Chapter 41 Dizzy
My eyes flutter open, and I notice everyone around me looks concerned as they stare blankly at the object in front of them. On my left, my father is having a conversation with a man and Antonio. On my right, Fabio is sitting on the armchair while Valeria and Giorgio sit on the sofa with a frown on their faces. My face turns into a frown as I notice Dante is nowhere in sight.
Where is he? What the hell just happened? I feel like I was only unconscious for a second, but from the look of it, that's not the case. Considering I'm now lying in bed in one of the hotel rooms, a second is too short to carry me up here. How did I pass out anyway? That's so embarrassing. Why did that have to happen when I'm around hundreds of people?
Antonio turns around and stares at me. His eyes then widen as he realises I'm already awake. He rushes towards me and sits next to me. My father steps toward me and stares down at me. His visible wrinkles are more apparent as he looks at me with a frown.
"You're awake. Can you hear me?" Antonio asks.
"Yeah," I say. I lay the palms of my hands flat on my sides and push myself up. With his hands on my shoulder, Antonio gently pushes me back down onto the bed, preventing me from getting up.
"Stay there. Don't get up just yet. Breathe slowly," Antonio says.
My gaze stays on the ceiling as I control my breathing. For who knows how long, everything feels as though it spins around me fast. I shut my eyes, yet the feeling still stays, causing me to be a bit nauseous. After a while, the spinning finally stops, and I open my eyes again to find Antonio still staring at me with worry.
It's better if I go home right now. Or should I stay here until the morning? No. I should go back home. I'd rather wake up sick in my bedroom than in a hotel room. If I wake up in my bedroom, at least I don't have to worry about the hours of driving to my home tomorrow. Since it's already nighttime, I can easily fall asleep in the car without worrying about throwing up from being too dizzy.
"Can I go home now? I'm still dizzy," I say, covering my eyes from the glaring light in the room. Too many of the lamps are being left on, and they're hurting my eyes. Ugh, I can't believe I'm sick again. I was fine for two weeks, and then this happened. It's definitely the stress. I guess I'm way too stressed out lately with what's been going on.
"You should stay here and go back tomorrow. It's already late," Fabio says.
Fabio has his reasons, but I still want to go back home and not stay here any longer. I'm not sure why, but other than wanting to sleep in my own bed, I just feel uncomfortable being here. Something just feels off. Even though Fabio has explained himself earlier, I just feel like I can't trust him just yet. Hopefully, my father thinks the same way as I do and stays alert when he's around Fabio.
"But I want to go home," I say. My emotions suddenly get the best of me, and tears flow from my eyes as I sob. I try to hold myself back from crying, but it only makes me cry even more.
Why am I crying right now? Stop it, Alessandra. Ugh. I can't do this anymore. I feel like I want to disappear into thin air right at this second. Now that I remember it, this definitely has something to do with my period. If I'm not wrong, I'll get it in a few days. I hate being too emotional. Even though it's normal, I still hate it.
"Dante, go with her. Giulio is outside to drive you both back home," my father says.
Finally. Thank goodness. I need to get out of here before I embarrass myself even more. I feel like I'm going to cry even more if I stay here any longer. It's like my mind is split into two. One is acting on emotional impulses, while the other one keeps me sane and logical. It's tiring because no matter how much I try to stop myself from crying, it only makes me even more emotional than before.
"How about you?" Dante asks.
"I'll be fine. I have Carlo and Enzo with me," my father says.
"Alright, boss," Dante says.
Antonio and my father step away from the bed, giving Dante space to be close to me. With his arms under my knees and on my back, he carries me out of the hotel room. Once we're in the hallway, I wrap my arms around the back of Dante's neck and nuzzle into him as I calm myself down from my crying fit earlier. Dante only sighs and then stops walking.
"Can you please push the button?" Dante asks.
I keep one of my arms on the back of Dante's neck and use the other one to push the lift button. After a few minutes, the lift announces its arrival and opens itself. Once we're in the metal box, I push the button for the lobby and bury my face in Dante's chest again.
"You shouldn't be doing this," Dante says.
"I'm dizzy, and the light is hurting my eyes. Everything only gets dark if I do this," I say.
"Fine. Then stay that way," Dante says.
