I never thought about what it would feel like or be like to fall in love before. Romance never crossed my mind while in Florence, and why would it? Romantic novels were strictly off-limits in all my schools. We were told stories of obedient wives who'd be lucky if their husbands acknowledged their presence when they entered the same room- course the wives never complained about it either. I wasn't lying when I told Alberto that I wasn't expected to love or even like my future husband. All I had to do was marry him and serve him. As far as I was taught, love and marriage were completely divorced from each other; not an impossible pairing but definitely not the norm either.

In fact, I think my father did his best to dis-sway me from falling in love with anyone, including my own husband. My parents married for love, and in the words of Papa, that ended in disaster. Mama's family disinherited her for marrying beneath her station, and the well-to-do society of Florence shunned her and my father for a very long time. It wasn't until after my mother died and Grandfather indirectly secured Papa a high-ranking position at the Uffizi Gallery that society begrudgingly took us in. I think that was more for my sake than Papa's- my grandparents didn't want me to suffer for my parents' mistake. Not that they ever made an attempt to see me, mind you.

So I grew up without any concept of romantic love. If anything, romantic love was dangerous; best to be avoided at all costs. It was for peasants who couldn't afford better marriages for themselves. I guess "love" was a consolation prize for the poor. But it was certainly something off the table when it came to me. I never wanted to fall in love and never expected to. It's not that I thought I was so above the idea; it just seemed impossible to me. Any sort of love I could experience was reserved for friends and immediate family members, save my husband. Friends were people I could choose to be around, which likely explains why I strictly saw Alberto as simply my "friend" for so long. Or at least I think I did. Still, I didn't know the symptoms of falling in love, I didn't know when it started or even that I was….

The three of us ate lunch together, and then Alberto and I left to make the afternoon deliveries. We took turns riding the bike, each going up and downhill while cheering the other on. It didn't take us long to go through our list of patrons. Once that was done we rode down to the beach where I would have my first ever swimming lesson. Uncle lent me one of his nightshirts to act as a makeshift swimming gown. Alberto took one look at me in it and burst out in a fit of laughter.

"What are you wearing?" "It's a swimming gown." "A swimming what? You're going to have a hard time saying afloat in that." "Well, a good teacher can rectify that little issue, can't he?" I retorted with a cheeky grin. Alberto smiled, shook his head, and strutted up behind me. His hands pressed on his hips as he slanted in a kind of relaxed-yet-knowing posture.

"Ok! Now remember: swimming is just like walking, except there's nothing beneath your feet, and you're surrounded by water, and you have to go up against the current. Otherwise it's the exact same thing." If it's so similar, then why do so many people drown? I could have joined that statistic if you weren't there that night. Alberto motioned me to step forward with his hand. "Ok, to start, put your feet into the water. Give it a try." Put my feet into the water- sounds easy enough. I walked forward with some reservation, pausing momentarily at the edge of the tide. In went my right foot, followed instantly by my left. The salty cool water felt good against my skin, like a relaxing cold bath after a hot day in the sun. I took another step, and then another, going up to about my ankles, which wasn't very deep at all. The way Alberto cried out however, you'd think I was up to my neck already.

"Ilaria, stop! That's far enough!" My head shot back around to see this genuinely frightened look on Alberto's face. It was profound and prominent enough to startle me. "What's wrong?" I asked with confusion and worry. The expression he gave me just now… It's almost as if he doesn't want me going back into the sea. Like he's afraid…..

"N-Nothing! Nothing's wrong, I just… I just wanna show you how to do it right," Alberto rushed up in front of me, effectively blocking my way forward into the water. His legs turned to their scaly purple form. He stood with his back toward the water so to face me. Once he was there in that secure position between me and the horizon, his relaxed smile quickly returned. I blinked, somewhat surprised, when his hands reached out to take both of mine. He held them tight, almost protectively so, in his, wrapping his long, strong fingers around my palms.

"Good, so just follow my lead. I'll be right here to catch you if anything goes wrong, so you don't have to worry." The way Alberto said this just now, it was also in a tone I'd rarely heard from him before. There was an obvious double-meaning behind his words, even if he wasn't conscious of it. It wasn't what he said per se, but the way he said it. No one had ever spoken that way to me before….. and it made my heart flutter. He cares about me; with a sincerity I'd only seen in my close family members previously, he cares for me….

Gradually, Alberto led me out deeper into the water. I noticed that the further out we went, the tighter his hands gripped onto mine. All the while he continued to verbally encourage me. "Good, good! You're doing great! Just take it one step at a time." I didn't really have a choice by the way he was holding onto me and guiding me out. We stopped when we reached my waist, that being the water was at both our waists. Alberto flashed me an approving grin. "Good job! I think this is far enough for today. We'll go a little deeper tomorrow."

