Page 36 of Ripple Effect

ELIO

“Hey, E.”Luca’s voice is deep, comforting through the phone line.

It’s still early, the sunlight barely peeking through the gaps of the kitchen blinds. And I’m sitting at the dining table, nursing a mug of black coffee while Daisy sleeps peacefully on the couch.

Her legs are tucked beneath her, her arm hanging off the edge of the cushion, fingers twitching slightly in her sleep.

“Hey,” I murmur back, my voice hushed so as not to disturb my house guest.

I glance over at her, the morning light playing with her hair, turning it into a golden halo. A fucking angel if I’ve ever seen one. I have to tear my eyes away, the sight leaving a weird ripple in my chest.

“You doin’ okay?” Luca asks, concern in his voice. I don’t blame him; my sudden collapse and subsequent hospitalization is enough to rattle anyone.

“I’m okay. Better.” My gaze flits back to the couch. “Getting there, I think.”

There’s a stilted pause, and then, “You know, my team has a home game next weekend, and I thought you might want to come.” He clears his throat, and I can almost picture his ears burning bright red. “Harper and Juney are dying to see you.”

“You didn’t tell them, did you?”

“No, E.” He sighs, long and heavy. “I didn’t tell my three-year-old daughter that her uncle had a fucking heart attack.”

“It wasn’t aheart attack. Christ,” I mutter. “And you know what I meant.”

“Yeah, I told my wife.” He gives me a humorless snort. “I had to tell her, El. We talk about everything.”

“Is she freaking out?” I groan, rubbing at my temples. “Oh, who am I kidding? It’s Harper—of course she’s freaking out. Worried I’m gonna fall off the deep end, isn’t she?”

“As she rightfully should. You were in the hospital,” he grinds out. “You have a fucking monitor strapped to your chest recording your every heartbeat. This is serious shit.”

I work to steady myself, tapping my fingers quietly against the side of my coffee mug. “I’mfine.”

“Yeah, fine.” Junebug’s delighted little squeals play out in the background, and it makes my heart clench. He’s right; it’s been ages since I’ve seen my niece, and I need to remedy that as soon as possible. But I don’t know if a fucking Bobcats game is the best place for me to do that. “So, I’ll see you at the game, then?”

“Come on, man.”

“Didn’t you hear me say Juney misses you?”

“Yeah? She tell you that herself?”

“Swear on my life. I can put her on the phone right now if you don’t believe me.”

“Fuck, fine,” I mutter, shutting down the idea. I don’t need to hear Juney’s sweet, little voice reminding me how shitty of an uncle I’ve been lately. “I’ll come.”

“Bring your friend along if she wants. It’ll be good for you to get out of the house.”

“Yeah, maybe.” The thought of being outside, amongst a crowd of people, doesn’t exactly appeal to me right now, but the idea of doing something normal, something routine, is slightly tempting.

We exchange a few more words—mostly about Bentley and his wife—before hanging up, leaving me in the quiet apartment, Daisy still dozing peacefully on the couch.

I finish my coffee and go about my morning, all while trying to avoid waking her. Her peaceful slumber seems sacred, something not to be disturbed. So, I go about my tasks with extra care and catch up on some neglected tasks inside my room.

Work, for me, is fluid, unpredictable these days. When I first joined AfterDark, I didn’t know it would evolve into all this. I thought it was a quick way to make money, to support myself without needing to rely on my family.

But then, it turned into something much bigger, much more demanding.

It all began when I was freshly nineteen, and that shady offer in the back of a van turned into a lifeline. Back then, it felt simple, inconsequential. All I had to do was show up, fuck a stranger, ensure the pop shot, and the money started rolling in.

It wasn’t supposed to last forever. It was supposed to be a temporary fix to a permanent problem. But now, as I sit here, I realize just how naive I was.

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