Chapter 46 - nora asked carlo what she should remember after he died
Their last meeting happened six months later.
No one knew it was last.
Carlo was seventy-six.
Nora eighteen.
Luca drove her.
Waited outside.
Carlo had become thin.
Oxygen nearby.
Still sarcastic.
“You got tall.”
“You got old.”
“Cruel.”
They sat near a window in his apartment.
No grand estate.
Carlo had sold the large house years before.
Nora looked around.
“Where’s all your family stuff?”
“Storage.”
“Why?”
“Turns out furniture does not care who controlled the trust.”
Nora smiled.
Then became serious.
“What do you want me to remember?”
Carlo stared.
“About you.”
He took too long.
Nora waited.
Finally:
“I don’t know.”
She frowned.
“You’re dying.”
“I’m aware.”
“You should have answer.”
Carlo laughed.
Then coughed.
When he recovered:
“For most of my life I wanted people to remember that I mattered.”
“That I was the loyal son.”
“The strong one.”
“The one Viola trusted.”
He looked toward the window.
“That hunger made me dangerous.”
Nora listened.
“So I don’t want to give you another assignment.”
“That’s not answer.”
“No.”
He smiled.
“I know.”
Then:
“Remember whatever is true for you.”
Nora’s eyes filled.
“What if I mostly remember letters?”
“Good.”
“What if I remember what you did to Dad?”
“You should.”
“What if I remember olives?”
Carlo looked disgusted.
“Do not slander me after death.”
She laughed through tears.
Then:
“Do you love me now?”
Hard question.
Carlo did not escape.
“Yes.”
Nora looked at him.
“Why?”
“Because I know you now.”
Simple.
“You argue.”
“You overthink.”
“You like olives for reasons I cannot respect.”
“You send terrible drawings.”
“You ask questions nobody wants.”
He smiled.
“That feels like loving a person.”
Nora cried.
“Does that mean you get forgiven?”
“No.”
Immediate.
Good.
They sat quietly.
Before leaving Nora reached toward him.
Stopped.
“Can I hug you?”
Carlo’s face broke.
“Yes.”
She hugged him.
Carefully.
Not for Luca.
Not for Matteo.
Not for Viola.
Not on behalf of the family.
Her hug.
Her relationship.
When she left, Carlo did not ask her to come back soon.
He only said:
“Write if you feel like it.”
Nora said:
“Okay.”
She did not know there would be no next visit.
Neither did he.
Maybe that made the hug more honest.
May you like
No one was performing finality.
They were simply two people choosing closeness for one minute.
