Hey guys! Long time no see! I hope you've all been doing well. These last several months have been pretty crazy for me, going through the rest of the school year then starting up my summer activities. I finished the entire first draft of On the Run a few weeks ago and I decided now was a good time to start posting it and sharing it with all of you. There's still quite a bit of editing that needs to be done, especially for the earlier Adria chapters, but the Moscow chapters are looking pretty good.
If you left a review on Falling for You after it was completed, I'll reply to it in the author's note at the start of its last chapter. Going to do that later this week since getting this chapter posted was my main priority.
Read on for a wild start to Alexei's adventures in Moscow, 6000 words full of drama and craziness!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Embassy Row series and all the characters (except for Tanner and Jordan, who are my own creations). They belong to Ally Carter. I am merely using her characters and plotline to create this fanfiction. This fanfiction is purely for entertainment purposes and would not exist without Ally Carter's wonderful works.
The events that happen in this fanfiction are not meant to be representative of real life; any similarities are purely coincidental. The characters' actions may not always reflect my own opinions. Based on what happens in this chapter (spoiler alert), I do not condone underage drinking or drug use or illegal driving without a license but I support the rights of all who are marginalized in our society, such as those who identify as LGBTQ.
Chapter One: Welcome to Moscow
I stared out the window as the pilot announced our descent, bringing us into Moscow. My second home. If my father hadn't accepted the position as the military and security adviser at the Russian embassy in Adria, effectively kick-starting his prosperous embassy career, then we would have lived in Moscow. I sometimes wondered how my life would have turned if that were the case.
The jet touched down on the runway, making it official. I was no longer in Adria. I was in Moscow, thousands of kilometres away from my true home. Even though I was Russian by birth, Adria was where I really felt at home. After all, I had lived there almost my entire life. Now that I was in Moscow, my heart longed for Adria and everything I had left behind. Like my frequent hangouts with Tanner and Jordan. My cushy lifestyle, backed by the resources of the embassy. And Grace. I had never gotten a chance to say goodbye to her before I left. How was she doing now? Would she be back to her normal self again? Or would the meds still be clouding her mind, turning her into someone she wasn't?
I had no idea if Grace knew that I was heading back to Moscow. Would anyone have told her? Or would they have kept that from her, given her fragile mental state? I hoped she wouldn't react poorly to me leaving, if she ever found out. The last thing I wanted was for her to think I had left her. I would never do that of my own volition, not without telling her first. Or maybe I could run away with her, to somewhere our ethnicities wouldn't matter and we would be free to be in a relationship. The thought of that made me miss her and wish I could have spoken to her one last time before I left.
The jet rolled to a stop. I grabbed my duffel bag and my backpack, following my father onto the tarmac, where we were welcomed by a couple of government officials. As we walked through SVO airport, Moscow's largest international airport, to the waiting limo, my father briefed them on what was happening in the Russian embassy in Adria. I trailed behind them, only half paying attention with my ear buds still in.
As soon as the limo pulled onto the main road, taking us away from the airport, the three of them all lit cigarettes. I wrinkled my nose, bracing myself for a long car ride. I had forgotten how wide spread smoking was in Moscow and how it was possible to smoke anywhere. That was one thing I'd never get used to. Thanks to my father's constant smoking, I had developed a strong distaste for it. Even though I had grown to not mind if others smoked around me, I knew I'd never smoke a cigarette in my life. I never wanted to turn into my father, constantly going for smoke breaks and destroying my lungs.
There was still quite a bit of late evening traffic. I kept my ear buds in the whole time, messaging and catching up with my Moscow friends. I took a couple pictures of the busy streets, with the sun setting over the skyline, posting them to my Snapchat story. Unsurprisingly, Tanner was the first to view them, sending me Snaps of how he already missed me.
After a long car ride, we pulled up to one of the apartment buildings on Ostozhenka Street, one of the ritziest streets in Moscow's historic city centre. It was home to all sorts of luxurious condos, historic sights, and embassies. We took the elevator up to the penthouse condo, courtesy of the Russian government. It was where we stayed whenever we were in Moscow. It was large and spacious, taking up the entire top floor. I was met with the familiar foyer, with high ceilings, floor to ceiling windows, and skylights, as the elevator opened up into the condo.
