31. Cori #2
“Shit,” I breathed out. I was sad for Rocco and his family, but mostly, I worried about how this would affect my brother.
Over the years, Rocco was the only acquaintance of Johnny’s whose name I’d ever learned.
My brother would take it hard. But I couldn’t help being grateful it wasn’t Johnny who’d stopped breathing for good tonight.
“We’ll tell him together this afternoon. ”
Deck nodded, then asked, “Where am I going, Cori?”
“Huh?”
“We took your car here. Are you dropping me off, or…”
I waited for my lizard brain to insist I push him away.
It didn’t.
I knew it still might in the morning, that I hadn’t magically figured out how to share my burdens in the past hour, but for now, I was taking the W.
“We already slept in your bed,” I said levelly, reaching for his hand. “After all the stuff with Johnny tonight, I really need to see what you look like in mine.”
He stepped closer and cupped my cheek. “ Sí. Te amo .”
I shivered as the intensity he’d had in his eyes when he stared down Alejandro returned. Except this time, the force behind it carried no menace. Only a promise.
Deck and I went back to my house and, contrary to the sexy implications of his words outside the hospital, fell asleep almost immediately.
I woke up first and gave myself a few minutes to marvel at the sight of him lying in my bed.
He’d stripped down to gray boxer briefs and slept on his stomach, clutching a pillow.
His smooth skin rippled with muscle, and his inky-black hair spilled out over my sheets.
He looked soft like this, sweet even, and I smiled recalling his fumbling admission of his lack of experience last night.
Sixteen-year-old me squealed internally.
He’s here , she said. We made it . He’s so beautiful!
We love each other . And then, inevitably, fuck you, Chi-chi .
Deck had been to my house enough times over the past few weeks while visiting Johnny to feel comfortable in the downstairs spaces, but he’d never been in my bedroom.
Yet he’d had no hesitation when we’d climbed the stairs earlier, almost like he knew how much I relied on his certainty.
I’d fallen asleep on his chest and woken up with his arm draped across my torso.
Now, his jeans and T-shirt hung over the chair by my window, and his presence in my bed didn’t feel new at all.
Around noon, I woke him up and told him I was headed back to the hospital. We agreed he’d go by J&D to check in with Juan and then meet me in Johnny’s room. I’d wait for Deck before telling my brother about Rocco.
When I got to the hospital, I was surprised to find Marisol coming out of Johnny’s room.
“You came to visit my brother?” I asked.
“Deck texted us last night. Mamá made the brownies Johnny likes and asked me to bring them since she had to get to work.”
“The brownies with the spicy chocolate?”
“You remembered.”
“Of course. Johnny told her once when he was twelve how much he liked them, and she sent me home with them all the time after that.”
“Mamá cares about him.” Marisol shoved her hands into the back pockets of her vintage-looking corduroys. “We all do.”
Studying her face, I saw genuine concern in her eyes.
Marisol had known my brother her entire life.
She’d been young when Johnny had come around every day, but that didn’t mean she cared any less.
And over the past twelve years, the Deckers had done what they could for him, operating on the same tough-love principles I had while still trying to make sure he knew they loved him.
“Thank you,” I said. “Hopefully, your mom won’t mind that at least one of those brownies will be mine.”
Marisol tittered lightly. “I’m sure she was counting on it. If Johnny eats the whole pan, he’ll have to add diabetes to his list of problems.”
I laughed. “You’ve got jokes. Even now. No wonder you and my brother get along.”
“Cori, whatever you need, you know you have us. All the people who love you and Johnny, especially my family.”
“Thank you, Mari. Johnny and I are very lucky to be honorary Deckers.”
“About that…” She grinned slyly. “I heard a rumor that it’s not so honorary.”
I tensed. Deck and I had agreed not to tell people about us. He wouldn’t have told his sister?
“What do you mean?”
“When I asked the nurse if I could bring the brownies, and gave her my name, she said something about how one brownie wouldn’t hurt, and it was fine for me to visit, because I was family, you know, since Johnny’s brother-in-law’s last name was also Decker.
” She folded her arms and raised an eyebrow, trying not to crack up.
