It Was Always You ~ A Call Me By Your Name Fan Fiction~

Chapter Four

Arriving back at the villa, Mafalda informed them that Mr. and Mrs. Perlman were in the study. Elio and walked into the entryhall and Oliver followed him.

"Should I tell them?" Elio asked.

"You'll have to at some point," Oliver replied.

Elio nodded. "Stay out here, okay?"

Oliver nodded and Elio made his way into the study. As he entered, his parents looked up.

"Ah there you are," his mother said, "I was wondering where you had gotten off to."

"Can we talk?" Elio asked, gripping at the hem of his shirt with his sweaty fingers.

"Of course," Mr. Perlman said, "what's on your mind?"

Elio could tell by the look in his father's eyes he knew what was coming.

"Well," he began, clearing his throat and looking up at the ceiling, "mom do remember when I was little and you would tell me the story of how you met dad?"

Mrs. Perlman nodded, smiling, "Of course," she said, "your grandmother had sent me to the post office with a stack of letters and on the way there your father accidentally bumped into me causing me to drop them."

Mr. Perlman laughed, "I always told her that the moment I saw her I knew she was the one."

Elio nodded, remembering the story well. "Do you believe that a person like that only comes into your life once?" he asked.

"I do think that," his father said, "and I think these people are put into our lives for a reason."

Elio nodded and turned his attention to his mother who was considering the question her son had posed.

"I think," she said, after a moment of thought, "that everyone who enters our lives are put there for a reason, whether that reason is to teach us how to read or how to love. But I think that when someone special enters your life, then they are most definitely meant to be there for a reason."

"Yeah," Elio said softly, "that's what I think too."

"Elio," his mother said, just as softly, "what do you want to tell us?"

"I think I found that person," Elio said, looking up at her.

She nodded. "I thought you might have," she said, smiling, "Oliver?"

Elio slowly nodded, keeping his eyes fixed on his parents to see their reactions.

After sitting in silence for a few moments, his mother sighed. "We just want you to be happy," she told Elio, "that's all we've ever wanted, ever since you were born, and if Oliver makes you happy then that's all I could ever want for you."

She smiled at Elio and he could immediately feel a weight being relieved from his chest. He then directed his attention towards his father who had been quiet during the exchange.

"I don't think I could put it better than your mother," Mr. Perlman said, "we just want you to be happy, Eli, and it's up to you to decide what it is that will make you happy. And if you're sure that it's Oliver, then I'm more than happy to welcome a bright young man like him into this family."

Elio stood up and gave both of his parents hugs. He couldn't put into words what he was feeling, but he knew that they understood.

A few minutes later, Elio walked out of the study and found Oliver standing exactly where Elio had left him, a worried expression creasing his face. He looked up when he heard Elio's footsteps, and you could see the question in his eyes.

"Well?" Oliver asked once Elio had reached him.

Elio smiled and uttered one word, one simple name that would decide their fate. "Elio," he murmured.