"You are free to do as you please. I will be in the meeting room if you need me," my father said, effectively sending me off. I nodded, heading over to the bedroom I always stayed in. Once inside, I immediately started unpacking. I wanted to get settled in as soon as possible then get some dinner and have an early night.
After a quick shower, I felt much more refreshed. I pulled on a clean button-down and a pair of skinny jeans. After texting my father, letting him know that I'd be heading off to grab some dinner, I took the elevator down to the lobby. When I got there, I was met with three faces I had not been expecting to see.
"What are you guys doing here?" I asked, trying to hide my shock at seeing my Moscow friends. Although I had messaged them on the plane here, saying I would hang out with them, I hadn't been expecting to see them this early.
"Alexei, long time no see," Roman said, his face breaking out into a grin. He wrapped me up in a guy hug. Roman was my oldest Moscow friend. His father was involved in the Russian government and worked closely with my father. They were constantly in communication on the state of affairs in Russia and Adria. I had known Roman my whole life and hung out with him every time I was in Moscow. He was really easy going and was the kind of guy that everyone got along with. He had that natural charisma and could easily talk to literally anyone.
"How have you been?" I asked, once we broke out of the guy hug.
"Pretty good. You?" Roman replied. I greeted Eugene and Josef in similar ways. I wasn't as close with them as I was with Roman. Eugene was the quiet to Roman's loud whereas Josef was the snobby to Roman's chill. Eugene's father was a doctor and Josef's father was a high-profile media personnel. Between the three of them, especially Roman and Josef, I often got a lot of dirt on what was happening behind the scenes in Moscow.
"I'm beat from flying. I was going to grab some dinner and have an early night," I said. I was met with three stunned faces.
"Dude, there's no way you're having an early night," Eugene said. "Not with the sick party at Josef's tonight."
"My parents are out of town for the next little while so my brother's hosting a party at their estate in Nikolino," Josef explained, clicking around on his phone. "It's only just started." Nikolino was a village about an hour away from Moscow, known for its luxurious mansions. Josef was from one of the richest families in Russia; it didn't surprise me to find out his family owned a property in Nikolino.
"So we figured we'd come get you," Roman said, flashing me his winning smile. It was his signature move for convincing anyone to do anything. With that smile, I knew there was no way I'd be getting out of this.
"Everyone we know from school will be there, as well as a ton of my brother's uni friends and old high school classmates," Josef said.
"Perfect place for you to make your grand homecoming entrance and score some chicks," Roman said, elbowing me. He flashed me a cheeky grin and a wink. "We've got the car waiting outside." I sighed, following them out of the lobby. So much for having an early night. The last thing I wanted was to go to a party but unfortunately, it didn't look like I had a choice.
"Alexei, you have your license, right?" Eugene asked me.
"Yes," I replied, immediately starting to feel suspicious.
"Perfect. Since you're the only licensed driver here, we figured we'd get you to drive us back to Josef's," Roman said, giving me that winning smile again. I immediately balked. Moscow traffic and drivers were much crazier than in Valancia. I didn't have much experience driving in Moscow and really did not want to be responsible for getting the four of us to the party.
"How did you guys even get here in the first place?" I asked, giving them a questioning look. The legal driving age in Russia was eighteen, compared to sixteen in Adria. There was no way any of them would have their license yet.
"There may or may not have been some illegal driving," Eugene said casually, heading over to the back-seat doors.
"Don't worry, you can always bribe the officers if needed. My dad's name should be more than enough to get us out of any awkward situations. If not, then we pull out Josef's dad's name and we'll get out for sure," Roman said, with a wink. He dropped the keys into my hand. "Have fun, comrade." With a sigh, I unlocked the car and slid into the driver's seat. Eugene and Josef climbed into the back seat while Roman got into the passenger seat.
"All you have to do is drive. I'll tell you where to turn, what all the speed limits are, all that jazz," Roman said. "Now let's get this show on the road." I started the car and turned onto the main road, really hoping I wasn't going to regret this. Even though I had my license in Adria, I wasn't sure if that automatically made me legal to drive in Russia. If I was charged for illegal driving here, I couldn't imagine what my father would think. The last thing I needed was to develop a criminal record this summer, especially after that encounter with the Secret Service agents last night.
