Chào các bạn! Vì nhiều lý do từ nay Truyen2U chính thức đổi tên là Truyen247.Pro. Mong các bạn tiếp tục ủng hộ truy cập tên miền mới này nhé! Mãi yêu... ♥

CH.2: Nothing is what appears at first

Dear All,

I am finally posting a new chapter as I know I was not active for a few weeks, sorry...holidays time 😊 I was at home with my family and Cat, and I really enjoyed the time. In the meantime, I kept writing, of course.

This chapter of TP&TJ is quite long, about 24 pages and it moves the story further getting ready for CH.3 that will sure shake it and bring us to a point many of you are waiting for and know from Anatoly's book. This one slowly reveals more of our main characters but also of the others, learning more about Sharon and Darya, and...meeting a new character. Who? Let's read the new chapter and discover it ^^

I won't say much more aside the fact I really hope you will enjoy this chapter and that I will be looking forward to reading your amazing comments and messages, thank you very much! I totally love them!

I would like to dedicate this chapter to my dear MistakesAndSadness as a huge and sincere thank you for your kindness, love, support and friendship, for always following all of my stories and for being such a lovely and magic reader!

I created a banner in which we can see Darya, Adrian, Cameron and Sharon. Obviously, they are just to give a visual impact, but you know you should follow my descriptions, as for instance Darya has green-blue eyes 😊 A song that seemed to fit the chapter.

For now, enjoy it!




"All world is made of faith, and trust, and pixie dust," by J.M. Barrie in 'Peter Pan'

VIOLA POV:

"Are you kidding me?" Sharon asked as we sat at our usual table, waiting for Anatoly and Adrian. "You met his sister and she is actually a nice person who doesn't sneer around as much as he does? Because seriously, Sergey looks constipated sometimes." I giggled at her joke, but she shook her head as to say she meant it. We didn't have much time to talk during the morning, since we had two tests and she was very worried about it, always feeling anxious before one, even though she managed to score high grades every single time.

"Are you sure it actually was his sister or that she isn't playing something with you?" Cameron inquired, constantly being the suspicious type of person, which made me believe getting along with Anatoly wasn't going to be very easy for him.

"She is a nice girl, Cam, and there is nothing to worry about, we will just meet to prepare a choreography for that event I told you about," I explained him, for then spotting both my brother and Anatoly walking inside the cafeteria.

"Oh, that's true, Vi, when is this event happening? I must be there as usual and I will take tons of videos and pictures, and of course I'll be your makeup artist," Sharon cheered, waving at Adrian and Anatoly together with me. "Do you have pictures from last night? With Darya I mean, I'm super curious to see her face, if she also looks like she ate twenty lemons for breakfast." We both softly laughed at that and Cameron scooted closer as I took my phone to show them pictures from last night's training.

"Here she is," I said while showing some photos and both of them widened their eyes, Sharon snatching the phone away and staring at it in complete disbelief. "I told you she looks very nice; they just resemble each other but they are nothing alike."

"You must be kidding me, Viola! She looks gorgeous and what a lovely smile and nothing like Sergey, always seeming he ate something weird and having digesting problems, and oh my precious fairy, you always look so fabulous while doing aerial hoop!" She said with a wide smile and I just responded to that. "I wish I'd be so flexible, but I simply suck at that, so I keep on simple stuff."

"Simple stuff?" Cameron asked her metaphorically, because we both knew she was extremely talented in creating every type of makeup and she was absolutely wonderful in playing the electric guitar. "Sharon, I mean, I think I never met any girl more talented than either you or Viola, in a way or another."

"Hello ladies and gentlemen," Adri greeted us, and I immediately went to hug him. "Hi Vivi, haven't you gone for food yet?"

"I was waiting for you and I showed them pictures of Darya," I explained, seeing how Anatoly nodded at my two friends and just sat down without looking annoyed or in bad mood. So, having lunch all together seemed fine for him. Fabulous!

"Darya who?" He then asked, gazing at me with one eyebrow arched.

"Sergey's older sister," I replied, and his eyes widened a moment, for then scoffing out in his usual way and muttering something under his breath in Russian none of us understood. "What is it?" I asked, because maybe he knew her. "Do you know her?"

"Not very well, but yeah, I've met her a few times and I can tell you that aside the looks, given they definitely look like brother and sister, they have nothing else in common. He's a gigantic piece of crappy jerk and she's actually quite nice and smart, the Mighty Sasha, my friend, is their cousin and he gets along with her, which already means a lot, believe me." I noticed my brother chuckled slightly and I remembered then he had met this guy Anatoly was talking about and I guess he probably was a certain type of person.

"So, she is nice," I said and he nodded, his eyes then moving on Cameron, who had dropped completely silent the moment they joined us, studying Anatoly in a way that made me shake my head.

"What are you looking at, shrimp?" I bit my lower lip not to openly giggle at that, because he could be so colourful in his way of addressing people and I didn't want to appear mean toward my best friend.

"No-nothing," Cam stuttered out and Sharon eyed me lifting her shoulders once.

"C'mon Cammie, I'm hungry and let's get something to eat before we need to wrestle it away from someone," she told him, taking his hand and pulling him up standing on his feet.

"Wrestling for food?" Anatoly asked her and she just grinned, having already accepted him and somehow, liked him at the very first. Her spontaneous reaction had a good effect on him, because he nodded trying to hide a smile. I think he didn't mind Sharon and that was already a huge achievement. "You sound like my brother, because he'd totally do that, believe me. He eats like a pig."

"Oh, I can totally do that, too, if I'm very hungry," Sharon replied openly, and Anatoly ranked her very slender body up and down and again. "I burn it easily, if you're wondering where I put it." She eyed Cameron and decided to go for a few minutes, to ease him down, since he was not relaxed. "Well, I'm going now and if you guys want anything, let me know, or else, go and fetch your own lunch!" She skipped away dragging Cam with her.

"How the hell do you know Dasha?" Anatoly then asked.

"I met her last night at aerial hoop's training and she was absolutely fabulous and so nice, and we will need to meet again because we'll be working on a choreography together and will you come to see us?" He blinked a couple of times and only then I realized how fast I spoke.

"Vi, what the fuck, slow down and catch a breath, because you froze my brain with your Flash-like talking speed."

"Sorry," I said timidly, and he shrugged his shoulders.

"Doesn't matter and yeah, she's nothing like that jerk over there glaring at me wishing to break my nose just as much as I wish to break his ugly one." I watched over Sergey's table and our eyes met, seeing he stopped his stare on me, changing expression, but I averted my gaze elsewhere after we glanced at each other for a couple of seconds. Sometimes, the way he stared at me stirred a sense of uneasiness, because it was intense and very direct, set straight on me and the problem was that he never had a friendly or warm expression. Why did he mind me so much? I never understood that, and I had to say we pretty much never talked.

He wasn't exactly ugly as Anatoly often described him. In fact, he was rather good looking I think, but definitely not my type physically speaking and, what was more important, he spiritually wasn't my kind of guy, because he always sneered, barked instead of normally talking, never smiled, a cold and prickly air was constantly looming around him, and he behaved definitely not nicely, making fun of me all the time, calling me weirdo, not to mention many other things. I felt nervous whenever around him and I was glad we didn't sit close in the classes we shared.

"So, you'll do some freakish fairy-like show with his sister? I didn't know she was doing...what did you say? Aerial-something?"

"Aerial hoop," I told him, immediately going to show him pictures from last night. "Look!"

"Wow, cool Viola," he honestly commented. "But don't fall down and hit your head, or we'll get you crazier than you already are, so be careful." I beamed at him widely and quickly surprised him by softly pecking his cheek, causing him to grunt out not to get too used to that, but I saw behind his apparent grumpy manners and sarcasm. He had such a big heart he wasn't even aware of it. "Well, anyway, let me know when this event or whatever it is will be held and, if I'll be free, I'll drop by."

"I definitely will tell you!" I cheered clapping my hands and he shook his head.

"No more sugar for you today," he joked, and Adrian chuckled, placing a hand on his shoulder in a very friendly way, seeing Anatoly didn't mind it.

"Hermoso, sugar or not, my precious Vivi is always full of energy and enthusiasm, it's a gift of hers." He smiled at me and I reciprocated. "Now, how about lunch? I'm quite hungry and I'm sure you are, too, hmm?"

"You bet," Anatoly replied, getting up. "I might not eat like a pig as Dima does, but sure as hell I'm freaking starving now, so let's go fairy-doll."

As we walked to get food, Sharon and Cameron went back to our table, and I stood between Anatoly and Adri, talking about our next classes and what we would be doing during the weekend. Alexa and other two girls kept staring at me as if wanting to turn me into some weird creature, but I paid them no heed. I haven't done anything to them, so I never understood why they reserved such behaviour for me, and I knew the best tactic was the ignore them.

"What the fuck is he looking at us for?" Anatoly suddenly muttered us with annoyed voice as I was about to get some salad and a pudding, seeing after a moment he meant Sergey. "See? Well, he can fuck off for all I care."

He was right, because as I peered up, he was there staring at us, a sour expression on his face and contracted lips, exactly as if he had eaten dozens of lemons just like Sharon joked about. Why did he have it so much against Anatoly? I didn't know everything that happened before we became friends, but I still remembered seeing them together in school and acting in quite the way. I wonder if maybe also he could and would change, just like Anatoly? I looked again and once more our eyes met, him somehow studying me and I realized perhaps Darya told him we met last night? What would he think of that? I turned around, because his gaze was quite insistent and piercing, and when I did so, my brother was right there in front of me, eyes set on him.

"What is it, Adri?"

"Nothing, just letting people know to be careful, that's all," he declared with a playful tone and when I went back to look at Sergey's table, he no longer was watching us. "Are you done with your food, Vivi?"

"Yes, and you?" He nodded his reply and we moved back to our table, where we had lunch and I was pleasantly surprised in witnessing Sharon trying to make conversation with Anatoly, even if he wasn't the most easy subject; however, he was a real sweetheart and beautiful friend, because he made the effort to reply without being his usual sarcastic and harsh, even though he had a few jokes for Cameron, given my other friend really seemed not to like him.

"So, any plans for the weekend?" Sharon asked to all of us in general, wanting to involve everyone.

"Nothing special, I guess kicking my brother's ass at some videogame," Anatoly replied with quite a smile that a naughty pixie would have on his face while about to conceive some mischief. It was always quite hilarious to witness him speaking about his twin brother and I could only imagine how even more hilarious they were together. "And you?" He asked Adrian, who just lifted his shoulders once, calmly eating his lunch.

"I might have a date, but nothing really interesting or exciting."

"Adrian, a date, really?" He inquired surprised and my brother gave him quite the mischievous smile.

"A girl invited me out and I said yes, because she looked quite smart and beautiful, but I'm not really interested."

