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Maya sighed for the sixth time in that hour, throwing her head back against the headboard and closing her eyes as she tapped ‘play’ on her phone's screen once again, hoping she would understand the audio this time around. The words sounded familiar for obvious reasons, even though the voice lacked the soft tone Maya was used to hearing when her wife switched from English to Italian every once in a while.
Her brow softened for a moment as she thought about Carina, glad that her wife would be back from her trip the next day. Maya had been missing Carina like crazy all week… wishing she could have gone with her to New York for that obstetrics conference, wishing she had been there with Carina as the doctor practiced what she was going to say and to tell her she would do it perfectly, even though Maya knew Carina didn’t need anyone to tell her that.
Maya’s eyebrows knitted together again when she realized that she had been so lost in her thoughts about Carina that she didn’t pay attention to the audio practice of her “Italian for Dummies” lesson of the night. Opening her eyes, Maya restarted the audio and focused on the voice. She leaned forward, left forearm resting on her knee as she tried to write the few words she understood on the page’s top margin of the yellow book resting on her lap.
She was in the middle of erasing a word she had misspelled when a noise –a partially muffled sound that she barely managed to hear through her airpods– caught her attention, making her look up.
The noise had come from Carina entering their bedroom, suitcase behind her, with a tired looking smile on her lips, clearly happy her wife was still awake. “Ciao, amore.”
Maya’s eyes widened, shifting from Carina to the book on her lap and back to Carina. She closed the book quickly, shoved it under the covers and removed the airpods from her ears, leaving them on the bedside table. “Babe, what are you doing here? I thought your flight was tomorrow morning.” She said, trying –and failing– to act normal.
A small crinkle formed between Carina’s eyebrows as she looked at the spot where the blonde had shoved the book, wondering for an instant what that was about, before locking eyes with Maya again and following her lead. For the moment, at least. “I didn’t want to sleep alone another night if I didn’t have to, so…” She started approaching the bed with slow steps as she undid the first two buttons of her blouse. “I booked a flight for tonight and thought of giving you a nice surprise.”
Maya could feel a grin tugging at her lips. “A surprise, huh?” Her eyes drifted to the uncovered skin of her wife’s chest.
The brunette nodded, getting even closer to the edge of the bed. “Yes.” Then, her hands stopped as they reached the next button. “But if you’re busy with something else… it can wait.” She said with a shrug and an innocent look on her face.
The grin slipped off Maya’s lips. “What? No, I’m not busy with anything.”
“I’m pretty sure you were reading something before I came in.”
“That was just a manual from work, nothing important.” Maya rushed to say as she placed a hand on top of the book still hidden under the covers. “I’ll take it to my backpack right now.”
Carina’s left eyebrow lifted in a perfect arch. Her wife’s nervousness was unusual. “Why would you hide it?”
“It’s silly, I just... I don’t want to bore you with this stuff.” Maya tried to sound nonchalant but failed.
Carina didn’t say anything, just tilted her head to the side.
Maya sighed and looked down, knowing she wasn’t going to be able to weasel her way out of this. Sneaking her hand under the covers, she pulled the book out and showed it to her wife, trying to not meet her eyes.
Carina’s expression softened when she read the title and immediately sat on the edge of their bed, her thigh brushing against Maya’s.
“You’re learning Italian?” She asked, taking the book from Maya’s hand to flip through its pages.
“More like failing at it…” Her wife said under her breath, her tone between annoyed and disappointed.
Carina looked up from the book hoping to see her wife’s blue eyes, but they remained glued to her lap. “Why didn’t you tell me? I happen to know a little Italian, you know?” She tried to lighten the mood.
However, Maya didn’t respond to the silly joke. “I…” her voice got caught in her throat. After a few seconds, she shook her head and tried to speak again. “I didn’t want you to find out.”
“Why is that?”
Maya didn’t answer right away and Carina didn’t push.
“When we started dating, you would teach me little stuff here and there…” Maya began, her voice barely more than a whisper. “And I thought it was really hot even if I didn’t understand a thing.” Her lips slightly curved into a smile, remembering those early days of their relationship.
“The accent and foreign words always work to make Americans fall in love.”
They both chuckled.
