He was sitting next to her. Again. And he was singing in a false note. Elizabet was slightly annoyed by the presence of the cheerful albino.
"So, Gilbert, tell me: don't you have anything better to do? Like annoying someone else?" He seemed to consider this, definetely unseriously, then shook his head. They agreed to speak in English, because Gilbert's Hungarian was terrible.
"Why would I do that? They are boooriiing!" Yeah, and I'm fun, sure. She didn't say this out loud, but it was written all over her face. Gilbert threw his arms around her. "But you are interessant! Believe me!" She sighed. Gilbert always threw random German words in their conversations, because he was proud of his ancestry, so he considered himself as a Prussian, even though the country didn't exist anymore.
Such luck she had! She let one guy in her life and it turns out he is the peskiest person... At least he knew when to finish his senseless chatter. He was with her all last week. In addition, it turned out that they have several periods together.
It wasn't like she didn't like him, it was the opposite, she appreciated him very much. She was grateful that she had someone who would have talked to her. She didn't speak much. Her talent lay in listening, not in talking, which a lot of woman and girl lacked. At least she wasn't alone all the time. She had always been alone as a child. The other kids didn't like her, because she had been bossy and charismatic and she had said her honest, sometimes cruel, opinion.
She heard a clicking noise from her laptop. She happily saw that it was Feliks again. They had become friends during the week. She could feel that he was being mysterious, but she understood it. She didn't give private informations either. But she knew things about him. For example, he was Polish and he was goofy and he could cheer her up, but she could make out that he was a rather intelligent man. He was a waiter and Toris was a cook in the same restaurant, who was his... khm... partner, actually. This didn't bother her at all. They had met there, which she found quite romantic.
"Gil, would you let me read this?" Even though he was 25, he was childish. Sometimes it felt like she had to deal with an annoying 8 years old boy, not a theoritically mature grown-up. As another proof, he clicked his tongue to express his annoyance. She rolled her eyes.
"Why is he so freakin' important to you? You didn't even know him two weeks ago!"
"Why, I didn't know you either, and here we are, having the time of our life", as she pointed this out, he went into sulky silence. One point here.
She opened her mail.
"Dear Lizzie,
The last two days were totally crazy, so I'm sorry I haven't written anything.
Yesterday, there were a few important and special guests and their dinner's organization took loads of time of preparing. Toris was in charge of cooking this time and he did a wonderful job! Our client, who requested this thing, was very pleased with our work and Toris's boss was delighted, too, so he promoted him, and he doesn't need supervision in the kitchen anymore. I am so happy, Lizzie. As you have guessed it earlier, he's the worrying type, so he doesn't need to worry about this at least.
I am soooo tired! I was awake for a really long time, and I almost screwed up this dinner because of this, but never mind that. I was sleeping for ten hours, which is twice as much as I usually sleep!:D
I hope you're okay, and didn't do anything stupid in my absence:D (i doubt it, you're 2 clever for it)
That was my report, Captain, I'm waiting for yours *salutes*
With love,
Feliks
She had no idea why he called her 'Captain', but he had finished his letters like this almost every time.
She smiled at the screen as she was writing the reply. Next to her, Gilbert went conspicuously quiet. She found his absolute silence disturbing. He didn't look alright when she glanced up to check on him. He looked as if he was about to cry.
"Hey, Gil, what's wrong?" She shut down the laptop and moved closer. He turned his head away.
He inhaled deeply and when he turned back, he was as bright as ever. "Nothing, I feel awesome. But I don't think I can be at Biochemistry. Would you lend me your notes later?" She slowly nodded.
"Sure thing."
He patted her shoulder, smiling. "Danke! Then bye for now! I'll get the notes when I can." With this, he sprang up, clapping his hands together and headed to the university's main building.
She should have gone after him, but the period was about to start and she was certain about one thing: Gilbert's studies were important for him, and they didn't know each other so well yet. She wasn't sure if she would have told him if something personal bothered her. Probably not. She thought Gilbert thought the same. She watched him vanish as he took a corner. People didn't stare at him, she wondered why.
xXXx
On her way to her apartment, Elizabet decided to check on Gilbert. She walked home with him once, and it turned out that his apartment was on her way home. When she arrived, she could hear loud metal music playing from behind his door. She didn't even tried to knock, she rather banged her fists on the wood. It wasn't working. How come it didn't bother the neighbours?