"You remind me of River, even though he would never admit with whom he's having a date and you would actually discover he was on a date only when you caught him dumping the victim."

"Who's River?" Adrian asked, his interest piqued just as mine, because I couldn't imagine someone similar to my brother in that and I honestly couldn't wait to meet his friends, but...I knew I had to give him time and space, respecting him.

"A...a friend of mine," he hesitantly replied and I smiled softly, understanding he still had quite a lot to sort out with the people around him and I secretly wished a kind fairy to sprinkle some magic fairy dust on him, so that everything would be solved easily and quickly.

"It sounds like you have fabulous and very good friends," I commented, and he gave me a quick, rather hidden smile. Aww, that was so beautiful and precious!

"Yeah, I guess you can say that, not sure about the fabulous when it comes to the Mighty Sasha, 'cause he can be another intimidating and glacial beast, but I guess his man could be called as such. Well, you can definitely apply that to my brother and his chipmunk, adding sappy and lame at that, too," he sarcastically joked and I giggled, since Adrian explained me also his twin brother was gay, having a relationship with a guy called Jasper. Oh, I was really dying to meet his other friends! "What about you, Tinker Bell?"

"Sharon and I are going to the movies, and Cam cannot join us because he'll be away all weekend, right?" I tried to involve him in the conversation, because since he came back with food, he hadn't pretty much spoken a word and I felt bad about it, wanting to make it easier for him.

"Ye-yeah, dad organized a weekend in the house we have in the countryside," he quickly explained, eyes set on his tray and I silently sighed out. I guess he really needed some time and I just had to be patient.

"That house is absolutely amazing," Sharon cut in, understanding my intention. "Do you remember the great time we had there in July? Cammie tell Anatoly about the stupid things we did there!" She burst out laughing and it was contagious, for I remembered the episodes she had in mind and I couldn't stop giggling, seeing Cameron also began to openly smile. I pleasantly noticed he relaxed a teeny-tiny bit more and with that, lunch passed by quickly, all of us somehow talking together.



-SATURDAY AFTERNOON-

Sharon was absolutely gorgeous in her new black and red dress, never neglecting a hint of gothic as she liked, her very blonde hair always perfectly styled, this time in an elaborated bun making her look like a snowy fairy sprite, her makeup impeccable with blood-red lips and the right use of black eye-liner enhancing her big eyes. Before leaving for the mall, we met at her house and decided what to wear, so that our outfits could match, and she did my makeup, because nobody else was as talented as her in that.

Many guys observed her with what I believed was obvious interest, but she wasn't interested in any of them, for she had her own taste and not exactly eager to find a boyfriend. She repeated over and over how much she enjoyed spending time with Cameron and I, free and not having to deal with some blockhead, to use her words.

I think she simply never met someone who really stole her heart, exactly like me; she confessed Anatoly would have been her type in terms of physical appearance, considered she had a soft spot for the bad-boy look, but he was gay and our friend, because she already considered him as such. She would have liked involving him more, but she was still rather unsure around him considered Anatoly's personality and thus she decided to give him space. Having lunch all together was already impressive progress for him!

Sharon and I went to watch a movie and we shared a Pepsi and an enormous box of popcorn, for she ate more than I did; I just couldn't eat much, because it simply didn't go down and I would have felt sick, unless it was something sweet. I always had a reserved space for some dessert or slice of cake, especially if it had cream, strawberries, chocolate and looked cute. After the film, we decided to browse the shops and I found a lovely one with sales, so we took our chance and purchased a couple of new, colourful tops and a black skirt arriving at my knees with the right amount of tulle that gave it the perfectly fluffy touch. The sale-assistant had been a real nice and helpful guy, smiling openly and making some really funny jokes.

"Viola, I am not sure you realized that the guy of before gave you a discount because he was drooling over you, right?" Sharon asked as we stopped in front of another shop, observing the shoes. I blinked at her and shook my head, for he had simply applied what the sign said about sales; she sighed out and fixed a rebel strand of her hair. "Seriously, Vi, he gave you a bigger sale than what was advertised, and he probably was about to ask for your name or number, because I didn't miss how he mentally cursed the new customer interrupting him."

"But he wasn't my type," I honestly admitted, and she giggled, knowing me very well.

"Oh, I know he wasn't your type, since for some reason you never liked blonde guys and true, he missed something, there was no magic in him."

She turned her attention back to the shoes and I went to say something, but someone left the shop and attracted my attention. It was a guy with dark straight hair he kept over the shoulders' length, the upper part pulled back in a sort of ponytail styled in a bun, tall, definitely taller than me, with soft facial traits, soft looking mouth and smiling grey eyes. I liked how he was dressed, wearing light-blue jeans slashed at the knees, a creamy close-fitting long-sleeved t-shirt that enhanced his tanned complexion and revealed a lean body, as, differently from Sharon, I never really looked at guys with a muscular and strong figure. Of course, Anatoly was super handsome, but he was my best friend only and I never saw him in any different way than that.

As the guy walked past us talking to his friend, he quickly glanced in our direction, our eyes meeting for a moment, and he smiled at me openly, winking once. His smile was friendly and so directly aimed at me that I felt my cheeks warming up. He tilted his lips more and he was grinning, but he didn't say anything and walked away. Once they were very far from us, Sharon turned her bright and vivid eyes on me, a pixie-like expression on her face.

"That was definitely your type and wow, he looked at you openly and interested, but why didn't he stop to say anything? He clearly liked you!" She asked to herself, for then shaking her head. "I swear, I'll never understand men and sometimes, I really wish to be either lesbian or bisexual; it would make things easier." I giggled at her humour. "But hey, his loss and anyway, let's go try this pair of shoes, what to do say?"

"Yes, let's go, I can also see that lovely pair of pink pumps that would definitely match with my newest dress, what do you say?" She nodded enthusiastically, taking my hand as we stepped inside the shop. "And their heel isn't that high, so it's even better."

"Why?"

"Because a high heel makes my legs look even thinner," I replied timidly, and she first stared at me with arched brows and then playfully flicked my nose.

"Oh shut up, you have absolutely beautiful and breath-taking legs and don't listen to whoever says they are skinny...I wish I had your legs, but I should also probably train like you do and I'm not crazy about that."

I went to reply, considered she was one of the most beautiful girls I have ever known, both inside and outside, with a personality that had the power to warm you up in the coldest and most snowy day, with such bursting energy and acute cleverness that never left you the time to feel surprised because she would astonish you even more, and she was a loyal and sweet friend, someone I could always trust, never afraid to meet new people or try new things. She was a curious person, similar to a cat. And she was my best friend and pretty much my sister. She suddenly halted in front of me and she pointed at a stunning pair of pink, glittery pair of pumps and her eyes were wide with excitement. Sharon had an incredible soft spot for shoes and loved collecting them, just as I collected dresses.

"We must try these on! They would look absolutely perfect on you and they would go together with the skirt you bought before and I will get them, too, so sometimes we can wear them at the same time." She was basically jumping on the spot and I couldn't agree more, as we enjoyed having a similar outfit from time to time, having people believe we were real sisters.

We tried the shoes and at first I wasn't very convinced given their heels were quite high and I was afraid they would make my legs look like two toothpicks, but Sharon took a picture of me, showing how actually great they appeared on me, and so, we bought a pair each. We browsed more shops and once more we crossed paths with the same guy of earlier, who again smiled at me. I wasn't sure on how to respond to that, so I just spontaneously beamed back, averting my eyes away the next moment. He was really handsome, and I noticed both ears were pierced.


We stopped in a bookstore, as I was running out of new books and I saw one that I had a feeling Anatoly might appreciate. I heard him during literature and no doubts he enjoyed reading, having a vast and impressive knowledge about many authors and their works; Sharon acquired some new numbers of two manga she currently read and I bought three books, so after this we decided to stop for a hot chocolate and a slice of cake, having to refill our spent energy. Right when I was about to pay for the chocolate, someone stopped beside me and spoke, surprising me no little.

"I will pay for hers," a voice I never heard said and I turned my head to the side, my eyes widening in a mix of confusion and shyness as the same guy of before stood right there staring at me with a charming smile, deep grey gaze quickly travelling me. He handed the money and I went to say something, but he took my tray and looked for where Sharon was sitting, bringing it over there.

"Thank you," I murmured, not entirely sure what to say or do, as something like this never happened to me.

"What's your name?" He asked, his voice warm and inviting, and I noticed how my friend's eyes went super wide as she took in what was happening, observing the guy intently.

"Viola," I hesitantly answered, because I felt slightly uneasy talking to a complete stranger, but he seemed a nice person, reminding me of a character from Holly Black's books, who sometimes proved to be very wicked. True...some creatures were really tricky, and I had to remember that very well.

"Nice to meet you, Viola," he said as he placed the tray on the table, turning around and directly staring into my eyes, a very confident smile on his soft-looking mouth. He offered me his hand and I shook it, feeling butterflies in my stomach for the sudden contact and for the way he kept staring at me. "I am Ryan and I didn't know whether I'd disturb you or not by coming over, but I decided to use my chance and I am very happy I did." He turned to look at Sharon and I introduced her to him. She quickly eyed me as if to ask whether I wanted to stay alone with him, but I shook my head slightly once, definitely not feeling like remaining there only with him. He was extremely handsome and charming, with an open and beautiful smile, yes, but I had never met him before. "May I join you for a short while?"

"Yes, please do join us," I politely replied, trying to sound less timid, and he sat beside me, talking easily to both of us, leaving me almost stunned for his self-confidence. My brother also never lacked confidence, but with him it was different and less exposed, less obvious, because he didn't need to make it noticeable.

We talked about many things without much difficulty, Sharon commenting and participating to it from time to time; well, Ryan mostly talked, telling us about the fact he was a second year college student following a course on international relations, speaking of his passion for reading, wanting to see which books I had just purchased and explaining he also loved fantasy authors, even though he didn't mention anyone in particular. He asked for my number, but I hesitated, always remembering my parents' and brother's advices, and he didn't push for it, simply asking if I would have liked to meet on Monday afternoon. I thought about his question a moment and then agreed on it, deciding to see each other here, in this same café.

After a while his friend appeared and, after having introduced himself as Peter and having exchanged a few words, they left together. My eyes followed him as he walked away joking with his friend, chuckling at something they said to each other, Sharon silent at my side.

"Wow," she then exclaimed. "I sure never imagined this and he's really good looking and definitely not shy, considered how much he talked." Yes, I had noticed that too, the sureness in himself was quite dashing and the complete lack of effort with which he had conversed with two persons he had just met, knowing nothing of them, was almost bold. Maybe he simply was gifted in terms of making friends and, without doubts, he was very enchanting, with pleasing expressions on his handsome face and warm voice. I wondered what Adrian would think of him. "What will you do? Will you see him on Monday?"

