Mafia's Deadly Love

Aimee's POV I stare at the ceiling wide awake it's been years since I had a good night's sleep or sleep at all. To be completely honest I sometimes avoid falling asleep, because if and when I do fall asleep for a change, I end up having flashbacks from the past which I so desperately want to forget. Another reason I can't sleep is because I enjoy calm and cold nights. After everyone falls asleep, I get time for myself to read, write, meditate, or just have a good cry. I get up off the ground and roll up the yoga mat I sleep on and put it in the cupboard slowly trying not to wake Sara up Sarah is my guardian, I know I am about to be 21 in two days and I'm an adult so I technically don't need any guardian, but I am an orphan. My biological parents left me at Sara's home for kids when I was a week old. I don't know who they are or why they gave me up. Sarah is the only family I ever had. I never got adopted as a kid. I don't know why, I always asked Sarah why nobody loved me but she always said, "You have yourself to love you, nobody needs to be loved by someone else if they love themselves." I know she said things like that to make me feel better but every time someone would come in those big old doors and would come and adopt one of my friends, I felt hurt and unwanted. Neither did my parents want me nor did anybody else. The other kids caught on to this because I was the oldest kid and would bully me for not getting adopted. They would wait till Sarah was done making the night rounds and then would put a pillowcase over my head and take up to the terrace and beat me up. I would never complain to Sarah as I knew it would only make my situation worse, so I kept my mouth shut. I never asked to go to the doctor. The kids were careful not to hit me in any visibly obvious places and even if they did I would make sure to cover it up or lie if someone asked me about it. These experiences of my life have made me used to hide my pain. I never show people that I am hurt, neither physically nor emotionally. I only unleash my emotions when I am alone. I have learned to be strong on the outside even when I am hurting on the inside. I consider this as my power, my strength. Anyways I look up at the clock which shows 3:45 am. I still have about half an hour to relax before I start on my daily chores. I make my way out the room after glancing at Sarah who is sleeping soundly and her oxygen mask is properly attached to her face and working perfectly. I sleep on the ground in Sara's room as she is not doing well these days. I still remember the day when we found out she was sick like it happened yesterday. A year before the last year when I was 19 years old, Sarah was reading the kids a bedtime story; when she all of a sudden fainted. I rushed to her side immediately called 911 and got her to the hospital where we found out she has sarcoidosis, which went undetected for years causing pneumothorax. That day was one of the worst days of my life. My world crumbled again in front of my eyes and I could do nothing to prevent it. Things started to get difficult from there on. Sarah's insurance had expired causing her to pay out of her pocket. 90% of her savings got used up I had to get a job outside the orphanage as she could not afford to pay me for my work at the orphanage. So I took on 3 jobs. During the week I would finish my orphanage work by 7 am and go to Luke s dinner and work as a waitress. Then I would finish my shift at 2 pm and come back make lunch and dinner for the kids and leave for the red bar at 3:30 pm, I would work as a bartender till 10 pm and then I would go back to Luke's and work as a dishwasher till midnight and come back to the orphanage. The owner of the dinner Luke is 28 years old and has inherited the diner from his grandmother. He loves the place so much that he took over it as soon as he was 18. He and I became friends when we were kids. He lived in the neighborhood. He was also a really big help when Sarah fell sick. He offered me jobs at his diner which pays us very well. He even lets me take home leftovers from the diner for the kids. Beatrice is my only friend other than Luke. She works for a tech - company and she works from home. So she comes to the Orphanage to look after the kids during the day when I go out to work. Beatrice and I became friends in school and are still friends. It's Monday morning, I wake up at 4:15 am. I quickly get started with my morning routine. I clean the kitchen and start making breakfast for 23 people, I make an omelet for Sara and pancakes for the kids. Once I am done cooking, I clean up the mess and make my way toward the common areas picking up after the kids and cleaning things up as quickly as humanly possible. I water the plants and lawn in the backyard. I didn't even realize that it was time for sunrise. I turn the tap off and take a break from everything. I stare at the rising sun and take a deep breath in. The smell of wet soil and beach tickle my nose. " You are such a sweet little girl, " he said His voice sent a shiver down my body. "Don't tell Sara, okay this is our little secret. You are the best little girl." His hands were inside my pants, I tried to scream but he covered my mouth pain flooding through my body. "Shh...Shh...it's almost done, princess. My sweetheart just a little bit more. I know you like this, don't cry." I jerk my eyes open, this memories will haunt me for the rest of my life. I wipe the stream of tears and take a deep breath and return to my chores. I do a heaps of laundry and before I can finish folding the last batch it's time for me to leave for my first of three jobs. I was wondering why Beatrice was Late. I won't be able to leave. Anyways I walk out of the Laundry room wondering where Beatrice was. As soon as I step out of the laundry room I see Sara out of her bed sitting at the dining table. "Good morning Sarah, Breakfast is ready, I have made pancakes for the kids and an omelet for you. As the doctor has suggested you are not allowed to have any pancakes so don't fuss about it. I am not giving you any....and ...." I stop right in my tracks and look at Sarah, her back was facing mine but I could tell something was off about her. Panicked I rushed to her side. I look at her face and it's turning purple. My heart sinks to my stomach, and I feel bile rising in my mouth but push the feeling aside and sprint to her room and get her portable oxygen tank. I rushed outside to find her in the same position I found her. I put the oxygen mask over her face and say "Tt... take deep breaths Sarah and concentrate on my voice. Come on Sarah look at me and me take-in deep breaths like this" I show her taking in long deep breaths but she doesn't respond, I take her face in my hands and tap her face, desperately trying to get her attention. Suddenly I feel her body go limp and now I am holding up her body weight. I screamed at her name at the top of my lungs which woke all the kids up. I pull the phone out of my back pocket and call 911. "Not this again god, please let her be okay..." I mumbled to myself. ****************************************** "Everything will be okay, Aimee don't worry, Sarah is a fighter. " Mr. Williams comforted me. I was shaking uncontrollably... Mr. Williams is our neighbor, After the kids found me and Sarah in that state, I sent Olivia to fetch Mr. and Mrs. Williams from the neighborhood. They are a middle-aged couple and have always been a friend of Sara's. We celebrate festivals and holidays together. They have been a big support for us in these past years, especially when Sara fell sick. Olivia found them and brought them with her to the orphanage, Mrs. Williams volunteered to stay back and help the end kids to school. Olivia wasn't going to school as she was 13 and old enough to understand what was going on. Other kids were between the ages of 5 and 10, so they truly didn't understand what was going on. In a few minutes doctor comes out of Sara's room, pulling me out of my thoughts, " Is Sara going to be okay?." Mr. Williams asked while I could just stand with tears in my eyes. Doctor Singh took off his face mask and said in a freakish monotone voice. " Well I am not going sugar-quote things here, There's bad news." Before he could say anything further my head started spinning, my vision started to,blur, and then..... Everything around me went black.