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My family owns a gelato shop in Naples. Passing down from my grandfather and father, I am now the owner of this little shop. Thanks to the tourism development, our gelato business is quite profitable.
Once I sold a ball of gelato to a blond boy. He then asked for another one as he saw a kid staring at him with big, round eyes. What a kind young man. I said to myself as my father came to help.
“You know what, son.” He told me absentmindedly, “ Years ago, there’s a black haired little boy who loved the gelato here. One day the local mafia guy asked me to ‘take care of him’. What a shock! The lad who just bought two gelatos looks like that boy in some way.”
“In what way? As you said they are a black haired one and a blond one.” I asked, preparing for some ingredients.
“In their eyes. They have the same eyes…” My old man put out a jar of candies, “But that blond guy always buys gelato alone, doesn’t he? Isn’t it strange for a teenager around his age? Doesn’t he have someone else to hang out with? Even you have Mona…”
Upon hearing the name “Mona”, I blushed to the tips of my ears, “Come on, old man! We should focus on working!”
He burst out laughter: “Fine, fine! Let’s move on to our sweet business!”
As for that blond guy, may god bless him. He looked so lonely when he enjoyed gelato all by himself.
More than a month had passed, something was changing around our neighborhood. First of all, the mob member who constantly harassed my Mona and her little brother disappeared for no reason. It was lucky for us, of course. Also, the drug addicts were less seen on my way home. Where had they gone ?
I mentioned the disappearance of the local mob member to one of my friends.
“Don’t you know that Passione has just undergone an earthquake?” He stared at me with big eyes, saying in a low voice.
“The most powerful and flagrant gang in Italy? Earthquake?” I felt perplexed.
“Yeah! Though I don’t know the complete story, I heard that their boss just reappeared! He was cruel enough to ‘clean’ his gang and killed some of its head members…” My friend murmured to my ears with a sly smile, “ It is said the boss was an impeccable man, and how he could become the mafia boss was still a mystery.”
Knowingly, I nodded. The changes were surely related to him in this respect. Well, I would never have the chance to meet him in person anyway.
“Excuse me?”
A blond boy stick his head into the shop window, looking around. It was just the our frequent blond guest.
“Sorry! How can I help you?” I jumped out of the chair by instinct and walked to the window.
It was in a late afternoon, the temperature was rather high so few customer came at this time. I was preparing for the gelato when a strong, menacing man appeared in sight, casting a long shadow into my shop.
“So this is the gelato shop you always talk about, huh!” The strange said in a loud, energetic voice.
“Yes, it is. Which ones do you like? My treat.” The blond smiled to him rather shyly.
“Oook, as long as it’s your treat I’ll choose…this one and this one! You know how much I love strawberries…” The black haired man grinned, pointing at the gelato.
“And you? The usual ones?” I asked the blond while observing his “friend” tentatively.
“Yes, the usual.” He answered, taking out some coins. I found some ugly scars on his palm.
“You got hurt?” I asked worriedly.
“Yeah, by some…accident…” The blond quickly hide his hands behind his back.
“Well, he’ll never get hurt next time, ’cause I’ll protect him at all cost!” The other man in a sweater that exposed his waist exclaimed wholeheartedly.
What a strange guy. I murmured. Wearing a short sweater under this heat…
I watched them go to the park across the street. The bigger man, pointing at his gelato, saying something I couldn’t hear clearly. The blond, on the other hand, talking to his friend in a soft voice.
It seemed he had finally found a person to hang out with! That’s good for him!
The two men didn’t visit my shop until 3 years later. During this gap, I proposed to Mona and got married soon. We were working harder than before as we had a baby boy of our own.
In an evening, I was about to close the door when the blond came to me. I was shocked to see how tall he had grown and he was much more handsome than before. The golden flocks and the marble-like skin reminded me of Apollo, one of the gods in ancient Greek.
“Why, hello! Where have you been these years?” I couldn’t help but asked.
“Well, I was busy for my career. It’s a tough job.” He answered.
“Ah I can understand your feelings. Life isn’t that easy for young adults these years.” I tried to comfort my customer.
“Thank you. Anyway I just come to ask, where can I enjoy the park scenery with the fewest tourist around?”
“When? Tomorrow?”
“Yes, around 9am.”
“That’s the peak time for tourists! If you want to spend some time alone, choose another time.” I sighed.
“But I’ll visit the park with…my partner…tomorrow.”
“O..K, if you insist, you may sit on the bench in the southern part of the park. That’s a relatively quite place.” I recommended as the memories of Mona and me flooded in.
“Thanks for your advice.” He said, reaching out some tips, “Please don’t let our conversation known by others.”
“W…why?” I asked, feeling puzzled.
He smiled, “Just make it a secret of us both, kind sir.”
The next day, I opened business like always. Around 8:30, the blond and his “friend” came to buy gelato. This time, they were closer than ever. They walked abreast, hand in hand, smiling goofily at each other. Suddenly, the blond stopped to murmur something in his partner’s ear, making the tan-skinned guy blush. He then squeezed the blond into his arms, kissing him on the temple.
So they were in relationship now? How sweet! I watched from afar, preparing for gelato.
As I predicted, they ordered gelato in strawberry and fig favor. As they turned their back, I heard the bigger man said to his partner: “Would you like me to read Pride and Prejudice for you?”
