An entire month had passed, equivalent to thirty days of suffering, 730 hours of torment, 43,200 minutes of anguish, and 2,592,000 seconds of pain for Giovanni. Despite his thirty attempts to reach the manor, access was still denied to him.
Giovanni was unrecognizable, emaciated ... He tried to keep himself busy to keep his mind off Aaron, but in vain. Drunk most of the time, he struggled to find sleep, haunted by nightmares where Aaron perished before his eyes, said goodbye to him, or was subjected to violence. Every morning, he would call Maria for a glass of whiskey, even before considering eating.
Giovanni had become a shadow of his former self. Once a strong and proud man, he had been reduced to a pitiful being, haunted by the pain of not being able to see Aaron. His face was marked by deep circles and wrinkles carved by sleepless nights. His eyes were now dull and devoid of any spark of life.
His body, once robust and athletic, was becoming increasingly thin and emaciated, the clothes hanging on his pale skin a testament to his loss of appetite. He drank to forget, to drown the pain consuming him from within, but each sip only highlighted his decline even more. And ... he hardly left his house. He only left to go to Russia, Olivia and Flavio had to take control of the organization.
His sister entered the dark and cold room, handing him the phone and saying, "Here, a call for you." She drew back the curtains, letting in a bright light that made Giovanni squint. He put his arm in front of his eyes to shield them from the brightness and took the phone against his left ear.
"Hello, cucciolo," a familiar voice said from the other end of the line. It was Aaron, the man he loved.
Giovanni immediately recognized his voice and couldn't hold back his tears. "Bambino, is that you?" he asked, incredulous. He thought Aaron was still in a coma.
"Yes, Giovanni. It's me. I woke up a few hours ago," Aaron replied.
"Bambino, how are you?"
"I'm okay, I guess."
They didn't want to hang up. The conversation continued, but Aaron's voice was so weak it was barely audible.
"I'm coming to get you, Bambino," Giovanni said, but the phone was no longer in Aaron's hands at that point.
"My son is exhausted, young man!" It was Ivan Smirnov, who hung up on Giovanni. Giovanni called a second time, but Kira's phone was already off. Her father had ordered her to turn off her phone and had asked everyone to let Aaron rest. Everyone left the room except Valery, who stayed behind. His punishment was to constantly stay with Aaron. He did not see it as a punishment but as a well-deserved reprimand. He had clearly failed in his mission to protect Aaron, but the biggest punishment was not being able to see his husband Nikita, whom he missed terribly.
"Sit down, Valery," Aaron said, but Valery preferred to stand.
"Thank you for watching over us, my s...", and Aaron fell asleep, overwhelmed by fatigue and painkillers. Valery gave a faint smile and softly replied, "Always so kind," as Aaron dozed off. He could still faintly hear him.
"How did it go? How is he?" Olivia asked her brother, still in the room.
"His father hung up on me," Giovanni laughed, tears staining his cheeks, handing the phone to Olivia before heading to the shower.
After showering, Giovanni instructed his men to prepare his private jet. He was heading to Russia to reunite with his man, but before that, he needed to take care of his appearance. He summoned his personal hairdresser, put on his finest clothes, and flew off to Russia, his heart pounding and his soul filled with anticipation at finally reuniting with his love.