True to his word, Roman did an excellent job of navigating. He gave me really clear directions, right down to which lane I should be in. The driving would have been a breeze, if it weren't for all the crazy drivers. Because of my limited driving experience in Moscow, I was going slightly slower than the speed limit. As it turned out, everyone else was at least five or ten kilometres above the speed limit. Other drivers kept cutting me off and passing me.
"Can't you go any faster?" Josef complained from the back seat, as we got honked by yet another driver. "My brother is wondering where the hell we are."
"I'm trying," I said, shoulder-checking in an attempt to switch lanes and merge onto the highway. I was trying to find a suitable opening to get in but the cars kept zooming by too fast.
"One of us should have driven," Josef said, the annoyance evident in his voice. I ignored his comment and focused my attention back on the adjacent lane. Eventually, I was able to get in and we continued on our way. We didn't have any more mishaps although there were still quite a few complaints about my driving, from both the back seat and the honks I received.
When we got into Nikolino, I was astounded by the size of all the mansions. This was pure luxury, putting the embassies in Valancia to shame. Josef directed us to the largest mansion on the street, with sprawling front gardens and pillars framing the front door.
"Wow, there's a lot of people here," I said, pulling into an empty spot at the end of the long, winding driveway already filled with cars. Trying to get out after the party would be fun.
"Like I said, anyone who's anyone will be here tonight," Josef said. "It's going to be a sick party. We'll be going all night." I internally facepalmed as I killed the engine. So much for hoping I could sneak out early. From where we were parked, I could already hear the pounding bass of an EDM song. Roman motioned for the keys, which I gladly handed back to him. He got out of the car, heading over to the trunk to grab a few six-packs of beer.
"We're getting smashed tonight!" Roman exclaimed. Eugene and Josef nodded in agreement, as we started up the driveway.
"Hey, Alexei, you should get smashed too," Eugene said. "Maybe that'll help you loosen up and get some chicks."
"Um, no thanks," I replied. "Who's going to drive us back if we all get smashed?"
"Just stay over and crash on the floor," Josef said. "My parents aren't here and even if they were, they wouldn't care. No one will be any the wiser."
"I'm okay, thanks. Someone has to be the responsible one here," I said, giving them all a pointed look. Roman just rolled his eyes and continued talking about all the shots he was going to do.
When we walked into the house, the party was in full swing. The music was almost deafening and the house already smelled of alcohol and cigarette smoke. I could only imagine how much worse that smell would get as the night progressed. Eugene and Josef immediately headed over to the bar to grab some drinks. I followed Roman into the kitchen, where he dropped off the six-packs.
"Make yourself at home," Roman yelled over the music. "Everyone will want to see you again." I nodded meekly, following him over to the bar. Roman grabbed a cocktail, filled with all sorts of alcohol, while I opted for a Sprite. There was no way I'd be drinking tonight, let alone getting smashed. People immediately started flocking to Roman, wanting to talk to him. He introduced me to quite a few people, many of whom I recognized. If I wasn't in Adria, then I would have attended the same private school as everyone. It was weird to think that I could have been classmates with all these people.
"Hey, Roman!" a girl said, coming up to us. She was on the shorter side, with long, straight, platinum blonde hair. She was wearing a crop top with a short skirt and had tons of makeup on. I didn't miss the red plastic cup she was holding.
"Yulia!" Roman said, greeting her with a hug. "Nice to see you here. Do you remember Alexei?"
"You're from Adria, right?" Yulia asked, turning to look at me. She looked vaguely familiar, like I had met her before.
"My father is the chief of staff to the Russian ambassador there," I explained. "I was actually born in Moscow but I've lived in Adria pretty much my entire life."
"Ooh, what's it like there?" Yulia asked, with an interested look.
"There are a lot of fancy parties, straight from the nineteenth century. It's so traditional but so modern at the same time. Other than that, it's pretty quiet. Lots of tourists, mild, tropical weather, sandy beaches. It's your typical Mediterranean country." She smiled, asking me more about my life in Adria. Surprisingly, I found myself enjoying the conversation with her, as we swayed along to the pounding music. She was pleasant and easy to talk to, seeming genuinely interested in me. I hadn't even noticed Roman had left until much later, when I spotted him doing shots with Eugene and Josef.
