"....Yeah, so we finished the baby's room and the kitchen, now we're doing the living room."

Alessia ponders back and forth not paying attention to anything outside of her bubble. She gets like this whenever she's on the phone with her best friend Alicia, who lives in France, attending La Parisienne Fabric, School of Fashion and Design.

"Eww I hate that colour, I was thinking midnight purple....."

Valentino had just finished dressing Esmeralda, ready to head out. "We're leaving now!" He waves, no use in trying to get Alessia's attention, not when she gets like this.

When the door slams behind them Alessia finally takes notice.

"Hang on, Alicia"

Alessia runs to the glass doors, breaking them open. She squints her eyes as the sun burns brightly in the sky, a beautiful day. She gazes at the ground beneath her, it takes a minute before Valentino appears, pushing the stroller.

"Vale don't forget to bring back all the newspapers you can find!"

He turns around and gives her a quick thumbs up before he continuing down the street. Alessia watches them until they disappear around the corner.

"Nice day isn't it?"

In surprise a sudden voice appears.

"Sorry dear I didn't mean to scare you."

Alessia quickly looked away as the lady in her late fifties tanning on the balcony next to theirs, was completely naked from her waist up. Altough shifting her gaze to the birds in the sky Alessia caught a glimpse of the lady's saggy bronze chest, carrying a pair of drained breasts.

"What do you need all that newspaper for?" The lady asks curiously, not bothering to cover herself.

"Nothing special we're just painting the living room walls, I need something to cover up the floors with."

"Marco, Marco!" The lady began shouting. Soon a man, equally as tanned, equally as wrinkly and equally as saggy, shows up.

"Yes my love?"

Alessia dares peak to see if he was naked as well, confirming he wasn't Alessia chooses to focus on him, not waiting to seem rude for not looking at them.

"Go see if we have some leftover newspaper in the ateljé, Alessia and Valentino are planning on painting their living room walls."

Mr Borelli gives Alessia a loving smile before disappearing inside only to return with a bundle of old newspapers which he passes over the balcony railing.

The Borellis were nice neighbours , the nicest compared to the alcoholics, the gamblers or the plain old grumpies that roamed the rest of the building. The Borellis were artists and their hippie-like spirits reminded Alessia alot of her high school art teacher Miss Caruso. Just like Miss Caruso they were dreamers, always seizing the day in various ways, including morning yoga, rain dances or scenting their house with different types of smelly sage.

The only thing that bothered Alessia about the two was the fact that together they could smoke at least five packs of cigarettes a day. The nasty smell of smoke would often find its way into Alessia and Valentino's appartement. Of course Valentino didn't seem to be bothered by this, but Alessia didn't want all of that smoke around the baby everyday.

Despite their flaws, Alessia had never seen another couple more in love than the Borellis and at night they wouldn't mind displaying home much love they had for one another as their bedroom wall was head to head with theirs, proving that age is nothing but a number against a couple with that much love and passion for one

*****

It took Valentino and Alessia a whole month to finnish painting their living room and another two months to finish the rest of the house. By the time the house was more suited for living only one week remained before Valentino had to return to his Moto2 duties ahead of the new season that started later that year.

Alessia stood in the doorway to the bathroom, admiring Valentino as he and Esmeralda splashed away in the bathtub, watering the floor. The shower still needed fixing, the bathtub the only option if you wanted to clean yourself. Bathing with Esmeralda had become one of Valentino's favourite activities.

"Lessy look, Elvis Presley!"

Alessia giggles as Valentino displays Esmeraldas new foam hairstyle, making her look like the late Elvis Presley.

Later that evening Esmeralda put to bed, the couple laid stretched out on the sofa watching some sobby movie about a lost dog.

"What?" Valentino asks. Alessia had been stealing glances, looking away whenever he would med her eyes.

"Nothing, just thinking."

Valentino turns the volume on the TV down. "What were you thinking about?"

At first she hesitates. "Are you nervous?"

"Nervous?" He frowns. "Nervous about what?"

"I dunno, Moto2?".

Valentino chuckles, "Nervous, no. Excited, yes." He smirks.

Alessia is left feeling stupid for asking. He must be more than excited to start of the season, he was about to live out his childhood dream.

Valentino moves to plant a kiss on her head as she lays watching him. "Are you nervous?" He then asks.

Alessia promised herself not to ever make Valentino feel like he had to worry about them, his mind needed to stay focused If he wanted to do well in Moto2, that she was fully aware of.

She shakes her head, "Nope, not at all."

"Are you afraid that I will fall and break my arm...?" Valentino moves to climb on top of her, "....Or maybe highside and break my neck?"

"Vale stop it." She half groans, half moans as he starts planting kisses on her naked thighs, making his way down her legs.

He stops.

"I said, are you nervous?"

The mischief in his voice makes Alessia curl her toes.

"No!" She giggles, bracing herself at what's to come.

"Good."

He continues down, eventually spreading her legs between his hands.

"Because...I...need you Lessy." He says, between the kisses he plants on her inner thigh.

Alessia throws her head back gripping his hair. "Mhm." She moans, the pleasuring sensation is making her delusional.

He looks up to watch her respond to him, "Say you need me too."

"I need you too." She moans, she was under his spell.

"Vale please don't stop." She breaths.

He dives in again this time close enough to taste her wetness.

"Oh, Vale yes!" She bursts out in ecstasy, not carrying if the whole world were to hear her cries.

Valentino was aware of how hard she had begun pulling his curls, a bit painful actually. Without spoiling it for her he began to speed it up, putting pressure on just the right places. Alessia's thighs began smothering his head as the pleasure deepened and by the time she fell back in climax, he was gasping for air.

*******

As they stood on the courtyard exchanging their final goodbyes, Alessia couldn't help but to shed a tear. She felt like the wife of a soldier being sent out to battle.

The time has come.

Esmeralda was joyously jumping in her mother's embrace, not knowing that Papa was going to be gone for quite some time. He was already dressed in his team wear.

"Call me when you land in South Africa."

"I will." Valentino kisses his girls.

"I love you." Alessia said convincingly in case Valentino wasn't aware.

"Love you too." he said, planting one last soft kiss on her lips.

She stays watching him as he gets into the car that would take him to the airport.

Both she and he knew that their lives were changing forever, together.