They walked all the way from Rue du Bac and the D'Orsay Museum to the Notre Dame Cathedral, on the southern side of the Seine. The weather was absolutely stunning. A gentle breeze was blowing so they did not feel the heat.
There were a lot of souvenir stalls, painters selling their paintings, various types of artists, musicians, dancers and mimes performing along the shore. Jo took a lot of photos, as usual.
Matthew was very exhausted, but he didn't want to tell her. She looked radiant, and it seemed like her smile did not want to leave her face even for a moment. That was an extremely rare sight for him to admire.
At that moment, he felt as if she was so happy, then he could be too. He just had to find a way to sit, even for a few minutes. He hadn’t had a proper rest and sleep since the reunion of their team on Saturday. His body was desperately demanding a little downtime to get back up.
"Jo, it's almost lunch time. We should look for a nice place to eat". He hoped that she was at least hungry, if not tired.
"I have an idea!" She said looking at his tired face. He looked terrible like a panda with dark circles under his eyes.
"Hmm?" He muttered, albeit a little scared. He knew perfectly well what crazy ideas she had.
"A bad day in Paris is still better than a good day anywhere else as the famous saying goes."
"I am afraid to ask where I would like to eat." Finally he admitted his fear.
"Matt, I will have mercy today. I promise."
"Thanks. Could we find some patch of green grass where I could lie down for a while and have a short nap?"
"Forget it! I don't have that much mercy."
"I already had hope and began to regain faith in people, in your humaneness." He was teasing her but he knew exactly what to expect from her since they were in Paris.
"I'm not a compassionate person. You know that. I remember how you hurt me and I know what revenge is. As you tricked me to come to my bellowed Paris, I will show you a little compassion and understanding." She said in a very serious tone and tried to keep a poker face.
She hesitated a moment but then started to talk even more seriously. "Let's go to Pompidou Centre. On the top there is a lovely restaurant with a beautiful terrace and we can take a taxi."
When he heard the last word, he was truly happy. By the next ten minutes, they were already standing outside the building.
"Could we take the lift inside? I don't like these escalators." He stated, looking at the escalator on the outside of the futuristic building. "Jo, I don't like high-tech architecture!"
"I know, but that's the fun of taking the escalators."
"Ok. This building is not that tall, I will survive." He muttered as he stepped on the escalator.
She was talking to him, so he didn't even notice when they arrived at the top floor. To their surprise, there weren't many customers in the restaurant and thus they had no problem finding a table outside on the terrace.
The sky was cloudless and painted in a beautiful blue. The air was dry and clear so they could admire the city skyline with the Eiffel Tower.
"The view from here is magnificent!" Jo was ready to get up and take a few shots but before she could, the waiter arrived with the food.
"Jo, when you finish your lunch, you can go to the Museum of Modern Art. I can wait here. I know that you love that type of art." Matthew suggested. He already had a plan for a little rest.
"Do you realise that the museum has the second largest collection of modern art in the world? The biggest collection is in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. I already spent a few full days. If I go there, I won't be able to leave before the closing time. I love the photography, cinema and the new media collections." She said honestly. "Maybe next time."
They spent almost two hours in the restaurant where Jo took a lot of photos, until the battery in her phone was dead. Mathew offered his phone but she refused. After all, it was her fault that she hadn't charged her phone. In fact, it was even a good thing because Mike had sent her several messages since morning asking if she had eaten, if she had taken an antibiotic, how she was feeling, etc... She felt like the control freak was back. It didn't take long before he started sending messages to Matthew. She could see that he was irritated by this and finally stopped writing back.
"Matthew, tell him to fuck off. He could have come with us."
"It is correct. He could have come."
"I feel like the fucking control freak is back. It reminds me of various things from the past that I’ve tried to escape. Argh! I just can't stand it."
At that moment Matthew's phone began to ring. They both knew who was calling.
"Could I answer your phone, please?" Jo asked.
"No point in discussing anything with that freak." Matthew hesitated for a moment before answering. "Hello, Bro! What's the matter?" He said with a very cold tone. "We are fine. Jo’s phone is dead. Mine will also be dead in a moment. We are just on a walk Bro, I will call you later."