It's the truth, but there's another reason why I'm nuzzling into Dante. Being this close to him makes me feel at ease. This reminds me of the time when I cried into his chest after my mother's death. I can't help but smile at the memory. He was so worried, and I was embarrassed, but now, instead of embarrassment, I feel comfort and safe in his arms.
After a few minutes, we finally get to the lobby. Without wasting any more time, Dante carries me outside. There, a car is already waiting for us. Dante puts me in the car and closes the door. While he gets to the other side of the passenger seat, I put on my seatbelt and look at Carlo.
"Are you okay?" Carlo asks.
"Not really," I say.
A sigh leaves Dante as he closes the door. He then turns to me. The concern in his eyes is unmistakable. If he keeps looking at me like that, my feelings for him will only grow stronger, and I'll fall for him even further. What makes him so different from other men? There are many men who are way more attractive than him, but ever since I first saw him, I have a crush on him, despite how he acted towards me at first. I've been with someone as attentive and caring as Dante before, but still, he couldn't compete with Dante. I guess love at first sight does exist.
How long will we keep our true feelings from each other? That, I'm not sure. With how things have been lately, I'm not sure it's the perfect time for me to confess and tell Dante I know that he likes me. I still need to get rid of Antonio first before I tell Dante I also like him. He probably already knows that from how I act around him, but I'm still going to say that, but not now or anytime soon. It's for the best of both of us.
"How are you feeling now? Do you still feel dizzy?" Dante asks.
"Yeah," I say. Every movement the car makes, every tiny pothole we hit, I can feel them. Thankfully, my vertigo is not as bad as it was before. I'm just dizzy right now without the feeling of the world spinning around me.
"Did you feel sick before you fainted?" Dante asks.
"No. I felt fine. Things just went dark for a second, and when I opened my eyes, I was already in an entirely different room and on a different floor," I say.
"It's probably just stress. I mean, your father and Fabio almost got into a fight earlier," Dante says.
Honestly, I don't know what would have happened if Antonio and I hadn't intervened. They looked like they were ready to get on each other's necks. I can't believe they almost fought just because of a misunderstanding between them. Even though Fabio's explanation is reasonable, I can't help but think there's more to it. I don't think we can trust him and his family just yet. They're hiding something from us, but I'm not sure what it is.
"Yeah. I guess that's the reason," I say.
"Don't worry about them. Just rest for now. I'll wake you up when we're already back," Dante says.
"Okay."
With my back and head against the seat, I let my eyes close as I let out a sigh. Minutes pass, and the dizziness still lingers. I ignore it, trying to fall asleep. With how far my house is from the hotel, we still have a long drive ahead of us until we arrive, so it's better if I use the time to get a bit more rest. However, no matter how hard I try, my body won't let me fall asleep. I hate when this happens. I mean, I'm already tired, but my body doesn't think so and keeps me awake.
I open my eyes again and stare out the window. We're still in the city. Some places are still busy as the nightlife is just getting started, but the areas far from any nightclub and bar are as dead as the desert. I fold my arms over my chest and stare at the dark sky. The moon is bright and full tonight. My gaze follows the bright, white circle as the car continues to move through the road.
The car halts abruptly, and my eyes widen at the sudden stop. I turn to Dante, and it seems like he hits his head on the back of the headrest in front of him. I look at the front of the car and hear Carlo muttering profanities under his breath. Dante looks around, and I do the same, preparing for the worst, but there's nothing but an empty road around us.
"What was that?" Dante asks.
"Sorry. It's just a cat crossing the road," Carlo says.
"Did you hit it?" I ask, looking around to get a better view of the road, and then I find a grey tabby cat walking on the sidewalk calmly. That has to be the cat. Why is it so calm? It literally almost got run over and died.
"No. It ran fast enough to get out of the road," Carlo says.
"I saw the cat. It's fine," I say, keeping my eyes on the cat until it takes a turn and disappears behind the corner of a closed restaurant.
"Sorry about that," Carlo says as he continues to drive the car.
"It's fine. Just be more careful, okay?" I say.
"I will."
After who knows how long, I feel my consciousness slipping away as I stare at the dark road, and everything gradually turns darker and darker until all I can see is black and nothing else.