"Do you want to join them?" Yulia asked, following my gaze to the shots table.
"No, I'm okay, thanks. I'm not drinking tonight," I replied, holding up my cup of Sprite.
"One shot won't kill you," Yulia said, giving me a daring smile. "You should live a little." I laughed.
"Parties aren't really my thing," I replied. "Roman dragged me here and I didn't really have a choice."
"Not a party guy, huh?" Yulia mused. I simply shook my head in response. "Whatever floats your boat. I'm heading over to the shots table, whether you're coming or not." I watched as she made her way over there, grabbing a shot glass from Josef and downing its contents in one smooth gulp. Roman gave her a congratulatory pat on the back then headed over to where I was.
"Alexei, you're missing out," Roman said, draping an arm around my shoulders. He was already slurring his words, although I knew he wasn't even close to stopping yet.
"Nah, I'm good, thanks," I replied.
"Man, living in Adria has turned you all soft." Roman shook his head. "Can't you guys party it up there?"
"We do. We're just more responsible with our parties." Roman gave me a disbelieving look then headed off to talk to more people. It was crazy how different the parties were in Adria, compared to Moscow. Lila had all her parties under strict control and would absolutely lose her mind if she was here. She would never let her parties get this crazy and especially wouldn't allow underage drinking or smoking. Here, it seemed like almost everyone was holding some kind of drink, regardless of whether they were legal or not.
I headed into the kitchen, where it was much quieter. I grabbed a plate, filling it with some potato chips and a couple slices of pizza. I conversed with the other people in the kitchen, most of whom weren't the biggest fan of parties like me. Just like Yulia, they were all interested in hearing about my life in Adria. It was a breath of fresh air, away from the craziness of the living room where all the action was.
After a while, Roman wandered into the kitchen, looking for snacks. He spotted me, stealing a couple chips off my plate.
"Alexei, why have you been hiding in here?" Roman drunk-whined. He had clearly had more drinks since I left him. "We're all missing you."
"I've been perfectly happy in here," I replied. Roman shook his head.
"It's too quiet. You need to live." Without warning, Roman took my hand, dragging me back into the living room. Once again, I found myself smack in the middle of all the crazy party action, with Linkin Park pounding throughout the house. He started dancing, drink in hand. I half-heartedly moved along to the music.
"Ayy, that's more like it!" Roman exclaimed. His encouragement in mind, I threw all caution to the wind, trying my hardest to get lost in the music. It worked pretty well, as I was more or less able to forget about everything and just dance. I found myself almost having a good time, despite the fact that this was not my type of scene. Soon, Yulia approached us. Roman took that as his cue, joining another group of people, leaving me with Yulia.
"Are you having a good time?" She asked, shouting over the music. I nodded, actually enjoying myself for once. She grabbed my hand, squeezing it lightly. It was enough to send a small spark up my arm. I looked down at her, seeing a radiant smile on her face. I wasn't sure if it was because she was genuinely happy or if she had had too many drinks tonight. It was probably a combination of the two.
We danced hand-in-hand. She lost her balance quite a few times and would have fallen if I hadn't been there to catch her. Clearly, she had also had a few too many drinks tonight.
"Are you going to be okay?" I asked, after she stumbled for the umpteenth time.
"I'm fine. Stop worrying about me, Alexei," she said, with a giggle.
"You've had a lot to drink tonight." I gave her a concerned look, paying particular attention to her precariously high heels.
"No, I haven't." She looked up at me with innocent eyes. I would have believed her if I hadn't seen her doing shots earlier. "I'm fine. Let's keep dancing." She pulled me over to a quieter corner of the living room, just as Lorde's "Sober" started pounding over the speakers. We kept dancing like before, except in the presence of less eyes. I was able to get a good look at her. She had a cute, pretty face, a petite frame, and a gorgeous smile. Coupled with her long, platinum blonde hair, she was definitely the kind of Russian girl that my father would approve of. I couldn't stop myself from staring into her eyes as we danced. She was singing along to the song, dancing without a care. She looked up at me, like we were in our own private world. Entranced by her gaze, I found myself getting lost in the funky bongo beats of the music, moving my body, not caring if anyone saw me. Slowly, she ran her fingers up my arm, paying particular attention to my bicep. Before I knew what was happening, she was caressing my neck.