"Gil, I'm coming in!" she tried to call out to him, however, she doubted that he could hear anything. Please Gil, have some clothes on. She slowly opened the door and peeked in, then walked in. She closed it behind her.
Gilbert's apartment was surprisingly tidy. There wasn't a single clothe on the floor, even the pictures were as straightly alligned as possible. She felt ashamed about her room, which was usually a big mess. She saw a music system in the corner of the room. After a minute of studying its function, she turned it off. She appriciated the silence after the earsplitting noise. She guessed the others were used to it.
She was quite sure he wasn't at home. She grabbed a pen and paper to write a note when she heard a clicking noise behind her. It was a familiar sound of action movies. She spinned around to see a gun pointed at her.
She dropped her bag and threw her hands in the air. She couldn't believe the situation she was in. She was shaking with fear, but she wanted to talk herself out of trouble. "Whoa, easy!" she chuckled nervously. The man, who was holding the gun, stayed alarmed. He was tall, blond and muscular and he wore a plain, white shirt with a loosy tie and black trousers. His left arm was bandaged. She guessed he lived here too. She collected her courage to speak up again.
"I'm sorry for interruption... I came here to give Gilbert the Biochemistry notes." He didn't lower the weapon, just squinted.
"Yeah? I don't believe you. He doesn't attend any classes anywhere. Who are you, woman?" Now she really feared for her life. What should I do? He's gonna shoot me!
"I'm..." in this moment the front door opened and Gilbert entered.
"Hey, Luddi, Ich habe Mil..." He saw the scene and runned between them, dropping the paperbag full of goods. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Put the verdammt gun away, for Gott's sake!" He changed to English. "She's my friend, Liz!" Once she was hidden behind his broad back, she dropped her arms down and almost collapsed and cried in relief. When he put away his gun, Gil turned to Elizabet and grabbed her shoulders. "Are you alright, Liz?"
She wasn't able to say anything, so she nodded. He nodded back, squinting. He wanted to be sure about this. He escorted her to the sofa. Her heart was beating rapidly and loudly. It was almost as loud to her as the music a few minutes ago.
"Ludwig, you need to stop swinging guns at everyone. Not all of the people want to kill us!" Kill them? What is he talking about? "You were one second away from firing, weren't you?" The taller man looked sulky. Gilbert chuckled. "You totally were! I can't believe you, man! We are supposed to protect people, not to finish them off!" Afterwards he said something in German. She was utterly confused. She fruitlessly tried to figure this out.
"Wait a second, Gilbert!" He pointed at Elizabet. "She was the one who intruded without any warning! I have never seen this woman and she said nothing when she came in. What should I have done?" She hissed at this statement and found her voice. She was always keen on a good argument.
"Yeah, burglars turn off loud music, because they want to be heard. Suuure." Gilbert giggled and requested a high-five. She ignored him. She was too into this. "By the way, I banged on the door with both fists and shouted too, but no one answered. I thought Gil left the hifi on, so I turned it off, of course. I was about to write a note, when you pointed that gun at me. It was very rude, to be honest."
Ludwig looked a bit ashamed and maybe annoyed too. His cheeks slowly turned red. It was a hilarious scenario. The small girl made a muscular man ashamed. He tried to defend himself. "She was babbling about some notes for Biochemistry! You aren't a student, you're a cop!" She looked at her albino friend. A what? She was pretty sure he was a student at her academy... She studied Gilbert's expression. It screamed that he wasn't supposed to tell this in front of her. So it was true.
"You are so fucking stupid, Bruder!" He was clearly angry. Ludwig sighed.
Gil turned to Elizabet. "Come on, Liz, we're going!" She didn't move. "What are you waiting for?" He spread out his arms helplessly.
"Have you been lying?" Ludwig curiously looked at him too.
"What are you talking about, Liz? Of course not!" He was ways too surprised and desperate, she noticed. It gave him away immediately.