"Yes, because I already promised him and not being there would be extremely rude," I explained, and she giggled.

"You're the sweetest and most polite person I have ever met, believe me," she teased me, and I stuck my tongue out playfully, causing her to do the same. We burst out laughing and some people sitting not far from our table turned to stare at us, but we decided to pay them no attention. Everyone should laugh openly and loudly, in pure joy and honesty, at least once a day! It was the right medicine for many things.

"Well, let me know how it goes and if you'll need my help, just give me a missed call and I'll be here in a minute to kick his butt or hit him with Harley's hammer!"

"I sure will," I answered, and we linked our pinkies together. "I promise you." She grinned at me and after that, we realized it was time to go home.



Right after dinner, Adrian came back from his date and it was obvious he didn't enjoy the time, having accepted mostly out of politeness and because the girl at first interested him; however, she turned out different, not as exciting as he had hoped for, and he decided not to see her again, cutting the date shorter, as they had more plans for the evening. He would never be able to settle for a quiet and uncomplicated person, that he explained me clearly, saying he needed a challenge. I often wondered who was going to be up to that, to steal his heart but also his rather peculiar interest.

We spoke as we lazily lay on a big couch of the living room that we normally used for watching movies, a film quietly playing on the TV, none of us following it or paying the smallest attention. I thought about Ryan and decided to tell Adrian about him, wanting to hear my brother's opinion.

"I met someone today," I began, and his attention was immediately entirely set on me, inviting me to continue with a short nod. "His name is Ryan and he seems a nice person, having offered me a hot chocolate..." I halted, thinking how it happened in reality. "Well, I was about to pay for it, Sharon already sitting at the table waiting, and he showed up beside me, almost as if popping out of thin air, and paid for my chocolate."

I explained Adrian everything, my emotions as Ryan and I noticed each other outside that shop, when we then met, how shy I felt at first, the fact he had inviting and charming eyes I could only stare at for a while, feeling the need to look away because their confidence touched the limit of boldness. I didn't know why, but something in them triggered such reaction, as if a hidden spell harboured in there. I told Adrian everything that happened, and he intently listened to me in silence, reflecting over my words, not missing a single detail.

"You said you will meet him again on Monday?" I nodded my reply and he kept quiet for another while, his eyes searching inside of me. "Be careful, Vivi, as he might seem nice at first yes, but as you correctly just pointed out, you don't know him. So, take it easy, and if he ever dares to say or do anything out of place, do tell me."

"Thank you," I only whispered, a wide and joyous smile on my lips, and I went to hug him, kissing his cheek. "Thank you, Adri, I'll be careful as you said and I will tell you more and, if there will be a chance, you can meet him." He only nodded at that. "Sharon also wants to know about Monday."

"What did she say?" He appreciated her candid opinions and quickness in grasping situations and people's nature, being very open and sociable, yet not liking everyone.

"Nothing much, just that he is very good looking and definitely the type of guy I would like physically speaking. But she also said to let her know because in case she would use Harley Quinn's hammer." We both laughed at that, being very typical of Sharon, and then I observed him for a couple of seconds, seeing my brother had changed expression and was considering something. "What is it? Are you worried about him?" I asked, because whenever Adrian had his sixth sense tingling something was up.

"No, I was thinking about something else, and yes of course be careful, some guys can be real jerks wearing deceiving pleasant smiles and manners, but you're a smart and judicious person, so you will see for yourself."

"Yes, my guardian fairy will guide me," I winked at him and he nodded satisfied. "What were you thinking about?"

"You will meet Sergey's sister next week?" I nodded and he said nothing at first, for then sighing out and relaxing. "I will drive you there, Vivi."

"Are you worried about him?" I sure felt quite anxious at the idea of seeing him also outside school, considered the other fight he had with Anatoly on Friday after lunch, the way he had first addressed my brother and then me. His mood seemed worse than usual, quite gloomy and dark, and I found myself wondering about him, what caused him to behave like that, asking myself if he had problems at home, because his sister gave me the idea of being kind, sweet and attached to him, having spoken with fond words and manner.

"Yes and no," Adrian honestly replied. "There is something in him I cannot entirely grasp, and I believe he is in a dark place he needs to sort out. He's more the type of person to mostly run his mouth rather than his hands, but you never know." He looked at me smiling, immediately guessing my train of thoughts and sensing my worry. "I have a feeling he would never do anything to you, aside calling you weirdo and such when in front of his friends." He paused and pondered over his own words, nodding to himself. "It's not a feeling. I am sure he would not do anything to you, aside running his mouth, which I know can still hurt."

"Yes..." I only said and he pulled me closer to him.

"Don't worry about that and I'm sure his sister knows how to handle and possible discipline him and, maybe, he won't even be there. We'll see."

"I hope so," I confessed, feeling slightly guilty for considering Sergey under such light, for being so nervous around him and also about him, quite scared by his rough manners sometimes, for not being sure whether I would be able to be friend with someone like him if he proved to be different. This was a very strange consideration for someone like me and I minded it.

I thought about him and could he be any different? In four years, he never showed otherwise, always surrounding himself by wrong and not penguin-loving people...but then, why had Adrian said he was in a dark place and that he had to sort things out? He wasn't wrong, for he basically never was. Yet, I couldn't help hoping he was not going to be there and that made me feel bad.

And, I couldn't help asking myself if I could ever be able to be friend with him.



SERGEY POV – SATURDAY EVENING:

I went to Audrey's place as she was alone, inviting me therefore hoping to spend the night together and I knew what had to be done, although I still couldn't bring myself to act accordingly. Dasha was right and I couldn't keep this going on for long, because I didn't really care for Audrey as girlfriend and my eyes couldn't stop following the steps of someone else, especially after having heard from my sister she would be visiting our house next week.

So, what the hell was wrong with me? I was a piece of gigantic shit, but there was no need to treat a nice girl like Audrey as I was doing; yeah, there were going to be questions and she was going to possibly hate me, not to mention how Alexa would find the chance to get even more on my nerves, but there was no other choice. I didn't want to admit liking that weirdo, because she really was completely weird and very different than what I was used to, but apparently that was the deal and it meant things had to end with my girlfriend.

I rang the doorbell with a heavy feeling, just trying to imagine how she would react to my words, how much she would then hate me and all connected to that, all the endless questions and annoying jokes my friends would crack; I shook my head and the door opened in front of me, Audrey standing at the entrance with a wide smile and looking very good as usual, tonight in particular having paid more attention to her clothes, noticing she had avoided going for very exposing ones. She knew I wasn't crazy about that. God, I was such a piece of crap.

"Hi baby!" She immediately greeted me, going to hug me and kiss me on the lips, to which I replied slightly stiffly, but she didn't register it possibly already used to my lack of real boyfriend-like warmth and cuddling. "I'm so happy to see you and if you don't mind, I have ordered dinner for us, so we don't have to bother with that, what do you say?"

"Sounds good to me," I only answered and smiled at her, stepping inside the house. "What did you order?" I asked to make some conversation, since I couldn't bring myself to dump the news just yet.

"Mexican, your favourite!" She exclaimed enthusiastically, taking my hand and leading me to one of their living rooms, since also her family was as wealthy as mine, just like many other kids in our school, exactly like that Denisov queer's parents, who really were freaking rich. I think Audrey's dad was some kind of businessman dealing in something I never really understood or cared about to learn, while her mother didn't work. I made a face she didn't see when she mentioned Mexican food, for the simple reason it actually wasn't my favourite and I was never really crazy about it. She was the one liking it and I just shrugged my shoulders, as tonight it didn't really matter.

We sat on the couch and she immediately kissed me, to which I responded at first, pulling back after a few seconds, knowing it was wrong; realizing I felt absolutely nothing, nor I yearned for more or to feel anything.

"Wait a moment," I said, but she either didn't hear me or decided to ignore it, given she surprised me by pushing me flat on the couch, straddling me at once, and I almost froze on the spot, her actions way too much for my taste. So, I grabbed her wrists and made her listen to me. "Audrey, I said wait a moment," I spoke with decisive and firm voice, finally succeeding in gaining her complete attention, listening to my words, at last aware of my state of mind. "What's with this rushing and pushing things? What's with you?"

"You don't like me, Sergey, isn't that so? I know we told our friends we had sex and such, but we never really did it and I really would like that, because you're my boyfriend and I really like you and..." Her voice dropped and so did her face, her eyes staring down and clearly avoiding my gaze. "I'm sorry for being like this and pushing you...I'm really sorry, I'm just afraid you don't like me, because you never really try to do anything with me." She breathed deeply for a couple of times, her blonde hair cascading in front of her face. "You don't even kiss me with desire."

I silently sighed out, feeling like a gigantic, award-winning douchebag, so I sat up, taking her hands in mine and smiling as I looked at her face, seeing she really felt bad about what happened. But she didn't need to, because I somehow understood her and, truth be told, it had been my fault all along. My behaviour had pushed her to act in a way that wasn't hers and I was the one in need to apologize.

"I'm sorry, Audrey, I've been a terrible boyfriend and you definitely don't deserve it," I began to say, and I gently kissed her lips, as a friend and not lover would do, for then pulling back to better looking at her. "I'm sorry, you are a really nice girl and very good looking, believe me, and I like you, Audrey, but I'm not in love with you and this will never change." I paused a moment to see how she was taking my words and it was evident they were hurting her, which made me feel worse than I already did, however knowing it couldn't be postponed any longer. "I'm sorry because I should have told you this before and not keep it going on this long." She moved away from me, pulling her hands away from mine, and quietly sat at my side without saying anything, simply listening to me. "You're really nice and very patient with me, much more than I deserve, but I am not in love with you and, Audrey, we shouldn't be together."

I heard her sighing out quietly, remaining silent for a couple of minutes, and the waiting became almost painful, hearing a clock resting somewhere in the room beating the slow rhythm of the time, until she rested her head on my shoulder, still without saying anything. She sighed out once more and then sniffled very quietly, almost afraid I would hear her. Argh...I should have taken this decision long time ago.

"Audrey?" I called her and, as I looked at her, she was silently crying, trying to cover her face with both hands, and it hit me, but not as much as it should have had. Dasha was right indeed and this was the best choice I had taken in long time. "I'm sorry, don't cry, alright? You shouldn't cry for me." I meant what I said. She shook her head and moved away, tilting her head up to stare at me.

"Are we really breaking up like this? Are you really breaking up with me?" I didn't reply immediately, because the sound of her shaky voice got me slightly, but there was no way I could change my mind and act like a coward, as I did on a daily basis. Wasn't I constantly thinking of someone else? Yeah, I was, no matter how hard I tried to deny it, considered how she was, how freaking weird and strange she looked and acted every single day. Weird? Strange? Not so sure that was the correct way to describe her at this point, but it didn't matter. Now, I had to face and deal with another matter.

