My love is A WHAT ???

Goodbye parents

That night, I wasn’t expecting anyone. It was two in the morning, and my mother and father were already in a deep sleep. Fear took over me. I threw off the blanket and stood up. I carefully approached the door, took a deep breath, and opened it. There, at the door, stood a strange woman. From her uniform, I concluded she was staff. She had kind eyes and was holding a bag.

“Miss, this was sent to you by a stranger. He didn’t tell me his name,” she said.

I frowned. I didn’t know anyone who would send me something like this. Surprised, I asked if maybe she had the wrong room, but she insisted that she was certain this was where she had to bring it. I took the bag from her hand, thanked her, and closed the door.

Inside was a box—a black box. I was frightened, thinking it might contain some kind of poison, but probably not. I opened it, and inside was a small teddy bear—cute and fluffy. I liked it, but at the same time, I was overwhelmed with a strange feeling. I set it down on the dresser, but in my mind I thought: perhaps someone is joking with me—or worse, trying to play a cruel game. I lay down in bed and fell asleep.

In the morning when I woke, I decided that today I would wear something more presentable and not walk around in sports clothes. I put on white linen trousers and a white linen blouse, let my hair down, put on earrings and a necklace, and applied light makeup. My parents were already waiting for me downstairs so we could have breakfast together.

When I went down, my parents looked very worried. I was surprised, not understanding what was wrong. As soon as I sat down, they told me they had been called to work and urgently needed to return to Greece. Otherwise, everything they had built for years would collapse in a moment. I was shocked, but deep down, I very much wanted to go back too. At the same time, something here was holding me, not letting me leave. My brain told me it was better to go, but my heart was trying to convince me of the opposite. I was terribly confused.

“My dear, please don’t be upset, but there are only two tickets left for the nearest flight. So, it’s better if you stay here. We’ll return as soon as we can,” they said.

I didn’t know what to do. I nodded at my parents just as Valerio came to our table. He glanced at me and gave a crooked smile. My cheeks turned red, but I tried not to show it. I simply began placing the order. My parents always liked omelets and always had me order them. As for me, I only decided to drink coffee.

When I finished ordering, Valerio asked me if that was all.

“Yes, that’s all,” I replied.

“This won’t do. You haven’t eaten properly for days.”

“Why does that concern you?” I asked.

“Miss, you don’t understand. It doesn’t matter whether I care or not. What matters is that you walk around the hotel with dark circles under your eyes. You’ve been here five days and haven’t eaten properly even once. This offends our chef very much—he thinks you dislike his masterpieces, which deeply wounds his ego.”

My parents and I looked at him in shock. He talked for so long that I couldn’t get rid of him. Finally, I told him to just bring me whatever he wanted. Valerio smiled and scribbled something in his notebook.

After about twenty minutes, it was decided that my parents would leave, and I would stay here, and as soon as they finished their work, they would return. We were so caught up in talking that we didn’t notice our breakfast had arrived. Omelets were served to my parents, and in front of me appeared a huge stack of pancakes decorated with chocolate and strawberries. Valerio’s eyes sparkled as he watched me, smiling.

“Amazing, isn’t it?” he said.

I felt embarrassed. Sometimes he behaved like the scariest man alive, and other times, it was as if a four-year-old child awoke inside him.

“I’m sure it’s delicious,” I said, “but I can’t promise I’ll finish it all.”

Valerio nodded and returned to his place. I managed to eat only three pancakes, leaving the rest. When I looked at Valerio, I held up three fingers. He smiled and quietly clapped for me.

By then, it was already evening. I said goodbye to my parents and returned to my room. Outside, it was raining heavily. I was so afraid of the thunder that my hands and legs trembled. Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Who on earth could it be this time? I opened the door—

And there stood Valerio.