"You obviously have been, Gil." Gilbert looked at the other German, his expression exposed how betrayed he felt. She had Ludwig on her side too.
Elizabet was determined to get an answer. "I'm not going anywhere until you explain what's going on and why have you been lying to both of us." At least for me. She knew, however, that later he would tell this to his brother.
"Damn, this is your fault, Ludwig! If your tongue didn't slip, there wouldn't be any trouble." Were they always like this? Maybe they are typical siblings. She didn't have any, so she didn't know.
"Don't blame him. If you were honest with us, you wouldn't need to explain us anything." He massaged his temples.
"I will tell you everything you want to know, just get out of here!" She hesitated. In English, 'will' was not a sure thing. There was a chance of the action happening, but actually, it was 50-50%, unlike in Hungarian. There was only one tense to express future and it was only uncertain when they used 'might' or 'probably'.
"Okay," she was still suspicious. She turned back and made an attempt to wave goodbye to Ludwig. He ignored her. Nice to meet you, too. They hadn't even intruduced themselves, she realised.
She hadn't took her coat off inside, which was comfortably there, but in the chilly air she was slightly shivering. It began to darken.
She followed him for a while, but she quickly had enough of his attitude. She tried to stop him by standing in front of him, but he gently shoved her away of his way. She grabbed his arm. "Stop already!"
"Why?" He was annoyed, but halted.
"You're upset."
"And you're a girl. Why are we stating the obvious again?" She stared at him.
"I was almost shot. You've been lying to me." She poked his chest. "You've dragged me along but you've been ignoring me. I have every right to be upset. I don't have so much free time to waste it on dishonest men.
He sighed. "Think this over from my point of view. Yes, I've lied. But I lie to everyone. Not because I love it, but because I want to keep them safe." She shook her head in disbelief.
"Keep them safe from what exactly?" Gilbert looked right into her eyes.
"From myself and the trouble!" She brushed her hair out of her face and smiled a little condescendingly. "You don't believe me." he sounded hurt. "Why, I'm telling you the truth!"
"But Gil, every liar who wants to keep his relationship says this, but that's just another lie. They want to keep touch, but they don't have a proper reason for lying. It's this simple. And one thing I learnt from the Pirates of the Caribbean is that you can be certain that a liar will always tell you a lie."
"What the hell, Liz, I know that movie too, but it's fiction and there are exceptions for every rule. This is real life, not a fantasy!" He snapped his fingers. "Oh, you remember when Ludwig said I was a cop? Do you think he lied about that?"
She shook her head again. Why would have he? In addition, he had felt cornered and Gilbert had looked angry, too. He had been honest. "Yes, he was right. Partly, at least. I didn't want you to know... some things about me, because they would only cause danger for you. But now too many people know things, including the two of you, so it can't be a secret now. The best I can do is to tell you everything, as promised. But you need to understand that a few minutes were necessary for me to get myself together and calm down.." He added sarcastically: "So I'm sorry I didn't pay attention."
"Okay, okay. I get it. Where are we going? I ask it differently: do we have a definite destination?" He began to walk again, his hands in his pockets. It was so cold that their breaths could be seen.
"We're going to some quiet place." She opened her mouth to say how stupid destination this was. "Don't say anything. I know." There wasn't an absolutely quiet place in the heart of Budapest at Friday evenings. Not even during the early hours. Thousands of students or workers visited taverns, pubs and other facilities to have fun after an exhausting week. She stayed quiet.
Soon Gilbert stopped in a somehow quiet street. He sat down to a bench and patted it next to him, inviting Elizabet to sit there. She reluctantly sat at the other end of it.
"Are you calm now?" She asked crispily. Gil released a half smile.
"Yeah, you could say. I'm so awesome for cooling down this quickly!" She rolled her eyes. He liked to talk about his awesomeness. She wondered if his personality, including this trait, had been a lie, too. "So, watchu wanna hear about?" She cringed at his English. Not that hers was flawless, but it was better. His brother spoke it almost perfectly, yet Gilbert, not considering his accent, almost violated the language sometimes.
