path."