"Yes Audrey, we're really breaking up because you can't deny I hadn't been a good boyfriend and I'm sure you know this, right?" She moved her eyes away, staring at no particular point of the living room, pulling her legs up and hugging them with both arms, resting her head on the knees. She was very pretty...she truly was, but somehow, as I kept observing her, I perceived her more as a friend than a girlfriend. Also, she was good looking yes, but I didn't feel any pull toward her, any need to touch her. Physically speaking I felt absolutely nothing.

"You like Alexa, am I right?" She asked out of the blue with defeated voice and my eyes widened instantly at that gigantic bullshit.

"What?" I barked out, the question triggering my annoyance at once.

"You like her, right? I-I understand you, she's beautiful and with a perfect body, always looking perfect and stylish and..." I stopped her.

"I absolutely don't like her and what the hell gave you this crazy idea?" She didn't reply immediately and just kept staring in front of her, having slightly flinched at my rather harsh tone of voice. "Audrey? What gave you this crazy idea? I never did anything to make you think this and I swear it, I don't like her, she's the last girl I would ever consider or want as girlfriend." No point in denying how much I disliked her friend, and it was about time she heard it completely. She needed to get away from that toxic friendship...toxic friendship, ha? I should have followed this advice in the first place. Easy to give advices rather than following them, wasn't that the case?

"She told me she was sure you liked her because you often speak to her and asked her to dance when we out all together last time. She refused because of me; this is what she explained me." I froze on the spot at hearing the amount of lies Alexa whispered in her ears like a poisonous snake. I suddenly felt the need to have her in front of me and slap her face, even though I knew I'd never do it for many reasons.

"I never did anything of the sort," I said firmly, but she said nothing back and still didn't look at me, which meant she did not believe my words. I could only try to imagine what sort of lies Alexa fed her and the mere idea really pissed me off; she was a dangerous person and I still couldn't believe with whom I wasted my time. I turned to Audrey and took her hands, forcing her to look at me, to listen to me. "Audrey, look at me and listen carefully." This time she did, her eyes red. "I never did anything of the sort and if you think carefully, you must know I don't talk to her and yeah, I was a bad boyfriend to you and not exactly doing all the things you would have liked, but I never cheated on you, and I swear it, she's the last girl I'd ever...scratch that, I'd never consider her and end of this bs."

"Why? She's really beautiful and every guy looks at her and Jonathan told me you cheated on your ex-girlfriend." He had told her what? That wasn't his fucking business.

That freaking bastard...it was something I wasn't proud of and that I told him and Martin mostly because they had been there, when I went out with Denisov and that other insufferable asshole named Vincent, in some fucked-up club while we were drunk, Denisov and Vincent high on some shit I didn't try God only knows for what reason. My eyes stopped on Audrey and observed her longer, wondering what she had heard about me and what she must have thought of me; it didn't matter now, because anyway I didn't feel like telling her about those times. It didn't make any sense and she wouldn't understand. I couldn't understand myself, so nobody would ever be able to comprehend what the hell was wrong with me.

Fucking Denisov made it, though. I closed my eyes a moment, the usual anger slowly burning in my veins, fuelling the hate I felt for him, sparking my jealousy. Fucking Denisov really made it and I was still stuck in the same place, actually taking steps back instead of moving forward.

"I did," I admitted, because there was no point in denying it. "And I've never been proud of that." Actually, I felt like a shit once I realized what happened, but she didn't need to hear this. "So, no Audrey, I haven't cheated on you and I never even considered it. I'm simply not in love with you and I see you mostly as a friend." She considered my words and then, after a few very silent and heavy seconds, she slowly nodded. "I don't like Alexa and you are very good looking, listen to me, and definitely you don't need to follow her idiotic advices or her style, alright? You might have not noticed it, but many guys have their eyes on you, in particular both Jonathan and Martin, who should just care about his girlfriend but doesn't, so be careful around him." She smiled at me, this time a rather sweet and spontaneous smile, and she kissed my cheek, to which I didn't move away. There was nothing of sexual or anything of the sort in that gesture.

"I realized you never were jealous, and I wondered if maybe I wasn't good looking enough for you," she murmured without sounding bitter or mad, only resigned to what was happening. This was something else about her I never really understood or appreciated; the fact she easily gave in or accepted everything too easily. I had a feeling the weirdo had a far different nature, but honestly, I couldn't think of another girl right then.

"I'm not exactly jealous to begin with, I don't think it's in my nature, but stop with this bullshit about not looking good. I don't like to hear this, and really, I'm sorry about this."

"I'm also sorry, because I really like you," she said, trailing her eyes to the floor, wrapping her arms tighter around her legs. Crap, I felt like a gigantic and horrible piece of shit, but what else could I do in this situation? I should have taken this decision time ago, that's all. "But don't stop talking to me or ignore me, please?"

"Why should I do that?" I asked her, shaking my head. "If anything, you should be the one avoiding me, all considered, but just promise me you won't waste time with either Martin or Jonathan, they are colossal idiots and Chris isn't far from that." Girls were interchangeable for them, not really meaning much as long as they got what they wanted, mostly drooling over Alexa, with whom I was sure they all had something, in a way or another.

"They are your friends, Sergey," she remarked, tilting her head to the side and looking at me confused, not understanding why I was calling my "friends" in such way. She was right in saying that, yet, she didn't know all the crap, what they were capable of...what I was capable of and how that made me feel the worst and most stinky hypocrite. I said nothing to that and just made sure she would avoid getting into some situation she would certainly regret.

"Also, don't listen to what Alexa will tell you, because I'm sure you'll call her to talk about this." She bit her lower lip and of course she was going to either call her or send her a message as soon as I'd leave the house. "I don't like her and whatever the hell she'll tell you, I won't get together with her, not even for one night, because yeah, I did cheat on my ex-girlfriend and it was bad, but you know I'm not much for such things."

"I know, Sergey, that's why I like you...you aren't such a bad boyfriend as you keep saying, believe me, you're just very distant and obviously not liking me back in the same way I do, but you're not a bad person and I'm sorry I listened to Jonathan, it's just that Alexa was asking him things about you and I was there, so I listened and..." I stopped her by taking her hands in mine once more. Of course, it was that harpy that asked him, and it didn't surprise me. I'm sure she did it in the purpose to insinuate certain ideas in Audrey's mind.

"Don't say sorry, you didn't do anything wrong and he should have minded his own business, but we both know that we would eat shit if Alexa asked him," I said, rolling my eyes, for then re-concentrating on her. "How do you feel? What do you want to do? I can leave if you prefer and in fact, I think I should." At my words she locked her hands tightly on mine and shook her head.

"Do you mind if we'll watch a movie together? I don't want to call Alexa now and not sure I want to talk about this today or even tomorrow. I'd like to just spend the evening with you, if you want, and food should be here soon and...oh," she suddenly gasped, pushing herself standing up, her eyes darting away with a slightly embarrassed expression. What happened? "You don't like Mexican food, right?" I shook my head, as I never particularly liked it. "I'm so stupid for not remembering such basic things and well, I don't even know what you prefer in terms of food or cuisine."

"Nothing in particular," I sort of lied, because in a way I didn't have anything I was crazy about, pretty much eating everything aside some exceptions; however, it was true there were some things I liked very much. It was pointless telling her now and so, I let it go. "Mexican will be fine and sure, let's watch a movie together and then I'll leave." I took her hand and guided her to sit back on the couch, for then really observing her entirely for the first time; she wore a very short red dress and more makeup than usual, probably in the intent to surprise and entice me. She really was pretty, and I guess she could be described as hot, considered what the other guys always said about her behind my back, but she wasn't the weird, loud and always smiling in quite the stupidly cheerful way girl with purple hair.

"You look good tonight, but how about wearing something maybe more comfortable?" I proposed, trying to behave less gruffly than usual, toning down my usual stiffness.

She just nodded at my request and silently left the room, going upstairs to her bedroom. While she changed clothes, they brought the food and I paid for that, going to arrange it in the living room. When she came back, I smiled at seeing what she was wearing: black yoga pants and a large, comfy white hoodie, which made her look much more herself. She eyed the food and went for her wallet left on a coffee table, but I halted her.

"Leave it for tonight, Audrey, and let's just watch the movie, what do you say?" She nodded and went to take the remote control, going for Netflix. She sat beside me but putting some distance and I noticed she began to eat without saying anything; I took the remote control and stopped the movie, attracting her attention.

"How do you feel?" I asked her; even though I pretty much had no right to do so, I wanted to make sure she was remotely fine. I mean, she wasn't losing much to be fair, because she definitely deserved a better guy, who'd treat her far better and nicer than I did, and I really hoped she wouldn't consider going out with some idiot from our group.

"I-I'm fine, Sergey, just sad, but I'll be fine," she replied, taking the remote control from my hands and turning the movie on, the volume slightly more loud than necessary and I realized the reason behind that only when I looked at her, seeing she was quietly shaking in silent sobs, the hair let free to cover her face.

"I'm sorry," I only commented, since there wasn't anything else to tell her. I wasn't going to change my decision and she knew it.

"It's not your fault," she replied with cracked and whispered voice and I sighed out silently, understanding what she meant.

"It's nobody's fault, Audrey, alright?" She nodded once more and rested her head on my legs and I let her, seeing none of us really had any appetite for food; I felt her shaking from time to time, and I knew she was trying to cry as quietly as possible. I never understood she liked me this much and I still couldn't understand why she did so, considered the type of person I was. I doubted she held deep feelings for me, and I even more doubted she was in love, for her reaction to my sudden breakup showed it enough.

We watched most of the movie in complete silence, until at one point she lifted herself from me and went to get some food, smiling at me and showing a face where the mascara had rolled down together with the tears.

"Do you want something?" I nodded at her and went for a small burrito. "I must look horrible now," she joked, mostly to break the sort of tension all of this created in the room and between us, but also being more spontaneous and direct than usual. I found myself smiling at her more naturally than I ever did, and she softly laughed. "What? I do look super ugly, right?"

"No, you don't look ugly at all, quite the contrary, believe me."

"I'm wearing a large hoodie and my makeup is gone." She checked her face on the phone and gasped, rushing to find a tissue to wipe the lines of makeup on her cheeks.

"And what?" Her eyes widened in surprise and then, she smiled, this time looking less down than before, much more relaxed, maybe slowly understanding this was the right decision for both. She wasn't in love with me and about this little much, I had no doubts. I bit into my burrito and realized I was starving, for then eyeing the nachos. "Let's share them, what do you say?"

"I'll have some only, I must watch my diet, because I'm not as lucky as Alexa who can eat whatever she wants and stay so amazingly thin or even Viola, she looks so beautiful! Doesn't she?" I silently swallowed down at her words, as she had no idea what she was talking about and what they moved inside of me. Yeah, that weirdo was beautiful indeed.