"Come here," she whispered. I leaned towards her, like I was under some kind of spell. She pushed herself up onto her tiptoes and I leaned down, our lips meeting in the middle. I let myself give in as we deepened the kiss, her tongue moving with mine. Her hand tightened on the hem of my shirt, wanting more. I put my arm around her waist, pulling her closer, until her body was up against mine. I relished in the heated passion, as our lips kept moving. She tasted like alcohol, which was odd, as that was something I normally wouldn't associate with her. I imagined Grace would taste like something sweeter, maybe vanilla or strawberry.
That was when the sudden realization hit me, like a bucket of cold water had been poured over me. I wasn't in Adria and the girl in front of me wasn't Grace. I immediately pulled away from Yulia. The song had ended, with Lorde's voice fading away on the outro.
"What are you doing?" Yulia asked, pouting. She made a move towards me, to pull me back into the kiss.
"No, I can't," I replied, my head spinning. I was at a wild house party in Moscow. I had kissed a girl that wasn't Grace and I actually found myself enjoying it. I wasn't sure if it was because I actually felt something for Yulia or if the passion was just satisfying some animalistic need inside of me. I was tempted to go with the latter because as much as I enjoyed talking to Yulia tonight, I had only just reconnected with her. There was no way I could have feelings for her so soon. Besides, I still had my feelings for Grace to sort out, which was already a mess in itself.
"Why not?" Too soon, her lips were on mine again. I immediately pushed her away from me.
"Because you've had too much to drink and I don't want to take advantage of you in this state." That was a reasonable truth that made me feel better about not kissing her. I was glad Mikhail had taught me how to treat women right. I didn't ever want to take advantage of another girl, whether that was Yulia, Lila, or Grace.
"Alexei, I'm fine," Yulia protested, although her slurred speech indicated otherwise. "You're ruining all the fun."
"No, Yulia. It's getting late and I should be taking you home. I can't imagine how awful you'll feel in the morning." I started racking my brain for more excuses as to why I shouldn't keep kissing her.
"I'll be fine. I'm used to this. Come on, Alexei." She started caressing my neck again, her fingers running through the ends of my hair.
"No, I –" I started, before an awful retching sound filled the air. I turned to find Eugene throwing up in the middle of the dance floor. People stepped out of the way, creating a buffer zone around him. Clearly, he had drank too much tonight. Seconds later, the smoke alarm went off.
"Looks like someone is hotboxing in the empty closet again," Yulia said, rolling her eyes. Her nonchalant attitude worried me. It sounded like that was a normal occurrence. If that happened in one of the embassies, everyone would lose their minds.
"Alexei, why aren't you dancing?" Yulia asked, looking up at me with a pout.
"I need to make sure Eugene is okay." Ignoring Yulia's protests, I pushed my way to the dance floor, where Eugene was currently lying. He was moaning and looked pale.
"Hey, man, you okay?" I asked. Eugene just made some non-decipherable sounds before throwing up again. I quickly checked the time on my phone. 3:00 a.m. I couldn't believe how late it had gotten. Eugene had likely surpassed his limits, both in alcohol intake and time spent partying. "Okay, let's take you home." Eugene just muttered more nondescript things, clearly in agony. I helped him stand up, taking most of his weight. I tried not to think about the fact that there was a very good chance his vomit was now all over me.
"Where are you going, Alexei?" Yulia asked.
"Taking him home," I grunted, as I started to coax Eugene forward.
"He'll be fine in the morning. Just take him to one of the bedrooms upstairs to sleep it off." There was no way I'd leave him unattended in a house with a party still raging on.
"Alexei, where are you taking Eugene?" Roman asked, coming up to the three of us.
"Back to my place," I replied briskly, pushing past him.
"Come on, man, you can't be leaving already. The night isn't even over yet," Roman argued.
"It's over for Eugene. He needs a quiet place to sleep it off." Suddenly, Yulia lost her balance, toppling over. I quickly shifted mine and Eugene's weight, catching her just before she hit the floor. "Maybe I should take you home too, Yulia."