"That was so cool! You didn’t give him time to retort. I should learn from you."
"Mike didn't change much. He is still a control freak. If you don't stop him in time, he'll tire you with questions."
"After our reunion and especially yesterday, I now feel I shouldn't regret that I ran away." She admitted honestly.
"If you don't have regrets, you should be careful. He is not over both of yours past together, as of yet. I shouldn't say that, but you are also my friend."
"Thanks. I know. I can feel it."
From Pompidou Centre, they walked to Forum the Halles, a modern shopping mall largely built underground. Jo really wanted to buy a dress but when she saw the big crowds in front of the store, she gave up. She didn't like shopping, anyway.
Matthew laughed at her attempt. He knew that her greatest pain was to try on some clothes and shoes.
"You are too tall, have too long limbs, in fact. Wait, I have an idea. Let's take the rue de Rivoli. There are a lot of boutiques in that area. If we see a shop without too many customers, we can try there. What do you think?"
"I can buy something online."
"Are you sure you don't want to buy a dress in Paris?" He was teasing her. He knew perfectly well that she didn't care. In fact, he was so tired that he preferred to sit somewhere in the store while she would try on some clothes that could take a long time, rather than walk more miles on his feet.
"A dress from Paris or a dress ordered on-line, doesn't make any difference for me. It's only a dress."
"I am with you. That's the difference. I can help you with shopping in Paris. Online? Not so much."
"If you wish to have a boring afternoon, that's fine. Let's go shopping."
They came back home just before 8 pm. Matthew didn't realise that shopping with her was a real perdition. Despite the fact that she had an ideal figure, it was difficult to buy something that would look good and fit her perfectly; likewise with shoes. She was tall, so they couldn't buy too high heels.
Anyway they came back with a few bags full of clothes. After this experience, he had doubts regarding what was worse, walking around with her while having a hangover or shopping, which caused him no less headache.
The loud sound of the phone ringing woke her from deep sleep. The ringtone was really annoying. It just kept ringing and ringing. When she woke up, it was so dark in the room that she didn't know where she was. She forgot that last evening she had tightly closed the shutters to make the bedroom completely dark and more quiet. It took her a long moment to realize where she was. Finally, she found the source of the sound that disturbed her nap.When she picked up the phone, she heard a well-known voice. It sounded lively and fresh, even quite irritating."Hi guys! How are you? What did you do yesterday? Nobody called me. What did you do last night?" All in one breath, Mike recited."Damn, Mike! It is half past six in the morning. What do you expect?" Jo had already found her mobile phone and checked the time and to say that she was furious would be an understatement."Is Matthew around? Could I talk to him?""No. You can't!"She really w
As soon as Jo and Matthew had their breakfast, they packed up and got ready for the late evening flight so they could spend the day out. The weather was amazing with the blue cloudless sky and a nice cold breeze."Matty, let's go to one of the most amazing places in Paris." Jo piped up as soon as they arrived at the Esplanade de la Defense station."Hm…" Matthew just muttered in agreement. He wouldn't consider that place as amazing. He wondered why she wanted to come here. For him, it was just a business district like Manhattan in New York or The City in London. There was nothing interesting among tall skyscrapers."That's our goal!" She said pointing in the direction of La Grande Arche de la Defense.On the way, Jo stopped many times to take some photos of original skyscrapers and several dozen modern sculptures by artists such as Calder, Miro, César from the station to the Grande Arche. She also showed him interesting reflections in the gl
In a moment, they were at the central platform under the arch. From that point of view, this place looked amazing. A set of domed glass elevators lifted visitors from the platform to the gallery and observation deck on top. The elevator track was detached from the sides of the arch while the platform at the base formed a plaza in itself and was covered by a permanent tent anchored by cables to the sides of the arch. "Jo, I'm serious. Could we take the other way?" Matthew tried to find a solution, which would guarantee him not to use the glass elevator. Only the mere sight of them made him feel sick. ‘Good thing that I haven't eaten yet.’ He thought of a contingency plan, but nothing came to his mind. It would be tactless to stay on the ground and wait for her. "That's not easy. The public doesn't have access to the other elevators inside the building. Only people who work in offices inside the arch can use them. These elevators are one of the attractions. It will be
They came back from La Defence quite early and still had plenty of time before the ride to the airport. Matthew copied all her photos on his laptop. He was surprised by how many great shots she had taken. Some of them were so amazing, suitable to be advertising posters. He already got permission to print some of them. Then he packed his laptop and got his stuff ready. “Jo, are you tired? Do you want to go for a walk?" Matthew asked, taking his suitcase to the corridor next to the front door. "I am not. I just finished packing too." Jo said as she thought where they could go somewhere for 2-3 hours. "Let's go for a walk." "Fine, but not too long a walk. We have a journey to the airport and a flight ahead of us." She was already tired but didn't want to admit it. She was in her beloved Paris and wanted to enjoy every minute of it. She had no idea when she could be here again so she had to make the most of every moment to enjoy herself.
