I’m Matteo. As a child, I believed my family was simple—fragile, maybe—but full of love. Dad ran a workshop in Borgo San Vito. Mom stayed home. I was their only child and thought our world would last forever.
Then everything shattered. Dad lost his job. Laughter vanished. Nights were filled with shouting and crashing dishes. Then came the final blow: Dad discovered Mom was seeing someone else. He left. I missed him so much it hurt.
One cold morning, Mom smiled—rare back then—and said, “Pack your things, love. We’re going to the sea.” At a bus stop, she told me to wait for ice cream. She never came back.
I woke in a warm bed. Dad was there—with a woman named Giulia. He said, “Your mother abandoned you.” I didn’t believe it—but she was gone.
Years passed. We moved to Positano. Giulia became “Mom.” She was the one who stayed. Life moved on.
Then, one stormy evening, she reappeared. “I’m your mother,” she said.
Dad told me, “It’s your choice.”
I looked at her and felt… nothing.
The woman who promised me the sea had left me in the cold.
