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Chapter 23
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2024-10-29 19:42:56“Would you like something to drink?” Michael's voice came from the kitchen.
“Whiskey with ice, double please. Great working conditions.”
“I don't work there!” She heard the voice of Michael approaching.
“I usually write in the bedroom, in bed. I don't like the library, it reminds me of my father and grandfather.”
“Michael, do you work at home?” She was really surprised, and began to laugh out loud. “I thought you wrote your amazing columns twenty minutes before the end of each issue.”
“You are absolutely right!” He also laughed.
There was no denying that he was not an overzealous scribbler. As befits a seasoned columnist, he writes only when he has to, at the last minute.
‘A big plus for Alice. She is perceptive.’ He thought. For appreciating his excellent columns. He wondered if she had any hints to herself in the last issue. Probably yes.
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Next time maybe she should invite him to dinner. Yes, he could already envision it. She would rather invite him to the most expensive restaurant in town than cook something herself. These are the ways of a successful woman!“I'm sorry!” She said, because it was so impolite of her, although she was not at all sorry. “The cream is, I mean was, really great.”“Let's go to the living room. Everything must have cooled down by now.”Michael walked out slowly first with a tray full of bowls and platters.“Would you like some help?” She asked.“No thanks. I don't want it all to end on the floor.”“I'm not clumsy! On the floor? Why?” She didn't finish speaking.She was speechless with amazement. She had heard many amazing stories from Alex about Michael’s extravagant, futuristic greenhouse, which only lacks growing cucumbers and tomatoes and a jacuzzi, but the storie
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He knew that if given another minute with her, he wouldn’t be able to shirk and he would have to talk about his famous ancestors, whom he despised as much as the miniature botanical garden.He hated all the trees, bushes and perennials that he had to regularly fertilize, water, sprinkle and trim. He kept them alive only for the sake of his brother, who sometimes came for a weekend on his way to a scientific conference or a lecture, to see the work he had created with his mother and grandmother during his childhood.He loved his brother above all else, that's why he cared for the weeds, as he affectionately called them, and hoped that one day the plants would die a ‘natural death’ - they would freeze in winter when he forgets to turn on the heating, or a draft or cigarette smoke will finish them off.So he cared for them carefully. He smoked in the living room, opened all the windows, made drafts, turned off the heating, deliberately forgot abou
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Michael tried to recollect his thoughts.‘How was yesterday's dinner?’ He woke up on his own so it didn't end as he thought it would, rather he hoped it would.Although… He could smell her perfume. An incredibly sensual and captivating composition of sandalwood, patchouli, cedar and some other specifics, the names of which he did not remember.Once, delighted with her exceptionally delicate and elegant scent, he wanted to know their name and composition.He spent half a day in the perfumery, sniffing all the perfumes, looking for the ones Alice used. In the end he succeeded, and he found the brand of a sensual fragrance the price of which was terrifying.As long as he tormented the women selling there, those wanting to get rid of him as soon as possible, found him the official perfume composition.Looking around, he found no signs of a woman in his bedroom.Everything was in perfect order. His shoes, right next to t
Anemones Chapter 27
Michael was glad that his friend would finally get to see how it felt paying his fines. The first ticket in Alex’ life!For a moment he forgot about the perfect order in the kitchen. He felt a wild satisfaction that his best friend, whom he treated like a son, would get his first ticket. ‘My blood.’ He thought.Maybe Alex was caught by one of the patrols, who stopped him regularly after a certain intersection, almost in the very center of the city, near their editorial office. Those road builders knew his crazy driving, especially the unconventional ways of parking.That patrol used to stop the journalist of their favorite magazine just at the sight of his car and asked for autographs and for him to stop leaving his car on lawns, promenades, flower beds, because they would have to give him a ticket again. They also knew Alex.One time, while giving him a ticket, the patrol asked also for autographs and who was his passenger. They asked i
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Michael was unable to focus on his story; he couldn't gather his thoughts. He didn't know what to say to those kids sitting on his lap. He hugged them as best he could and sat silently. The little ones were also silent, holding him tightly.Soon their tutor found them. It turns out that the girl's name was Dominica but her brother, Alan, calls her Mika.The babysitter was surprised that the two, who recently came to an orphanage after a tragic car accident in which their parents died, showed any emotion towards a complete stranger. Until now, both the children had avoided even their peers.She didn’t want to believe that the kids got into his lap by themselves and they were not going to get off them voluntarily.The babysitter, however, was more interested in the journalist himself than in the fate of orphans who needed warmth and love. When she realized that a handsome man was not interested in her, she took the three of them to a Christmas tree to
