It's quiet. All we can hear is the sound of crying. It's been hours now. Oliver is still in surgery. Diego's been stitched up, but he refused to leave for a CAT scan. He has a concussion, but the possibility of bruising on his brain hasn't been ruled out. He may have broken his arm, too. The doctors want a full body scan, just to be sure his adrenaline isn't masking any pain and that he doesn't have any internal damage.

Every now and then the door to the surgical ward will open, or a doctor or nurse will walk past, but it's never any news for us. The whole family is stuck here... waiting.

Diego's barely said a word since the nurse left. He's been silent, staring blankly at the ground without making a sound. He's kept his hand on my thigh the whole time, keeping me close to him. I've placed one hand on top of his and snaked my other arm around his.

I don't like this. I don't like this at all. I haven't seen him like this before. I don't know what he's thinking, but it can't be good. Nothing about this situation is good. There are too many unknowns. The risk of too high. It doesn't matter how fit and healthy Oliver is, the likelihood of surviving his injuries is small — too small.

His head flew through the window on the way down and smashed into a rock as they hit the ground. His brain is swollen and bleeding. And that's just the beginning. Roman didn't give me much detail, but from what I understand, his arm was crushed beneath the car and might need amputating, and there's a tree branch impaled in his abdomen. His fractured ribs and surface wounds are the least of his worries.

I don't see how he can make it. He's not going to. He can't.

But he has to. He has to make it through. There's no way Diego can survive if he doesn't. There's no way his mother can. The whole family will fall apart without him. He's... He's everything to them.

They're not ready to lose him. They need him. He's the one person that can calm his mother down when she's upset. He still has to officiate Ivy's wedding and drive his youngest to hre first day of high school. He has to help Valeria and Roman build their own home, and he has to be there to watch his eldest, Maritza, become the first female Chairman of the Board. And Diego... He has to be here to keep him together.

Without Oliver, they'll be lost. He's the person they all rely on and he loves being that person.

All of a sudden, the door opens. Lucy Ferrari walks through it, clinging onto the side of a man I haven't met, but recognise. It's Diego's uncle, Kaleem Washington. He holds Lucy up by her waist, the poor woman barely able to stand. Her face is completely swollen. She's shaking and whimpering. The whole family turns their way, but Diego's the only one who jumps out of his seat.

"Mum?" he asks. She wails loudly, gasping for breath. "What is it?!"

"I'm really sorry, kid," Kaleem says. "He didn't make it."

He didn't make it.

He didn't make it.

The air shifts, the room suddenly feeling darker than before. All hope is gone.

He's gone.

He's gone.

"What?" Diego moves closer. "No."

"I'm so sorry."

"No, this is bullshit," he matches past his mother and uncle and tugs at the handle of the door. "Don't fucking lie to me!"

"Diego," Roman hurries over to him.

"I need to see him!"

"You can't go in there!"

"I need to see him!" he bangs at the door. "Let me through!"

"Diego!"

"Open the fucking door!"

"Hey!" Roman tries to pull him away, but it's no use.

"I need to see him!" he yanks at the handle. "Let me in!"

"You can't go in there!"

"I need to see him! Where's the fucking nurse?"

"Diego!"

"Hey! Open the fucking door!"

"Enough!" Roman shoves Diego back violently. "You can't fucking go in there!"

"I need to see him!" Diego tries again. "He's not fucking dead!"

"He is, Diego! He fucking is."

"He wouldn't do this!"

"He didn't make it!"

"Yes, he did!"

"No, Diego, it's over! He didn't make it."

"He can't-."

"Look at me," Roman grabs Diego's shoulders. "Look at me!"

"Fuck off!" Diego pulls away, but Roman wins. He holds Diego by his jaw, forcing him to keep his head up.

"It's over, man. It's done. He's gone."

"No, no, I-."

"Diego!" Roman insists. "He didn't make it, okay? Your dad's- your dad's gone. He's gone. Ollie's dead, okay? Dead."

"No..."

"He's gone, man. He's gone."

A dark sense of realisation seeps onto his face. His anger dwindles, instead replaced with pure anguish. I can't look at him. He's in agony. I can almost see the hole in his chest — the shattered pieces of his heart spread across the hospital floor. His whole world has collapsed.

His father — his best friend, his brother, is gone. Oliver Ferrari is dead.

He won't be there to see his kids achievements. He won't be there for Ivy and Isaacs wedding and he won't be there to see Violet start high school. He won't be there to meet his grandkids. He'll forever be a mystery to them.

And Diego... Diego won't have his father by his side as he starts his family. That's the one thing he's always wanted. From the moment we met, he's spoken of his father in admiration.

Everything he's ever done, he's done because of his dad. He was his motivation — his reason to grow and do better than he has in the past.

And now he's gone.

Diego and the rest of his family will have to continue on without him. They'll have to find a way to adjust — to find a way to cope and live without him.

I feel numb. I feel weak. I feel empty. I feel sick. I can barely feel my legs. My whole body feels heavy... as if I just swallowed a tonne of led.

"No," Diego shakes his head. "No, no, no, no."

"Diego..." Roman tries.

"He can't be dead," he turns away. "He can't be fucking dead."

"Diego," Roman reaches forward to grab him, but he's already walking away. I jump out of my seat.

"Diego!" I hurry after him. "Wait!"

"I can't be here!" He pauses in his step, turning to me with his face filled with fury. All his usual softness is gone. His smile and dimples and nowhere to be found. All I see in his eyes is hurt.

"I'm sorry," is all I manage to get out. And he doesn't appreciate it.

"My dad is dead, Amelia!" he booms. "My dad is dead! He's done — gone! How am I supposed to go on after that? How can I go to work? How can I go to the gym? How can I look at you when he's the reason I asked you out in the first place?"

"Diego..."

"I have to get out. I can't be here."

"Let me go with you."

"He's dead!" he states. "He's dead, and I... I have to be alone."

He walks down the hallway, knocking a vase of flowers on the floor as he turns the corner. 

-------------------------------------

I'm so sorry.... 

I'll be back this weekend to wipe your tears 💔