Letters of Love (Lessons in Love) (26 page)

“We’re American
. I’m sorry, but we don’t speak any Italian.” Even though she had said she was sorry, she certainly didn’t sound it.

“Okay, American, great,” he said in surprisingly fluent English, flashing them a dazzling smile
, which made Ashley blush slightly.

“I am Ricardo. I will be your waiter,” he introduced himself, with Ashley hanging on his every word.

“If there is anything you need, just let me know.” He smiled, and as he turned and walked away, Ashley made sure to admire the view.

“Ashley!” Alex berated her friend. “Behave! This is a man-free zone, remember?”

“I’m avoiding men, not dead,” Ashley retorted cheekily. “And Ricardo is delicious! Shame he isn’t on the menu!”

Keeping within the native theme, both Ashley and Alex chose rich pasta dishes from the menu, accompanied by a locally grown red wine. One bottle led to two
, and as darkness fell over the city, the girls were quite tipsy, edging on drunk.

“We need to have some fun!” Ashley declared, though she felt heavy and sedated by the amount of pasta she had consumed.

“We are having fun.”

“No, we need to go out! We need to dance!”

“Okay, where?” Alex squinted at her friend. “We don’t know where to go here.”

“True, but Ricardo will.”

Ashley fluttered her eyelashes seductively at the waiter when he returned with their bill. She all but purred her question at him while Alex shrivelled with embarrassment.

“We want to go out dancing,” she told him. “Like a club. Where
’s a good place to go round here?”

Ricardo smiled coyly, enjoying the attention. He told them about a club close by
that was always busy and open until dawn.

“Sounds perfect,” Ashley told him, sounding as sexy as she could. “Might we see you there later?”

“Maybe,” he replied in his accent, matching Ashley in the flirtation stakes.

“He is really cute!” Ashley enthused as they walked away from the bistro in the direction of the club.

“What happened to the no-men policy?” Alex asked, struggling to pronounce the last word, the effects of the wine really starting to kick in.

“I’m lonely,” Ashley answered with surprising honesty. “I hate and love men in equal measure. And I want to find somebody
. Is that so wrong?”

“No, there’s nothing wrong with that,” Alex consoled her. “Though I hate to break it to you, but I don’t think that Ricardo is your somebody.”

“Gosh no!” Ashley shook her head. “I don’t know enough Spanish to marry him.”

“Italian
,” Alex corrected her.

“Huh?”

“Nothing.”

“Ricardo is just a bit of fun
,” Ashley declared, smiling cheekily to herself. “We all deserve to have a bit of fun.”

They arrived at the club that was already pulsating with loud, dance music neither of them recognized.

“Are we going in?” Alex asked tentatively, the walk through town beginning to strip her of her drunken haze.

“Absolutely!” Ashley declared decisively, pulling them both into the club.

They danced until the sun rose, until their feet ached and the dancers around them blurred into one.

As Alex emerged into the early morning light, her ears and head throbbing from the effects of the club
, she groaned and realized how wretched she would soon be feeling.

In the club they had eagerly downed vodka shots, bought for them by Ricardo, who had appeared a few hours after them, joined by some friends. Ashley had been delighted, dancing with him on the dance floor, grinding up against him during the slower songs. Alex wasn’t in the mood for male attention
, so she’d continued to dance close by, too drunk to care that she was dancing alone.

She understood Ashley’s desire to have fun, to flirt with guys and be carefree
, but Alex couldn’t follow suit. Her heart was still too bruised to dare letting anyone get close to it.

“I am so tired!” Ashley declared as she stumbled out of the club, Ricardo holding her up.

“Careful,” he said, looking down at her fondly.

Alex felt a pang of jealousy when she saw them, which she instantly hated herself for. But she missed being looked at like that. Ashley might have said that Ricardo was just a bit of fun
, but he clearly thought more highly of her than that.

“Where is your hotel?” he asked in his thick accent, looking concerned.

“It’s this way.” Alex pointed down a familiar-looking street, struggling to believe that a new day was beginning when she hadn’t even concluded the last one. It felt surreal, as though she was living beyond the realms of the real world.

Ricardo and his friends escorted the girls back to their hotel. All the while Ricardo and Ashley
talked about films they loved and songs they enjoyed. They seemed to have a lot in common.

Outside the foyer of the small hotel
, Alex thanked the guys for walking them back.

“Can I see you again?” Ricardo asked Ashley, his eyes wide and intense.

“Sure.” She smiled shyly at him.

He kissed her cheek and then handed her a small slip of paper upon which he’d wr
itten a love note and his number.

As Alex watched
, she felt a lump form in her throat, it was one of the most romantic moments she’d ever witnessed, and it was so completely unexpected. She smiled to herself, glad that her friend was happy, glad that Ashley had briefly broken the no-man rule.

****

“Are you sure you’re not mad at me?” Ashley asked for the third time as she checked her reflection in the mirror.

“It’s honestly fine,” Alex reassured her.

“But I feel like I’m letting you down.” Ashley sighed, dropping onto her bed. “I mean, this is supposed to be a man-free vacation, and here I am, ditching you on our last day in Europe to meet a guy for coffee! What am I doing? I’m the worst friend ever!”

“Ash, relax
. It’s okay.” Alex smiled. “You like Ricardo; you might as well meet him for coffee today. I’d never forgive myself if I stood in the way of true love!”

“As if he’s my true love
.” Ashley playfully threw a cushion at her friend in protest. “He’s just some waiter I met on vacation.”