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Michael wished he had a sister. His sisters in law don't like him particularly. Besides, he didn't even remember the last time he saw them. It was good that at least he had contact with his eldest niece, but he regretted that it was only an email. From what he had read recently, it seemed that girls were brought up differently from boys. If he had a daughter, she would have to be tough as Alice for men to respect her. Yes, he would teach her how to deal with bad guys and bastards like himself. Unfortunately, he had no children. He was suffering. Only Alex remained. He wanted the best for him but in the last few months he was fathering him and mothering him. Thanks to his help, Michal paid off all his fines, which he got when the police patrol was changed behind the intersection. The new one didn’t want autographs anymore; they didn’t even know who he was. At first he had a problem in the new car with speed; he was pressing the gas pedal too ha
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On Friday evening at about 8.40 pm, the chief editor came to his house, they talked, and they had dinner.‘Could Nicolas and Alex want to make him a part of some stupid joke? Impossible.’ He decided to explain everything immediately.He headed for Alice's office. On the way he met Nicolas.“Hi, Michael.” The boss greeted him first. “Are you going to see Alice?”“Hi! Yes, because of what?” He asked suspiciously.“Alice's not at work. She left and will be back early next month.” Nicolas announced in a calm and very serious tone.“Where did she go?” He asked incredulously, but Nicolas didn’t seem to hear it and continued talking.“We were waiting for you on Friday. We have an interesting idea for a new graphic design. Come to my office and I'll show you.”“Nicolas, what did you do on Friday night?” Michael finally wanted to know t
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"When? What are you talking about?" Alex looked so confused at that moment as if he didn't understand the language his friend was speaking at all. "Friday! Do you remember Friday?" At all costs, Michael tried to control his emotions, keep his cool and calm. “You came to see me. But you didn't say you came to bring me with you.” "Dude! Speak clearly! What do you mean?" "Why didn't you explain why you came to my house?" "I wanted to check on what was more important than visiting Nicolas and working on a new project, and the poor Chinese food!" The mere mention of the nightmarish dinner prepared by the boss's wife made his face turn green as if he had just drunk at least a glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice. It's good that she left for work right after their arrival. They didn't have to eat her food because they would probably get sick. They ordered Chinese food instead. "More important?" Michael was starting to get nervous.
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Without waiting for Alex to bring clean clothes for Michael, she took him home. As she parked the car in front of the entrance, she wondered if she should go in. Her heart was pounding like crazy, she couldn't control her emotions. It was so hard to keep calm. For the first time in ten years, she found herself in a place with so many memories and not only the good ones. She was surprised to see that Michael didn’t change much in the interior. “Did time stop here?” She asked. “For me it has stopped.” He smiled that she noticed that. “Here, you have always had good taste and an unusual sense of daintiness. That's why I didn’t change anything, apart from the kitchen decor.” “Can I have a look around?” “Sure. After all, it's also your home.” “Not any more. I have a few of my own. That's enough.” “Will you allow yourself to be invited for tea?” Michael timidly suggested. “I will just run to my bedroom to put something on, I will be back in 5 minutes.” “Why not, but only green tea wi
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"It's been ten years. I don't want to mess with your life, but it's pathetic to watch a great man tumble down. Too painful to look at." “It's my life. You don't want to mess with it? Really?" If she was telling the truth, why did she invade his world again? “You took everything from me. Even the children I fell in love with. Go away!” He drawled through his teeth. “Michael, finish this show.” She knew he was starting to play to make her feel guilty. She knew him too well. In a completely calm tone, she continued: "I didn't take anything from you. I was in an accident in which their parents and my dear friends died. I promised their dying mother that if I survived, I would look after the children. When I picked myself up after the accident, I returned to arrange the adoption.” “What else do you want?” He asked, tr
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In front of the clinic, taking advantage of Alex's moment of inattention, while talking to his friend, Michael broke free from him and started to run, but he was still too drunk and his legs were not obeying him. He hit the nearest curb and fell down. He felt the pain and for a moment he had black spots in front of his eyes. He couldn't move and he just raised his head up. He felt a wet trickle on his face, and felt its sweetish taste. “I'm not crazy!” He started screaming as Alex caught up with him. “You are not!” Picking up from the ground, Alex calmed him. He took a handkerchief out of his pocket and put it on his friend's forehead. “You'll stay a few days to detox.” “I'm not crazy!” He continued to defend himself. “You must have my permission to lock me here!”
