3. A WALK DOWN MEMORY LANE

So much pain for someone so young…

"...there's something you need to know..." I coughed at his words, almost choking on my food. I hated that sentence, I never heard anything good after those six words had been said. Dr Sanchez pulled out the card from earlier and let out a nervous sigh before giving it to me. Turning it around between my fingers, I frowned when it turned out to be a photo instead of a business card like I had expected ...a beautiful picture of a Spanish girl smiling happily at the camera with a chihuahua lounging on her lap. She was wearing a white dress with her thick silky black hair pulled to the side, cascading down her left shoulder in soft waves. The blue highlights complimented her eye makeup beautifully. 

" ...after the accident your face was ruined beyond repair so I asked a specialist to perform plastic surgery on you and give you a new face..." he said, finally giving me the answer I'd been dying to hear but not exactly what I had expected. I froze at his words and looked up at him. He nodded, pointing at the photo in my hands and explained further " ...that's my daughter, she died in a car accident two years ago and I couldn't save her, she would've been your age" 

I looked down at the photo again before looking back up at him and gave him a small sad smile. 

"I'm sorry" I said, sharing his pain. After all, other than me , who else could better understand what he must have gone through during that time. Just like me he had lost a dear one, the only difference was that I had to witness my loved ones death.

Dr Sanchez shook his head and said "for years I've been dying with this guilt that being a doctor I couldn't save my own daughter's life but after meeting you and saving your life I'm able to breath again, I don't want you to feel sorry for me" he got up from the chair, walked around the bed and pressed on a button next to it to call in a nurse before turning to me with a smile.

" ...do you want to see your new face??" I nodded just as the door opened and a nurse walked in.

“Remove her bandages" he ordered, stepping back from the bed to give her space. The nurse nodded and grabbed a pair of scissors from the front pocket of her uniform. She slowly and carefully removed the bandages from my face, one by one. She rolled them into one big cotton ball and placed it on a silver tray before stepping back from me.

"Thank you, you may leave," Dr Sanchez said, walking to the drawer next to me and pulling out a mirror. The nurse gave him a slight nod before doing as asked and left along with the tray once again leaving me and Dr Sanchez alone. I looked up at him and watched as his lower lip trembled in pain as he tried to keep his emotions bottled up inside but a traitorous tear rolled down his cheek. I reached out my hand to touch his face and shook my head and wiped it off with a sad smile. Understanding just how it must feel for him to see someone with his daughter's face after all these years, it must've felt like his dead daughter had come back to life. 

Composing himself, he gave me the mirror and nodded for me to turn it around. I looked down at the mirror, nervous ...was I really ready to see it?? Swallowing my heart back to its rightful place, I gathered enough courage and turned the mirror around.

"Her name was Evangeline" he introduced me to my new face, just as my eyes met with those of my new acquaintance in the mirror's reflection. What a coincidence, Angela meets Evangeline. I slowly moved my hand up to touch it, feel it with the pads of my fingertips. The skin was smooth and perfectly stretched like it had been through years of skincare treatments, with no traces of even a single wrinkle or pimple. I looked exactly like the girl in the photo but a little older and slightly paler from having just woken up from a coma.

"What do you think??" I smiled at Dr Sanchez's question and placed the mirror down on my lap before answering 

"I love it" I stated honestly, Evangeline's face gave me a fierce character ...far opposite from the real me, a weak little girl who looked forward to a happy future with a husband, kids and love ...a fairytale family.

He smiled back and said "When I found you, you asked me to save you and fell unconscious before I could get your name. So instead I used my daughter's name but now that you're awake, we can inform your family" 

My family, hearing those two words alone was enough to wipe the smile off my face and bring back the horrifying memories once again as he helped me get off the bed. I looked down at my feet to hide my teary eyes and slowly shook my head. 

"I have no family" I informed, in a small sad voice. Trying not to cry as once again pain reached out its dark cold musty hand into my chest to painfully squeeze at my heart. Grabbing my chin between his thumb and index finger, Dr Sanchez gently tilted my head back to look at him.

"You have me, I'll be your family" he corrected, forcing a traitorous tear to roll down my cheek and wiped it before saying 

"...there's a bag with clothes in the bathroom, go change so I can take you home" unable to take the kindness anymore, I smiled and jumped into his arms hugging him.

“Thank you" I mumbled before going into the joint bathroom to change. I walked back out 15 minutes later, ready with my long hair tied up in a neat bun. Dr Sanchez took my hand in his, led me out of the hospital to his car and we drove away.

"Where are we??" I asked, looking outside the window at the unfamiliar city.

"We're in America, New York City..." he said, and my head snapped in his direction so fast I'm surprised I didn't get a whiplash. I looked at him in disbelief, making him let out a soft chuckle and looked back outside the window. I smile at the big billboard screens and street lights shining down on our car …somehow finding the good in what had happened to me. I had always dreamt of coming to the USA and visiting the Big Apple, but I never thought I'd ever actually make it. I guess in some way this was my good in goodbye then.

" ...after the accident, I brought you here for all your surgeries to be done. We can always go back to Italy if you want to" Dr Sanchez spoke, pulling me out of my admiring haze. I shook my head at the generous offer and looked back at him.

"Not yet, we'll leave after I tell you everything" he nodded, driving through two huge black metal gates toward a beautiful mansion uphill and pulled up in the driveway in front of its entrance. He jumped out and walked around the car to open my door for me before helping me get down.

"Welcome home" he announced as soon as my feet touched the ground, closing the door behind me. Taking my hand in his once again, we walked inside the house together into the lounging area and we sat down, a maid brought us tea with biscuits even a second later. 

Mumbling a small thank you, I took the mug in my shaking hands. Cradling it between my suddenly freezing palms to warm them and let out a nervous sigh.

"On the night of the accident" I took a deep breath in of the cool air in the room and closed my eyes for a second to keep my emotions in check before opening them again.

"...my mom, little brother and little sister were shot dead and their bodies were burned along with our house..." staring down at the silver cloud of steam coming from the hot tea I started telling him my story, word for word not leaving anything out while he listened quietly for almost an entire hour.

"...and you know the rest" I sniffled, finishing my story and angrily wiped the traitorous tears from my face with the back of my hand before getting up from the cosy sofa with my now cold and probably salty tea.

" ...I'll definitely return to Italy but only to avenge my family" I added, stopping in front of a portrait of a black Phoenix rising from its ashes ...just like it, I too was going to rise from my own ashes and burn everyone who did me wrong in the fire of my hatred. I heard Dr Sanchez hum in both understanding and agreement also getting up from his seat 

"You can keep my daughter's name if you want and I'll continue being your father" . His words warmed my heart. I turned to him with a smile.

"Thank you… father" I said and his smile grew even wider. He stepped closer to me and wrapped his arms around me in a hug, and I felt like crying all over again at the warmth of his body. I wrapped my hands around his waist and clung to him, it had been long since I felt like I was in his embrace ...comfortable. He felt like home, my new home and even though I had only just met him today he had known me for the past Five months and we both already shared a bond of understanding. We understood each other's pain. I had a family once just like he had one once and they were both taken away from us too soon but now we had each other. We were each other's second chances and I was not going to waste my second chance.