"She's a weirdo," I said afraid to expose my real thoughts and she arched her brows, tilting her head to the side as if in some mute question. "She's weird," I repeated. "And Alexa I'm sure goes to the bathroom to vomit the food she eats; I saw her doing that once." Her mouth opened up in a mute exclamation and I nodded. "And just do what makes you feel good, not what she tells you, alright?" She thought over my words and then asked me a question I didn't know how to address without being too obvious and pathetic.

"Why do you call Viola weirdo all the time? She's actually very nice and didn't you know twice she helped me in school when a professor suddenly asked me random questions? She knew everything and quickly suggested me the answer, helping me in not getting a bad mark I couldn't afford, because you know my grades aren't the best." She had really done that? I never heard of it and I had no idea she was that much smart; well, I was aware she had very high grades, just as her eerie and scary brother, but yeah, what was so surprising? She was a rather peculiar and sweet girl, that I had seen it already many times. However, I was surprised Audrey spoke so nicely of her. "I know Alexa and the other girls call her names and say she's too skinny, but I don't agree with them, because I find her very nice and very kind."

"No idea," I just munched out, because the last thing I needed in that moment was talking about her with my ex-girlfriend. "She's weird and end of the discussion," I cut this conversation over and I noticed Audrey blinked twice, registering my shift in the mood and I took a deep, silent breath to calm myself down. "Let's keep watching the movie?"

"I didn't mean to upset you," she timidly said, nervously playing with a strand of hair.

"You didn't bother me, why are you saying this?" It wasn't her fault I was a jackass unable to be honest about my real feelings and even less able to face the mess in which I threw myself in with my own hands. She kept observing me intently and I remembered what she told me before, the fact she didn't consider me a bad person. "I don't really like when Martin and Chris or the others call her in some ways, but she's freaking weird, that you can't deny," I honestly told her, surprising myself very much.

"I think that more than weird, she's just very honest with herself and doesn't care about what people like us tell her, especially behind her back." Audrey almost shocked me by saying those words, as I never expected her to be so insightful and sharp in her considerations, as I never realized she also had her own issues. There was guilt in her voice, and I understood it very well, because it was an emotion I was acquainted to very well. "She's lucky though," she observed quietly, munching on two nachos.

"What do you mean?" I asked honestly curious.

"She has very good friends, also Anatoly, whom you hate very much, and definitely a brother who really loves and cares about her. I'm sure you noticed how he protects her in school." I sure as fuck noticed that and saw it directly, having been not so subtly threatened by Taylor to get my ass kicked if only I dared to speak badly about her. I feared that freak saw through me, because yesterday he caught me staring at Viola, and the smile he gave me froze the blood in my veins. And yeah...she was friend with that damn queer. God, how much I wished to punch his ugly face once more! I slightly shook my head to chase those thoughts away, considered it wasn't the moment to let that out. Audrey had admitted something that very much surprised me.

"I can be your friend, if you want, although I'm definitely not the best example."

"I'd like that," she replied smiling and, while I quickly looked at her going back watching the movie and appearing visibly more relaxed and at ease.

I wondered if Viola would ever consider being friend with someone like me, if we would ever be able to talk as two normal persons, without having her either feeling nervous or regarding me as some ugly creature that without doubts populated her fantasy and mind. Dasha said she would come to our house next week and the idea made me so anxious twice I considered beating it while she was there; however, I knew how things were really going to be.



When I arrived at home, I found my parents in the living room watching some TV and sipping tea, my father immediately observing me with stern and scrutinizing eyes, a remark ready in his mouth.

"You are back early, Seryozha," he told me with questioning voice, and my mom went to say something, but I spoke faster.

"Audrey and I broke up, which should make you happy," I threw back defiantly, crossing my arms in front of my chest and feeling my upper lip curving up annoyed. "You never liked her, for many reasons, among them because she's not Russian, right? And you know what? She's much nicer than you ever thought, but it doesn't matter, and now, I'll be in my room. Is Dasha at home or out with Shen?" Mom placed a hand on my father's arm as he was about to reply lecturing me on my way of speaking to him, my words having ticked him off, for then getting up and coming to me.

"I'm sorry you two broke up, everything OK with you?" She asked softening her usual energetic tone of voice, brushing a lock of hair that fell in front of my face. "We know she is a nice girl."

"Yeah," I only said, and she just nodded, understanding I wasn't in the mood to share anything else, also for the simple reason that I never really talked to them, we never had a very close relationship, something that apparently my perfect cousin enjoyed, just like Denisov and his queer twin brother.

"Dasha went out with Shen, but I believe she will be back soon because he needs to leave early in the morning for a business trip," mom explained and right in that moment, we heard the entrance door open and, after a short moment, my sister stepped in the room and quickly glanced at us, concentrating her inquisitive eyes on me, understanding in a moment what happened.

"Shen says hi and he's sorry for not dropping by, but he has to wake up very early tomorrow morning," she explained to our parents, for then giving me her undivided attention. "You are at home already? How about watching that movie we spoke about yesterday?" We hadn't spoken about any movie, but I got her intention at first and I reacted as our parents, especially our father, would have expected from me; I shrugged my shoulders and faked indifference.

"Whatever, since I have nothing else better to do," I commented, leaving the room, just in time to avoid my father's questions.

I definitely didn't feel like debating my breaking up with them, in particular with him, and we never talked about anything anyway, aside telling me off on a daily base because I wasn't the ideal son he had wished for, not really shining or standing out in anything special. Swimming and diving didn't count much for him as he had always hoped I'd also join either hockey or some other "manlier" discipline, according to his standards, but I didn't like them. The water and the quietness it brought with it, the fact I was alone there while swimming, was one of the best sensations I ever experienced.

As I walked the stairs, Dasha reached for me grabbing my arm and stopping me, setting her searching eyes on my face, but she shook her head the following moment.

"You are fine," she noted, mostly to herself, but I still nodded. "You took the right decision, both for you and for her, and I am happy you finally did it."

"She's not bad," I felt like pointing out, even though it was stupid because I wasn't in front of my father.

"I know that; all in all, she is a nice girl, but she never remembered you don't like Mexican food and she is not the one you look at from afar, isn't that so?" Had she read into my mind about the food preference? Ah no, something like tonight already happened in the past and Dasha didn't forget it. She tilted her head back, looking in the direction of the living room where our parents were, and her eyes returned on me the following moment. "Movie? So, we can talk a bit more quietly?"

"I don't have much to talk about, but sure, pick the movie and just spare me from some Jane's Austen stuff you torture Shen with," I grumbled out, walking up the stairs.

"And what if Viola would like those movies and ask you to watch them with you?" Darya promptly asked as she followed me, the teasing tone not very subtle in her voice. I said nothing and kept walking, hearing her softly laughing at my silence that in fact spoke for thousand words.

If she would like those movies and, for some miracle she would consider asking me to watch one with her, I would say yes without any hesitation or slight doubt, because, if I had to honest with myself at least once, I'd watch anything with her, as long as it made her happy. But this wasn't the main and most important question. The issue was whether I would ever find the guts to acknowledge it and act accordingly in front of others, in front of her. And if she would ever give me the same chance she gave to Denisov.



VIOLA POV – TUESDAY AFTERNOON:

Adrian stopped the car in front of Darya's house and my eyes quickly observed the very large, two-storey and lovely building, with a spacious garden that obviously received a lot of care; somehow it resembled ours, even though our house and garden had a more artistic and fairy-like aspect, considered mom's and mine inclinations.

I paused a moment before opening the car's door, realizing it also was Sergey's place, recalling the latest exchange he had with us in school last Friday.

Would he be at home? Maybe he had swimming practice, or he was out with his friends. I had hoped he was not there, but I still felt bad about that, as if been too severe and unable to glimpse over the behaviour he had in school. My fingers tightened around the door handle, my teeth chewing on my lower lip while a question surfaced in my mind: was that appearance or not? Another question tumbled in my head right after the first one: why was I worrying over that so much? I had to stop over-thinking and simply go.

You'll never discover what's after the long, dark tunnel of Alice until you walk through it and reach its end.

"Are you sure you want to go, Vivi?" Adri asked me and I looked at him smiling, nodding my reply, although I was slightly nervous and afraid, he would be there at home, and what could I do if that was the case? Oh...this was absolutely ridiculous and plain silly! He wasn't going to do anything to me, aside a bit of rather unoriginal mocking, and his sister was anyway there.

"Yes, there is no real reason to be nervous, we have the choreography to prepare, and actually, why don't you also come and meet her? I'm sure you will like her at first." He studied me for a couple of silent seconds and then nodded smiling in his very warm and affectionate way. "You're the best brother!" I cheered and he chuckled amused.

"Let's go."

As we stopped in front of the large front door made of dark wood with inserted panels of painted glass reinforced by wrought iron almost in a Celtic fashion, I pressed the button of the doorbell and, after a moment, someone opened the door; I believe both Adri and I remained there somehow frozen, very much surprised, and in my case also nervous. Sergey had appeared at the entrance and he also widened his eyes moving them first to me and then to my brother, taking a step back at first, saying nothing for a moment. Until, he curled his upper lip up while he faced Adrian and his usual sneering expression was back, veiling the momentary normal and more spontaneous face he had before.

Yet, something of his face caught my immediate attention. I had never noticed before, but he had very peculiar eyes, as if belonging to some magic creatures, such as an elf; however, there was nothing of elvish in the way he ranked us with a displeased stare, not happy to have us standing there.

"Taylor, what the hell are you doing here?" He asked with a hard and defensive tone, keeping the door half-open only, posing as wall between us and his house. Then, he looked at me and I instinctively stepped closer to Adrian, who wrapped an arm around my shoulders and smiled at Sergey in a way I knew too well. "Weirdo, why are you here?" He addressed me and I rolled my eyes at that. He seriously lacked originality, but this time I noticed he didn't sound hostile or harsh, nor he meant to mock me.

"I am here to see Darya, we have to work on something together," I replied directly staring at his eyes, having the chance to admire the fact they looked like a bright, liquid combination of jade green and very clear blue, one eye having golden-brown specks, similar and yet very different than his sister's eyes. They were beautiful and I couldn't help my studying them, since I never noticed them because, first, he always walked around school with a scowling and unpleasant expression, and second, we never really stood this close to each other, facing one another and somehow normally talking. Well, as normally as I could speak to someone like him.

"Ah yeah, she told me something about this, but she didn't say it was going to be today," he replied, averting his look away from us and grunting out, cracking the knuckles of one hand. Had he wished not to be at home while I was there? It wouldn't surprise me and somehow, made me feel less guilty as we both maybe shared the same feelings about this. I swallowed down and Adrian noticed that.

