Giorni in Roma (Days in Rome) - Chapter Two

Madison had waited outside the cobbled street for a cab to pass for what seemed like ages. Actually, many had passed her but they never stopped. She was beginning to wonder if taking the express would have been easier.

"Phewww!" Madison heard a man whistle and to her surprise, a bright yellow cab pulled up to the ledge. With that, she whistled and almost out of nowhere, another cab pulled up to her. The man in driving the cab was probably in his late thirties or so. His skin was fairly tanned which matched his auburn curly hair quite well. He courteously helped Madison put her bags in the trunk and opened the door for her.

"Do you... speak English?" she asked slowly, hoping that he could understand her.

He looked at her with a funny expression and then laughed. "Oh Bella. Of course I speak English. I don't speak it too well, but I'm somewhat pretty fluent in it," he gestured for Madison to climb in and shut the door. "Actually, at the airports and finest hotels, many people speak English."

"Oh, well that's understandable. Italy is a great place for tourists, right?"

"That would be correct. So where to?" he asked.

Madison fumbled around in her bag until she found a folder which contained the information George had given her. "Okay, well in English, the loft I have booked is in the Spring with Dignity Complex," she laughed. "In Italian, I'm not too sure."

"Well, how 'bout we actually get inside Rome first and then I'll drive you to the Primavera con Dignita. Don't worry, the people who work there will also speak English."

The first few minutes of the ride was silent but only because Madison had nothing to say. She suddenly realized she knew nothing about this lovely cab driver.

"Oh, I completely forgot to ask; what's your name?"

He chuckled. "Charlie Espitto. Please to meet you Bella."

"Um, if you don't mind me asking, what does Bella actually mean?" Madison asked, now feeling a little uneasy because of it.

"Oh, quite simple actually. When you address 'Bella' to a female, it means beauty. I could call you by your name," Charlie chuckled again," if you tell me what it is."

"Oh! I'm sorry. Well I'm Madison Gemmy."

Charlie nodded. "My wife calls me Antonio Espitto," he said with power and emotion. Charlie seemed very proud of his Italian name.

"Do you have kids?" Madison always loved kids.

"One boy; eight years, and one girl; four years. They always tell me how much they miss me when I come home at night. Cab driving does have its faults."

"I can relate."

"You can? Do you have kids? You look young to be married," he said, surprised.

"What?" Madison laughed. He had mistaken the whole thing. "I mean I can relate to your kids. I'm only twenty years old."

Charlie continued to drive, and every once in a while, he would give his own little description of a famous building to her. He also explained how the Trevi Fountain works its magic.

"Everyone that comes to Rome visits the Trevi Fountain. It's... very enchanting. You see, what you do is you take a coin, and turn around so your back is facing the water. Then you make a very special wish, and flip the coin into the water."

Madison was not convinced. "That sounds a bit like ordinary fountains, don't you think?"

"No... when you wish by the Trevi Fountain, every wish comes true."

"I see. Well, then I will visit it and make a wish," she smiled.

When they arrived at the complex, Charlie told her he would only take half of what she had to pay. Madison however insisted on paying the full price - she could see he wasn't extremely wealthy and that his family may need the money, Still, Charlie only took ten euros. He helped her bring her bags out and waved bye as he drove off. Madison swung her duffle bag on a shoulder and released the pulley on her suitcase. She gazed up at the building that she was supposedly to stay at. It looked... a bit much. The Primavera con Dignita was tall, very tall. The walls outside were made of stone, and only the finest stone. It had a large pathway leading up to the golden framed glass doors. As Madison swept inside, she saw floors covered with a great marble stone finish. Each wall was painted in a light coral color to accent all the antique furniture. Madison then noticed the receptionist at the front desk. He was dressed in a very dark emerald suit which emphasized the specks of gray hair on his head. He too, was Italian and stood patiently for the next person to check in or out.

"Hi, do you speak English?" As soon as Madison said that, she wanted to smack herself in the head. She obviously forgot that this was a very fine establishment and everyone spoke English.

"Why Bella, everyone speaks English here. Didn't someone tell you?" he smiled and Madison noticed that the wrinkles disappeared on his face once his expression changed. "Well now, are you here to check in?"

"Well yes please. I'm with England's Capital Magazine. I have a loft booked here," she said, pulling out her passport and documents. Madison displayed them out all neatly for him to see.

The old receptionist looked rather pleased when she had said 'England's Capital Magazine.' "Ah, well then let's see," he quickly skimmed through a couple of papers and clicked random things in the monitor screen. "Aimee, Hilary, Nate, and Greg are all in different cities, am I correct?"

She nodded.

"Well it looks like you've got room two-eighteen; one of our finest lofts," he turned around and pulled out a card from the drawer. "Here we are. This is for practically everything in the room. You can use it for the main door, the spare room, and even the safe in the closet," he explained to her.

"Oh, alright," Madison said. "Thanks Giovanni," she added, reading his name tag.

Giovanni nodded and showed her to the elevators. He also explained to her how to get to her loft. Even with Giovanni's detailed explanation, it had taken Madison at least half an hour to find her room. It wasn't that all the directions and maps were in Italian; it was that everything looked the same, but when she finally managed to unlock the door, to her relief, the loft was huge! The walls looked white and only white. To the right of the room sat a red velvet sofa and across from it hung a medium-sized television. The sun beat down on the windows and through the white sheered fabric curtains that flew around with the soft wind. Madison dropped her stuff and walked out to the balcony. She caught a very good glimpse of all of Rome and took a breath of everything in. In the loft, there was also a little kitchen nook furnished with accents that looked brand new. In her bedroom, she was greeted with a bed placed very high up and a headboard made of solid oak that was painted with some gold. There was a little walk-in closet and beside it, the bathroom with its shiny tub and polished floor. Madison was overwhelmed by the fabulous welcoming room and spent her first day in Rome sitting on the balcony, looking out to the city, and scribbling in her journal.
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Thanks for the comments! Even just one comment makes my day. I must warn you though, I could skip a day or two of posting even though my story is done. What I'm doing now is revising the whole thing and retyping too, And the only time I have to do this is when my little brother is taking his nap. Not to mention I have to do my yoga everyday. Haha, but I'm committed to this, and I will keep you updated. The next chapter introduces Madison's love interest in this story. Oh, and the picture is what I imagined Madison to somewhat look like.