“Then don’t go,” Alex challenged, seeing the pained look flicker behind Ashley’s eyes at the thought of not meeting with him.

“It’s okay to like him, you know.” Alex laughed.

“I don’t.”

“You do. You’re just in denial.” Alex grinned. “It always happens initially.”

“Promise you’re okay for me to go?” Ashley asked once more.

“I promise!” Alex raised her voice to reinforce her sincerity. “Now you need to get going or else you’ll be late for your date!”

“Okay, okay, I’m going
.” Ashley got up and quickly spritzed herself with a fresh dose of perfume.

“Tell Ricardo I said hi,” Alex called after her friend
, who left the room amidst the smell of vanilla and hair spray.

Alone in the hotel room, Alex wondered how she should spend her final day in Rome. There was still so much to see, so much of the culture to take in. A part of her wanted to go to Vatican City, just to see it. But then there were the museums
, which were bursting with great works of art, but the
Mona Lisa
had been a disappointment; perhaps art wasn’t the way to go.

Suddenly, as she sat deliberating, Alex felt unbearably lonely. She realized in that moment
, as she sat on the bed looking down at maps and tour guides, just how much she missed being in a relationship, having that person to connect with, to explore the world with. She knew that if Oscar were there, he’d want to take in as much art as possible. He’d haul her around all the museums, spouting wisely about each piece they stood in front of. Mark was more of a mystery; Alex wasn’t sure what exactly he’d do if he were in Rome. She imagined he’d care more for the history of the ancient city, exploring the Coliseum in detail and visiting other historic spots.

Sighing wistfully to herself, Alex wondered what the two men who haunted her mind were doing at that exact same moment, and if they
, too, were thinking of her.

But then she thought of the man who eclipsed them both, her father. He was always so much fun on vacations. He’d take Alex and Andy to theme parks and join them on all the rides. Her father made life seem exciting, making each moment count. Looking back, it was almost as if he’d known that his time with them would be cut short
, but of course, that was impossible. He just lived for the moment and didn’t take anything for granted.

Full of renewed purpose
, Alex decided to follow her father’s lead and do as much as possible on her final day in Rome. She would visit the Vatican, stroll through museums, and absorb as much of the city as she could.

****

As the sun began to set on Rome, Alex sat alone at a small café, nursing a cappuccino. Ashley had been gone all day, as she’d anticipated even though she’d insisted that she wouldn’t be long. In eight short hours they would be flying away from Europe, back to America.

It seemed strange to imagine being back home
, as Alex sat outside in the lazy evening heat, watching couples walk past, talking excitedly together in a foreign tongue. A faint breeze danced through Alex’s loose blonde hair, stroking her cheek. She glanced at her cell phone, which was positioned on the table before her. She’d text Ashley a few times but heard nothing back.

Picking up the device
, Alex scrolled through her list of contacts and settled on one name, staring at it intently. Drunk on the freedom of being away on vacation, Alex wanted to call him, to hear his voice again. She wanted to speak to Mark. But it had been so long. What would she even say?

For at least ten minutes Alex looked at her phone and debated whether or not she should call him. In her mind she reread the last letter he had sent her
; he had promised to wait for her, however long that would be. Four years had passed since their romance ended. Shouldn’t feelings have dulled in that time?

Alex looked at his name on her digital touch screen. His number might not even be the same. But she’d only know if she called. Alex moved her thumb to initiate the call when her phone suddenly beeped to alert her to an incoming text message. It was from Ashley. She was back at the hotel.

Briefly, Alex was struck numb. She had come so close to calling Mark, but it was as if fate had intervened, distracting her from connecting with him. She paused for a moment, still considering calling him, and then ultimately decided against it, raising her hand to a nearby waiter to ask for the check.

****

“So how was your date?” Alex asked as she entered the room.

Ashley was
sitting on her bed, already wearing her nightdress, the makeup she’d so carefully applied earlier now scrubbed off.

Walking in and seeing her like that, with boys the topic of the evening
, made Alex think of their bedroom back in Princeton, and the biting realisation that when they returned to America they wouldn’t be able to meet like this anymore overwhelmed her. Alex began to cry, soft, regretful tears.

“Oh no, what is it? I knew I shouldn’t have left you alone all day
. I’m so sorry!” Ashley was instantly by her side, hugging her.

“No, no, it’s not that
.” Alex sniffed.

“Then what is it?”

“It’s just… this is our final night together, for goodness knows how long. For four years you’ve always been there for me, and now I have to go and live in a strange city, on my own, and I don’t know if I can do it without you there! I’m going to miss you so much!” Alex was now weeping, and her words brought tears to Ashley’s eyes too.

“I’m going to miss you too,” Ashley declared, her tears quickly intensifying to sobs.

The girls hugged one another, crying over their time together drawing to a close as life inevitably pulled them forward and apart. As much as they might want to, they couldn’t stay in college forever. Alex knew that the hardest part of growing up was the distance that formed between you and your loved ones. She didn’t want to let Ashley go, didn’t want to end their late night chats about boys. She had become more than a best friend to her; they were like sisters.

“I wanted to wait to give you this,” Ashley said tearfully, w
iping at her cheeks as she pulled away from Alex and retrieved something from under her bed.

“I know you don’t like me giving you gifts
, but this is more of a present for me,” Ashley insisted, handing Alex a neatly wrapped box with a pink bow on top.

“What is it?” Alex looked at the box in puzzlement.

“Open it and see,” Ashley urged, getting a tissue to help her quash her stream of tears.