THIRD PERSON

"Why are you still awake?" Josephine asked in the comfortable silence between them. Vito turned from the stove to look at her.

"I still had things to do that I didn't get to today and wanted to start preparing for tomorrow so I could have more time for you. Besides, we have chairs to sit on and no kitchen surface." He looked at Josephine disapprovingly. She immediately jumped down, and again, Vito was surprised at how different she was from his younger brothers. Riccardo would definitely have started arguing, and Matteo would have pretended not to hear him. Before Josephine could apologize, Vito lifted her back onto the surface and continued stirring the milk. "We won't tell anyone about this, okay?" He held the spoon imploringly in her direction.

"No one," she replied immediately, cocking her head to the side. "Not even Domenico? I don't know if I can lie if he asks me!"

Vito chuckled at her concern. "First of all, I don't think he would even care, and secondly, he's the exception. But under no circumstances should any of the other three find out. Can you reach the cupboard to your left? Would you mind taking out two cups?"

"Sure." Josephine did as she was told and handed him the two cups. "And you shouldn't work so late because of me. I'm perfectly capable of managing on my own."

"I don't doubt that for a second. If anyone can manage on their own, it's you. But just because you can, doesn't mean you have to." Vito took the pot off the stove, poured the chocolate into the cups, and handed one to Josephine before leaning on the edge of the surface.

She thanked him before carefully taking a sip. Then she remembered what she had actually wanted to ask Valentino. "Can you tell me something about Matteo and Riccardo?"

"Matteo is 16 years old, likes to read, and plays soccer. Riccardo is 17, likes to argue, and also plays soccer," Vito answered, thinking about what else he could say without making them sound like idiots. "They're... intense. It's best to see for yourself once they get back."

"When are they coming back?" She hoped it would take a while, giving her time to get used to the other three Marinis. From what she had heard, they would most likely be unhappy with her staying.

"Over the course of next week. Exactly when seems to depend on when they finish their school project."

"Which school is doing a project abroad for students?" Josephine asked incredulously.

"A very expensive one, I can tell you. But while we're on the subject, you haven't attended school since you ran away, right?" She shook her head. "I would like to get you a tutor who will work with you on the content from the last few years until you're ready to go to that fancy school that sent its students abroad. Would that be okay with you?"

Josephine let her shoulders sink in relief. "That would be wonderful, but only if it doesn't cause any inconvenience." She hadn't thought about school yet, but she also didn't want to attract attention because of the gaps in her education. "When can I start?"

Vito smiled. "You're probably the first one after Valentino who's happy about school. I suggest we wait until you've settled in here, and I'll look for a suitable teacher in the meantime." Josephine blushed and continued to drink, embarrassed. Vito thought about asking her about therapy too, but decided against it. That wasn't a conversation to have in the middle of the night.

When they finished drinking, Vito took Josephine's cup before putting it in the sink. Without a word, he reached out his hand to help her down, and she refrained from pointing out that although she was small, she wasn't that small either. Instead, she took his hand and slid down. "Now it's time to go to bed, young lady."

"Are we going down a secret passage again?" Josephine looked at him hopefully, but Vito just shook his head with a grin. "It was worth a try," she murmured and took the route she already knew. If she was honest, she was starting to notice how tired she was. The day had clearly lasted too long. She tried to stifle a yawn and rubbed her eyes.

"Domenico said that you have trouble sleeping in a bed. Should I put the mattress on the floor for you?"

Of course he did. "No, it's okay. A blanket and a pillow are enough," Josephine replied, realizing that it wasn't the answer Vito would have liked to hear. "But if you want to, you're welcome to do that," she hastened to add.

"Would you sleep on it?" She thought it best to remain silent. "I'm going to ask Valentino to look for a hard mattress tomorrow. Maybe we can get you used to sleeping in a real bed again."

"But I don't mind sleeping on the floor. I did that on the street too."

Vito sighed. "That's true, and again I have no doubt that you can do it, but you don't live on the streets anymore, and you certainly don't sleep there anymore." He didn't know how to explain this to her gently, but she would have to learn that this was a different place where she was safe, where she could sleep without fear, and there would be certain adjustments for her to make. Josephine, on the other hand, was too tired to think about it any further and struggled with the last few steps to her bathroom.

Vito waited until she had changed and then wished her goodnight. As he opened the door, her voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Can I tell Domenico what happened?" Josephine sounded unsettled. She was ashamed of her actions, especially because she had promised him not to do anything stupid, but she couldn't help it, and he deserved honesty from her.

Vito looked at his brother, who was standing across from their room with his arms crossed, staring at him. "I don't think you have to anymore," he replied hesitantly. "But I do think it's good—" He stopped when he saw her eyes already closed. Smiling, he turned off the light and left the room quietly.

__________________

Josephine nervously paced back and forth in front of the door to Domenico's office. Ever since Vito had told her that Domenico would be working from home today too, she had been thinking about the best way to confess it to him. But no matter how hard she tried, every draft sounded like she had gone crazy. How was she supposed to explain her actions to him? She thought it was bad to tell Vito, but Domenico was a completely different topic. When she told him, she definitely had to emphasize the part where she turned around. And under no circumstances was she allowed to mention that she hadn't even worn a jacket. Or a scarf. Or a backpack filled with necessities.

"Do you have something to tell me, or do you just want to appease your pedometer?" Domenico stood in the doorway and looked at Josephine, who jumped in shock.

