Learn Italian With Nicolo di Angelo!

The Basics

The next day, Nico led Will towards the heart of the woods, away from the prying eyes (and ears) of other campers. They settled under the shade of a large oak, dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves.

"Alright, Solace," Nico began, a hint of a smirk playing on his lips. "Lesson one: greetings." He raised his hand in a casual wave. "Ciao. It means 'hello'."

Will mimicked the gesture, a smile replacing his initial nervousness. "Ciao, le morte." he said, earning a playful shove from Nico.

"Don't call me that!" he said, smirking a little, before asking, "how'd you even know that?"

"You talk in your sleep, always yelling, sono di angelo le morte!"

"Wait... I do?!" Nico asked, blushing.

"Yeah. You talk a lot in your sleep. It's actually quite cute. I am the angel of death! Just over and over and over again. I kinda looked it up on google translate the other day, when I heard it first."

"Oh. whoops!"

"Anyways," Will said, his ADHD not nearly as bad as Nico's, getting the conversation back on track, "how do you say goodbye?"

"Same thing!" Nico said, pleased that he, for once, got to be the expert. "Granted, you only want to say ciao if it's friends, relatives, or a younger person."

Will nodded. "I see. And for more formal?"

"For goodbye, try arrivederci. Okay? Uh-ree-va-dehr-chee. Got it?"

"Or-if-a-dare-chee. I think so!"

"Close enough." Nico said, laughing a little at his mispronunciation.

"How about a formal hello?"

"That would be bonjourno. Similar to the french's 'bonjour'. Just add the word 'no' after it. For now, let's just stick to ciao." Nico says, then mutters something under his breath.

"What was that, darling?"

"Nothing."

"Oh, really, then why did I hear the words stole and mona lisa? Those two phrases both seem pretty important to me."

"I was just saying how the french first stole our Mona Lisa, and now they've gone far enough as to steal our pronunciations of words! The audacity!" Nico said, seeming genuinely offended.

"Alright alright, I shouldn't have asked, sorry. So what's next?"

"For a simple thank you, you can say 'grazie' (grot-Z). But if you want to be more polite, like if someone gives you a gift, you can add 'mille' (me-lay) to the end which means 'thank you very much', or, 'a thousand thanks'."

Will repeated the phrases, his pronunciation improving with each attempt. "So, how do you ask someone their name?"

"You can say 'Come ti chiami?' (koh-may tee kee-ah-me?) which translates to 'what is your name?'" Nico explained.

Will wrote down the Italian phrase on a small notepad he always carried. "And how do you answer with your name?"

"You can say 'Mi chiamo Will Solace.' (pronounced 'mee kee-ah-mo) It means 'my name is Will Solace'."

"You didn't say it with your accent this time!" Will whines, and Nico gives in to his golden-retriever-puppy-dog eyes.

"Fine. Weel Soh-lah-chay. Better?" Nico asks sardonically.

"Much. Grazie."

They practiced for a while, Will stumbling over some pronunciations but catching on quickly. He laughed at himself when he accidentally mostook "grazie mille" for "hello," earning a gentle nudge from Nico.

As the sun began its descent, casting long shadows across the forest floor, Nico decided to end the lesson for the day. "Alright, Solace," he said, a hint of pride in his voice. "You did good today."

Will beamed. "Thanks, Nico. This is actually kinda fun."

Nico raised an eyebrow. "Fun? Learning Italian is fun?"

"Well, it's more fun than I thought it would be," Will admitted. "Especially when you're the one teaching."

Nico looked away, a faint blush creeping up his neck. He cleared his throat. "Just remember to practice what you learned, okay?"

"I will," Will promised, gathering his things. "Maybe tomorrow we can learn some basic questions, like 'how are you?' or 'where is the bathroom?'"

Nico chuckled. "Maybe. But don't get ahead of yourself, Solace. We'll start with something simpler first."

They walked back towards the cabins, the setting sun painting the sky in hues of orange and pink. The air hummed with a comfortable silence, punctuated only by the chirping of crickets and the rustle of leaves beneath their feet. Will felt a warmth spread through him, a warmth that had nothing to do with the setting sun. He glanced at Nico, who was walking a few steps ahead, his expression unreadable.

"Hey, Nico," Will said softly.

Nico stopped and looked back, his dark eyes meeting Will's own bright blue ones. "Yeah?"

"Grazie mille," Will said, a smile playing on his lips.

Nico stared at him for a moment, then a small smile mirrored Will's own. "Prego," he replied, the single word holding a universe of unspoken emotions.

Will smiled slightly. "What's that mean?" he asked, trying not to sound too confused, though he really was.

"Don't mention it."

"Oh, I'm mentioning it," Will chuckled.

Nico rolled his eyes. "Ti amo, Luce Del Sol."

"I love ya too, darlin'."