Lessons Learned, Healing Hearts

A New Day, A New Dawn (Chapter 9)

Waiting for the guys to come down, Marlow was captivated by the early dawn sky. Despite the dominance of a mere crescent moon, if she looked hard enough, she could make out the faint outline of grey that completed the orb. The previous two days had been shrouded in storm clouds, and today promised to be a glorious day.

"Buongiorno," Marlow said confidently as Gianluca and Ignazio climbed into the back seat.

"Buongiorno," only Gianluca responded.

"Ciao, Bella. Come stai?" Piero said, taking his place in the front seat.

Everybody everywhere understood the words 'Buongiorno, Ciao and Bella,' but Marlow had never heard 'come stai' before. With nothing to lose, she took a stab at answering.

"Good."

Receiving a resounding "Hey!" she clarified, "So, come stai is, how are you?"

"It is."

"Cool. What else could I learn to say?"

"Are you wanting to learn Italian?" Piero asked, thrilled that she wanted to give it a try.

"Sure, why not."

"Good for you," Piero said, squeezing her shoulder.

"OK, lesson #1 is thank you," Gianluca said, beating Piero to the punch. "Thank you is, grazie."

"Grazie."

"Almost. Listen again."

Forever, the patient teacher, stressing the first syllable, Gianluca dragged out the word, "Grr-azi-ay."

"Grazi-ay," Marlow repeated, pulling out onto the highway.

"Grr, grr," he repeated, trying to help her get the trilled r.

Trying and trying, her tongue refused to move as it was supposed to. Then, it happened. Just as shocked as she was, Gianluca and Piero smiled and praised, "Brava."

Bouncing in her seat, Marlow requested, "Teach me some more." Taught a few more simple common words, she finally asked, "So, when you say come stai, how would I say good, thank you, and how are you?"

"Sto molto bene, grazie, e tu," Piero instructed.

Unintentionally laughing, Marlow looked at Piero.

"Slower."

"Sorry. Sto-molto..."

"Not that slow!" she complained, slapping Piero on the arm.

Quietly muttering the new phrase over and over while still concentrating on not getting in an accident, Marlow did not see that as Piero watched her, a wide grin formed across his lips.

"OK, ok, I think I got it," she said, the glint in her eye proof of the excitement bubbling within. "Piero, repeat what you said when you got in the car."

"Ciao, Bella. Come stai?" he obliged.

"Sto molto bene, grazie, e tu?"

"Sono fantastico," Piero said in response, raising his hand for a high five.

"Brava, Marlow," Gianluca said, beaming at his student.

"I'm going to keep practicing, and tomorrow it will be perfecto."

Unsure why Piero and Gianluca snickered, Marlow questioned, "Is perfecto not Italian?"

"Perfecto, no. Per-fetto, yes!" Gianluca said, exaggerating the stressed t's.

"Per-fett-o."

"Brava, very good," Gianluca praised.

"Humph," Ignazio grunted. Slouching lower in the seat, he pulled his hat over his face.

"What's wrong with Ignazio today?" Marlow asked.

"Don't worry about him," Piero said. "He'll be fine once he wakes up."

Slowing down for a yellow light, Marlow called out Ignazio's name.

"Can I share something that might cheer you up?" she asked.

Tipping his hat slightly back, Ignazio looked at her reflected eyes in the rear-view mirror and murmured a low, "What?"

"Look."

Right on cue, the sunrise burst into a magnificent array of yellow, orange, red and purple. Passing over the bridge, a misty morning layer of wraithlike clouds hovered low over the water, creating the illusion that everything above it was floating in the sky.

"Wow!" Piero and Gianluca exclaimed simultaneously.

"Now, doesn't that make you just a bit happier knowing you witnessed the beginning of a new day?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

Stopping at another light, Marlow grabbed her cell phone. Scrolling through her music selection, she tapped on a Michael Bublé song. Hitting play, she asked, her voice and gleaming eyes, hinting that what she was about to say was worth hearing, "And do you know what else is in store for you this morning?"

"What's that?"

"Well..." Noticing she had everyone's attention, Marlow grinned. "You get to spend the next half an hour in a car, with—" pointing to herself with both hands— "me. And in case you haven't figured it out yet, sir, I am a delight." Turning the volume higher and drumming on the steering wheel, Marlow belted out, "It's a beautiful day, the sun is up, the music's playing..." Looking over her shoulder, she grinned as Ignazio rolled his eyes at her.

"BEEP!" the car behind her sounded as the driver motioned for her to go.

"Oops."

Turning the volume down to a reasonable level, she focused back on driving.

Leaning forward in his seat, Ignazio tapped on Marlow's shoulder. Seeing her once again look at him in the rearview, he said, "Thank you, Marlow." Pushing his hat off his face and flashing her a mischievous grin, he blurted out, "And, guess what?"

"What?"

"You get to spend a good portion of the day in a car with me, and I am ..."

"Trouble!" Marlow said, not allowing him to finish his sentence.

***

Learning that Marlow didn't have school today, Piero insisted she come watch them shoot a music video, but she graciously declined. Now, sitting at the kitchen table staring again at a dry textbook, Marlow regretted not going. Feeling the need for a change in scenery, she settled into a wicker chair on her deck and gazed up at a clear blue sky. Pondering whether any pressing chores needed doing, she let out a deep, exasperated sigh. The thought of running a quick errand for groceries held no appeal, and the house was already clean. She couldn't even use the excuse of needing to do laundry as it was already washed, dried, folded and put away.

Most people, when they thought of chauffeuring around celebrities, believed it meant following them around, going to fabulous places, meeting other famous stars, and just having a grand time. The truth was, being a driver involved a lot of sitting around and waiting. Thrilled that Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca were the exceptions to the rule by frequently inviting her to come along, resting her feet on the top handrail, Marlow tipped her chair back. The past five days had been so much fun, and she was going into Ignazio, Gianluca and Piero withdrawal.

Why, Marlow, why? she scolded herself. Why did you turn down the invitation to join them? Even if you were sitting in the back, it would have been much better than sitting where you are now.

Fed up with doing nothing, Marlow grabbed the work phone and headed to the office. At least there, she would be able to find things to do. Receiving a text on the car's console from Gianluca, she heard a robotic female voice say, "Marlow, if you can, please come join us at 1:30 for a late lunch. We are bringing in pizza."

Marlow drummed her fingers on the steering wheel. Yes!! It was beginning to look like she could salvage something good out of this day, after all.