Chapter 608: To My Girl!

Eventually, one of them asked something that made him pause.

"So how do you know Vittoria?"

Leo looked towards the lady who had asked that question, but when he opened his mouth to answer, a familiar voice came from behind them.

"Know me how?"

The group immediately turned and found Vittoria walking towards them.

The young guests instinctively shifted back a little, as though they had suddenly realised they had been occupying more of Leo’s time than intended.

"We were just talking," Alessandro said as Vittoria looked between them.

"I can see that."

"We had a nice chat."

Vittoria nodded once more, but with her return, the five seemed eager to leave.

They exchanged their goodbyes soon after, greeted Vittoria properly, and began moving away.

Leo watched them go before looking back at Vittoria.

"Why does it seem like they’re scared of you?"

Vittoria’s expression remained completely straight for a second before shrugging.

"Might be because I used to beat them when we were young."

Leo stared at her.

"Beat them?"

She gave him a small smile.

"Mostly."

Leo laughed and then shook her head at the thought of little Vittoria beating a bunch of other kids.

Before Vittoria could say anything else, the lighting throughout the room began to change.

The softer lights around the edges dimmed first, followed by the brighter ones in the centre, until most of the room was left in a subdued glow.

Only the stage remained properly illuminated.

The conversations gradually died down as people turned their attention towards it.

Vittoria leaned slightly towards Leo.

"It’s about to begin."

Leo nodded, and a moment later, Aldo stepped onto the stage.

The room quietened almost completely as he stood for a moment, looking across the gathering before beginning.

"Good evening, everyone."

When he spoke, the room responded gently before he went on.

"Thank you all for coming."

Aldo’s voice carried easily through the hall as he began walking around the stage.

"This foundation began for a very simple reason."

He paused.

"When I first held my daughter, Vittoria, I remember thinking that I had never felt happiness quite like that before."

Vittoria lowered her eyes slightly at the mention of her name while Aldo continued.

"It was not something I understood before that moment. You can be told what it means to love someone. You can be told what it means to have a family. But there are some things you don’t understand until they happen to you."

His gaze moved across the room.

"And I remember thinking that if I had been given that kind of happiness, then surely there had to be children or people somewhere who deserved the opportunity to feel something close to it too."

The room remained silent.

"That was where the first fetters of the foundation began."

He went on to explain the work they supported, from children’s healthcare and education to programmes that provided assistance to communities that needed it most.

He spoke about the organisations they worked with and the people who carried out much of the work, making it clear that the D’Avernas were not trying to solve everything themselves.

"We simply try to put something where it can do some good."

Aldo smiled faintly.

"And every year, we are reminded that there are many people willing to help us do that."

As he spoke, one of the lights shifted and fell across Vittoria.

She looked up briefly, caught in the sudden attention, and the edge of the light reached Leo as well, illuminating part of his face.

Aldo noticed, and his eyes settled on Leo for a moment.

Then he smiled and raised his glass towards his daughter.

"To my girl."

Applause immediately filled the room as Vittoria smiled, slightly embarrassed by the attention, while Leo looked at her with quiet amusement.

Aldo stayed on stage for another moment before stepping down.

At the same time, one of the foundation’s representatives took his place and explained that the charitable portion of the evening would begin shortly, outlining how the donations would be handled.

Aldo, meanwhile, made his way through the crowd.

He stopped several times to speak with guests, exchanging greetings and brief words with people he clearly knew well.

Leo noticed that Aldo seemed perfectly comfortable doing it, but after several minutes the older man began making his way towards the edge of the room with increasing purpose.

Eventually, Leo and Vittoria rose from their table and met him halfway.

Aldo smiled when he saw them.

"Ah."

He reached out his hand.

"We meet again."

Leo shook it and then nodded.

"We do."

Aldo gave him a look before turning towards Vittoria, just like Sienne had done a while ago.

"I thought you couldn’t make it."

"It was supposed to be that way."

Aldo laughed softly and then nodded.

"I see."

He looked towards Vittoria for a brief moment before turning back to Leo.

"Since you’re here, would you like to donate something?"

Caught off guard by the proposal, Vittoria immediately frowned.

Aldo caught it and raised an eyebrow, while a small smile played at his lips.

"That’s not a pleasant look."

Vittoria folded her arms.

"I’m just wondering what you’re planning."

Aldo smiled and lifted one hand.

Before Leo could say anything else, a staff member approached, carrying a slim case.

Leo glanced at it, and when the case was opened, his expression changed almost immediately.

Inside was a football shirt and not just any shirt.

It was the Italy shirt he had worn on his debut against Ukraine several months earlier, and Aldo noticed the recognition on his face.

"I guess you recognise this."

Leo nodded slowly.

"Yeah."

He looked at the shirt again as Aldo smiled.

"I had someone get it for me under the pretext of a raffle for the fans."

Leo shook his head, almost laughing.

"I wore two jerseys that game."

He looked at the shirt.

"The team kept one of them. I only got to keep the other."

Aldo nodded.

"Exactly."

The older man took the shirt from the case and held it out.

"I was hoping you might sign it."

Leo looked at him.

"For auction," Aldo added.

A brief pause followed as the surprise settled in.

Then Leo nodded.

"It would be my pleasure."

Aldo handed him the shirt along with a permanent marker as Leo took both and bent to write.

The surrounding conversations had not stopped entirely, but more than a few people had noticed what was happening.

Some turned openly towards them, while others tried to watch without making it obvious.

Leo laid the shirt carefully against the surface Aldo offered him and began signing across it.

When he finished, he handed the shirt back.

Aldo looked down at it before smiling.

"This should be worth quite a bit after the upcoming Euros."

He glanced towards Leo.

"And it should help us quite a bit tonight."

Leo nodded.

"I’ll make it so."

Aldo gave him an amused look.

Then his eyes moved between Leo and his daughter.

Vittoria had gone slightly red again.

Aldo noticed and smiled but wisely chose not to say anything about it.

"Enjoy the rest of the evening," he said and then handed the signed shirt back to the staff member.

After that, he gave Leo a final nod before moving away.

The duo watched Aldo leave, then turned to each other with a smile.