"I'm okay," Yulia said, although she came dangerously close to falling over again. I merely gave her a concerned look, as I kept pushing them forwards. Somehow, Yulia and Roman managed to keep up the argument all the way to the car.
"You're a total wuss. We party hard here. We'll be a-okay in the morning," Roman rambled, his words extremely slurred.
"Care to prove it?" I asked, guiding Eugene into the back seat and buckling him in. I turned around, awaiting a response from Roman. He opened his mouth to reply but his face suddenly contorted. He leaned over, promptly throwing up on the driveway.
"Okay, that's settled. You're coming back to my place," I said. I grabbed Roman's arm, leading him over to the other side of the car and shoving him in the backseat. Against his protests, I wrestled the car keys from him.
"You might as well come too." I looked over at Yulia. She wordlessly walked to the passenger seat. Once everyone was settled, or as settled as three extremely drunk teenagers could be, I started the car, quickly backing out of the driveway. I drove down the street at a steady pace but only made it a few meters before Roman stuck his head out the window to throw up again. I stepped on the breaks, not wanting to think about what the vomit would do to the car's paint job. Once he was finished, I continued driving, despite his protests about having a pounding headache. He was just going to have to suck it up until we got back to my place.
I pulled back onto the highway, retracing the route we had taken to get here. Surprisingly, the roads were still quite busy, even at this late hour. As I drove, I kept noticing a car that followed me, right down to my lane changes. A quick look in the rearview, where the driver's eyes met mine, told me they were interested in our vehicle, perhaps a little too interested.
Next thing I knew, the suspicious car was speeding towards us, sirens blaring. Shit, was that an undercover police car? What the hell had I even done? Then again, this was Russia, where the police were free to pull people over as they pleased, regardless of whether or not they had broken any laws.
"Yo, what are you doing?! Go faster!" Roman yelled.
"There's a police car behind us and I think they're trying to pull us over," I replied, eyes flickering between the road and the rearview.
"Speed up!" Roman yelled, glancing out the back window with fear. The car was gaining chase, closing the distance between us. It forced me towards the shoulder, where I stopped and put the car into park.
"Come on, man, really?" Roman asked, shaking his head.
"Look, I don't know what they want. Better safe than sorry," I replied, trying to keep myself from freaking out.
"Seriously, you, out of all people, should know not to mess with Russian police," Roman retorted. Of course I knew that. The police in Russia were notorious for being corrupt. If you didn't bribe them or follow their exact orders, then you'd be dead meat.
I looked in the rearview to see the officer getting out of his car. I took a deep breath as I rolled down my window, bracing myself for what was to come.
"Zdravstvujtye," the officer said, leaning in towards the open window. He had an evil sneer on his face and I knew he wasn't going to let us go easily, not without messing with us.
"Zdravstvujtye," I echoed, forcing myself to keep my voice steady.
"Where are you coming from?" the officer asked, looking at everyone in the car.
"A house party."
"Who was drinking?"
"Just the three of them." I motioned to everyone else in the car.
"Then you must be an extremely coherent drunk or a very good liar," the officer said, looking me right in the eye.
"I don't drink, sir," I replied. He just gave me a disbelieving look and held out his hand.
"Can I see some ID?" I looked around the car, noticing that everyone already had their ID's out. I grabbed them all and took out my Adrian driver's license, handing the stack to the officer. He looked at them all with interest, muttering non-coherent comments under his breath. Then, his eyes fixed on me.
"Huh, the minor is driving," the officer said. I tried not to balk at that statement. I didn't know about Yulia but I knew that Roman was slightly older and Eugene was slightly younger than me, all of us being born in the same year. Either way, there was no way any one of them would be eighteen yet. If they were using fake ID's, I didn't want to know why they had them or how they had procured them in the first place.
"Just taking them home after a party. I don't drink."
"Is that the party over in Nikolino?"
"Yes, sir." I wasn't sure which other party he could be talking about since the rest of the street was pretty quiet.
"Some of my buddies and I were staking out that house. We got reports saying many of them had been at a protest earlier today in support of homosexual people." Going to protests were seriously frowned upon in Russia, even more so if they were in support of LGBTQ rights. Russia's laws against acts promoting or supporting LGBTQ rights were super strict. Even minors could get charged if they were caught.