I blinked his way in surprise. "Really? This is all you want to do today?" And here he's the one who's on me about practicing for the race! But his face stayed adamant. "We have time, Ilaria. I think we should take this slow. I'm not ready…. I mean you're not ready! Not ready to try anything spectacular. Don't worry; we'll be good to go for the race." "Are you sure?" I wasn't so positive. But he merely responded with a smile. "Sure I'm sure! Can't rush these things, you know." "Well, ok then. You know best when it comes to anything water-related," I returned his pleasant expression. His chest swelled with pride a bit. Then he began moving his feet- and tail- in such a way so to swivel around me without letting go of my hands. "Alrighty! Let's head back to shore. Just do exactly what you did to get this far." I wanted to say that all I did was walk through the water but decided against it. He's doing his best to teach me, after all. The least I could do was be a good student.

I took a few steps forward with relative ease. Then, like some bitter irony, my foot got caught on something. I tripped, tumbling forward straight into the water. We weren't out that deep, but just deep enough for me to submerge myself. My eyes winced shut as my head went under the water.

"Ilaria!" In a panic, Alberto let go of my hands. I hadn't been under the surface for more than five seconds before he swiftly scooped me up into his arms. My head came up into the air as Alberto brought me into his chest. He cradled me there in a position I'd never been held in before. While I gave a few weak coughs to clear out my mouth he scanned me over for injury. "Ilaria, are you ok?!" By the franticness in his voice, you'd think I'd almost drowned again.

"I-I'm fine… I'm fine," I sputtered in between coughs. "Are you sure? Did you hurt yourself? Are you in shock? What day is it?" His last question was an attempt to gauge if I was in shock or not. "I'm fine, really. I'm alright, really," I added a grin to show him that I was being honest. He let out a very deep relieved sigh. "Phew, you scared me there for a second." That scared him? All I did was trip and fall into the water? But I guess it was my first time going fully into the ocean…. since that night.

That's also when it hit me that Alberto was still cradling me in his arms. I'd never been this close to a man- or anyone- before for this long. And it felt weird to admit that I actually really liked it… the sensation of being held by two very strong arms this way. My heart was beating so loud that I worried Alberto might actually hear it. My cheeks were suddenly on fire, red like they were sunburnt. My eyes very, very shyly peeked up to Alberto's face. "Y-You can put me down now," my voice was small and shaky.

Alberto's relieved grin faded at this. To the exact opposite of what I just asked him, his grip on my legs and back firmed up; it was as if he was reluctant to put me down back into the water. Instead of releasing me however, his playful, goofy smile quickly came back. He started laughing loudly and spinning me around in the air. I was frightened at first, wrapping both my arms instinctively around his neck. But fear soon turned into fun as I threw my arms out and began laughing too. He carried me back to the beach in a half-run, half-twirling motion. We were moving so fast in fact that we tumbled back onto the sand. We landed with our arms wrapped tightly around each other, freezing until we were sure we were back on dry land. Alberto looked at me with big eyes, and I looked at him with equally large eyes. Then, after a second, we burst out into a laughing fit again, letting go of one another to lay on our backs in the sand. In that instant- for a sheer, solitary instant- we were children again, sharing our first moment of reborn youth together.

We laid there on the beach for I don't know how long, staring up at the clouds in the sky. The warm summer breeze served to dry us off. My lips eventually parted when they were ready to speak. "The sky's so big….." "Yeah," Alberto immediately agreed. My smile widened as I gently shut my eyes and drew in a deep breath. Yes, this is what happiness feels like; there's no doubt in my mind whatsoever. I'm so happy right now- happier than I'd ever been in my life, I'd say. I never felt this good back in Florence. I can't recall ever feeling this good before period.

Taking in another deep breath, my eyes fluttered back open a little. My head turned to the side where I found Alberto already looking at me. His stare was low and tender, his smile intense and brimming with sincerity. It was only for a split second, but I saw it. I saw the way he was looking at me….. If only I had the right words to describe it. If I had the words to adequately explain…

I turned my head suddenly and caught him looking at me….. and he was smiling then. And I felt… It's almost impossible to describe. This brand-new kind of happiness- a thrill I'd never known before. I didn't know I could feel this way, or that another person could make me this happy. And I want him to be happy. Oh, I really, really do. In that moment, I cared more about his happiness than my own. Mine was already satisfised, having Alberto so close… I'd never given any thought to love or being in love before in my life, and I was still ignorant of the relationship between the two for the time being. All I knew was that I was happy, and I wanted Alberto to be happy- happier than should be possible for any man on Earth.