"Where is your sister, Sergey?" He asked with firm yet apparently calm tone, attracting his attention, seeing he narrowed his eyes visibly annoyed. "I am not leaving Vivi here until I see your sister and meet her."

"What the fuck, Taylor? Who the hell do you think I am? I won't do anything to your precious weirdo."

"Don't call me weirdo," I asserted, stomping a foot down and stepping closer to him, feeling somehow provoked by the way he had just addressed me, by the tone with which he spoke those words.

"You're weird," he repeated with a different note in his voice, softer and not as abrasive as usual, and my eyes first widened and then blinked a couple of times as it was clear he didn't intend to insult me or provoke my brother into anything, simply letting out a sincere comment, his expression changing into a more relaxed one as our eyes met and challenged each other. I went to reply but he spoke faster. "Yeah, yeah, I know what you think about this, all the best people are a bit crazy." I was positively shocked: he remembered something I told him last week. "You might be right, who knows? Dasha is at home, so just come in and I'll call her."

He opened the door and stepped to the side, letting us walk inside the house, his eyes set on me with palpable intensity. I dropped my stare to the floor and pretended he wasn't there closely observing me, just concentrating on Adrian and at the idea of meeting Darya. Why was his gaze so strongly studying me? I didn't wear anything more original than usual.

"You can go, Taylor," Sergey spoke to my brother with a very different tone of voice and Adrian quietly chuckled, causing him to grumble impossible to understand words under his breath and stiffening his stance.

"Not a chance," he only replied and, as I peered up, I noticed how Sergey's face tensed while looking at Adrian, who appeared very amused and at ease, somehow enjoying provoking him. "I am not leaving until I meet your lovely sister myself and only then, I'll be going."

"I heard you're gay," Sergey remarked with defensive tone, speaking that word with a sort of uneasiness and I never knew he really was so narrowminded. Yet, I suddenly giggled reading through his words and apparent harsh tone; he was mostly jealous and thought Adrian wanted to meet Darya for other reasons. His eyes darted on me at once. "What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing, I never imagined you'd be similar to Adri in this," I only pointed out smiling openly and my brother softly chuckled, grasping what I meant.

"To reply your rather uninformed and limited comment, Sergey, I am not gay, but bisexual, and I'm looking forward to meeting your sister, as I heard she is very beautiful," he teased, winking and resting his hands in the front pockets of his jeans.

"You..." Sergey went to say, but someone ran quickly down the stairs and slapped him on the back of his neck.

"Seryozha! Behave well with our guests," Darya admonished him, even though not very seriously, immediately turning to look at me with a radiant and welcoming smile. "Viola, I'm so happy to see you and sorry for my brother, he's always so grumpy and he didn't even call me to say you arrived, I was working on some paper for college." She hugged me tightly, surprising me at first, but I reciprocated the gesture without hesitation, feeling good and at ease around her. She then realized Adrian was there and her eyes slightly widened as she ranked him up and down and back again. Yes, my brother always had a magic and strong charm on girls; I kept repeating him that he must have some Fae blood, all considered. "You must be Adrian, her brother, right? I'm Darya, nice to meet you." She immediately offered her hand and Adri shook it smiling at her pleasantly.

"It is my pleasure, Darya, and yes, I am Adrian, Viola's brother," he answered with a note of allure in his voice, something he often enjoyed using. "We also both share three classes with Sergey," he added, moving his eyes on him, who scoffed something under his breath for then quickly eyeing me and, once more, I had to look away out of pure and rather silly shyness. Why was he staring at me so much today? Was there something on me so strange for his rather boring and grey taste? I decided to ignore him and concentrate on his sister, who had a lovely and very open smile that brightened the room considerably.

"Yes, I have heard you guys share a couple of classes together, Seryozha told me," she said, throwing a quick and amused look at her brother, who had stiffened when she explained that. He spoke about us with her? It honestly astonished me, as I never imagined that. Also, why did he keep staying there with us? I was sure he would have left already, considered the way he treated me in school and the fact he definitely didn't seem to like Adrian, or somehow, feeling uneasy around him. "Isn't that so, brother?"

"Whatever, Dasha," he grunted out, once more glancing at me. "I'll go, because I've got enough of this bullshit, and Taylor," he spoke to my brother directly, staring in his eyes and stepping closer to him, both being the same height. "Don't worry about your weirdo, she'll be fine." With that he nodded at his sister and left, walking away to some other room. Darya quietly laughed and shrugged her shoulders, observing as he strolled away from us.

"Don't mind him, he's just in some grumpy and gloomy mood as usual," she told us. "Adrian, will you keep us company?"

"No, I only gave Vivi a lift and I'll go now, so you two can enjoy your time together." He then moved his eyes on me, a soft and kind smile on his lips. "Let me know when I'll need to pick you up, alright? Send me a message and I'll get you."

"Thank you, Adri," I replied, tiptoeing to kiss him on the cheek.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, and ladies, enjoy your afternoon. I know you'll be fine," he said to me and I nodded, understanding what he meant and that he had sensed the anxious state of mind in which I earlier was, knowing Sergey would be present. However, I believe both of us had been rather surprised by the fact he obviously had a good and close relationship with his sister, giving me the chance to glimpse at a side of him I never thought possible.

"Yes, please don't worry, I know my brother can be a douchebag in school, but he's not what he pretends to be, really."

"I know that," Adrian only said before leaving, grinning at me and going to the car, Darya observing him clearly taken aback by his last words.

"What did he mean by that?" She asked me and I shook my head, not sure myself what my brother wanted to say. "Oh well, let's go and see what to do with the choreography, and do you mind if we'll work in the leaving room? My bedroom is quite a mess, but please don't tell anyone," she asked pressing her hands together in a pleading way and I giggled at her comical expression. "Sorry, I'm preparing a paper and studying for an exam, so I have books, papers and whatnot all around the place...you wouldn't believe it, but Seryozha is tidier than I am."

"Why do you call him like that?"

"Seryozha?" I nodded. "Oh, it's very simple; our names are Russian and we have rather specific ways to either nickname or shorten them, and that is how we do it for his name, while mine becomes Dasha, and please Viola, call me like that!"

"Thank you, I will," I enthusiastically answered and so, I followed her in their living room, a very nice and welcoming room with a big fireplace and a soft, thick carpet in front of it, large and comfortable couches, armchairs and many pictures hung on the wall. The room was decorated with taste and it gave a nice feeling, almost making me forget Sergey was not far from us.

But I almost jumped on the spot as he suddenly appeared from behind, his voice startling me. He asked something in what I believe being Russian and the language sounded difficult, quite hard when pronounced by him, hardening his voice even more, yet it was fascinating and I turned around spontaneously, observing him as he spoke, his face appearing much less unfriendly than it usually was in school, his lips not curved in that characteristic sneer of his. Why was he so different in school? His eyes moved on me and he stopped talking.

"Sorry, you don't understand a word of Russian, right?" I shook my head, because somehow, I wasn't really able to normally talk in front of him. I wasn't used to this Sergey and, for reasons I couldn't comprehend, he managed to render me even more nervous. "The queer didn't teach you anything?" His lips curved up to one side and I rolled my eyes at the way he called Anatoly.

"He's fabulous," I defended my friend at once and he scoffed, crossing his arms in front his chest, Darya stepping closer to him and trying her best to not openly smile. I wondered why that?

"What's so fabulous about Denisov, ha? He's an asshole and he didn't behave exactly like a saint until a few months ago, so what's so amazing about him?"

"He changed," I said, letting my eyes sink into his, observing more the way in which the jaded green and light turquoise blue blended, fused and confused together, almost swirling. Had he always had such beautiful and almost magical eyes? What was I thinking about? It was wrong and Ryan also had lovely and striking eyes. I kept my stare on his and continued, because he was wrong about Anatoly. "Yes, he made some mistakes in the past, I know this very well, but he faced his mistakes and found the courage to change, to become who he really is. He's my best friend and have you got a problem about this?" I had no idea why I took it so personally, but somehow the way he addressed Anatoly and how he stared at me with a sort of provoking and wicked smirk, almost reminding me of some troublesome sprite, poked at me and triggered a reaction.

"Whatever, weirdo," he said playfully, and I went to counter debate, but he surprised me once more. "I'm kidding, I was just asking Dasha if you two need anything." My lips slightly opened up in evident and possibly silly shock. This couldn't be the real Sergey Lebedev...no...he was nothing like this in school.

"No, brother, we're fine for now, thanks," Darya replied for both of us. "I'll call you later when we'll take a break, because mom baked something for us and I'm sure you won't say no to a slice of her cake, but first," she turned toward me, once more taking my hands in hers, "we must start with this, because we don't have much time ahead of us and I want our performance to be absolutely perfect and dazzling. We must be the best!" I smiled at her enthusiasm and nodded, for I desired the same.

"Good luck, weirdo, my sister is a gigantic pain in the ass perfectionist in some things, quite competitive to boot it, but with an incredible messy bedroom whenever she studies," he joked and, once more, I found myself unable to say anything back, as his different behaviour seemed to have casted a spell on me. She playfully slapped his arm and laughed at him, answering something in Russian. I never imagined they had such wonderful and close relationship as brother and sister.

"Shut up and just go to study, or else you will hear our dad tonight," she replied, and he snorted out loudly.

"He always has something to nag about when it comes to me," he mentioned, and I didn't miss how his face tensed a moment as he said that. "Alright, enjoy your fairy-weirdo things," he said, turning around and leaving the room.

I stayed rooted in the same place and just stared at where he stood before, my eyes blinking, my cheeks somehow flushed. I placed a hand over my heart, feeling it beating faster than usual. I shook my head and chased that weird sensation away, only thinking about why I really was here.

Darya and I sat down on a couch as we began watching some videos, to see whether we liked some combinations or not, also, to find the right song for our performance. At one point, she went to get pens and papers, so we could write down our ideas, sketch some new tricks, and in less than two hours we came up with absolutely wonderful and spectacular suggestions and combinations we knew would leave people looking at us with open mouths and wide eyes.

While we talked, we discovered having a lot in common and I had no doubts Sharon would absolutely love her, so we decided to meet in a week or so for a hot chocolate and slice of cake, once she would be done with her exam. I almost couldn't believe it, but also Darya liked, no, I had to be more precise, she loved Hayao Miyazaki and his incredible movies, which led us to choose the main theme of "Howl's Moving Castle". We kept other options open, such as an extended version of the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy of Tchaikovsky executed with a more rock-like sound.

"It will be amazing, Viola, I'm sure of this," she said while sitting on the carpet with crossed legs and reviewing our notes. "You know so many combinations and tricks that I'll have to try them first and train harder than usual. Some are complicated but definitely impressive." She tapped her chin with a finger and her eyes darted on me. "When will you have time this week to meet and try this? I'll need you to show me a few of them."