"I—well—I want to say the following—" she stuttered, overwhelmed. "Hello, Domenico," she finally said, realizing how stupid she must have sounded.

"Hello, Josephine," Domenico replied, crossing his arms.

"Do you have a moment? I'd like to talk to you about something." She held her breath.

He nodded. "Come with me; the dogs need to be fed." He walked past her, only to realize after a few steps that she wasn't following him. Instead, she stood frozen in front of him. When she noticeably swallowed, Domenico understood what her problem was and held back a laugh. "Don't worry; you won't be part of the meal." He was briefly tempted to add "not yet," but decided against it and moved on. "So, what do you want to talk about?"

Josephine took two quick steps to catch up and still didn't know how to start. What could she possibly say? The more she repeated this in her head, the more irrational she felt. But Domenico had helped her in the hospital; the least she could do was tell him the truth. "I had a... crisis yesterday, and I tried to run away," she admitted hesitantly. Domenico remained silent. He just stubbornly walked on as if she hadn't said anything. Confused, Josephine followed him; perhaps she had just thought her words instead of saying them? "Domenico?"

"The dogs have to be fed once a day. Ares has teeth problems and needs the food softened, and Hades only eats certain food, but I'll show you how to mix it. They also get salmon oil, but they shouldn't see when it's put on, otherwise they won't eat it." Domenico began explaining without even acknowledging Josephine's confession. Instead, he stopped briefly to get two jackets from a closet and gave her one. She hurried to put it on and had to walk a few steps to catch up with him. "They are fed in the morning, and when it freezes, their drinking bowls have to be checked regularly to see if the water is frozen."

Domenico held the door to the carport open for Josephine, went through a door at the back, and purposefully turned right. Meanwhile, Josephine wondered why he was telling her this, but she didn't dare ask him directly, as it wasn't yet clear whether she would be the meal after all.

"The easiest way is to prepare the food first and then call them, because otherwise they just make a fuss. When they're done, the bowls are put back in the shed. Oh, and they love antlers to chew on. They get them once a week, and it's best if you hide them beforehand so they have something to search for."

Josephine stopped in shock, her heart skipping a beat. "Me?"

"Of course you. Do you see anyone else?" The way he said it made it sound like an incontrovertible fact. In fact, he stopped and turned to her. "Feeding will be your job for at least a month from now on."

"You—you can't be serious!" They would eat her as a snack at the first opportunity, not to mention they wouldn't listen to Josephine at all.

"Very serious indeed. Everyone here has chores to do. Why should you be excluded from this?"

"I don't want to be excluded, and of course, I will take on chores, but the dogs—" she tried to explain to him, but Domenico didn't give her any time.

"Good. Then we've sorted that out. There's the hut at the front, and the door is always open. On the other side, there's a flap for the dogs so they can get in and out, so don't be too surprised if they're suddenly next to you," he continued, undeterred, as if nothing had happened.

"May I ask—"

"Was it a good idea to run away without speaking to either of us?" Josephine guiltily lowered her gaze and shook her head.

"Was it a good idea to leave in the middle of the night without everything? Without even a jacket and in these ridiculous shoes?" Josephine shook her head again.

"And what did you do at the first chance you got? The opposite of what you promised me less than twelve hours before." This time Domenico sounded really angry, and he was. Vito could be as understanding as he wanted, but Domenico was furious about what she had done. "Explain that to me, Josephine, because it sounds like a pretty stupid idea to me!"

"I'm sorry," Josephine said quietly, and she had to admit that it was a weak apology. He was right. She had promised him not to do anything stupid, and he had trusted her. How could he not be angry?

"I do believe you, but that doesn't change your actions. And that's why you're going to take care of the dogs. Maybe then you'll notice how it feels to have responsibility for others, because at this moment, I'm not even sure if you can take responsibility for yourself!" Domenico stared at the slumped girl in front of him. Vito had tried to convince him not to punish her, because in the end, she turned around and came to him, but Domenico didn't care. She had to understand why some things couldn't be tolerated, and running away wasn't an appropriate coping strategy at all. His brother could be understanding as much as he wanted; he wouldn't be.

Nobody said anything for a while. Domenico didn't speak because he was too angry; Josephine didn't because she didn't know what to say. Then she pulled herself together and looked at Domenico. "And how much food do they get?"

"I'll show you," he replied grimly, keeping his word.

They went into the hut together, and he showed her exactly who got what food and how. He also explained to her how to call the dogs and what commands they listened to. It took a few tries to get them to come to her whistle and even more to get them to sit, but in the end, they did what she wanted them to do. Despite her shaking, she managed to distribute the bowls without dropping anything. Domenico was satisfied; Josephine was bathed in sweat.

"Next time you have a crisis, come to us," he implored her while they cleaned up. Worried, he saw her eyes become as empty as they had been when he found her a few weeks ago.

"And what can you do? The demons won't leave just because I speak to you." She sounded exhausted, which she was.

"They probably won't, but you won't have to face them alone, Tiny."



Hello there!

it's quite ambitious, but I finished writing the epilogue today (and only the epilogue, I'm not that ambitious after all) and now that it's finished, I'm sure it won't end like that :) But only time can tell.

The question of the day: What about you don't you want to change? I find this a difficult question for me personally. My first instinct would be to say my laugh, but that would just be the quick answer. In fact, I can't say because there are many, many things that I would like to change but which have led to what defines me.

Although, I don't want to change my love for my daughter. Yeah, that's it :)

See you soon!