The plane from Paris was delayed by almost thirty minutes. Mike had no choice but to leave his car in the carpark. He sent them a message to inform them of where to find him and decided to wait for them in the coffee shop in the arrival hall. "Isn’t too late for coffee, dude?" Matthew approached him poking his left shoulder. Mike was sitting in the corner of the café and had a large cup of black coffee with a plate with a big piece of Napoleon cake on the side. "Hm… Sweets!" Jos’ eyes shone as soon as her eyes landed on his cake. "Doc, you’re setting up a great example! Matthew, would like to have a cup of coffee and dessert at half past eleven?" "Why not? What can I order for you, Jo?" He didn’t joke as he wanted to sit in the cafe and eat something light. "Regular cappuccino and pavlova cake or that Napoleon will do." She pointed at Mikes’ cake which looked tasty. She wasn’t hungry but wouldn't mind having a piece of any delicious gateau. Th
The next morning, they all got ready without talking much. Matthew and Mike watched Jo closely from the moment she got up. They knew she was angry, primarily because she was hungry but they couldn't do anything about it.On the other side, Jo was terrified of her visit to the clinic as she was well aware that an unpleasant examination awaited her soon. She had a similar one a few years ago and had no good memories of it. She had vomited all day. Just the thought of it made her have goose bumps on her back.All of them left Matthew's apartment at the same time in complete silence, taking the elevator down to the underground parking lot."Beauty, don't be afraid! You are going to a reputable, private clinic." Finally, a worried Matthew broke the creepy silence in the elevator. He gently stroked her head and tucked a strand of her blond hair behind her ear. "Our dear Doc," He pointed at Mike "will do absolutely anything to make sure that everything goes smoot
Jo woke up in a hospital bed facing a screen made of green fabric. A similar one stood on her right side, while on the other, there was a white wall. The place looked like a cell, not a hospital room. ‘What a terrifying place!’ She thought.She felt the warm sunlight coming from overhead. There had to be a window there. When she tilted her head slightly, she saw a glass wall behind her, partially covered with blinds. She wanted to get up but as soon as she raised her head, she gave up. She felt dizzy and nauseous. In addition, she found a drip attached to her right hand and she wondered what had happened to her again."She should wake up soon. I have to check on her. I will see you later."She heard a familiar voice. Mike was talking to someone."See you later."Jo heard another male voice. This time it seemed like it belonged to an elderly person."I will review your data as soon as possible. I will send you my assessment
"Could we eat now?" Natalie repeated impatiently.The three of them looked at her shocked. She immediately noticed their astonished gaze."What?" She asked innocently. "I am really hungry, guys!" Without waiting for their approval, she started to eat."Mike, you at least have good manners!" Matthew joked. "These days the younger generation lacks a strict upbringing." He laughed."Matthew, let it go, please. I had a night shift at the emergency department and after that I had to stay a few extra hours. Since morning, I have been chasing after my brother. I haven't eaten breakfast yet." Natalie said with a full mouth.In the meantime, Mike had disconnected the drip in Jo's hand and taken out the cannula. He also brought two chairs from the next room that he put around his desk before pulling out some paper napkins, disposable tableware and cutlery for everyone."How do you feel? Would you like to try some food?" He asked Jo whose eyes sh