"Aside tomorrow afternoon, I'll be free every day, so you decide," I replied and in that moment my phone chirped, a message from Ryan appearing on the screen.

My lips tilted up when I read the content, his words were sweet and romantic, telling me he had really enjoyed having a slice of cake with ice-cream in my company, and wanting to make sure I wasn't going to change my mind for the following day. I definitely wouldn't. Adrian advised me to be cautious and of course, I was going to do so, but he seemed really nice, not to mention extremely good looking, very confident, almost disarmingly confident sometimes, and also enjoying a simple coffee while talking. I almost couldn't believe I had met a guy like him!

"Who's that? The reason why tomorrow you will not be free?" Darya asked me and I nodded. "Oh? Do you have a boyfriend? Tell me more," she immediately fired out, for then giving me an apologetic smile. "Sorry, only if you want, of course. I really don't want to intrude."

"You absolutely don't intrude," I reassured her, given talking with her came out as natural as breathing. "His name is Ryan and we met only last Saturday, when I went to the movies with Sharon, and he approached me when I ordered a hot chocolate, paying for that and asking for my name." I smiled re-thinking about how we met, how nicely he had behaved, understanding I didn't want to give him my phone number just yet, so simply asking to meet in the same place the following day. And we did and the afternoon turned out beautiful. "We are just getting to know each other," I explained, because, truth be told, I never really had a boyfriend before and I found myself unexperienced and quite shy, insecure about many things, timid to touch him, not ready for anything more than simple talking and perhaps, with due time, a kiss on the cheek. I very much hoped he wasn't going to mind this, because I think I really liked him.

"I see, so you two just met, nice," she only commented, thinking about something. "Do you have a picture of him?"

"No, but he said he'll come to watch our performance, so you can meet him there." She just smiled and silently nodded, for then concentrating once more on the papers in her hands. "You said you have a boyfriend, right?" I asked her, finding it easy to speak to her, just as if I were conversing with Sharon.

"Yes, Shen, and he's a sweetheart and he adores me, just as much as I adore him," she replied without hesitation, her entire face and eyes brightening as she spoke, clearly showing the truth and depth of her feelings. "Do you want to see a picture?" I nodded, for I had just seen him once from afar and I was really curious to see him better; she unlocked the screen of her phone and scrolled through some photos, until she showed me one, where a really handsome tall guy with short black hair and piercing yet very kind and intelligent dark eyes stared at the camera, his features possibly Chinese, elegantly dressed. "What do you think?"

"He's really handsome and, may I ask you, is he Chinese?"

"Yes, he actually is and moved to the US more than ten years ago with his family. We met at the university just by pure chance as he attended one of the first seminars I followed as guest-speaker, or maybe it was fate, I don't know, but I sure know we liked each other at first." The way she spoke about him made my heartbeat faster, because it was obvious, she was completely in love with him and that he must have been a very special person. "He's learning Russian and that pleases dad very much, because he is a bit, well, a lot conservative regarding this and he has his own ideas, even though he's not as bad as my words are making him appear, believe me."

"I am sure of that," I only said, and she smiled.

"I think we have worked quite a lot and we got some great ideas, now, how about a break and some cake? Mom baked a cherry pie that nobody can resist," she explained getting up and stretching her arms. "Are you allergic to anything or on any special diet?"

"No, I'm just vegetarian, but I believe with the cherry pie we are safe, right?"

"Definitely," she replied. "Let's go to the kitchen and I'll prepare some special cappuccino or maybe tea for you? I'm afraid I can't prepare hot chocolate, sorry." Amazing...she had understood at once hot chocolate was my favourite warm beverage.

"Oh don't worry, anything is fine for me," I assured and I followed her to the kitchen, admiring the large and very welcoming room, appreciating the fact also their mother had many cooking tools and utensils in a vintage style, my eyes widening as she took the cake from the oven. "Wow! That must super delicious," I exclaimed clapping my hands together, given the cake seemed baked by fairies for how tempting it looked, with fresh cherries on top of it and icy-sugar to complete the decoration.

"Mom is great at cooking, just like Anatoly's mother, and I heard you two are friends, right?" I nodded with enthusiasm and she appeared pleased by that. "He's a nice guy and dad explained us he's coming around, actually, he came around already, is that so?"

"Yeah, I think he had some issues and certainly he behaved in quite a way in the past, but it doesn't matter to me, because he's a fabulous and wonderful friend, so sweet and kind you would never believe it, but well...it must be kept as secret because he is actually quite shy about that and rather private."

"Anatoly shy?" She burst out laughing. "I'd never imagined that, but I guess you're right and yeah, I wished my brother wouldn't be so set against him," she added, for then signing and placing the cake on the table. I wanted to ask her about that, but it wasn't my place and I avoided, seeing it was a matter that left her uneasy. I really could not understand Sergey and why he was so rooted in certain behaviours and attitudes, for today I had the chance to discover something very much unexpected about him. "Well, I am sorry for bringing this up, but I am sure sooner or later they will find the way to get along."

"I hope so," I sincerely replied, not even sure why I also cared about that, why in my heart it felt so important.

"I'll prepare the machine for the cappuccino and I'll call Seryozha, if you don't mind it, of course," she asked with a tone of voice that made me think she hoped I would be fine with that and I just nodded. It was their house and however, it was evident they were good brother and sister. "Thank you, Viola, I mean it," she told me, and I didn't understand what she meant with that; thus, I timidly shook my head.

She walked out of the kitchen and I heard her shouting for him, asking something in Russian I couldn't understand and, after a minute or so Darya came back to the kitchen, Sergey joined us there, keeping mostly silent and sitting quite far from me.

"Can I do something?" I asked her, to feel less nervous and aware of his presence, and also, because she has been terribly nice and welcoming with me.

"No, don't worry," she first replied and then checked her phone. "Ugh...it switched off and my charger is in my room, obviously, and I'm waiting for a call from Shen." Her eyes moved on me and then quickly on her brother, feeling hesitation coming from her, so I smiled briefly. "Do you mind getting the mugs ready, maybe? They are in that cupboard over there and I'll be back in a moment."

"Sure," I only said and she dashed out of the room, leaving me alone with Sergey, who still kept silently sitting on a chair at the opposite side of the table, as if wanting to avoid me as much as possible. The usual unsociable Sergey was back.

I took a deep breath and stood up, going for the cupboard and swallowing down realizing the mugs were placed on a shelf too high for me, no matter how hard I tried to tiptoe to reach for them. I felt like Alice trying to reach for the key on the way too tall table and I bit my lower lip thinking about what to do, expecting him to throw some unpleasant joke at me, commenting on my being very thin, not very tall, or at my being weird. But it didn't happen, and I froze on the spot as the chair scraped on the floor and he stopped right behind me, his entire body almost touching mine. Both my heart and breathing halted at once as his presence loomed behind me.

"Let me get them for you, Dasha didn't realize they are not easy to reach," he said very closely and, for the very first time, his voice sounded normal and not harsh as it usually did whenever he spoke to me. I didn't dare to move or say anything, feeling in some sort of nervous daze and spell, as if the time had frozen along with my entire mind and body.

This could not be the real always sneering and very much unpleasant Sergey. He moved behind me and in doing so, his body slightly touched my back and I darted my eyes down, suddenly my face feeling warm just as my heart throbbed faster.

"There." He grabbed two mugs and handed them to me, somehow trapping me in a sort of involuntary and rather unconventional hug. I took the two cups and placed them on the counter, and so he went for a third one, after that stepping away. "Sorry," he said, and I turned around, the impossible-to-believe soft and sincere tone of his voice having struck me.

"Why sorry?" I asked, not realizing I had spoken aloud my thoughts and regretting it the following moment, afraid he would change attitude.

We faced each other at very short distance, him standing in front of me taller and holding a mug with pictures of Totoro painted on the surface and my eyes immediately darted on it, guessing Darya must have bought it and smiling at the thought. I adored Totoro and everything related to him.

"You like it?" He asked me out of the blue and I almost jumped on the spot, feeling terribly silly and rather embarrassed for behaving so skittishly in front of him, because right then he wasn't doing anything wrong or that would justify my tension. Yet, I wasn't used to it and the Sergey I knew was the complete opposite. We stared at each other more and he arched a brow as if to repeat his question, his face still looking rather hard, his eyes set strongly on me. I nodded, too nervous to properly talk, but then I realized he hadn't answered my question.

"Why did you say sorry, Sergey?" His name came out spontaneously and I could see it took him by surprise as much as it did with me. He observed me more in silence and handed me the Totoro mug, a barely-there smile on his lips.

"I didn't want to make you feel uncomfortable as I hadn't realized how close we were." My face blushed once more at his words and I concentrated my eyes on the cup, feeling my heart suddenly racing faster. Had he noticed my tense state of before? I was sure he did, because I was awful at hiding my emotions and I hoped that did not offend him.

"You didn't," I only replied, still staring intently at the mug in my hands, as I didn't know how to behave with this Sergey and it completely overthrew me, but then my eyes darted up at him as I remembered something. Why was he behaving so nicely to me all of a sudden if he always called me weirdo and had a girlfriend? Oh...right, I had forgotten what Cam told me yesterday morning, as apparently the entire school was talking about that, since people never learned to avoid gossiping about matters they knew nothing about. Sergey and Audrey broke up. "I...I'm sorry you two broke up," I said without thinking twice over that, as I was not in front of a friend and he might have minded my comment or meddling in his private business.

"No need to be sorry, weirdo," he said, but there was a playful note in his voice, and it made me stare at him with curious eyes, seeing there still was a faint trace of smile on his usually grumpy face. "I definitely wasn't the right guy for her nor the best boyfriend she could ask for, and she wasn't the right person for me, so nothing to be sorry about, believe me. And don't sweat it, I didn't mind what you just said." I nodded, surprised he had told me so much about himself, even more stunned he had clearly understood my worry. He wasn't a shallow and cold person as he showed in school. "Did you and Dasha come up with some crazy ideas for that show? Don't fall down or you'll get weirder than this," he joked and I flipped my hair back at first, as to say I didn't care about his taunting, but then giggled for a moment, realizing he was genuinely joking.

"We have some wonderful ideas," I replied, and he only nodded, going to check the machine preparing cappuccinos for us, which suddenly started to make some quite loud beeping sounds.

"Shit, I hate this stupid machine and only Dasha knows how to handle it," he grumbled out under his breath, going to walk out the room, but I stopped him.

"Sergey?"

"What?" He asked, halting at once and turning around to look at me quite taken aback.

"You are very different," I pointed out, unable to keep those words locked in my mind. Why was he so different? What had happened to him?

"Different than what?" He creased his forehead as he asked.

"Than when you are in school," I replied firmly staring at him, not wanting to let go and his eyes widened a moment, averting away after that.