“Then, you moved in,” Maya continued, “and you would write stuff on the chalkboard and have these posters and books in Italian around, and you’d still teach me little things… whispers in my ear as we fell asleep, instructions as you cooked…” her smile all but faded. “But after we got married you started doing it less.”
“Maya, I–”
“I’m sure it must be disappointing to teach someone who doesn’t get it, that’s why I decided to try to learn on my own.” Maya finally admitted, fidgeting with her wedding band. “That way, if I learnt anything, it would be a nice surprise, but if I didn’t, you wouldn’t even find out.”
Carina felt her heart sink to her stomach at her wife’s words.
“Maya… Maya, look at me, please.” When Maya didn’t move, Carina brought one of her hands to her chin and gently lifted her face. It wasn’t until Maya’s blue eyes were looking into her chocolate ones that she spoke. “I could never be disappointed in you. Ever. You hear me?”
Maya slowly nodded, taking in her wife’s words. Carina’s hand then moved from her chin, traveling up her face and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.
“If I stopped teaching you, it wasn’t because I was disappointed in you, bambina.”
“Really?”
“Really. I stopped because I saw you getting frustrated when you didn’t understand and… I don’t like seeing you like that. I like it even less knowing I’m causing it.” Carina confessed, taking Maya’s hands in hers and giving them a light squeeze.
Without her wife’s hand on her chin making her look up, Maya’s eyes landed on their joined hands. “It’s not your fault, it’s… I don’t know why it’s so hard…” she grunted. “You speak like ten languages and I’m struggling with a second one.”
“That’s an exaggeration and you know it.”
“Okay, you speak five languages and I’m struggling with a second one.” Maya corrected, her tone still self deprecating.
“Care to tell me which ones? Because I don’t remember those extra two.” Carina nudged her wife’s leg with her own.
Maya let out a sharp sigh and looked up. Her eyes, however, softened as soon as she looked at Carina’s face. “Italian and English, obviously.”
“That’s two.”
“Portuguese.”
“Three.”
“Spanish.”
Carina chuckled at that. “Honestly, I’m not that good at Spanish. I always end up mixing it with Portuguese or Italian and hope for the best.”
Maya lifted an eyebrow.
“Okay, let’s count Spanish as four.” She rolled her eyes lightheartedly. “What’s the fifth?”
“French.”
A loud snort came from Carina. “I do not speak French. I know some basics but I can’t hold a conversation, it definitely doesn’t count.”
“And still, you speak three more languages than I do, which I think it’s incredibly amazing but…” She chewed on her bottom lip as the words got stuck in her throat. “I really want to learn yours and I just… I can’t.”
“Bambina, learning a new language is very difficult.” Carina rubbed the back of Maya’s hands with her thumbs. “And before you say anything about how many languages I speak, let me tell you it still took a lot of effort for me to learn them.” She gently tightened her hold on her wife's hands, “Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and even French, they all are alike —they have similar structures and the same roots so I did have an advantage there… But I had such a hard time learning English.”
“You did?”
“I did.” Carina nodded. “If I hadn’t needed English for med school, I don’t think I would have tried to learn it.” She stopped to think of something for a minute, smiling at a memory. “Andrea tried to make me learn for so many years after he and mamma came to the States but I refused.”
Maya smiled thinking of the siblings. “Why did you refuse?” She looked up and, just like she expected, she saw that glint Carina got in her eyes when she talked about her brother.
Carina shrugged. “Call it a childish resentment towards the country that took my baby brother from me, even if it was me who made the choice.” The corner of her lips quirked up higher and higher. “For years, every call and every letter was in Italian. But when I made it to med school and English was a requirement, Andrea was the first to help me…” then, she snorted, “and the first to tease me for my thick accent because he had already disguised his.”
“That sounds like something he would do.” Maya said, because even if she hadn’t had the chance to get to know Andrew very well, she was certain he loved his sister with all his heart.
“But even with all the help, it took me years to get it right.” Carina returned to her original point. “I used to get confused with the placement of the subject, the irregular verbs were a pain in the ass, the pronunciation, I don’t even want to tell you how bad I was in the beginning. And I still make mistakes from time to time, you know that.”
