[Pt. 01 should be read first]
Chapter Eight
Awakening
On the fourth night after our arrival, and a week after he had been rescued from the rubble, I was taking my second turn overnight with him and early in the grey morning about 5-30 am, Luke stirred. At once I rang for a nurse and held his hand. I squeezed it, and there was a response. His eyelids flickered and then opened and he smiled. "Tom!" he murmured, and he closed his eyes again. I sighed in relief: at least he had recognized me. When the nurse came, I did my best to explain that Luke had opened his eyes, but as she spoke no English, it was difficult. She felt his pulse and nodded approvingly. At 8 am, David came and I told him what had happened, and he explained it to the nurses. An hour or two later, after I had gone back to the hotel to get some sleep, Luke awakened fully and talked to David, who had been holding his hand. He told David that he had dreamt about me. David told him that it was not a dream, that indeed I had sat at his bedside all night.
At 2 pm David called me at the hotel on my mobile and as intended, it woke me up. When I heard that Luke was conscious, I rushed off to the hospital after a hasty wash, without eating or shaving. When I got there, the doctors had been to see him, and his mother and Pop were also there. His eyes lit up when he saw me, and I knelt down beside the bed and kissed him gently. He struggled into a sitting position, and said that the doctors needed to carry out more tests, particularly CT and MRI scans, but these were not expected to take more than a couple of days, during which time, he would be given food and got properly on to his feet. It was arranged that I would stay and hold Luke's hand for a few hours and the others would then come and collect me for a celebratory meal. It was bliss, just to sit there holding his hand as he lay there smiling lovingly at me. A wave of tenderness seemed to engulf me, and the heavy feeling of the last few days vanished. "Pass me my phone, my sweet," he said. "I must ring the boys at the apartment and tell them what's happened to me. Fortunately the rent was paid in advance!"
We were taken by Tom's mother to an excellent small restaurant. We knew that even if no damage was found, Tom would need a couple of weeks to recover after discharge from the hospital. David and Jon wanted to take him back to England, but his mother said no, she would look after him and make sure that he was well enough before returning to his studies. We finally agreed that Jon and David, who had jobs to do, would go back home after Luke's test results had been established and he was discharged from hospital, and I would accompany him back to his mother's house, stay for a couple of days and see him settled there, before returning to Camford.
When I went back to the hospital to see Luke, an attractive girl with dark hair was sitting at his bedside, talking animatedly in Italian. In spite of her presence, I put my arms round Luke and kissed him, to show her that he belonged to me. Luke introduced me to Leonora and we had a halting conversation in English. She seemed very glad to discover that Luke was OK, and I couldn't help wondering if she was attracted to him. However, I knew my boy well enough to know that she would never take him from me. I felt no jealousy at all.
No damage to the brain or any of the surrounding tissues was found, cognitive tests showed no mental impairment, and two days later Massimo came to collect us in his car and take us home with him. I was given a bed in the same room as Luke and we had a blissful hour or two kissing and cuddling. I refused to allow him to do any energetic sex, rest was essential for him. Just to hold his hand and kiss him was enough. My darling boy had come back from a near-death experience. He had no memory whatsoever of how he came to be in the suburban building in which he had been found. The last thing he could remember before the earthquake was attending a lecture, but everything after that was blank until he woke up momentarily in hospital to find me holding his hand. I E-mailed Colin Vaughan to say that Luke was on the mend, and I would be back in time for my tutorial the following Friday.
Luke's mother was very good, cooking us excellent meals, Sandro and Bianca kept him company when they were not at school, and after a couple of blissful days, I took a flight from Gugliemo-Marconi Airport to London-Gatwick, knowing that Luke would be well cared for during the next week or ten days. When I left for the airport, I did something entirely untypical. I embraced and kissed Luke's mother and thanked her for caring for the most important and most precious person in my life. Tearfully, I also thanked her for bringing him into the world.
Luke had brought a stack of reading with him, but I suspected that Sandro would get him spending most evenings kicking a football about. Luke had decided not to shave off his week-old beard, and when I had got used to it, I thought it rather suited him. Like his hair, it was wavy and black and velvety soft.
When I got back to Camford, I phoned my tutor Colin and asked him if the Dean would take any disciplinary action for my absence without leave. He said that he had already talked to the Dean and no action would be taken, as it was clearly compassionate leave. He also assured me that missing a few lectures should not be a problem. If I did have any difficulties, he would give me a special tuition session. He was so understanding, and such a contrast to the man who had tutored me in my first year. I E-mailed Professor Bairstow, told him about Luke, and asked for his prayers. Of course I also asked the Chaplain of Buckingham, Francis Eglantine to put Luke on the college prayer list. I even went into the college chapel and said a prayer of thanks for Luke's safe recovery. I E-mailed Cathy in Oxbridge, assuring her that her brother was safe and recovering rapidly in his mother's care
The second night back, I went to a concert in the Town Hall with Margaret, who was glad to see me back. She commented on how lively I was, and I explained that it was due to thankfulness that Luke had recovered so well from his accident. I even kissed her more passionately than I normally did, because I was very ebullient, although at the same time I had no desire to awaken anything deeper than friendship.
After ten days, Luke E-mailed me to say that he was back in Bologna and attending lectures and hoping there would soon be a new opera at the Teatro Communale, as he was looking forward to seeing Leonora again.
Chapter Nine
Exchange of E-mails II
From: l.c.singleton-scarborough@qqqqq.ac.uk to t.appleton@qqqqq.ac.uk
'My sweet darling boy
I went for a "clean weekend" with Leonora last Friday! Very moral, separate rooms at the hotel etc. It was by way of being a religious pilgrimage. We took the train to Orta-Miasino. Orta is a small village on the lake of the same name near Lake Maggiore. The place is famous for a spiritual walk or 'devotional itinerary' celebrating the life of Saint Francis of Assisi. In the late sixteenth century on a flat-topped hill, the Sacro Monte or Holy Hill, above the village they began to build a series of carefully planned and landscaped chapels, twenty in total, each devoted to an event in the life of Saint Francis. It took 200 years to build them all. The chapels contain both statues and murals showing Francis's history for the benefit of illiterate country folk. We spent the whole day going round this UNESCO World Heritage Site. We said a prayer at each chapel and ate a picnic lunch. I had made sure that I had my gay perfume on, but she did not seem to notice it.
I attach a photo of Chapel VI, depicting Francis sending the friars out to preach, with some of the statues. We dined in a little taverna in the evening, went to mass together on the Sunday and generally behaved like a pious engaged couple, except that bodily contact was limited to hand-holding! I hope that Leonora's vocation is a strong one, because she is so sweet and I would hate to be the person who destroyed it. It would be a disaster for both of us if she fell in love with me. Do you think I am playing with fire? We came back to Bologna on the Sunday night, and I saw her back to her apartment.
