We didn't know what to do. There were no extra rooms available. Mr. Nelson had booked only two rooms—one for him and the other for Mike and John.
I suggested that we could share rooms—one for the boys and one for the girls. Well, Katherine being Katherine, didn't like the idea as she wanted to stay alone and didn't want to share her room with us.
"What do we do now?" Rose sighed.
"Don't worry, baby." John placed his hand on Rose's shoulder to comfort her. "I'll check other hotels online."
Rose nodded. John took his phone from his jeans pocket to search.
"It's hard to get a room so last minute, sir. A lot of tourists visit Amsterdam during the winter, so all rooms in the hotels are probably pre-booked," the recepti
"Jessica... Wake up... It's me, Mike!" Mike's words finally reached my mind. He was shaking my shoulders to wake me up.I opened my eyes to see Mike's face. My tears blurred my vision and the dim light that was coming from the lamp on the nightstand wasn't helping much, either.He helped me sit up by holding my shoulders. I was panting heavily. Sweat covered my entire body, especially my forehead and my neck.My body was shuddering in fear. Without thinking, I threw my arms around Mike's neck and hugged him tightly, nuzzling into the crook of his neck, seeking his presence to let my body believe that Mike was real. And...that it had just been a nightmare."Please... Please don't leave me... Please... " I mumbled."I'm not goi
"What?" I exclaimed, trying to process her words. Mike likes me?"Even John noticed. You're the only one who can't see it." She scoffed."He doesn't like me." I didn't know if it was true but for now I didn't want to ruin whatever we had. "We're really good friends.""Oh, really! What about you?""What about me? Nothing. He's just a good friend," I defended myself. Mike is a good friend. That was it."Most relationships start as a friendship. I think you sho
The next day, we visited Staalmeestersbrug, the bridge that crosses the Groenburgwal. It was a very popular photo location, with the beautiful Zuiderkerk tower in the background."Now, tell me," I said, looking at Rose, "why do you want to visit this bridge so badly?""It's a surprise," Rose whispered, looking to make sure John didn't hear us. I assumed that the surprise was for him.She kept on moving and her eyes darted from side to side as if she was trying to search for something."There it is!" Rose exclaimed, pointing ahead.She grabbed John's hand and started running ahead. Confusion was evident on John's face but he let her lead him.Mike and I exchanged a glance and shrug
Our conversation got interrupted by Katherine entering. Everyone started to take photographs of her. Mr. James excused himself and went to greet her. She always managed to grab the attention of everyone around her. I didn't mind it all. Maybe it was because she didn't have Mike's attention anymore. Mike and John introduced us to other clients. While they were discussing the upcoming projects, Rose and I excused ourselves. We sat at a table to have some wine. I had only taken two sips from my glass when Rose started refilling her second glass. I glanced at Mike and John. They were busy talking with clients and drinking a lot. These three had an incredible drinking capacity—far better than me. I preferred to drink little to stay sober.
My eyes flew open when Mike's shout reached my ears. I thought that his words had been a part of my flashback. But realization dawned on me when I found Mike crouched against the wall. His right hand was massaging the back of his head and he was groaning in pain. I pushed him. My heart dropped to my stomach. I ran to him and kneeled down. Replacing his hand with mine on the back of his head, I started rubbing the spot in a hurry. "I'm sorry... I didn't do it on purpose. Is it hurting? Of course it's hurting. What am I saying?" Mike's hiss made me freeze and guilt clogged my throat. How could I do this to him? My eyes burned but I breathed in and out to control my tears. Once I got a grip of myself, I helped Mike sit on the bed and called the hotel service to send me
"Hey, I booked an appointment for tomorrow," I told Rose. She was busy cutting the vegetables in preparation for dinner. "That's great," she responded without glancing at me. She was too focused on her chopping. "I-I want you to come with me," I stammered. I needed her because I knew I couldn't do this alone. She froze and looked at me. "I was going to go with you, anyway. There's no way you're doing this alone. I'll always be there for you." A grateful smile landed on my lips. I felt blessed to have her in my life. "I don't know what to say... You have always been there for me. But I haven't done anything—" "Shut up before you say anything els
Rose fetched me a glass of water from the kitchen and handed it to me. She sat next to me on the couch in our living room. I took a sip from the glass as Rose patiently waited for me to tell her everything. Placing the glass on the coffee table, I shifted my body to face her."What do you want to know?" I asked.When I had come out of Mr. Davis's room, her eyes had widened. She had hugged me immediately and started throwing questions at me. Even though she had sounded worried, I hadn't been ready to answer questions at that time. The only thing I'd said was that I wanted to go home."I want to know everything. I can tell that you cried a lot just by looking at your face."My eyes were puffy. And I hated my nose and face because they would become a pinkish-red whenever I
By the time I was ready to leave work, Rose called me and asked me to get some groceries on my way home as she'd forgotten to do so. John decided to tag along and come over after to see Rose. Since Mike had also finished his work, all three of us left for the store. John and I entered the store while Mike went to park the car.I started grabbing groceries and John left for another section to pick some cookies for Rose. It had been a few minutes and Mike hadn't approached me. I looked around to see if he went to see John first or hadn't even entered the store.As I scanned the area, my gaze fixed on a familiar figure. It took me a few seconds to recognize him. He was my therapist. My heart dropped to my stomach. He was wearing a white T-shirt and shorts, which was completely different from the formal clothing I had seen him in during my first session.