“But you look cute when you make mistakes.” Maya couldn’t stop a tiny smirk from appearing on her lips.
“And you look così carina when you speak Italian.”
Maya’s nose crinkled for a moment until she remembered something. “It’s not fair that your name literally means ‘pretty’, you know?”
“Brava!” Carina cheered, letting go of her wife’s hands to clap. “You do know Italian, see?”
“That barely counts.” Maya rebuked, although her demeanor seemed lighter by the second.
“Every little thing counts, okay?”
“Okay.”
“I promise, from now on I will be the best teacher ever, bella.” Carina grabbed Maya’s hands again, caressing her knuckles. “We can study for an hour every day you’re home or we can make it casual, me just switching to Italian during certain moments to make it more dynamic. We can do whatever you want and at your own pace.”
Maya, finally allowing herself to relax, smiled softly. How could she say no to Carina when she looked at her like that? All hopeful and cheerful and just absolutely beautiful. “Alright. We could do a bit of both, maybe? Hopefully, I’ll be somewhat good at it before our kid can speak. I don’t want you ganging up on me in Italian just because I don’t understand.” She playfully narrowed her eyes.
“Considering there is no kid yet, I think you have a solid advantage.”
“But our child will be a natural. They’ll have the Italian in their blood, I need all the advantages I can get.” Maya raised her shoulders, unapologetically. “Besides, I bet being scolded in Italian after you did something you weren’t supposed to has more effect, right?”
Carina immediately snorted. “You still think you’re going to be the strict mom?”
Maya’s eyebrows snapped together at the comment. “What do you mean? You don’t remember how I run the station?”
“Bambina, I can totally see you being the organized mom, making sure our child has everything ready for soccer practice or summer camp, doing checklists and having five different clipboards, but being strict to them?” Carina scrunched up her nose and shook her head to the sides.
Maya leaned back, gently resting against the headboard as she pictured many things in her mind. Carina was right. She could barely say no to her wife, how could she say no to a tiny version of her?
“You’re gonna gang up on me anyway, right?”
“I’m pretty sure.” Carina said with a wide grin. “So, do you want to start your Italian lessons while you still have the upper hand?”
Maya chuckled. “I think that’s a good idea.”
Carina patted Maya’s knees excitedly. “I’m gonna say some stuff to see if you remember what I’ve taught you before, get ready.”
“Ready.”
“Ti voglio bene.”
“I love you, too, Carina.”
“E ‘giusto, bella!” Carina clapped before leaning towards Maya and planting a kiss on her cheek. “A correct answer deserves a reward.”
Maya leaned until her elbows rested on her knees and her face was only inches away from her wife’s. “That’s a great incentive. Do the rewards get better with each correct answer?”
“You’ll have to keep answering to find out.” She said with a flirty wink. “The next one is… mi sei mancata molto in quest’ultima settimana.”
Maya replayed the words in her mind a couple of times before finally answering. “I missed you, too.”
Carina beamed and leaned into Maya again, bumping her wife’s nose with her own before shifting slightly, kissing the corner of her mouth.
Returning to her previous position, Carina spoke again. “How about, mia moglie è bellissima.”
Maya easily understood that one, what was made obvious by the proud glint in her eyes. “I hate to break it to you, but my wife is definitely more beautiful than yours.”
“I think we can call it a tie, no?” Carina responded, kissing Maya’s forehead.
“If you say so.” Maya acquiesced with a smile full of affection.
“You shouldn’t have a problem with this one… Dammi un bacio.”
Maya didn’t even need to answer, she just pressed her lips to Carina’s, tangling her fingers on her dark tresses and deepening the caress as soon as her wife allowed her to, only stopping when the lack of oxygen became a problem.
“Did I pass the test?” She asked a bit breathless still, and so close to Carina that she felt her smirk against her lips.
“Just one more thing…” Carina moved slowly, brushing her lips over Maya’s skin until she reached her ear where she whispered something that made her wife shiver.
Maya didn’t know every word Carina had spoken but she was pretty sure she recognized at least one. “I think you’re gonna have to demonstrate that one for me to understand.”
She felt a hot puff of breath on her ear and neck as Carina let out a husky chuckle.
“Sarebbe un piacere per me.”