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 wanted to tell him that his best friend was still sleeping next to her, which would probably ruin their relationship, but they wouldn't have peace all day.
"You're still the same control freak! Leave us alone today! Please!" It didn't sound like a polite request but an order. However, she finished the conversation with that.
In the next two minutes, she heard Matthews’ mobile phone ringing in the next bedroom. Jo covered her head with a pillow which didn't help much.
‘Mike! Stop it! Damn!’ She wanted to scream. She was sure it was him. Nobody answered this call, though. The phone rang over and over again before she finally got up. The door to the next bedroom was open and she saw that the room was already perfectly clean.
The bed was made. Even the suitcase on the floor looked packed. The shutters and windows were also open. There were audible water splashes in the bathroom. She figured that Matthew was taking a shower.
"What the fuck Mike? What's wrong with you?"
Mike was speechless. He expected everything, but not that Jo would answer Matthew's phone. He wasn't comfortable with this fact and wished that he'd flown with them.
"We were and still are busy. Could you please understand that?" She broke the long silence.
"What time should I pick you up from the airport?" Finally he regained his voice.
"We will be arriving just before 11.00 pm. And no, there’s no need; we can get a taxi."
"I will be waiting outside the departures, at the drop off zone. Have a good day!" And he hung up the phone first.
"Good morning, Beauty! What's wrong?" Matthew asked as soon as he came out of the bathroom.
"Mike was calling!" She said looking at the door. "First, on the landline for so long, later on your mobile phone. I picked up." She stated.
Jo wanted to run away as soon as possible and not to look at her friend. He was only in his boxer shorts and was wiping his hair with a towel. Almost every muscle was visible on his perfectly toned shoulders and hands.
She saw the glow in his dark blue eyes. She admired his ideal neck, beautiful traps, excellent biceps and abs. Water drops from his blond lush hair trickled down his neck. ‘Fuck! Get a grip woman!’ She thought. ‘He's your best buddy, not a sexual object.’ Her throat tightened. There was nothing she could do about it. She always believed that friendship between opposite sexes was possible but she began to have doubts about it now.
Immediately Matthew noticed that she felt uncomfortable in his company but chose to ignore it. His sudden laugh woke her up from her delusions.
"That's great that you picked up my phone." He wondered what she told him and how his friend felt when his ex-girlfriend answered his call in the early morning. "We have a guaranteed peace today." He added.
"Considering the situation, I hope so."
"Are you hungry? We can have breakfast in 5-10 minutes."
"Damn! Matthew, you have the perfect trap muscles! The ideal abs and beautifully built quadriceps and calves." Shamelessly she looked up and down his body very slowly. She was about to watch him from behind, but she stopped herself in time and summed up her observations. "Actually your whole body is perfect!"
"Really?" He muttered. ‘I have it since you have known me. How come you have noticed that just now?’ He questioned internally. "Do you want to only watch it or touch it too?" He started to tease her to see how it ends.
Unexpectedly, she inched closer to him and Matthew felt her breath on his body. To his surprise, she ruffled his wet hair then gently touched his neck. At that moment, he felt shivers down his spine. ‘You don't know what you're playing at.’ He thought.
Then she delicately scratched the shape of his neck, slightly roaming her hand over his trapezoid, and finally keeping her palm on his shoulder. "Perfection in every way!"
He saw the gleam in her eyes. She was definitely up to something. He knew the expression perfectly well and wondered what she would do next.
"If I have some free time, I propose a photo session."
It wasn't what he was waiting for. Matthew thought that she had come up with something crazier and was a bit disappointed.
"Undressed, of course!" She added after a while.
"Sure! No problem. Just say where and when. I can undress and you can take as many shots as you want, as long as you do not publish the photos in some tabloids." Matthew laughed at the very thought of a photo session with him in the lead role.
They both stood in the corridor looking at each other for a long time.
Matthew looked perfect to her.
In contrast, Jo looked terrible. She had a rumpled nightgown, messy hair, a puffy face with dark circles under her eyes and smudged makeup because she felt tired and slept without washing it off. She was aware of what she looked like but she was in no rush. He had seen her in even worse condition many times.
"Hmm, I think that’s enough admiration for your beautiful body for today! Finally she broke the silence. She already had an idea for some interesting shots. "Let's get ready. We have all day to enjoy Paris."
"I found my old camera. It's archaic equipment, but still good. My parents take pretty good pictures with it. I cleaned out the memory cards and charged the batteries, so think where you would like to go."
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
“Traitors you say… that’s interesting… very interesting, my best buddy.” Matthew said sarcastically. “Of course ‘best’ in the past tense.” He continued with a strong stress on the word ‘best’.“Bro, you won’t understand.” Mike was truly furious. His little secret was uncovered and his long friendship was in danger.“What should I understand? You have been hiding under my roof for over two months and I don't even know the real reason for this hide-and-seek play. You owe me an explanation.”“It’s complicated… ““Be a man, bro! The wording ‘it's complicated' is a typically female explanation for the guy they want to get rid of. Something synonymous to ‘let's be friends’. Did you get it?” He waited for a moment, but there was no reaction, so he continued. “I am expecting a meaningful answer!”