Giancarlo flipped through the pad until at last he came to a blank page. Taking the pencil, he scribbled some notes, reminders regarding some finer points of grammar, diction, and other subjects he hoped to cover during this final lesson. After a time, he paused to consider a different matter, one that had nothing directly to do with the Italian lesson, but that involved Carter nonetheless. It was a small business, trivial in a way, but it was something that had weighed on his mind all summer long. Tapping his pencil against the pad, Giancarlo turned the thing over in his mind. When at last he brought his ruminations to a resolution, he scribbled a few more notes to himself and tossed the pencil onto the table. A glance at the clock confirmed that the time had almost come to finally wrap things up. And so, with a yawn, Giancarlo rose from the table and went to the bathroom to throw a little water on his face to rouse himself before the doorbell rang.

For his part, Carter could not have felt more wide awake and refreshed. He was in fine spirits, and he drove along on his way to Giancarlo’s house with the windows wide open and the radio blaring. The day had already seen the end of his construction career, a cause for celebration in itself. Carter had truly enjoyed his time as a construction laborer, for he liked his bosses, Ron and Dave, and he had learned much from them on the job. Just the same, he would not miss those long, grueling hours toiling away like a slave beneath the scorching summer sun. In a way, he felt a similar sentiment toward his Italian lessons. Despite his teacher’s relentless badgering and occasionally cantankerous moods, Carter had come to like and respect him. Still, he had grown weary of his studies.With the day of his departure now drawing so near, he was glad to be done with them and more eager than ever to strike out on his own and put all he had learned to the test.

When he arrived at the house, Giancarlo opened the door wide and ushered him in with a sweeping gesture.

“Buona sera,” he said. “Entra!”

“Buona sera, Professore!” replied Carter.

By now Carter felt quite at ease in the house, and he began to walk straight in toward the back porch.

“Aspetta,” said Giancarlo, bringing him to a halt. He nodded to the living room. “Parliamo qui dentro stasera. Let’s talk inside tonight.”

With that he left Carter and walked off to the kitchen.