"You are also different," he said back and I went to inquire what he meant, but he walked out of the kitchen, calling for his sister, who ran down the stairs and stepped in the room quickly looking at us two, the smile on his face wanting to apologize for the prolonged absence but I shook my head, as it had given me the chance to see another Sergey.

"Sorry, I received a call and..." Darya turned her head to the beeping machine and in a few quick, gracious steps she was right there checking it. "You didn't touch anything, right?" She inquired pointing her narrowed eyes to her brother, who scoffed and sat on a chair resting one ankle over the opposite knee.

"I'd never dare touching your freaking coffee machine from hell, believe me," he replied in more his usual tone and he then spoke to me. "Do you like cappuccino or would you prefer something else?"

"It's perfectly fine," I timidly replied, and he nodded, getting up and taking the mug from my hands, grabbing the others before stopping beside his sister.

"So? Can we finally freaking drink the damn cappuccino and get a slice of cake or do we have to wait until tomorrow morning for breakfast?"

"Very funny, Seryozha," she joked back and went to pour the warm and richly smelling liquid in the mugs, for then adding the foamed milk on top of it and dusting some cocoa to complete it. "The cake is over there, so why don't you do the honour?" He shrugged his shoulders and handed me the cup back, going for the cake.

"How big, weirdo?"

"Seryozha," Darya warned him, lifting one brow as she glared at him and I smiled at her rather amusing expression.

"What? She doesn't mind it, because she understood now I don't mean it in any bad way, so relax," he said and my mouth opened a bit at the comfortable tone of his voice, at the half smile he gave me as he then eyed again the cake, as if asking how much I wanted. I couldn't believe at what I was witnessing, at how he looked and behaved at home. "Never mind, I'll decide for both of you and don't complain if it's too small or too big," he then grunted out, giving me the impression that, exactly like Anatoly, patience wasn't his biggest virtue. He sliced the sweet and creased his forehead, going to look at his sister with a touch of his usual sneer. Oh...so that was just really part of him. "Where are the plates? Dasha, get three of them."

"I can help with it," I offered, suddenly feeling less nervous around him, noticing small details I never observed about him, like the particular honey-blonde shade of his hair that was lighter than his sister's, the fact he kept it in a way to cover part of his face, maybe because he somehow was hiding something about him? It was slightly wavy, but much less than Adrian and kept a bit shorter, his face rather angular and with sharp traits, as if mirroring his personality, yet a hinted small smile was there, giving his eyes a different light and smoothing the usual hostility held in them, very different from Ryan, who had a broader and charming grin...but still...it really surprised me. Even though the smile was very tiny, it managed to entirely change his face.

"They are over there," Darya told me, indicating a different cupboard and I nodded, going for that, but once more realizing it was too tall for me.

However, I didn't have time to ask for help or maybe go for a chair, because Sergey appeared behind me and gently nudged me to the side, my heart skipping a beat at his sudden proximity, at the gentleness harboured in his gesture and way of moving around me. I couldn't help observing him, our eyes quickly meeting as he spoke to me, seeing he really was quite taller than me, exactly like Adrian, and built in a more defined way than Ryan, with quite strong and large shoulders, due to the fact he was a swimmer.

"I'll take them," he only said, and I only nodded. He took the plates and passed them to me, such a spontaneous gesture that for a moment left me feeling as if I was having a snack in my kitchen with Sharon and Cameron, conversing about a movie or book. He didn't add anything else and just walked back to the table, where I joined with the plates, this time my eyes trying to avoid him; this new Sergey left me confused and uncertain about what I had always thought of him, realizing we really never understood a person completely, no matter what.

But then, why couldn't he behave in this same way at school and with Anatoly? I doubted he really hated him as he claimed and maybe, he didn't really think I was that much of a weird person as he often declared; even though, I had to admit I didn't particularly care about that. There was a very hidden yet soft touch of kindness in him, or so it seemed to me right then, and it struck me like a spell, leaving me curious to learn more about this side of him. But what if I was mistaking it and he only did it because in front of his sister? No...people could not be so fake and artificial, right? I didn't know what to think, because he confused me, and I didn't even know if I liked that feeling.

I was certain of one thing only; if this was the real Sergey, I would have not minded becoming friend with him and discover more of his hidden qualities and traits. The fears I had during the weekend changed and I was sure that yes, we had a chance to become friends.

He handed me the plate with my slice of cake and my eyes widened at seeing the gigantic size of it, immediately staring at Darya unsure about what to say, but once more, he anticipated me.

"I told you to say something before and not to complain if it'd be too big or little and anyway, you like sweets, right?" He asked me, but his expression changed, as if he regretted behaving so naturally and friendly with me, averting his gaze elsewhere, contracting his jaw and shaking his head.

"I like sweets and cakes, yes," I quietly replied, taking a sip of the cappuccino to distract myself, and smiling at the lovely taste it had, since Darya had added some vanilla-flavoured syrup. "It's really good, I should tell my parents about this coffee machine you have, because my dad in particular loves drinking coffee and well, also Adri," I told her, my fingers holding the mug tightly as Sergey's stare felt concentrated on me, for then snorting at what his sister commented.

"I shouldn't say this, considered I have a boyfriend, but your brother is really hot," she stated, nodding as if to underline her words, and I giggled, since I was used to hearing that. "But my Shen knows he is the love of my life."

I indulged my eyes on her more, seeing how really in love she was with her boyfriend, noticing the way her face brightened as she spoke of him, how her cheeks softly coloured for the emotions she felt and I could only smile at that, imagining how wonderful it must have felt, what sort of warmth and joy it possibly brought, since I never once fell in love and, when I thought I had found someone really sweet and romantic, someone who personified my ideal elvish knight in the shining armour I always dreamed of, well...he turned out to be the complete opposite.

Ryan seemed different, but I was cautious around him for many reasons, aside the obvious fact we had just met and Adrian still had to see him; I always trusted his opinion and he had a way of reading or feeling people that was almost never wrong.

"Are you done with your project?" Sergey suddenly inquired and the piece of cake I was eating almost went down the wrong way.

"We got some brilliant ideas, but we will have to first try the choreography with the music we chose, to see if it fits or not, right?" Darya explained, for then setting her beautiful eyes on me and I nodded, because we both loved that song, but we had to make sure it suited our combinations and choice of tricks.

"Sharon says she wants to see us trying it and my brother will probably assist at some training, since he enjoys that."

"Sounds great, I'd really like to meet her," she agreed and once more, Sergey's eyes observed me in silence as he ate the cake and drank the coffee. "What about you, Seryozha?" His eyes shot on her with a worried expression I couldn't comprehend. "Will you pass by and assist at our practice and give us your opinion? Because you already promised coming to the event." Oh? Did he? I drank more cappuccino, unsure of what I was actually experiencing in terms of emotions. There was something in him that made me feel terribly shy.

"I didn't promise anything," he snapped back in his usual fashion and Darya laughed out loudly.

"Oh, don't lie, you did promise, and you know that," she told him, and he looked away, going back to his silent and gloomy mood. However, he threatened once more to make the bite of cake I was eating go down the wrong way as he spoke.

"Fine, if I'll be free, I might decide to pass by and check your crazy stuff, alright?" I blinked and bit my lower lip to avoid laughing at both his self-imposed grumpy expression and choice of words, because he had sounded exactly like Anatoly.

We stayed in the kitchen for another while and then he left without saying anything much, so Darya and I went back to our work and planning, changing a few things and adding other tricks. When the time to go home arrived, I went to call Adrian, but she told me not to worry about it because she would give me a lift, but as we spoke, Sergey appeared in the living room and he said he could drive me home, if I didn't mind his presence.

I wasn't able to reply at first, considered I still was slightly nervous around him and because I felt their eyes on me, Darya obviously afraid I disliked her brother; I took a deep breath and tried to smile, thanking him and saying it was fine.


As I sat beside him in the car, a big and very comfortable SUV similar to the one Adrian owned, I hid the little tremor of my hands by holding my phone tightly, my hair creating a curtain on my left side to avoid being very close and exposed to him. It was silly and pretty much unfair, for he hadn't behaved in any bad or orc-like way with me during the afternoon, so I took my courage with both hands and pulled my hair back, locking a couple of strands behind my ear.

We kept silent for most of the drive, his gaze fixed ahead and looking as if lost in some thoughts, making me think he preferred it in this way; but there was a question he hadn't replied before in the kitchen and so, I had to ask him, no matter what.

"Why did you say I am different than in school?"

He didn't reply immediately and actually kept silent for a while, as if he hadn't heard my question or didn't want to answer, rendering me even more apprehensive than I already was, thinking I maybe did a mistake by being so forward with him. Nevertheless, I went to repeat my request because it piqued my curiosity considerably, since in over four years of high school we never really talked like this afternoon, but he quickly darted his eyes on me with a very short and barely there smile. A smile that, even if it happened as quickly as the beat of a butterfly's wings, it affected me, and I responded to that spontaneously, since it had lightened up his face.

"Because I never realized you are so straightforward," he answered with calm voice, his eyes back to the road in front of us. "And also, quite shy, which all considered surprised me."





Author's chit-chat:

Did you enjoy the chapter? What are your thoughts, emotions, impressions and first reactions after having read it?

Did you ever imagine Sergey behaving like this with our sweet Viola? Were you expecting this moment between the two of them? Oh well, don't think it'll be super easy...I won't say anything, you will see for yourself. Anyway, he broke up with Audrey and he didn't behave as the jerk everyone think he is, right? Any thought, idea about Audrey?

I think we can all say that Darya deserves an award as best-sister, given how much she supports her brother and helps Sergey in getting his head straight, also helping him with Viola; however, we can see she is not pushy, out of respect for Viola. The same goes for Adrian, who is really attached to her and extremely protective. I think you can see more of his personality is revealed, but not everything, as we will have his story coming out soon enough.

Our Adrian obviously sees through people's behaviour and feelings, enjoying teasing and provoking Sergey, something he might really need.

Of course, we have a bit of our Anatoly and we will see more of him in CH.3 😊 and in fact, what are you anticipating for the next chapter or hoping it will happen? Any guess or thought?

What about Ryan? What are your feelings about him and what Viola said regarding their meeting and time spent together? We will obviously see more of him, and will Sergey have a rival?

Well, I am already working on CH.3 as a third of it is already written, and I feel very inspired. I am also working on CH.3 of BTIE and sorry for making you wait, but as I said already, I was (still am until Monday) at home with my family and you know how it goes when you are on holiday 😊

I really hope you enjoyed the new chapter, so please let me know with your precious comments, messages and votes! Thank you very much for being amazing and really kind readers. Stay tuned for more updates and fairy dust to all of you!

Lots of Love, Magic, Hugs & Meows,
-TheWitchAndTheCat-

Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen247.Pro