lemon and mint | Charles Leclerc

4.

December 2011

"Mum, do you think we could maybe visit Leclerc next week?" Pia asked her mother on Sunday morning. Her father was still in Milton Keynes because supposedly he needed to take care of something at Red Bull.

"Pia, you have school, and I'm sure that Charles as well." Her mother argued.

"We don't do anything in school anyway, and Charles has holidays from tomorrow. Pretty please, mummy. I don't think we'll be able to see each other after we'll come back from the Alps," she begged her. They were leaving on their skiing trip next Sunday, and Gianna knew that Pia would demand to see Charles. She could either excuse her from school for next week or after the Christmas break.

"Okay, but don't tell your father about it." Gianna finally made up her mind and agreed to a trip to Monaco. After all, it would be nice to see Christmas Monte Carlo again.

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, you're the best. We are invited for a Wednesday lunch." She kissed her mum on both cheeks and ran away to call this news to Charles.

"You and Charles have already planned that, right?" Her mother asked louder because Pia was already gone.

"Kinda," Pia shouted back while running upstairs. Gianna could hear her laughter. There wasn't anything she wouldn't do for the happiness of her child.

---

Drive from Genoa to Monte Carlo wasn't that long, but it was maybe because Pia and Gianna were singing together Christmas songs. They were shouting the words and laughing. She would say Gianna was genuinely happy at that moment. Pia was shouting confidently wrong lyrics of the All I Want For Christmas Is You by Mariah Carey, causing her mum to laugh. Her hands were holding the steering wheel, and a delightful smile played on her face. Her eyes were cautiously looking at the road. Her long brown hair was curlier than usual. A black tight top and long red skirt made her look completely alluring. Nobody would guess that this woman was 30 years old and had a 13-year-old child. They looked almost like a perfect family. Only one thing was missing - her dad.

Gianna left the car at the nearest car park to Leclerc's apartment. A walk to their apartment building wasn't as long as she expected, so she didn't have enough time to summon up courage. Therefore, she waited for a bit before she rang their bell.

"Hello, I'm Gianna Sabatini. I came with my daughter, Pia. Charles invited her over," Gianna said immediately after the door opened. She had to dust off her French because she only used French when helping Pia with learning, but nowadays, Charles was her French tutor.

"Oh," Charles' mother let out, clearly surprised by Gianna's young visage. "Well, come in. I'm Pascale, and this is Hervé," she introduced themself.

"I just hope we aren't disturbing you. Pia and Charles came up with this idea, and then she presented me with a fait accompli."

"No, not at all. I'm glad I finally have a chance to meet Pia. Charles talks about her a lot," Pascale said while looking at Pia. She was really that glamorous like Charles said. He could talk about her for hours. Pascale knew that Pia had to be special because she remembered the day Charles had returned home from Sarno. A smile was playing on his face, so Pascale assumed he had won. She was confused when he said he crashed in the second lap, so she asked why he was so happy. I just met one girl, he replied, causing her to smile. Charles always spoke of Pia only as a friend, but it was clear to Pascale that she was not just a friend.

"Hi, Mr and Mrs Leclerc, I'm Pia." It was the first time Gianna saw her daughter nervous. She was never a shy kid but meeting her boyfriend's parents seemed to change that fact.