Their favorite Italian restaurant is located on Turtle Creek Road, where the art of cooking and sculpturing, formality and being at ease, the old accordion player, and the modern bar, all together made Hana to fall in love with it the first time Mario took her there. To him that romantic restaurant will be a perfect place for asking her for marriage. He knows how much she appreciates not only good food, since she is a food cook herself, but the totality of fine arts in that place, like the music, the statues of ancient artists or their works, like Michael Angelo or Leonardo Da Vinci. Besides she feels good every time they dine there.
When they are there, during the different courses, Mario asks the old accordion player to play some folk Italian music. As he spoke with his broken Italian to the old man and put a ten Dollar bill in his hand, Hana thinks what she has done to deserve this elaborate treatment from this adorable and generous man.
"What did you tell him?" She asks
"Let's listen to the music and then I tell you." He responds with a playful smile.
The old man plays his accordion vehemently while two lovers holding hands. There is no doubt in her mind that the music is a romantic song. The old man sings in Italian with his asthma stricken throat. She listens with intensity. "Definitely a romantic song!" She says it in her speaking mind. How can it not be? He looks at this beautiful woman with shinning eyes, which were dull when he first met her. She is wearing a soft make up, which she just recently does while before Valery's wedding, has never done it before. She is wearing a red silk dress that reflects the beauty of her olive color skin and brown eyes and hair. He thinks that they would make a perfect and beautiful couple. He conjures up his last years with his sick wife, when he faithfully took care of her and never strayed even though she was not capable of intimacy because of her extreme weakness. Nevertheless, even in their good years, he never felt the same way for her that he does for Hana now. That was a young, passionate love right after high school and they married during his college years. With Hana, everything is different. Their relationship is not only about love, but it is about maturity, understanding, and having many things in common. While his wife never had any idea about anything, just being a good, faithful wife, who stayed home and raised their daughter, Hana is a challenge with the mind of her own. Mario sees beauty in their relationship even when their ideas and point of views clash and they disagree. Hana is not only a woman in bed, but she is someone to talk to, exchange ideas, and do things with. Even though at the beginning she was reserved and bitter, but he has been able to bring out the real Hana out of the shell of a hard working woman who has worked all her life to support others and has never heard how beautiful or intelligent she was. She can be his wife and be proud of her femininity, be his friend and fulfill the primary need of every human being, yet have her own identity not his, as his dead wife did. He can take her to his social events with high class people and be confident that she will not embarrass him since her social grace is supreme, and her intellect and knowledge are ideal. Even though he knows Hana has not socialized at all because of her former life style, he is sure when the occasion arises, she can be as good as any woman who has.
After the main course, while Hana sipping grand mariner, she has recently discovered a taste for it, and Mario is drinking strega, his favorite Italian liquor, he is struggling how to propose to her. But he must. The diamond ring he has bought her is ready to be put in her finger.
"Hana, I have something for you." He finally begins.
She intuitively knows that tonight is an unusual evening.
"What is it?"
"I want to marry you. There is no need for us to act like boyfriend and girlfriend anymore. Will you, please?" He takes the small box out of his pocket and put it on the table in front of her.
Even though she has waited for this moment, the thought of being married again brings her back a flood of what she has been through. However, losing Mario for her past miseries is out of question. As she is on spot and feels she must answer Mario, she remembers that Sam, her son, does not even know that she has a boyfriend. How is she going to tell him? "Sam, I'm getting married!" What is he going to think? She does not have any problem with Farhad, for he has told her many times that she needs to get married. Farhad has witnessed his mother and Mario's gradual friendship to become something else. He has gotten to know Mario.
As Mario impatiently waits for her answer, he can also read her confused mind.
"Do you want to think about it more? You don't have to answer me now!"
How understanding and loving he is. She thinks to herself. As she has waited for this moment for a long time, why is it that she is so frightened now that the moment is here? How can she be so befuddled and how can she do this to this man? This is the chance of her life time. She is sure that a lot of single women envy her for this opportunity. Collecting all her thoughts and feelings, she talks with her speaking mind: "I thinks about Sam tomorrow."
"Yes, Mario, I marry you."
She opens the box and looks at the shinning blue diamond and lets Mario to slide it in her finger.
To Be continued
No comments:
Post a Comment