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In one of the rented houses overlooking the canals of Venice, Goffredo Tedesco woke up in an empty bed, half asleep and with his silver hair disheveled. The window was open, so he could hear the sounds of people jumping and singing during the Carnival. He looked beside the bed, saw that his companion wasn't there, decided to get ready, and leave the room to see where he was.
Seduced by the smell, he went straight to the kitchen and there he was, his dear companion Aldo Bellini cooking for him. He approached from behind, embracing him and placing small kisses on his neck. “Buongiorno...” Goffredo said, his voice still hoarse with sleep, “Good morning, darling, did you sleep well?” “A little... you know how it is... carnevale...” Aldo smiled, still preparing some bread for breakfast and placing it on the table, trying to free himself from Goffredo's stubborn arms.
“Any special reason for this feast?” Goffredo was already seated in his chair, looking at the lavish breakfast table with toast, cheese, baked bread, a bottle containing tea and another containing coffee. “Do you know what day it is today?” Aldo also sat down, preparing a plate. “I don’t think so?” sighing as he served a plate with baked bread and Parmesan cheese to Goffredo, he replied, “It’s Valentine’s Day, silly, also known as Lovers’ Day…” Goffredo almost spat out his coffee at this revelation. “What? What’s the surprise?” Aldo looked at him worriedly. “Nothing, Aldino! Hahaha! Questo è perfetto!” Goffredo said, wiping his mouth with his napkin and trying to disguise his nervousness by eating. “Deliciozo amore!” “Grazie!”
After a hearty breakfast, the two decided to stroll through the streets of Venice. It was Carnival, and masked people walked the streets in their elaborate and exuberant costumes, rich in detail. Aldo's eyes always sparkled at the sight of those costumed people, especially their masks. With his arm around Goffredo the whole time, he would always drag him along, showing off a beautiful mask or costume that caught his eye. The only thing Goffredo did was look at that smiling face and his bright brown eyes.
While Aldo was across the street browsing yet another mask shop, Goffredo was in a flower shop choosing some flowers. He decided to order a bouquet of red roses, "...I want these, please, per favore, consegnalo a questo indirizzo in segreto,si?" He said to the shop assistant, who nodded. When Aldo arrived at the flower shop, Goffredo tried to disguise his intentions, saying he was just looking at the flowers, taking his hand and leading him somewhere else. "Fredo! Look at this! An antique toy shop!" Aldo spoke with such enthusiasm and a smile on his face that it was impossible for Goffredo not to fall in love with that face again, especially his smile. "Toys? Since when do you like children's toys, Aldino?" "Mah! I just think they're pretty, not that I want one of course, come on, let's take a look!" Sighing, but with a smile on his face, he had no choice but to enter the store. The store was simple, with many wooden toys, some as decoration and others made for small children, such as puzzles and building blocks. Among so many old toys, one could also find some modern ones. "Fredo! Look how cute, it looks like you!" It was Aldo, holding nothing more and nothing less than a gray plush mouse. "Un ratto, Aldino?" "So what? He's chubby too.” Aldo placed the plush mouse next to Goffredo's head. "See? Identical!" After that, he put the plush toy back on the shelf. "Let's have a snack now, shall we?" And he left the store. Aldo was outside with his back to Goffredo when he took the plush toy and gave the same order to the store owner: he bought the toy and asked him to send it secretly.
The two stopped at a trattoria, where they had some croissants for lunch and ice cream for dessert, but Aldo couldn't help but notice how quiet Goffredo was, let's say, "Are you alright, amore? You seem a little quiet..." "I'm great, Aldino, walking with you has been wonderful, I love seeing you so excited." "I'm glad to hear that..." Aldo said as he finished his ice cream. They started their way back home when Goffredo spotted a very traditional Venetian chocolate shop, while Aldo chatted about the costumes of the Venetian carnival and other things, "Aldino, un momento!" as they were holding hands, he suddenly got startled, "What is it?" "I want to buy some chocolates for dessert, that's all." and he let go of Aldo's hand, running into the chocolate shop without even hearing his reply. A few minutes later he returned with a bag and some chocolates inside, "Now we can go!" Goffredo said, holding Aldo's hand and placing a chaste kiss on his cheek.
Arriving home, it was almost dinnertime. Goffredo even offered to help, but Aldo said it wasn't necessary; after all, it was Valentine's Day and he wanted to be responsible for the celebratory meal once again. He had no choice but to go out onto the balcony to vape a little, constantly checking his phone to see if the deliveries were in order, until a familiar smell invaded his nose. No, and it wasn't from his peach-scented vape; the smell was coming from the kitchen.
“Aldino? Cos'è questo?” Aldo was surprised by Goffredo's arrival. “Ah… I'm making pizza for our dinner; they're in the oven now…” “And what kind of oven is that?” Goffredo pointed to a kind of mini oven where the pizza was baking. “I bought it online a while ago; they were launching it during the Winter Olympics in Milan. I thought it was practical; it's made entirely for baking pizzas. What do you think?” “I don’t know, Aldino, I’m from the time when pizzas were baked in stone ovens…” “Well… you tried it once at your mamma’s birthday party and they ended up tasting like dirt…” Goffredo sighed and Aldo started laughing when the oven signal indicated that the pizza was ready, “Ah! How wonderful! See? It’s ready, I’ll put it on these plates while we change for dinner, okay?”
With their clothes properly changed, both dressed in suits, the dinner table was already set on a balcony overlooking one of Venice's canals, where St. Mark's Basilica could be seen. On the table were the pizzas and two glasses of white wine. "Sit down, darling, and help yourself before it gets cold." Goffredo sat down quickly, and just as he was about to eat his pizza, Aldo interrupted him, holding his glass of white wine. “First of all, I want to say how happy I am to celebrate another Valentine’s Day with you, Goffredo. Let’s toast now.” “Wow! Aldino… thank you, I feel the same way, ti amo.” Goffredo replied, somewhat embarrassed, “anch'io ti amo” Aldo responded, they toasted and began to eat their pizza. “I know that flaworing!” “It’s your mamma’s flaworing, your sister taught me…” Before Aldo could even finish the sentence, Goffredo stood up, walked around the table, grabbed Aldo in a warm hug, and gave him a passionate kiss.
It was late at night, Aldo was sleeping peacefully in bed when Goffredo, already up, whispered in his ear, "Aldino, vieni con me per un momento..." "What? Fredo?" Goffredo took his hand and led him to the living room. It was all dark, but in the background, soft Italian music could be heard, something about being two diamonds, according to Aldo's limited knowledge of Italian. Suddenly the light came on and there was Goffredo wearing a white dress shirt with rolled-up sleeves and navy blue trousers, holding a bouquet of red roses in one hand and in the other a heart-shaped box of chocolates and a plush mouse. Aldo approached, still speechless, “You know, Aldino… it’s hard to balance all this, hehe…” “Dio mio…” Aldo then decided to take the box of chocolates and the plush mouse, which was adorned with a red ribbon around its neck, placing them on the nearby table, “Aldino? Say something… didn’t you like it? The gifts are kind of silly, after everything you did for me today… but it’s from the heart… and also because I love you…” While Goffredo continued talking, still looking at the box of chocolates and the plush mouse with a smile, he took one of the chocolates, put it in his mouth, approached Goffredo and kissed him.
The music ended; the gifts were still on the table, half the chocolates eaten, and the stuffed mouse in the middle of the bouquet of roses. Two lovers lay on the sofa, their clothes on the floor, only whispers and 'I love you's' and words of love could be heard, both in English and Italian, and the natural light of Venice in the background, while the two shone like two diamonds.
THE END