Pizza-line Bling

Tiramisu

*Leslie's P.O.V*

"Dear passengers, please check around your seat for any personal belongings you may have brought on board with you and please use caution when opening the overhead bins, as heavy articles may have shifted around during the flight.

On behalf of our Airlines and the entire crew, I’d like to thank you for joining us on this trip and we are looking forward to seeing you on board again in the near future. Have a nice evening!"

You may be wondering how we ended up here... Well, don't ask me. The past two days have been a blur. If it weren't for Mia and my mum I would have missed even more of our trip than I already did.

At some point I remember them bringing me a tray of different gelato flavours and trying them with me. They insisted that we couldn't go back without tasting the original ice cream of Italy.

"Come on, we're leaving," Mia nudged me.

I stood up, got my bag from the overhead bin and walked towards the exit. We found my mum with our luggage and walked around searching for dad's car.

I fished my phone out of my pocket and turned off airplane mode. I waited for a second for my phone to adjust and wished for no missed calls.

Nothing.

As I was staring at the screen, Drake's name appeared.

"Hey, I just landed," I answered the phone.

"Les, grandma's gone."

● ● ●

"Leslie," Mia tapped on my shoulder during our ride to Drake's house.

"Huh?"

"What did you wish for me at the Fountain?"

I furrowed my eyebrows, "I can't tell you that, or else it won't happen," I shook my head at her.

"What if it comes true? Will you tell me then?"

I thought about it, "Probably."

"I wished for Drake's grandma to stay alive at least until you came home," I turned to her and felt tears forming in my eyes.

"Thank you," I quickly let myself fall into her arms and hugged her.

When we reached the house Drake was already outside. I kissed my mum and Mia goodbye and asked my parents if I could stay the night. My mum agreed, but my dad didn't answer.

When I opened the door to leave the car, he mirrored my moves and we walked towards Drake together. I didn't know what was going on, but knowing my dad, he wasn't going to do or say anything inappropriate.

"I'm sorry for your loss, son," he gave Drake what you'd call a dad hug. "Anything you need, just ask, okay? You are welcome to come over any time."

Drake's swollen eyes moved to the ground. "Thank you Mr. Ricci, I appreciate it."

"I'm leaving you with good company. I hope you feel better soon. She's in a better place now."

And with that we were left alone, still meters apart from each other, not making a move.

"I'm not going to ask if you're okay," I told him. "Just let me know; should I try making you feel better?" He shook his head 'no'. "Do you want to go lay on the couch, let me cook something for you and then cuddle?"

"Sounds perfect," he stepped closer to me. "I really need a cuddle."

And then we hugged. We stayed in each other's arms for at least five minutes, still outside and on our feet. The breeze of the night light, but still chilly.

"Let's get inside. You'll catch a cold."

I made him an omelette with some cheese and chopped peppers. He didn't eat much. We stayed up until midnight, until Samantha was home and then moved to his room. I didn't mind sleeping in his bed and he didn't suggest otherwise. We continued cuddling until we both fell asleep.

It was a hard time for him and all I could do was be there.

In the morning we were woken up by Samantha. She announced that family and friends were expected to come over to express their condolences. I offered to go get something to offer their guests, but she said she had taken care of that.

"I guess I should leave," I told Drake once his mum had left the room.

"You don't have to," he pulled me in for a kiss but I pushed him away.

"I'm not kissing you with a morning breath," I rolled my eyes. "Can I use the bathroom? It's gonna take me two minutes," I put two fingers up.

"Don't take too long, I need that kiss."

I run to the bathroom in my previous day's clothes. I washed my hands and my face and put some toothpaste on my finger. I rubbed my teeth and used my tongue to feel the freshness in my mouth. When I was done washing everything out, I was ready for my kiss.

I run back to Drake's room and embraced him in a hug. I leaned backwards and pushed my lips onto his.

"I missed you," he whispered in my ear.

"I'm not leaving any time soon."

● ● ●

The day of the funeral had arrived. The hot, sunny weather had been replaced by a summer storm. It was like the sky was crying for Azura's passing.

I stayed by my parents the entire time. Drake needed to be with his mum so that they could go through this together. It felt right that way.

The hardest time for them was watching the grave dive into the ground. The throwing of the roses, watching the men cover the grave with soil... Everything felt wrong.

At some point I thought I saw Spencer there with Abi, but my sight was blurry by my tears.

"You should invite them over for lunch this weekend," my mum told me for the tenth time that day.

"I don't think it's the right time, mum," I placed my hand on her shoulder. "I get it, you want to help, I do too, but I don't think that some lunch is going to help. I'll talk to Drake about it, but please not now."

After most of the people were gone I sat down on the ground next to Drake and near Azura's grave.

"I'll never forget what you did for me, Azura," I whispered, touching the ground. Drake turned to me but my eyes never left the ground. "You helped me get the best boyfriend I could ever ask for. I'm so glad I got to meet you, get to know you and adore you. Thank you for being in my life, even for this short period. I'll never forget you," I reached to grab Drake's hand. "We will never forget you."