"Everything. But as a beginning, I'd like to know what do you do for living, exactly." He nodded and tried to compose an appropriate answer. If he lies one more time, I swear... She didn't think of a definite punishment, but she would have made his life hell if he had lied again.
"I'm a Federal Agent, you could say. I am part of a rather secret association that tracks down and capture mass murderers or more likely professional mass murderers: assassins. Even if they lie low in a small office, we know the most famous ones. My little brother, Ludwig is my partner," she would never has guessed that Ludwig was the younger by appereance.
"And why should I believe this? Being a cop is one thing, but hunting assassins... Not very believable, if you ask me," He sighed.
"You trust hard, don't you?" She hardened her heart through the years to not to let anyone in too early, because they would eventually abandon her. And he didn't help her to do the opposite.
"With a guy like you, it's hard not to. But it would have been nice to know these things at the beginning."
"Liz, I am wanted amongst my enemies, which is awesome as long as they can't catch me." He whispered. "Same goes for my brother. I'm pretty sure they know where I am, at least as much as I know the areas they have been. I'm certain that they have spies on me, like I do. They might know we know each other. They might have already researched you. The danger for all of us increased greatly by the meeting of you two. They watch Ludwig and me. It wasn't very important that I hang out with a girl once a day, especially that she seems to be pissed off about me." She frowned.
"But they might know that you were at our place and have met Ludwig too. They might think that you know the truth after encountering with my Bruder. This is why I didn't want you to know about my life at all. I didn't want you to be in danger."
She sat in silence for a while, trying to take the story in. This was unexpected for her, sure, but at the same time, unbelievable.
"Okay. Can you prove it with something?" He rubbed his eyes. He zipped down his puffy jacket and showed her his gun. Then carefully he took out an ID card and showed it to her too. It was his. Gilbert Beilschmidt's. The photo had been taken a few years ago. His hair had been so long on the picture that he had tied it up. There was a badge over the picture. She had never heard of the organization before. At least they could have kept it secret.
"Do you believe me now?" he asked hopefully. Why was this so important for him? She had to give a disappointing answer again.
"No," he lost his confident poise. He covered his eyes with a hand.
"Now why? I showed you my gun, my ID card and my badge. What more do you need to be convinced?" She sighed. He was acting so stupidly, however, she thought he was being adorable.
"Because if you're really an 'agent', you wouldn't have showed me all of this. For all you know, I could have been a spy. I could have phoned someone who wants to bury you six feet below and you could have been dead. Both of you. You are such an idiot. I don't believe you." He stared at her in awe; a small grin began to appear in the corner of his mouth. "What?" She asked.
"You're a clever, clever girl! You're awesome!" He hugged her so tightly that her ribs and arms began to hurt. She felt her face reddening from the compliment. She was clearly embarrassed.
"It's easy to be clever beside a fool," she shook her head. Whatever his big realisation was, he was ecstatic about it. "Another question: how can you be hunting assassins at this age? You're so young, you could barely have a degree!"
"My father worked for the German police. He was kind of a detective. He noticed that police always had had problems with trained killers. Those cases are still hard to solve in today's world, imagine a post-war country doing the investigating. He gathered a few brilliant cops and detectives with his friend and established this organisation. My father wanted me to pick up where he left off, when he was killed on a job. I didn't wanted it, because I had seen the troubles they had and I certainly didn't wanted it for Luddi. He's 22, but I still see him as my baby brother." He stopped for a moment.
"Eventually, i joined in. I couldn't bear the thought that my father's murderer is out there, killing people and tearing families apart. Ludwig followed me with the same thought of revenge in his head. This was... Two or three years ago, though I didn't let Luddi do anything until he got his degree. He was a bright kid, so he got it before anyone in his age. But I know I will regret being a manhunter sooner or later. Once in, never out."
Suddenly he looked very concerned. Was this her fault? She tilted her head, puzzled.
"Are you okay? You look bothered...," he always had mood swings, so she was sure it was nothing again.
"Yeah, no, I'm fine. Just thought about Luddi... It's nothing." He slapped his forehead. "Fuck, I forgot the notes!"
"Khm, language."
He stared at her. "Seriously? Language?" She nodded.
