THIRD PERSON

Vito continued to hold the little girl in his arms, feeling her collarbone beneath him with concern. Once she was with them, the first thing they would take care of was her weight, he decided grimly. And a therapist. And the custody matters.

"Okay," Josephine said, unconsciously leaning more on Vito.

"Okay," Vito repeated. He looked at his brother, who stood unchanged where he had been the whole time. Domenico looked from him to Josephine, and his gaze became inscrutable. Whatever was going on in his mind, he didn't show it. Vito, on the other hand, was relieved that Josephine wanted to stay voluntarily because the alternative would have been to force her, and he was reluctant to do that. He knew how much work lay ahead of them, but he had no doubt that they could manage it.

Someone disturbed their mild moment of peace by knocking at the door and entering the room without waiting. "Hey sweetie, I just wanted to check your vitals and look what I found in our kitchen." Smiling, the nurse from before pulled out a pudding from behind her back while trying to completely ignore the two men. She noticed the girl's swollen eyes and the soaked shirt of Mr. Marini, but she also saw the little girl leaning against him. She didn't look as scared as before, which really reassured the nurse. The whole time she had struggled with herself because she had left the child alone with the two men and had constantly kept an eye on the monitors from her place. She had been about to go to her twice, but each time her pulse had regulated itself. "How are you feeling?" she asked as she handed her the pudding.

"Thank you. I feel good," the girl responded shyly.

"I'm glad to hear that. If you feel tired, you should really try to sleep. Your body needs a lot of strength right now, and that can be very exhausting. May I take your temperature?" She deliberately decided not to take a rectal measurement so as not to disturb the girl any further. "Thanks, sweetie. So it's possible that you'll start shaking very badly later. That's completely normal and even good, because then your body will start to fight the hypothermia on its own. You'll need the electric heat blanket for a while, just like the infusions here." She pointed with her chin at the bottles hanging in a warming box, flowing from there into her arm, and at the same time measured her temperature. "Don't worry, the catheter can come out as soon as you can walk safely again. 86°F (30°C), that looks better," she tried to cheer the girl up. Although Josephine said nothing, she listened carefully.

"What temperature did she come in with?" Domenico chimed in.

"I'm sorry, I'm only allowed to give information to her parents or a legal representative," she replied, more sharply than she had intended.

"That's okay. Just say it," the girl allowed, and the nurse tried not to show her increasing confusion about this whole situation.

"She came to us at 84°F (29°C). I know that doesn't sound like much progress, but our goal is to increase by 0 9°F (0.5°C) per hour to avoid organ collapse. This means that a normal temperature should be reached again in about twelve hours." The girl probably didn't realize how lucky she was to have had 'only' grade II hypothermia given her physical condition. Who knows how long the poor girl must have been outside?

"So I'll have to stay here until tomorrow?" the child asked worriedly and began to eat the pudding. 'Very good!' thought the nurse as she saw her patient eating. She could still be wrong, but so far it didn't look like an eating disorder. However, it also meant that she must have lost so much weight due to external circumstances. Did the Marinis have something to do with it?

"I'm even afraid, my heart, it will take a little longer than that. Your circulation should definitely continue to be monitored, and your weight worries us. We have also sent a blood sample to the laboratory and are expecting the results soon. Depending on how they turn out, it may be necessary to start another treatment."

"But do I really—" the child started to protest, but was interrupted by Mr. Marini.

"Yes, you have to and will stay, Josephine." Josephine, that was her name. The nurse made a mental note.

"But what if—"

"Then Domenico or I will take care of it. Don't worry about it; the only thing that matters is your health." Vito Marini reassured her. Then he turned to the nurse. "Will there be any long-term effects?"

The nurse hesitated, but Josephine nodded again. "I'm not a doctor. I can't tell you exactly what will be or what won't be. But as long as the organs are okay, which it looks like now, the hypothermia will probably cause little to no damage." She deliberately left out the obvious malnutrition and the lack of age-appropriate size. Perhaps the two gentlemen also understood what she meant. Josephine continued to eat the pudding as if her life depended on it. It tasted fantastic. "But the doctors will be back tomorrow morning and can tell you more. Josephine dear, do you need anything else for the night? Are you in any pain?" Josephine shook her head. "Great, then I'll come later to change the infusions. Rest now, and what do you do if you need something?"

"Then I'll ring the bell. Thank you very much!" the girl replied, and the nurse smiled at her with a wink.

"Anytime, sweetie. Are you two going to stay here tonight? Then I'll have to see if I can get an extra bed." She looked expectantly at the two men. She actually hoped that both would leave, but that was probably just wishful thinking.

Vito and Domenico looked at each other, and Domenico was the first to speak. "I'm staying. You go home and try to sort this all out. If anything happens, I have my phone with me."

"All right," Vito agreed and turned to Josephine. "Is that okay for you?" God, he really had to get used to including her. It was different with his brothers. Either they accepted something or started discussing. Josephine, as he judged her, wouldn't dare to do such a thing.

"I can stay here alone. Really, you don't have to sleep here!" At some point, Vito hoped, she would no longer sound so insecure when she spoke to them. Maybe someday, but not today.

"I'll look for the second bed, just in case," the nurse said her goodbye and disappeared from the room. While Vito got up from the bed, Domenico came closer and sat in the chair next to Josephine.

"Tiny, can you promise us that if we leave you alone, you will not try to run off again?" he asked Josephine, and she sank deeper into the bed under his gaze. She shook her head in shame. "That's what I thought. Vito, can you bring fresh clothes tomorrow? And coffee. Be sure to remember the coffee."

