Chapter 7

SOFIA

I have been stuck since I woke up. My head and neck seemed to have disagreed on something and decided to turn their backs on eachother. I was scared to move, as doing so could break any of my precious bones. I didn't come to New York to kill myself, and I wasn't going to let myself die of a broken neck. My hair was scattered all over and my bangs were almost in my eye. This was a fatal position. I was a bit twisted and the amount of pain I was in made me feel like I had dislocated my neck while sleeping. As I tried to endure the position, it felt like my headache was getting worse. It'd been ten minutes and there was still no improvement. Just intense pain, constant blinking to avoid my hair getting in my eyes and a sore back from the stupid position I was in. I needed to put on a little fight with myself.

I tried moving a little. "Shit!" I cursed under my breath. The pain was intense. It was extreme. After what seemed like an unbearable amount of time, my body summoned courage. I think I'd call it adrenaline, because I was sure I'd die of a broken neck if I didn't move sooner. Snap! It made a weird sound. Although my neck was relieved, my headache seemed to circulate around my eyes.

"Owww!" My head still hurts like hell. I should have known the bar was a bad idea. I sat up on my bed, rethinking yesterday's activities. My eyes felt like they were going to move to the back of my head. I grunted in pain, standing up to start my day. I paid for a small apartment online while in Sicily, and being one of the first people I had gotten a huge discount. Living with Ronaldo had made me forget what it was actually like to be of my own freewill. I had my own house. And my own car. I wasn't going to do the dirty dishes or rub someone's stinking foot as he slept. I was free. I tried to smile but the pain didn't let me. I agreed my first steps with celebrating might have been a little off. I shouldn't have drank but I needed it you see. Escaping a mafia is like a real 'the rock' thing to do. I felt like a cover agent with perfect martial art skills. Of course I had none of that, I was just smart enough to plan ahead. Even my twin sister could not get to me now. They'll be dealt with by the mafia. Although it seems harsh, I was excited at the thought of them suffering for what they did. I really do hope the mafia is brutal enough.

I placed my palm on my head as if it were to soothe the pain. "Why did I drink, urghhh." I could have gone to watch a movie or something instead. I still felt a little dizzy, so I sat back down to get a hold of myself. My apartment was the last on the line, and judging by the look of the street, we weren't many. It was too quiet for a New York City setting. I didn't even want to deal with humans yet. I had a reason for picking New York. And I had to set my goals according to my priorities. I was always taken aback by the results of my investigation. Most times, it was a silly dead end. But I had a good feeling about this one. I had come to the root of the problems itself and decided to start afresh. I had to find who did it. It would give me peace, and my parents rest in their graves. I had to seek justice. No one else was going to. I imagined the faces of my parents smiling down at me with pride, for avenging their deaths. For respecting them to the end. It made my insides coil.

I could imagine being married. I hadn't even thought about what I really wanted out of life, more money, children, a passionate job and a lot of followers online? I didn't know how to make that perfect choice. My focus now was on my parents. Their death. And who was responsible. I hadn't even thought about what I'd do when I found them out. I couldn't kill a human being, and I wasn't sure jail term would do the justice for me. I had endured years of torture from my stepfather, because I was orphaned. I couldn't let my enemies go Scot free. And I could not punish them. Curse that Ronaldo and his stupid deals. He was going to sell me off! To marry! Without even talking me through things. It disgusted me to know my twin sister supported him. She disgusted me. They both did. We were never really fans of each other. Only once in a while, but most of the time we just glared at each other, wanting to rip our throats out.

It was taunting when they broke the news to us. I certainly did not handle it well. They were murdered together in their own house. I shook the thought out of my head. It wasn't time to deal with the trauma. I needed something to cure my hangover but I had no idea what. I was not the type of person to drink much. I walked up to the windows and opened my curtains. If anything I needed fresh air. Before moving in I got groceries on my way. It was a long drive, and it was worth it. I spent most of it screaming from fear and excitement and playing loud music in the car. I didn't know what I had to drink, but I knew u had to drink something. I tried to think of my mother's old recipe for a hangover, which she always gave to Dad when he had one. I think it was just a mix of fruits and other green things, so I began piling up green things in my kitchen. There was celery, lettuce, a pear, an apple and a banana. I cut it all into small pieces and blended it smooth. I got a tea bag and poured the tea into the blended mixture. It looked disgusting enough to cure a headache. I convinced myself it was orange juice and took it all in one gulp.

I yelled out in disgust and spat in my sink. I wrote a mental note to myself to avoid drinking more than half a bottle of alcohol. Thinking of the bar, I felt a pinch in my gut that there was something I was supposed to do. I could have done a lot of stupid things when I was drunk so I started making a guess list. Did I propose to a stranger? Was that possible? Yes it might have happened. Did I agree to go on a date with the bartender? Did I ask to buy the place? What was it I did? It was hard to ponder with the pain in my head, but I was determined to find out what I forgot, so I kept thinking.

Did I get in a fight? No obviously not there were no strange marks on my body. Did I drink alot? Yes I definitely did. The supposed green blend had not worked fully yet. I just felt disgusted and I still had a headache. I must have exchanged numbers with someone. A girl? A guy? I felt queasy to my stomach. Who would have thought remembering something could be so hard? I scratched my head and tucked my bangs at the back of my ears. I felt like there was something I forgot. I hoped it wasn't something related to Sicily. I wasn't planning to go there anytime soon. I needed to stay put until I was sure no one was searching for me.

I went to the bathroom and scooped water to wash my face. The ache had reduced after I'd given in to aspirin. I heaved a sigh of relief before I realized I was still in my old clothes. It was good I didn't puke all over myself, because I wondered how disgusted I would have felt. I should go back to the bar again. I had to be sure I didn't do anything weird, mostly, to satisfy the nagging feeling in my gut. I pulled off my shirt and I was about to pull down my trousers when I realized there was something stuck in the back of my jeans. It was probably my I.D. I had to show I was of age at the bar. I ignored it and kept undressing. Well it was about to be another day of breathing fresh air. No Ronaldo at my back or my twin sister nagging behind him. It was just me and my car. The car made me really excited.