***Disclaimer: I do not own The Mummy or any of its characters. They belong
to Stephen Sommers, Universal Pictures and some others. I do, however, own
the character of Jadviga Szabó and parts of the plot.***
(Author's note) Sorry for the lack of updates! There was much school work to be done in the last few weeks, so I didn't have the time to continue the story. I hope you will enjoy this chapter. I had some difficulties with translating it, so there might be some mistakes. OK, so now back to the story.
******************
In the next days I spent much time with Beni, but I also spent more time with Rick again. Rick wasn't angry with Beni anymore, and Beni was glad about it. Now I didn't have to neglect neither one of them, when I wanted to spend time with the other. We simply did everything together. One morning, it was Friday, Rick told us some great news.
"We get the weekend off!"
"That's fantastic!" I said.
"Yes it is!" Beni agreed, "I waited for this for ages. I'm running out of supplies!" he added with a wink.
I smiled. I knew what supplies he was talking about. . . But I thought they had forgotten another possibility this weekend-off gave them.
"You'll be able to meet some girls in town, too. I think that's exactly what you two need."
"Oh. . . I wasn't planning on that" Beni answered "I thought we would spend the time together."
"Yeah, me too. Not that I'm not interested in some female company, but most of the girls you meet in town are, you know, hussies. . . " Rick said.
"What do you mean with "female company"? I'm female, too, O'Connell!" I said, a little annoyed.
"No, no! That's not to say you're not feminine or something! Let me put it this way: I'd rather be with you, than with any other girl I might meet in town. OK?" Rick said quickly.
"OK, I accept your apology ." I remarked, with fake severity. I tried to make a strict face, too, but I had to laugh. Rick and Beni laughed along.
"So we're going to have a triple-date then?" Beni asked, amused.
"Looks like it. But no fights over me, right? I answered, laughing.
***************
In the evening, we were allowed to leave the camp. It was the first time in ages that I wore civilian dress and it felt fantastic. I wore a nice red dress that went down to my knees and high-heeled shoes. I got rid of my cap, which had covered my hair in the last few months and let my hair hang down. During all the time I had spent in the foreign legion I had nearly forgotten how great it was to be really ladylike. When I arrived at the bar in Marrakech, where we had appointed, Rick and Beni were quite amazed by my looks.
"Wow, Jadviga, looks like you've got plans for tonight!" Beni said.
"Maybe. . . " I replied, smiling.
"I think we should keep an eye on you, Jad. Otherwise the guys around here might get some silly ideas." Rick said, with a meaningful look on his face.
"So, what kind of silly ideas might they get?"
"They might give you the come-on for example."
"Well, you shouldn't give them the chance, then, huh? So you better should keep me busy."
"What about a drink, first?" Beni suggested.
"A good start" I agreed.
So we ordered something. But I was already drunk: drunk with freedom. I was in a great mood. The "Green Widow" I was drinking, a cocktail, took care of the rest. Nearby, a record player was playing some music. Fortunately, it wasn't Arabian but English music.
"Wanna dance with me, Jad?" Rick asked. The record player was playing a fast Charleston.
"Of course!" I answered, following him onto the dance floor.
We danced fast and wildly, and had a great time together. We both weren't good dancers, but even though our dancing must have looked rather stupid, we enjoyed ourselves. Dancing with Rick was fun. I forgot about the world around me and loved it. All the negative things in my life seemed so far away, they simply didn't fit in this moment. It felt even better, as it was Rick I was sharing this moment with. He wasn't one of these guys, who are nice to you for a couple of hours, trying to get you into bed. No, it was Rick, one of my best friends. I could trust him. It made it easier for me to enjoy all this, than I would have done with a different partner. The rhythm, the melody, our movements. . . all of this intoxicated me in such a wonderful way, that I hoped it would never end. But unfortunately it did much too soon. At the end of our dance we were sweat-through and completely out of breath. So we walked back to our table were Beni was waiting with a reproachful look on his face.
"Why didn't you want to dance with ME?"
"You didn't ask me to. But the next dance is yours, I promise." I snickered. It seemed like someone was jealous here.
But first of all I needed a little breather. I ordered another drink, this time a non-alcoholic one and listened to the music. When the song ended, the owner of the bar changed the record. Beni stood up.
"Miss Szabó, would you do me the honor of following me onto the dance floor?" he bowed to me and offered me his hand.
I laughed. "Oh with pleasure, Mr. Gabor!" I took his hand and we walked over to the dance floor.
The music was now much slower than before, so we danced blues, cheek to cheek. Being so close to Beni was a strange feeling. We were friends now, but if someone would have told me a few days ago that I would dance with Beni one day, I would have told the person to go and see a shrink. But I liked it, I liked it very much. Beni was a part of my past, a nice part of my past. He reminded me of how happy I once was, how secure I once felt. I liked my life as a legionnaire, but it wasn't quite the same. Now that Beni was so close to me I felt secure again. He gave me the support I needed.
The song ended and we parted. Beni smiled at me and I smiled back, a bit unsure. Something about my feelings confused me and I didn't know what it was. I turned to our table and saw Rick sitting there, frowning and looking extremely morose. But I was much too puzzled to realize why. . .
