Page 13 of Ciao Bella
“He isn’t wrong,” smirked Lena. “I knew Joseph when I was just a little girl and always knew he was special. When I saw him and all of you at his grandfather’s farewell, I thought you were all some sort of club.”
“I guess we are,” said Tailor.
“Yes, but you got a little girl to eat her broccoli and other strange things. You made her so happy. She was willing to leave the only home she’d ever known to travel across the country and start a new life with her sister’s boyfriend. That’s pretty remarkable.”
“I was more than your boyfriend,” he said quietly, the smile on his face disappearing as he looked away. “I was always more than your boyfriend. You saved me, Lena. You didn’t know it then, but you saved my life.”
Tailor was stoic and quiet, something he never was. He looked down at his big feet, then Trak noticed a tear on his cheek. He reached for his hand, squeezing it, whispering words in his Navajo language.
“What are you talking about? What is he talking about?” asked Lena, looking at Trak, then Wilson. The other originals all smiled at their big friend. Nine’s face a mask of unfulfilled pain.
“He was depressed, Lena. Suffering from clinical depression, post-traumatic stress, and just plain old loneliness.”
“H-how? How did I not know that?” she whispered, looking at all the men. Sara, Kat, and the others were in shock.
“Because I was the guy that was always happy. Always joking. It started long before New Mexico, but finding Sniff the way we did, that tore me apart. But suddenly, there was you. And Ajei. And suddenly I thought, maybe I have something to live for.”
“Billy Joe,” she whispered, using his given name.
“You saved me, Lena. We might have rescued Ajei. We might have changed your lives, but you, you saved me. It was when my depression disappeared.” He snapped his fingers. “Just like that.”
Lena looked at Wilson, who shrugged his big, broad shoulders.
“He’s telling the truth. I was counseling him, the others watching him closely every day. But something happened when you arrived, Lena. Something that none of us can explain. Mama Irene said it was meant to be. That all of it was meant to be. Who are we to argue with that?”
Crawling onto his lap, Lena held his beautiful face in her small, cool hands. She kissed him several times, shaking her head.
“You listen to me, Billy Joe Bongard. You and I are going to live a long, long time together as husband and wife. We have a son, grandson, and great-grandchildren to hold onto. Whatever plagued you, if you need to speak of it, I’m here. But I refuse to let you leave me. I refuse to allow you to fall into that darkness again.”
“I’m not, baby. I promise I’m not. The moment you agreed to marry me, the darkness was extinguished by the brightest light in the world. I think Trak knew it when he saw you and Ajei at his grandfather’s farewell.”
Trak looked up at his best friend and gave a small nod.
“Who else would take on a man his size but a woman your size,” he grinned. Lena stood and kissed Trak’s cheek.
“Thank you for being his friend,” she smiled.
“It was easy. He’s like a big puppy. Slaps his feet when he runs, eats too much and gets sick, and then just runs around happy with his tongue out.”
The whole plane laughed, shaking their heads. That pretty much described Tailor. But none of them would have guessed that he’d ever struggled with depression. The one you believe the strongest was strong enough to hide it from all of them.
“Were you? Were you depressed when I met you?” asked Lissa, looking at Alec. He stared at her a moment. “I mean. You’re like Tailor. Big, strong, seemingly unflappable. You had a lot happen to you. Did I miss it?”
“I think we can all safely say that we had our moments of depression, honey,” said Alec. “I was probably most depressed when I didn’t think I could come home to my family. But when I did, and then I met you, that was everything in the world to me. I mean, who would have ever imagined me with a ballerina? A beautiful, tall, blonde ballerina.”
“I imagined it,” smiled Lissa, kissing him sweetly. “I imagined it from almost the first moment I met you. Almost.”
“Yes,” he laughed. “I seem to remember that you thought Gray and I had something going on.”
“Well, it was all rather confusing. Being chased for a baby someone thought I was carrying, Russian bad guys, and poor Rose in trouble.”
“That’s right,” nodded Alec. “Rose was running from her ex. Got big brother all tied up in knots.” Rose smiled at Alec, turning to Baptiste.
“Did I? Did I tie you up in knots?”
“Triple knots. I couldn’t figure it out. You were so quiet, so shy. You wouldn’t look at me. Then I bring you home to keep you safe and damned if you didn’t shock the shit out of me. Suddenly, you were in beautiful baby bloom, and all I wanted to do was take you as mine.”
“And you did,” she smiled.