The Devoted Gentleman (EDITING)

Chapter 18

Matteo had just gone back to his one-bedroom apartment after a long day of work. He took a cup from the rack and made himself a cup of coffee. At that point, he did not remember how many cups he had drunk, but drinking coffee helped him focus on his day and his goal. Instead of going down the sofa to watch some useless show, he went to take a shower and changed to a more comfortable clothing, then he walked over to his laptop to work on his online business. His tiny place was filled with boxes upon boxes of customer's order. It was his daily schedule, after work, he would take new orders, reply to customers and then the morning of the next day, he would ship them out before going to work.

The man was born in Sicily, Italy, without ever knowing who his father was. His mother was a humble, but financially blind woman who worked as a grocery merchant at the local market to provide for her and her son. He grew up without siblings, the only companions he had at home was a stray dog he would feed sometimes, which he eventually took in as his own despite their own financial hardship. Socially, he grew up well, he had plenty of friends, and some of them were from a well off family. He remembered when he visited their home, he was amazed by how nice the whole house was, everything was decorated with high quality wood or leather. He had every opportunity to be envious, but he felt no such thing, for him, each had their own set of fortunes when they were born, however he believed that he was born for more. There was no way the God he prayed to every day would want to see him suffer for the rest of his life. Therefore, he made a decision, that one day, he would explore the world and become a wealthy man.

His first memory of earning money on his own was when he was twelve years old, he worked for a wealthy man in Sicily as a house assistant. Perhaps the man pitied him, a young fatherless boy with a mother who did not know better. It was his luck, because the man did not just pay him money for his physical help, the man had also taught him some very important lessons about life and money. One of the lesson he had taught him was to never hate the rich, but to learn from them. A lot of people make the mistake of hating the wealthy because of their own envy, but these kind of people could never become wealthy themselves simply because of their own mindset.

"Money would buy you freedom. It can buy you choices. What you do with those choices would determine the outcome of your life. Poor people are miserable because they are constantly thinking about money in a negative light. You are a bright boy, I see potential in you. I want to help you" He said one time after he was just done with his work. At first he did not quite understand what those words meant, but from then on, he would come to learn from the man. He went to school in the morning, worked in the afternoon, and learned from the man in the weekend. It was how he spent 8 years of his life until the man eventually passed away. Matteo had never cried so hard as when he attended the man's funeral as a twenty years old. He had considered the man his father, and losing him made quite an impact on him.

However, it was also then when he started to be serious about his future, he knew exactly what he wanted. He was always fond of coffee, so he thought he wanted to open his own coffee shops and open franchises all over Italy. He thought the best place to start his first adventure would be in Rome, the capital city. It would open up plenty of opportunities he could not have in Sicily. For the majority of his early twenties, he would work hard to build an egg nest. He needed to have enough savings to sustain his life in Rome for a few years before he could open up his business. In the meantime, he would work in a coffee shop to learn how they operate and everything. Of course, working in a coffee shop would not sustain his life in the long run, so he started a side online business by selling a bunch of thrifted clothes he bought for really cheap, and overtime, it had made him a good amount of profits.

Of course, being hot helped. He seemed to attract a lot of female customers, and it made him a valuable staff at the coffee shop. Which was why despite have only worked there for two years, he had had two salary increases, something that might seem impossible at the first sight, but was made possible because he provided the best service in comparison to other staff. He was twenty-seven years old, and at the first sight it might seem like there was no hope for him simply because he had started late in comparison to others, most people had had their lives together by the time they were twenty-seven, at least the ones he looked up to, but he decided to not compare his life with theirs, for he believed everyone had their own timing, he just knew he was born for success and he was willing to work hard and smart for it.

His future plan was to open up his shop before he turned thirty, and seeing how things had progressed so far, he believed it was more than possible. For someone who came from his circumstance and background, he was rather brilliant, more brilliant than most children he grew up with. Matteo did not know where his strength and courage came from, but whatever it was, he was grateful he was born that way.

Back to the present, he was typing on his computer when he decided to take a break and rested his eyes. He stood up to stretch his muscle and went to grab a cup of water. As he drank it, he thought of his encounter with Allegra. The independent career woman had somehow captured his attention in a way he had never understood before. He had met plenty of beautiful women before in the coffee shop, and sometimes he had some nice chats with them, but he especially enjoyed his conversation with the woman. He did not know what it was about her, but he really enjoyed his time with her. She was so friendly and determined, and she was feminine in her own way, she was not snobbish or arrogant, but she radiated this confidence which he was really attracted to.

Before long he found himself smiling at the thought of her, well, it was official, he had gone crazy. Beside he barely knew her at all, and yes, she said she was single, but he was sure that some men would go their way just to be with her.

Oh well, he guessed he just had to do his best.

After taking a short break, he went back to his computer and continued working until midnight. Only when he felt completely tired did he stop working and went to his bedroom to rest. He liked reading something first before bed, not that he was a bookworm, but he guessed he just liked learning. Gaining new information every day, becoming better than when he was the previous day.

After ten minutes of reading, he was feeling extra sleepy, he put down his book and pulled his blanket to sleep. That night he slept like a baby, he was tired and deserved the rest before starting his day the next day.

At least that was the initial plan,  but as we know by know, things could easily change in a blink of eye as unexpected occurrence could happen at any time.

When morning came, he woke up by the sound of his phone ringing beside him, something which rarely happened as he only had so much contacts. Still half asleep, he took the phone and looked at the screen. It was from one of his childhood friend back in Sicily who still lived there. The man had never called him before so early like that, he wondered what he wanted.

He picked it up and put the phone beside his ear, whispering a small hello with a breathy voice.

"Hello, Matteo, it's me"

"Yes, I know it's you. What is it?"

"Your mama, she fell off the stairs on the market and is in hospital now, you need to come back here and see her. Her condition is so bad, the doctors are afraid she won't make it" after hearing the call, he nearly dropped his phone. His heart was beating rapidly, his vision became blurry and his head was pounding,

Dio Mio!