Chapter 20 - Malia (4)

Groaning, he tries to push himself up with much effort while I place a pillow on his back. His eyes pop open and they land on me. "Lia? What are you doing here?" he says groggily, his eyes looking reddish and droopy like he can barely keep them open.

"Gael sent me to bring you food that he said a certain Nonna made for you, and said to make sure you eat it, so here I am." I grab the bowl and sit next to him, scooping some in the spoon and blowing on it before bringing it to his lips.

He doesn't open. I look up at his face and he's staring down at me. I can't put a finger on the way he stares. Is he mad that I'm here? He doesn't say anything though, just stares at me with an expressionless face.

"My arm is getting tired, can you please open up?" I ask gently and his eyes move from the bowl in my hand to the spoon in my other. Without another prompt, he opens his mouth and I feed him the soup. "See? That wasn't so hard, was it?" I say with a small smile.