End of the Summer
"Have you done yet?" Danny asked.
"Almost!" Gabriel answered taking a look at his baggage.
He put the camera and closed it.
"Are you guys ready?"
"Yes, Giovanni!"
"Then let's go!"
Before leaving, Danny and Gabriel gave a last goodbye to Joey and Francesca.
"We'll miss you!" Joey said.
"Hope you'll visit us again in the future!" Francesca said.
"We'll see that. Bye Joey, bye Francesca!"
Outside the house they find Annalisa with Alexander.
"Bye Danny, bye Gabriel!"
Also Bruce and Antonella were with her.
"Have a nice flight!" they said.
After mounting their bags in the car they left for the airport.
"Are you fine Gabriel?" Danny asked.
"Yes, I'm fine. My back hurts a little though!"
That wasn't a problem. Gabriel had a ton of luck to land in the cabbage patch of his uncle when Mei Mei threw him from the window.
Speaking of which…
"Giovanni, can you please..."
Gabriel pointed a house before taking the highway. He said he had to give a last visit to his friend.
"Be quick, you don't have much time!" Giovanni warned him.
"Oh Gabriel, why are you here?" Ming Lee asked when she let him enter in the house.
"Summer is almost over, I'm going back to Italy!"
A pair of arms hugged him from the back.
It was Mei Mei, Gabriel could hear her coming since she was walking barefoot.
"You never stop to catch me by surprise!" he said.
"Oh Gabriel, do you bring some good news?"
Her mother answered for her.
"He came to say goodbye, he's going back to Italy!"
"Really? September just begun..."
"I know!"
"Will you come to see me again?"
"Maybe! We'll see that!"
"Promise me!"
"I promise I will let you know. I'll send you a letter!"
"It's a promise?"
"I promise!"
They gave a long lasting hug.
There was car horn sound.
"Come on Mei Mei let him go, his uncle and his father are waiting for him!"
After one last goodbye Gabriel left the house.
The flight seemed shorter than the last time when Danny and Gabriel reached Bari's airport.
Their mom and dad were waiting form them.
"Danny, Gabriel!"
"Mom, dad!"
Annabella and Enzo never seemed so happy to see their sons.
Gabriel was amazed to see how his father got well so quickly.
"Did you enjoy your summer vacation with your uncle?" they asked.
"Yes mom, yes dad!" the kids answered happily.
"What is this?" Annabella asked pointing a mark on Gabriel's wrist.
"It's a gift of a friend I made in Canada. It's a Chinese ideogram, it means "Friendship"!"
"I have one too!" Danny added showing his.
"We are so happy you made a friend, I was sure that would happen. How did you meet him?"
"It's a long story!" Gabriel answered.
"All right, we'll talk about it later. Here Enzo, let's go home!"
After few days school began and life turned back to normality.
After few months a letter arrived.
It had red and blue stripes.
"Another letter from Canada! It must by from Giovanni!" Enzo deducted.
"Wait, it's for you Gabriel. I wonder what your uncle..."
Enzo was speechless when he read the sender's name;
"Gabriel… who's Ming Lee?"
Gabriel opened the letter:
"Dear Gabriel,
I hope you and your brother had a nice flight for home, Mei Mei is fine, she started school some days ago. Between studies and work as president she think about you and your promise you made to her. So I decided to write this letter if can tell my if you're going to see her one last time at Toronto!
Best regards.
Ming Lee"
Funny, last year Gabriel had to think a lot to decide to travel from a continent to another but this it was different.
He replied to Ming Lee saying he was about to turn back to Toronto next summer.
After some days Ming Lee replied to his letter saying Mei Mei was really happy about that. She was no longer anxious ans she was counting the days remaining for his return.