"Speak properly, for heaven's sake or you don't get notes, Mr Pseudostudent." A weak attempt to try to cheer him up, but she felt it was her job. She couldn't bear the thought of him being sad. He looked like a lost puppy. He shrudded, playing with her.
"Whatever. I can always sneak into your house. Or steal it from your bag. I can do it," she laughed, but cried out when he took away her bag and lifted it into the air. He was laughing. She sprang up, but he was faster and stood on the back-rest of the bench. She fruitlessly tried to reach him. From a sudden idea, which seemed a good one, she jumped on his arm.
As expected, Gilbert lost his balance and they fell to the ground. Elizabet landed on top of Gilbert, his arms holding her tight. Both groaned and she rolled down and sat upright.
"You okay, Liz?" He muttered. She was unhurt, only her head was spinning from a bit, but it was nothing. Gilbert took all the impact.
"Never better. What about you?" He was still lying on the ground. He leaned on his elbows and smiled at her. His hair became dirty. She picked out a few leaves from it.
"I'll live," She held out her arms for him to grab it. She wanted to help him up, but he shook his head.
"Luckily your jacket softened the fall. Maybe this is your punishment. Don't play with me, Beilschmidt!" She laghed, but she had meant every word. Gil reached for her bag and throw it to her. It hit her chest with a splash. She didn't like the sound of it. She closed her eyes then took a closer look. It was soaked. It had fallen into a nearby puddle. She opened it and looked inside. Her notes were all wet, including her laptop bag.
"Gil."
"What?" He glanced up.
"Everything's wet. You owe me the Biochemistry notes and maybe a laptop." He stood up, scrubbing dirt off of his coat and jeans.
"Sure." He rubbed the back of his head. "Now, it's getting late. I guess both of us have something to do, so I'll escort you home, if you don't mind."
"Thanks," no matter how strong and independent she was, it was safer not to take any risk. Especially that she was almost shot today.
On their way home, Gilbert seemed careless, but she could tell from a few movement that he was actually alarmed. He constantly looked around, as if he was expecting some kind of attack.
The distance seemed much shorter than usual. She arrived in the blink of an eye. Gilbert escorted her to her door.
"Still think I'm lying?" He asked with a little hope in his voice.
"I'm a stubborn one," she flashed a weary smile. Gil shook his head.
"I hope you are satisfied...okay, I know you're not. Aaaand, I'll get those nasty notes for ya. If you need it by tomorrow, I'll arrange something to give you time. If your laptop is broken, I'll be the one to blame, so I'll get you a new one." He mumbled.
"No, no, no, no, no, it's not necessary for you to buy a new one. I was just joking. And I won't need those notes tomorrow, but... I don't know the exact damage... So maybe I'll give you a call for the ones of other subjects." She opened the door and threw the bag in.
"Certainly. Good night, Liz! See you tomorrow!"
"Good night, Gil!" He waved and spinned around. He had long and energetic walk in fast pace, but now he was sloppy. Maybe falling off that bench hurt him more than he shows? Gosh, I hope not...Generally she liked to watch him go, disappearing into the crowd without being spotted, so she knew his steps. Something could be wrong with him... She shook her head and stepped inside.
She still needed to take care of her school bag.
xXXx
After Elizabet washed that muddy piece of canvas and dried her books and notebooks she lay down on her bed, facedown. Luckily, her laptop was unharmed.
She was thinking about this unusual German. She almost let her wall down and let him in. What was wrong with her? He had been convincing so much that she had almost believed that story before. She felt bad about being this doubtful. What if it was true? It was so well-composed! But no one can have a job like this.
Something was very extraordinary about him...She couldn't figure out what yet, but it was definetely there. It was on the tip of her tongue everytime they talked. Something about his gem-like eyes and shiny silvery hair... She rolled on her back and covered her face with her hands.
"What the hell is wrong with me? I almost sound like I have a crush on him..."
Thanks guys for reading this week's chapter!:D
Guest reviewer: Thanks for your review, I'm glad you like it:)
Next week will be short, so maybe I can write the new one before Christmas. Until then, have a good week (and let us hope that I actually find a synonime for 'week')
Tschüss!:D
