18.

Tom:
I got home and see Bill waiting for me in the living room.
"And?" He looks at me and I shrug my shoulders.
"She kissed me."
"She kissed you? So she has feelings for you?"
I shake my head. "She didn't say. She just said she has a boyfriend."

"Why would she kiss you.." Bill frowns, leaning back into the couch. "She must have feelings for you to."
"It doesn't matter. She has a boyfriend."
I sit down on the couch.

"I'll have to forget about her. Shouldn't be that hard when we go back to LA." I say, a little crack audible in my voice.


Bill:
I sigh deeply, an uneasy feeling taking over.
Maybe I should talk to her, just as friends. She used to tell me everything, maybe it can still be like that?

I'll take my phone and text her.

Bill: Hi Sophie, wanna meet up for a coffee?

"Where are you going?" I ask when Tom gets up from the couch.
"Nowhere, just walking the dogs. I'll take Pumba with me as well, okay?"
I nod. "Yeah, sure."

Tom left and it's been an hour since I send Sophie that text. She didn't answer and I'm thinking of just going to her house.
Friends can do that, right?

I get up to leave when my phone starts buzzing and I see a text from her.

Sophie: Maybe next time.. x

I sigh and sit down again, answering her text.

Bill: What about tomorrow? I’d love to catch up!

I stare at my phone, until she answers.

Bill: Maybe on Monday? Around 10am?
Bill: Okay, see you on Monday!


Sophie:
The next few days went by surprisingly calm.
Marco has been sweeter then ever, spoiling me with gifts, didn't loose his temper, not even a little. He even cooked dinner for me, making me feel extremely guilty for kissing Tom.

So I ignored Tom, I don't like the fact he makes me a cheater, so I'd rather stay away from him.

I decided to do something special for Marco tonight. After everything he's done for me these past few days, he deserves it.
I'm making him his favorite foods and bought his favorite wine.

I spent all day cooking.
Marco will be home any minute and I just finished dressing up. I'm wearing his favorite dress. The dress he bought me for our one year anniversary.

Dinner is in the oven and I just put the appetizers on the table, together with the champagne and two glasses.
I hear his car stop, a door closing and wait for him to enter the kitchen.

He gets in and I look at him with a big smile, thinking he will smile back at me, but he doesn’t.
His eyes wander to the kitchen table.
"Why isn't dinner ready?"
"It's in the oven, we can start with this."
I gesture at the food on the table.

"I don't want this, I want real food!"
His face is different then last days and I wonder what changed. Did something happen at work?
"I wanted to surprise you. I have dinner and dessert. I bought your favorite wine."

"I want dinner at six!" He raises his voice and walks my way. "Let's just eat." I try to calm him, walking towards the kitchen table, taking the plate with food and holding it in front of him.

He slaps it out of my hands, the plate shatters as it hits the ground.
I take a step back, fear on my face as I look at him. "Dinner is ready in 5 minutes." I stammer, walking passed him towards the oven.

He grabs my arm tightly, pulling me back.
"Next time make sure dinner is ready." He hisses. "You don't wanna make me angry, do you?"
I shake my head, lowering my eyes.

He lets go of my arm and I walk away from him, towards the oven.
"And what are you wearing? You look ridiculous."
I turn around, facing him. "You bought me this dress.." I say with a soft voice.

"The dress isn't the problem."
Tears form in my eyes, but I push them away.
He hates it when I cry and I don't wanna make him angrier.
"I'll go change." I say softly.

I walk passed him again, scared, humiliated.
I change into some oversized sweatpants and matching sweater.
I go downstairs again, walking towards the kitchen. Dinner should be ready by now.

I take it out of the oven and put some on Marco's plate. A nervous feeling rushing through my body. I put the plate in front of him, waiting for him to take the first bite.

He stays quiet and keeps eating, a silent sigh leaving my mouth.
I get myself a plate aswell and sit down in front of him.
"You want some wine?" I ask him, trying to soften the mood.

"I don't like wine." He says, not giving me a look.
"I bought your favorite." I try again.
"I said I don't like wine! Are you deaf or just stupid?!" He raises his voice, looking into my eyes.

My heart starts to beat wildly in my chest, fear taking over me, to scared to move.
"Get me a beer." He continues, but I don't move a muscle. I just keep staring at the table.
I startle when he slams his fist onto the table and I look at him. Anger visible in his eyes.

I get up, quickly, and get him a beer, putting it next to his plate.

The rest of the evening I tried to be invisible. Only speaking when I was asked something, only speaking when it was needed.


The next day
It's the next day. Marco already left for work and I'm meeting Bill in two hours.
I take a long shower, get ready and leave my house.

I'm meeting Bill at some new coffee place. I've never been there before but I have heard good things about it.

When I walk inside I see Bill sitting at one of the tables. I walk his way and when he sees me he gets up from his chair, giving me a quick hug.
We sit down, across each other and order some coffee.

Black Coffee for Bill, a Latte macchiato for me.
"I always knew you were a Black coffee person." I say, laughing at him.
"And I always knew you were not." He smiles back at me.

His smile fades into a somewhat more serious look. "So, how are you?"
"I'm okay. What about you?"
"I'm fine." He says, looking into my eyes.
"How is Marco?"

I'm a little surprised by this question. Why does he care about Marco? He barely knows him.
"He's busy." I say, looking at the coffee mug in my hands.

"What does he do for work?"
"You wanna talk about Marco?" I ask, looking into his eyes again.
"Not really." He admits with a little smile on his face. "Is he good to you though?"

I look at him with big eyes, not sure how to react to this question. No one ever asked me this, and I'm a little taken off guard.
"We have our problems." I admit. "But doesn't everyone?"

I look at him, looking for validation.
"Depends on what the problems are, I think."
A chuckle leaves my mouth. "Yeah, probably."
"What problems are we talking about?" Bill asks me and I look away, feeling a little uncomfortable.

How do I say this? I think to myself, looking for the right words. "Uhm," I start. "he has a temper."
"A temper?"
I nod. "A little yeah, but only when he is stressed. With work and everything."

Bill nods, with a little smile on his face as he looks into my eyes and I look away, briefly looking at the mug in my hands.
"What about your love life?"