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Alex was even glad that Michael wasn't home. In a hurry, he picked up everything from the floor and neatly put it on the table. He also put his shoes against the wall so they wouldn't get in the way and headed for the kitchen to search for some food.He was surprised to find an empty whiskey bottle on the kitchen table, and there were no signs of his friend having any guests recently. He didn’t see any dirty dishes or pots around the place.The dishwasher was almost empty too, only a few cups and a plate were inside. To his despair, the refrigerator was practically deserted.There was nothing to eat, no leftovers. Just a few pieces of different kinds of French and Swiss cheeses, which he didn't like because they smelled horrible.There was not much choice, so he pu
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On Monday, he returned on the same plane with the same bloated, slant-eyed individuals.He was greeted by an ugly, rainy, completely not July weather. He drove straight from the airport to work. However, he found the editorial office to be empty.“Have you visited the solarium?” Alex greeted him unusually.“Solarium?” Totally surprised by his friend's question, he decided to simply ignore it. “Hello, Alex! How are you?”“Hmm… Not too bad. Where did you get so tanned in such weather?”“I was on a trip by the warm sea.”“Sure, probably on a bike?” Alex said with undisguised irony, knowing very well that M
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“You look very pretty, Alice. What's the occasion?” Michael asked.“As always, I know. Thank you. An occasion?” She thought, confusion crossed her face. “Do you not know anything? I'm hosting a party today for my friend at my home.”“I noticed already.”“I forgot to ask you if you brought any suitable outfit.”“Our tastes are very different. Appropriate, what is that?”“Did you pick up any of your linen suits that you parade around at work?”He wondered. In fact, he was only pretending, because he hadn’t thought about a typical summer linen suit.
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La Croisette was the most famous promenade of the Côte d'Azur, covered with palm trees, providing shade on a hot day like today. He decided to walk along it.The place was known for the fact that the most famous representatives of show business and the crowds of onlookers looking for their idols were walking around it, if they blended into the crowd somewhere. This was a regular phenomenon and not something that happened only during the film festival.Along the promenade, he met many artists of various kinds, painters who painted portraits of tourists for a dozen or so euros, a caricaturist who wasn’t as good as his editorial artist Simon, acrobats kicking goats, a clown and some quite serious musicians.He paused for a moment next to one of them, a young boy with a storm of blond hair, who looked to be
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He was driving in the left-hand lane and could not turn into the right, because the cars were on a string. His car was right behind the car ahead and so on, thus it was impossible to squeeze anywhere. With no other option, he began to apply the brake hard. He slowed down with difficulty.He heard the horns of the cars behind them. Somehow, he avoided the bump. His legs trembled with fear at the mere thought of what would have happened if the cars behind him had not kept the proper distance and had not slowed down in time. He breathed a sigh of relief and was silent.He waited to hear Alice saying ‘I told you so’, but she said nothing."I won't be surprised if one day I hear the news that famous Mr. Johnson tragically died in a car accident." She said in a completely calm tone without a trace of anger.Then, with a sneering smile, she added: "And breaking the rules is my private business. I don’t meddle in your affairs and expect the same