“Long story,” I mumbled. “Don’t ask.”
“I’d like to hear it sometime,” she said. “But you’re saved for now because I need to get back to the Center. Gotta unleash some positive adult mentorship and guidance on the kiddos blah, blah, blah.”
My lips twitched. “Thanks for holding down the fort,” I said. “Can you do me a favor and text if Jayden doesn’t show up today?”
She gave me a quizzical look before nodding, but didn’t ask for more details.
“Appreciate it.”
Marisol rocked back on her heels, assessing me thoughtfully before offering, “Cori, just so you know, no one would be happier than me if Decker were your last name. As much as I love the twins, you’ve always been more of a sister to me than they have.
If you and Artie ever pull your heads out of your asses, I’ll be the first one cheering on the sidelines. ”
She turned and walked away before I could reply.
But her effusiveness firmed my conviction that Marisol’s brand of cheerleading, or anyone’s, was more than we needed to contend with right now.
I was going to protect the bubble Deck and I created last night for a little while longer.
Marisol wasn’t wrong. Everyone we knew would likely be excited to learn Deck and I were together.
That didn’t change the fact that each new level of making it “real” felt like a problem to be solved.
We could check Johnny into rehab, get past the stress of the gala, and then accept the well-wishes.
For now, it was enough to have Deck by my side and in my bed while I focused on trusting this relationship and he worked to feel like he deserved it.
I entered Johnny’s room and found him staring hard at a plate of brownies well out of reach.
He glared at the plate, then at me. “Did you know Deck’s little sister is a sadist? She brought over some of Mamá Decker’s brownies and then only let me have one.”
I chuckled, sitting on the stool. “You’re lucky the nurses let her give you that much. Good thing you’re such a charmer.”
“Can’t help it.” He shrugged. After a moment, he added, “She’s really something. Marisol, I mean. Doesn’t put up with anyone’s shit.”
“No, she doesn’t,” I agreed, smiling. “That’s why she’s so good at the Center. A little mini Rosa.”
“Yeah.” He lolled his head toward me. “Why don’t you fill me in on what’s happening there. You haven’t given me an update on those kids who got into a fight before the dance you told me about. That was entertaining.”
I almost burst out laughing, or crying, thinking about everything I could tell my brother about Jayden. I wouldn’t, of course. Instead, I said they were fine and started babbling nonsense about the gala, attempting to stall until Deck showed up and we could tell Johnny about Rocco.
The sound of boots hitting the floor echoed in the corridor, and we turned our heads in time to see Alejandro pass by Johnny’s room.
Johnny registered the tension in my shoulders. “You know Alejandro?” he asked.
“Only by reputation.”
“Damn,” he said, impressed. “You really have returned to the neighborhood.”
“Shut up.” I flicked his arm.
Johnny murmured low, “One of his boys is in a room down the hall. I heard the nurses gossiping. Apparently, he got hit by a car.”
“Hmm,” I said, and we didn’t speak more about it. Not our business.
Ten minutes later, Deck walked in. Without too much buildup, we told Johnny about Rocco.
The light dimmed in my brother’s eyes after that.
He asked a few questions, but since we didn’t have many answers, we mostly just let him process.
I wondered if it had been like this when Eliazar died.
At least now Deck wasn’t in prison, and I was more present in Johnny’s life. He wasn’t alone.
Unsurprisingly, Johnny asked to be by himself for a while. This worked out since Deck and I wanted to stop by the Center to check on things. Marisol texted that Jayden had shown up, and also that both he and Reign were wondering if Deck would make it in.
Before we left, I slipped my brother another brownie and squeezed him as tightly as I could around the wires. I saw his eyes as I pulled back. He was waiting for us to leave so he could break down. It broke my heart, but it was also a bittersweet reminder that Johnny and I were a lot alike.
Once safely out of Johnny’s sight, I slipped my hand into Deck’s. It felt like our love had grown in only a few short hours. Even though most of them had been spent apart. “Let’s go check on the Center and then go back to your place,” I said. “Pizza and an Adam Sandler movie?”
“ Perfecto .”
“And we should stop at the pet store on the way. I owe Bastardo a few treats.”