(Author's note) Sorry for the lack of updates! There was much school work to be done in the last few weeks, so I didn't have the time to continue the story. I hope you will enjoy this chapter. I had some difficulties with translating it, so there might be some mistakes. OK, so now back to the story.
******************
In the next days I spent much time with Beni, but I also spent more time with Rick again. Rick wasn't angry with Beni anymore, and Beni was glad about it. Now I didn't have to neglect neither one of them, when I wanted to spend time with the other. We simply did everything together. One morning, it was Friday, Rick told us some great news.
"We get the weekend off!"
"That's fantastic!" I said.
"Yes it is!" Beni agreed, "I waited for this for ages. I'm running out of supplies!" he added with a wink.
I smiled. I knew what supplies he was talking about. . . But I thought they had forgotten another possibility this weekend-off gave them.
"You'll be able to meet some girls in town, too. I think that's exactly what you two need."
"Oh. . . I wasn't planning on that" Beni answered "I thought we would spend the time together."
"Yeah, me too. Not that I'm not interested in some female company, but most of the girls you meet in town are, you know, hussies. . . " Rick said.
"What do you mean with "female company"? I'm female, too, O'Connell!" I said, a little annoyed.
"No, no! That's not to say you're not feminine or something! Let me put it this way: I'd rather be with you, than with any other girl I might meet in town. OK?" Rick said quickly.
"OK, I accept your apology ." I remarked, with fake severity. I tried to make a strict face, too, but I had to laugh. Rick and Beni laughed along.
"So we're going to have a triple-date then?" Beni asked, amused.
"Looks like it. But no fights over me, right? I answered, laughing.
***************
In the evening, we were allowed to leave the camp. It was the first time in ages that I wore civilian dress and it felt fantastic. I wore a nice red dress that went down to my knees and high-heeled shoes. I got rid of my cap, which had covered my hair in the last few months and let my hair hang down. During all the time I had spent in the foreign legion I had nearly forgotten how great it was to be really ladylike. When I arrived at the bar in Marrakech, where we had appointed, Rick and Beni were quite amazed by my looks.
"Wow, Jadviga, looks like you've got plans for tonight!" Beni said.
"Maybe. . . " I replied, smiling.
"I think we should keep an eye on you, Jad. Otherwise the guys around here might get some silly ideas." Rick said, with a meaningful look on his face.
"So, what kind of silly ideas might they get?"
"They might give you the come-on for example."
"Well, you shouldn't give them the chance, then, huh? So you better should keep me busy."
"What about a drink, first?" Beni suggested.
"A good start" I agreed.
So we ordered something. But I was already drunk: drunk with freedom. I was in a great mood. The "Green Widow" I was drinking, a cocktail, took care of the rest. Nearby, a record player was playing some music. Fortunately, it wasn't Arabian but English music.
"Wanna dance with me, Jad?" Rick asked. The record player was playing a fast Charleston.
"Of course!" I answered, following him onto the dance floor.
We danced fast and wildly, and had a great time together. We both weren't good dancers, but even though our dancing must have looked rather stupid, we enjoyed ourselves. Dancing with Rick was fun. I forgot about the world around me and loved it. All the negative things in my life seemed so far away, they simply didn't fit in this moment. It felt even better, as it was Rick I was sharing this moment with. He wasn't one of these guys, who are nice to you for a couple of hours, trying to get you into bed. No, it was Rick, one of my best friends. I could trust him. It made it easier for me to enjoy all this, than I would have done with a different partner. The rhythm, the melody, our movements. . . all of this intoxicated me in such a wonderful way, that I hoped it would never end. But unfortunately it did much too soon. At the end of our dance we were sweat-through and completely out of breath. So we walked back to our table were Beni was waiting with a reproachful look on his face.
"Why didn't you want to dance with ME?"
"You didn't ask me to. But the next dance is yours, I promise." I snickered. It seemed like someone was jealous here.
But first of all I needed a little breather. I ordered another drink, this time a non-alcoholic one and listened to the music. When the song ended, the owner of the bar changed the record. Beni stood up.
"Miss Szabó, would you do me the honor of following me onto the dance floor?" he bowed to me and offered me his hand.
I laughed. "Oh with pleasure, Mr. Gabor!" I took his hand and we walked over to the dance floor.
The music was now much slower than before, so we danced blues, cheek to cheek. Being so close to Beni was a strange feeling. We were friends now, but if someone would have told me a few days ago that I would dance with Beni one day, I would have told the person to go and see a shrink. But I liked it, I liked it very much. Beni was a part of my past, a nice part of my past. He reminded me of how happy I once was, how secure I once felt. I liked my life as a legionnaire, but it wasn't quite the same. Now that Beni was so close to me I felt secure again. He gave me the support I needed.
The song ended and we parted. Beni smiled at me and I smiled back, a bit unsure. Something about my feelings confused me and I didn't know what it was. I turned to our table and saw Rick sitting there, frowning and looking extremely morose. But I was much too puzzled to realize why. . .