Driver (Sebastian Vettel) - ON HOLD

15.0 - Wine & Talks

MEGAN MOORE

Hanging with Vincenzo, it felt like time never passed us by. We headed out for lunch before returning to the apartment. Lounging on the sofa I smiled as I held my glass of wine in my hand and looked over at my friend. "Does your mum still wear those crazy aprons when she cooks?" I asked as I sat up a little. 

Vincenzo laughed as he nodded, "Now days she started to wear those stupid plastic clog looking shoes too?"

"Crocs?" I questioned as I thought about the only shoes I knew like that. "Like clogs with holes in?"

He nodded vigorously, "Yes those are the things. She bloody loves them." He sipped on the wine in his glass before his brown eyes widened and he smiled widely. "My Pa even has a pair," he informed me as he chuckled. "He wears them all the time, I honestly have no idea where they even got them from."

"Knowing your mum she's probably been shopping at that foreign market again," I said as I thought about the times she dragged me to it. It was foreign to them, most of the good being sold were English so I knew most of the stuff. 

"She still goes there, every Thursday morning without fail."

I laughed as I thought about his mother, she was a creature of habit. "Even with your dad not being well?"

"Pa might be ill," Vincenzo looked at me like I was stupid. "But nothing gets in the way of Ma and her shopping. She thinks she will find something to help him whilst she is there too."

"I wouldn't trust any of those English medications they sell there," I told him as I shook my head and placed my glass on the coffee table. "It's usually just herbs and random pills that they market as working, but they don't."

He nodded, "Oh I know. She's tried countless things, all of them non funzionante." non functioning.

I ignored his attempt to find the right words, I didn't need to correct him I already knew what he meant. "What's wrong with your dad?" I asked him as I got serious and gave him a sad smile. 

Vincenzo sighed as he straightened himself up and looked me in the eye. "He's got COPD," his voice was quiet as he told me. 

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked him as I looked at him with raised eyebrows. "You know I would have done whatever I could-"

"There's nothing you can do," Vincenzo was honest in his answer. "Besides you know my Ma doesn't like the fuss. If you flew to Italy to see him she would have sent you away."

Sighing I shook my head at him, "I could have sent drugs. I could have pointed you in the right direction for help. I know people," I reminded him of my friendships with people in high places. "Just six months ago, Georgia was telling me she was working on a new trial for COPD."

Vincenzo looked at me, his eyes were sad as he shook his head slightly, "It's too late for that."

"What do you mean?" I asked him as I straightened myself up, sitting with my feet on the floor as I stared at my friend. "How far gone is he?"

He looked down at his hands, I watched as he changed from the man I knew to someone else. His voice was quiet when he spoke, "Stage 3. He has around 4 years left," he didn't look back up as he told me. "There's nothing we can do about it."

I leaned back in the chair and took a deep breath in, Vincenzo's father, Vincenzo Sr had always been a good man. He'd only ever worked hard to provide for his family, he'd worked every day making sure his family was well cared for. 

"Your mum," I started to talk as I saw him look up at him. "How are you dealing with it?"

He closed his eyes for thirty seconds, I didn't speak as I waited for him to open his eyes again. When he did, I knew he needed comfort, he needed someone to look after him. Reaching forward I took his hand, he pulled his hand back and crossed his arms over his chest. "Look, I'm dealing with it," his voice was short. "My Ma, she's the one I am worried about the most." He was sad as he spoke, "I just don't know what I am supposed to do to help her."

"Just be there," I tried to offer him my advice.

Vincenzo picked up his drink and took a large mouthful before he stared straight at me, "She won't accept my help. She won't accept anyone's help."

"She's a very proud woman," I said as I spoke about his mum. "Don't you remember that time she fell down the stairs, she broke her elbow and still managed to drive herself to the hospital. When she came home, she still didn't want anyone's help. You know she will do this in her own way."

He nodded, "I know. I just want to help her so much. She is getting older now, when my father dies I don't know how she will cope."

I bit my lip as I thought about my response. I didn't want to say the wrong thing, I just wanted to comfort him. "She's strong, stronger than you think. I know that she just needs a little support."

As he went to speak my phone rang loudly, I looked over at it. Alice's name was flashing across the screen, I looked at Vincenzo who stood up and reached into his pocket. Grabbing my phone I answered it, putting it to my ear as Vincenzo showed me his cigarette packet before he walked away. 

"Hi," I said down the phone as I watched him walk away. 

"Oh my God, do you know how hard it is to get hold of you?!" Alice's voice was loud and shrill in my ear as I got to my feet. 

I didn't want to deal with how loud she was being right now, "Please, don't be so loud." I groaned as I walked towards the window and looked down at the street below. "What's going on?"

"Basically, I have been trying to get hold of you for a few days," she told me, she didn't sound as playful as she did when I first answered the phone. 

"My phone has been on all the time," I told her as I watched the cars passing by outside. "I haven't had any missed calls."

She sighed, "I know. For some stupid reason, I just couldn't connect to your phone." I heard a jingling in the background, "Look, whatever. How is Italy?"

I leaned my head against the glass pane, "Everything is complicated." I didn't want to get into it all right now. 

"Babes," she spoke giving me a pet name. "Tell me all about it, auntie Alice can help you out." She spoke in a cute voice, I could just see her sitting on her sofa on the phone, a glass of wine in her hand and some crap telly on in the background. 

Rolling my eyes, I straightened myself up and turned away from the window. "I have Vincenzo here with me," I explained to her but before I could speak any more she butted in. 

"He's so dreamy," she told me. "Did you see that picture he uploaded to Facebook just last week?" 

"Are you deaf?" I asked as I flashed my eyes at my reflection in the mirror. "He is here with me right now. I have been looking at him for the past few hours."

I heard her let out a noise, like a sigh but in a weird way. "Bring him here, you have to bring him back home with you."

"I'm not home for another couple of weeks," I reminded her as I returned to the seat I had been in before I picked up my glass of wine with my free hand. I took a sip before I spoke again, "I better go."

"Oh yes!" She laughed, "Go spend some more time with lover boy."

Raising the glass to my lips I took a large mouthful before I acknowledged her, "Goodnight, Alice."

"Night, babes!" She was cheery before I ended the call. I loved hearing from her when she was in a good mood. 

Two minutes after I ended the call and a new glass of wine later, Vincenzo returned to the living room, he looked a little cold from being outside as he sat down hugging himself as he looked at me. "So, how are finding driving in Italy?" He smiled as he spoke about something he knew a lot about.