The blond chuckled, “Then I know a perfect place for romantic stories.”
They shared a kiss, moving to the park .
The next time I walked up on them was the evening when I was taking a walk with my wife to celebrate our wedding anniversary. The park was quite with few tourists, so we decided to visit the bench where we always date. As we walked side by side, enjoying the fragrance of plants and the night air, I heard some voices coming from the bench. Though there were bushes and trees cutting the way, I grabbed my wife’s hand anxiously. Last time there wasn’t any tall plants around here to block the way. How strange!
We stayed unmoving for a moment. There, across the bushes, the cracking sound of the bench floated into our ears. What’s happening there?!
“Giorno, be gentler, please…!”
“Nng…Call me Giogio, Guido...”
“Giogio, Giogio... Ah...!”
His sound was quickly muffled by furious kisses.
Then, murmurs, pants and satisfied moans filled the air with desire. It’s clear that some lovebirds were having a good time on the bench. As for Mona and me, we were too shocked to make any sound. We just stood there in silent, blushing all over the face.
After some time, the sound died down. A man sighed as they continued kissing and flirting with each other.
Silence.
“Guido…Will you marry me?”
“How can I say no to my sunshine…I love you so much and yes…Let’s get married!”
“Guido, I’m so happy! My love…!”
They began to make out again, this time more passionately. Some words like “wedding”, “family” and even “baby” came out of their mouths between kissing and pants.
Well, judging from the voices, they were definitely the blond and the black haired guy. Thanks to you my peaceful and romantic walking with my wife was completely ruined! But still, good luck to your marriage!
Life went on. I worked, slept, spent time with my wife and son, worrying over my dad’s health… I didn’t realize that 5 years had passed until the blond and his husband appeared again. This time, it was my son that found them near my shop.
“Sir, I promise that your daughter is the most beautiful little girl in Italy!”
I heard my son praising someone’s daughter. Hey, where did he learn such words?!
“Oh, really? Then on behalf of my little girl, thank you for your kind words, young man.” A man chuckled.
What was that kid doing?! I rushed out of the shop, grabbing my son’s shoulder: “I’ve told you to stay in the shop!”
“It’s ok, sir.” I looked up to see a blond man, holding an infant in his arms, smiling at me, “Your are lucky to have such a sweet child.”
The blond and his husband! I recognized them. The bigger man was pushing a baby carriage, the wedding ring proudly shining on his finger.
The blond looked more radiant than ever. He’s wearing a white suit, golden curls lay softly on his shoulder. In his arms was a baby girl. She was like a delicate flower, wearing a flowery bonnet and a ladybug-like outfit. Her other parent was playing with her by making faces. They had the same black eyes.
She was indeed a beautiful girl. I watched her in awe. No wonder my naughty boy left the shop to say hello.
The baby in ladybug outfit stirred, babbling and leaning closer into her papa’s arms. The blond cooed her in a soft voice, planting a kiss on her head. He then turned to his husband, placing the baby in the carriage, swaying it a little. She has his blond hair. The other parent gave her a little bunny toy to sleep with, giving her a smooch on the cheek, making his daughter giggle. Aww, he is such a softie!
“Good sir, may I have the young lady’s name, please?” My son asked unremittingly in spite of my grabbing on him.
“If you are trying to court her, I won’t allow it to happen until you become as strong as her parents!” The black haired man stood out protectively.
“Aww you’re hurting this young knight, love.” The blond said in a mocking voice, taking his husband’s hand in his. I noticed that his scars still existed.
“I’m terribly sorry for my negligence!” I almost shouted as I shoved my son back to the shop, “Go home, brat!”
“Please accept my present for the lady!” The boy never abandoned, reaching out to give the blond a paper-made rose.
“Hmm~ I can see you admiration, but next time, it’s better to buy a real rose for young ladies.” The blond received the present, “Our child’s name is Gioia, which means happiness.”
He smiled, bending down to place the paper rose beside his sleeping beauty, watching her face tenderly and uttered, “You have a young admirer now, my little princess.”
“Never expect to see her again until you grow older and stronger.” The black haired man said in a loud voice, crossing his arms, glaring at my son.
To my surprise, the boy nodded firmly.
“Come on Guido, don’t act so serious.” The blond moved closer to his husband, “We finally have the chance to spend time as a couple. Let’s have some gelato!”
“Fine, as you wish, sunshine.” The man sighed, relaxed. They stared into each other’s eyes and chuckled together.
“Strawberry and fig? As usual?” I asked, just like before.
“Yes, please.” The couple answered, still holding hands.
When they left, I glanced at the baby in the carriage for one last time. Miraculously, the paper rose beside her had turned into a real red rose!
“You’re staring. You find my daughter pretty, too?” The bigger man asked bluntly, making me jump a bit.
“She surely is beautiful…Oh I wish you have a good time with your family, sir.” I quickly turned my eyes aside, “Fetch me some sugar, son!”
The blond and his husband and child seldom appeared in my neighborhood since. What were their occupations? Where did they live? How did the paper flower become a real rose? These questions remained unsolved in my mind.
However, I thought I’m lucky enough to witness an important period of his life. A lonely heart finds another; together they defeat emptiness, create another life, and continue their journey together for the rest of their lives. Whoever he is, may god bless him and his family.