Vito nodded. "And you, Josephine? Do you need anything?" he asked her gently. She shook her head again but could at least look at him. Another difference he had to make between her and his brothers: she couldn't always respond verbally. They would have to work on that too.

"Are you planning on sleeping at some point tonight?" Domenico half-opened one eye and looked at the little one.

"Yes, it's just... How do you know I'm awake?" Josephine turned to him. The nurse had found a bed, but Domenico had refused and made himself comfortable on the chairs. Although Josephine doubted that comfortable was the right term.

"The monitors. Your heart should slow down if you were sleeping, and it doesn't. So what's wrong? Are you cold?" He sat up and put the magazine aside from his stomach.

"No. Yes. I don't know," she murmured, pulling her blanket up to her chin. Domenico looked at her invitingly. "It's just so soft," she admitted.

"Wha—Oh." Of course, how could he not have thought of that? "Should we put the mattress on the floor?" The cables should actually be long enough, he thought, but he was worried about the infusion.

"No! What should Nurse Sarah think when she sees that?" she asked him, horrified. Domenico just shrugged his shoulders. Why should he care what the nurse thought? "That's okay; I've already slept a bit." He just raised a meaningful eyebrow. Josephine blushed in punishment for her lie. "I'm sorry."

"Don't let this become a habit. Okay, but what can we do to maybe help you fall asleep?" Domenico looked at the clock. It was 1:43 a.m.

"I'll try again. Have you slept?" Josephine sounded worried, and she really was. It was her fault that Domenico was with her tonight, sitting in those chairs.

He chuckled quietly. "As far as I can see, you're the one who really needs to sleep. Don't worry about me; I can still rest tomorrow." In truth, he didn't mind not getting enough sleep. He had never slept much, much to his parents' displeasure, and was used to being awake at night due to the nature of his job. "So, close your eyes and don't worry about me."

Josephine lay back and tried to turn onto her side again without accidentally disconnecting any of the cables around her. Had she really just heard Domenico laugh?

The next time she woke up, she felt cold. So cold that the bed shook with her shivering. She tried to press the blanket closer around her, but that didn't help much. She looked carefully to the other side and was surprised to find the chair empty. Where had he gone? Worried, she thought about what she should do next. Should she call for the nurse? But it was the middle of the night, and she definitely had more important things to do. She was so cold!

"Is everything okay with you?" Domenico came through the door and took the five steps to her bedside. Josephine wanted to answer, but even her jaw was shaking, so she couldn't say anything. "Wait." He took the blanket he had gotten last night and placed it over Josephine, who continued to shiver. Even though he knew the shaking was normal and actually good, he was worried. The little one still felt very cold when he touched her forehead, but through the dim night light, he couldn't tell if she looked any worse. They should call the nurse, just to be sure. Determined, he reached for the bell and pressed the button.

Surprisingly, it took less than thirty seconds for the woman from last night to come in. Domenico had already forgotten her name again. She didn't look surprised when she saw Josephine, though. "I was just on my way to you. The monitors can't classify the shaking," she explained briefly and went to her patient's bed. "I'm sorry, sweetie, but there's nothing we can do. Your body has started fighting for itself again, and that's really, really good. Therefore, we shouldn't interfere," she tried to encourage Josephine.

"And how long will it take until it stops again?" Domenico wanted to know and looked at the clock. It was 3:12 a.m.

Around 6 a.m., Josephine slept longer than twenty minutes for the first time. It was still dark outside; soon the sun would slowly begin to rise. It had stopped snowing at some point during the night, but when Domenico pushed the curtain aside slightly, he could see the white sidewalks. The streets had already been cleared of snow, and the first people were rushing through the early morning.

Josephine was still shaking, but it had subsided significantly. At the last temperature check, she was already at 96°F (35.6°C), and the nurse seemed content with that, so Domenico was too. She was really friendly, that was for sure. She had even brought him a coffee before her shift ended. The coffee tasted terrible.

Hopefully, Vito would remember to bring him a decent one. He silently let go of the curtain and went back to his chair quietly. Josephine looked younger in her sleep, he noticed. Not relaxed; she probably never was, but just younger. Not for the first time, he wondered what her life would be like if she lived with them. He didn't give much thought to Valentino. Knowing him, he would show up with Vito tomorrow to get to know her. Maybe that was a good idea because Nino was good at building relationships with others and he was anything but scary, Domenico thought.

But what worried him were Riccardo and Matteo. Riccardo had been slightly revolting lately (Vito's words), and because Matteo was doing everything his brother did, he too was becoming increasingly annoying (Domenico's words). Things could be difficult with the two of them and Josephine. Riccardo could definitely be trusted to use the circumstances with her to test his limits again, and Josephine didn't seem stable enough to be able to handle him. Maybe it was just time for Vito to set some boundaries. Riccardo's behavior was normal in some ways; he could understand it, but this was no longer just about his sensitivities. Matteo would adapt; he had no doubt about that. Jesus, why did they have to be so complicated? Valentino was a ray of sunshine back in his days, with his brief slip-ups.

Out in the hallway, the day was slowly starting, but as he had already told the nurse, anyone who woke up Josephine would eventually end up sleeping for a long time.



Hello there :-)

how are you doing?

I don't have really much to say this time soo have a lovely week ;)

See you soon!

(*) sources:

Medical News Today - Everything you need to know about hypothermia