“Papa! When did you get back?” Alex exclaimed, hugging his father tightly.
“Well, I decided there was no sense being the owner and not allowing my employees to take over when my son shows up in town early,” Leonardo said gleefully.
“It’s a great surprise,” Alex replied as he bent down to kiss his sister on both cheeks. “Smells amazing in here.”
“Wait until you try their hummus,” she said as she waved to the server.
They ordered quickly and dove in when the hummus, labneh, and roasted vegetables arrived.
“Man, I've missed this so much. Not much Mediterranean food where I’ve been,” said Alex in between bites.
He saw Sofia nervously watching him like she wanted to say something, but pretended not to notice, knowing that she wanted to ask more about Aria.
“So, tell me about you running into Aria at the cafe,” Sofia asked, Leonardo looking on quizzically.
Shaking his head, Alex says, “Enzo owes me twenty euros. I’ll have to let him know he lost the bet for how long it would take you to bring it up, sis.”
Leonardo looked between Alex and Sofia. “Wait, who is Aria?”
Narrowing his eyes at his sister, Alex then turned to his father and shared the story of how he first met Aria.
“I met her in my fifth year of school. Every time I saw her, she was reading a book. Sometimes she would laugh out loud, and other days, whatever she was reading would make her cry. It was as if everything she read affected her deeply. But what intrigued me most was her scribbling in a pink notebook that seemed to be always with her. I, I wanted to know what she was writing. Sofia told me she was in her class, so she was barely sixteen, but so mature. It was the way she held herself. I noticed her long before she showed up at our house one day to study with Sofia.”
“Yeah, tell him how you used to bribe me to keep signing up for her to be my study partner,” Sofia said while sipping on her water, a smug look on her face.
Leonardo laughed and put his hand on Alex’s shoulder.
“I wondered where she was getting so much spending money. Go on, son,” he said when Alex looked ready to pummel his sister.
“It was only a few times,” he grumbled. “But I had to find a way to talk to her. I couldn’t understand why I was so nervous around her. I was eighteen and getting ready to head to university, but this shy girl stole all my swagger.”
“You didn’t have that much swagger,” Sofia said, dodging Alex’s grab for her nose.
“Yeah, well, what little I had was useless around her. When Aria smiled, it did something to my brain. When I asked around about her, everyone said the same thing. Aria was the kindest girl in school.”
“This is true,” Sofia said heartily. “Everyone spoke highly of her. She’d do anything to help someone in need. I can’t tell you how many times she shared her lunch or stayed after class to help tutor the younger students.”
“She was very quiet but when she felt passionate about something, she wasn’t afraid to share her views. I overheard her debating in class about the deep meaning she found when reading some controversial book or other. She had fire in her eyes, and it drew me to her even more. She was different from any other girl I’d met.”
“So did you ever tell her how you felt or ask her out?” Leonardo asked curiously, leaning in, completely taken with the story.
Sofia groaned. “I hate this part.”
Alex tensed up but answered, “The day I had finally gotten up the courage to ask her out, I heard Nicholas bragging about having done the same that morning. And for the next several months, I had to endure watching them walk through campus, hand-in-hand, falling more in love with each passing day.”
Sighing heavily, he sat there with the memories burning just as hot as the day it happened.
“That must have been really hard,” Leonardo said quietly.
Then Alex explained the cafe incident and the accidental kiss, adding the story of seeing her at the gallery so his dad was all caught up.
“Wait a minute. You kissed her?” Sofia said, her voice slightly raised, her hands held up in a wild gesture.
“Be quiet. Yes, it was an accident. I went to kiss her cheek and she moved. It was just a touch, but it must have scared her, and she ran to the restroom. Then you called, Papa, and I left. I had no idea I’d see her again at the gallery.”
“Sounds like this woman made quite an impression on you, son. Now and then.”
“Yes, she did. She has.” He was powerless to hide his broad smile.