"I am not aware of such a protest."
"You better not be lying to me, kid." The officer narrowed his eyes at me.
"I am not, sir. I just got in this evening."
"Where from?"
"Adria."
"Can I see your passport?" Wordlessly, I handed my passport to the officer. I was glad my father had drilled it into my head to always carry my passport with me in Russia. It wasn't uncommon for officers to ask to see it.
"Hmm, a black passport," the officer said, flipping through it with interest. "How did you get this?"
"My father is the chief of staff to the Russian ambassador in Adria," I rattled off. I was asked about my passport so often that the answer came out of me automatically.
"How do I know this isn't a fake?" I knew what I had to do now. I grabbed my wallet, pulling out a large wad of cash.
"Chief of staff pays well." I waved the cash in front of the officer's face. He snatched it without hesitation.
"I'll let you get away this time. But I won't be bought off that easily if I run into you again," the officer said, pocketing the cash. He handed us our ID's back.
"Thank you, sir. Have a good night," I replied, staying civil. The officer walked away without another word.
"Geez, that took you long enough," Roman complained from the back, once the officer was back in his car.
"Like I was going to interrupt his questioning," I replied, handing everyone back their ID's. "I'm just glad we got out unscathed."
"That's because you're loaded. Should have given him the cash earlier," Roman said. Everyone in this car was loaded; one of the others could have just offered up the cash right away and we wouldn't have needed to deal with the officer. I just rolled my eyes as I started the car again. The rest of the drive back to the condo was uneventful, aside from Roman's drunken ranting.
I parked on the street, a few metres down from the main entrance, and hauled everyone out. I managed to get everyone into the elevator, although they looked like they were barely able to stand. I hoped none of them would throw up, creating yet another mess I'd have to deal with.
It was dark and quiet when we entered. I wondered if my father was asleep or if he was just holed up in the master bedroom dealing with embassy business. Either way, I hoped he wouldn't mind me bringing over three extremely drunk teenagers to crash for the night. But this was Moscow, where I couldn't possibly get into any trouble with Grace. Hopefully, it'd be fine.
I hauled Roman and Eugene into one of the guest bedrooms. Eugene dropped onto the bed without another word while Roman kept up his drunken commentary. I left him to it, figuring he'd pass out eventually. I grabbed Yulia's hand to lead her into the other guest bedroom.
"Will you be okay here?" I asked.
"Stay with me," she moaned, looking like she was starting to feel the effects of the alcohol.
"I can't." I couldn't imagine what my father would think if he walked in on me and Yulia sharing a bedroom.
"Alexei, please." I took a good look at her, taking in her pained face. It didn't feel right to leave her alone in this state.
"Okay, I'll take you back to my room." When we got to my room, she staggered over to the bathroom, barely making it to the trash can just inside the door. I held her hair back as she threw up. After, she laid down on the bathroom floor, moaning in agony. I wondered just how much she had drank tonight, hoping she hadn't gone past her limits. I grabbed a cup from the bathroom counter, filling it with water.
"Here," I said, giving Yulia the cup. She only took a few sips before throwing up again.
"I can't do this anymore, Alexei," Yulia whispered, looking like she was about to pass out.
"Shh, don't worry. I'm here for you," I said softly. I picked her up, carrying her bridal style to the bed. I gently set her down, taking off her heels before wrapping the blankets around her.
"Don't leave me, Alexei," she whispered, just barely able to keep her eyes open.
"I won't," I replied, smoothing her hair back from her forehead. It wasn't long before she passed out. I grabbed the spare bedding from the closet, making myself comfortable on the floor next to my bed. My back was probably going to be sore in the morning but there was no way I'd leave Yulia alone, not in her current state. Eventually, I passed out too, falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Next chapter will be up on July 1 (give or take a day depending on time zones and what time I decide to post it that day). Feel free to check out my Instagram (smartiegirl800) where I post sneak peeks and can give better estimates of when I'll be posting my chapters.
What do you think of Alexei's Moscow friends? I ended up making a bunch of last-minute changes to this chapter before posting it, trying to to make it as authentic as possible (even though I've never been to Moscow before). Next chapter will feature more of Moscow!