21
The captain did not show up for dinner, or after, at the family gathering. Everyone was disappointed and worried about his absence, the children in particular. Maria and Max joined forces with songs and funny stories to try to entertain the children, but nothing seemed to cheer them up.
The older children did not even bother to try, it was clear to them that their father was back to his dark moods. After all, they had already gone through it with him before, but the smaller children couldn't understand it.
So every now and then, they asked where he was, why he was not with them, if he still loved them, when he would come, if he would tuck them into bed. There were countless questions while Maria patiently tried to answer every one and find some funny excuse for his absence.
Max and the older children looked at her with pity as she tried to cheer them up despite the bad atmosphere.
Every now and then she looked at Max, reminding herself and him that she would talk to the captain. But as the evening wore on, anger and frustration grew in her, and she realized that she didn't just want to talk to him, she wanted to kick him in that arrogant ass.
So she waited for the end of the evening in anticipation and with great impatience.
In record time, she put the children to bed, sang a couple of lullabies to the younger children and hugged the older ones with the sincere hope that tomorrow would be better.
As she tucked the children in, she sighed deeply and impatiently. Then with haste, descended down the banister and made her way resolutely to his study. She was angry and fuming. Maria reached the heavy wooden door and knocked loudly and impatiently opened it immediately, without waiting for an answer.
As Maria waited for her eyes to adjust to the dim light, she closed the door loudly and finally caught his attention.
Maria was rarely in situations where she was left speechless, but this was definitely one.
He looked drunk into oblivion, disheveled, with long legs stretched out of the chair. His messy hair fell over his forehead, his eyes were blurred, his shirt crumpled and unbuttoned with the sleeves rolled up. On the top of that, he had a glass in one hand and a bottle in the other.
She was frozen.
"Fraulein, can you knock or is that too demanding a rule for you?" He asked sarcastically as his tongue entangled.
"I knocked but you didn't hear!" she answered impatiently.
"Really? Now that we've established that, turn around and leave me alone!" he told her annoyingly.
"Oh, no, no I'm not leaving until I tell you what's on my mind!" Maria said stubbornly with an annoyed, raised voice.
Her strong and persistent attitude reminded him of the quarrel by the lake, which told him she would not give up.
But he was too tired of everything and wanted to be left alone.
"Fraulein, this is my house and if I tell you to get out, I expect you to obey the order!" he said threateningly in a raised voice.
Anyway, everything she had to say, she already had, with her actions and choices, he thought bitterly.
It was too late.
"Okay, I'll leave, but not before I give you a piece of my mind. It's high time you stop mourning Elsa's departure. If she's moved on, then you need too as well, and not to act like this. The children are very upset and they miss you. That's enough!" Maria was so angry that she said it all in one breath. She didn't even notice that in her anger that she had reached the sofa, across from him.
At first he was saddened by her comment and felt guilty. He knew the children were depressed and they missed him as much as he missed them. But he had been avoiding Maria's presence as much as possible, because she kept reminding him of what could have been and was lost.
And then, when he realized what Maria's conclusion was about his state and jackass behaviour, he started laughing bitterly.
His laugh drove her from anger to madness. Everything was black before her eyes. How dare he laugh at her and neglect his children while she tries to portray him as a busy "prince charming"!
But again, as many times before, her curiosity won out.
"I don't see what's so funny!" she asked angrily.
Only he was able make her lose her temper, Easily without any effort. He was definitely her weakness she thought.
"You're wrong, this isn't about Elsa!" he said in a whisper, piercing her with his heavy gaze. It was always easy with her but not with you, he thought to himself. There was sadness and hurt in his eyes again.
Maria didn't know from what was making her tremble more, excitement or confusion.
Was it possible ? He cared for her?! No, no way. Still. But how? No, no way!
But what if she told him she loved him and then ran away immediately, so she wouldn't be embarrassed by his rejection or him making fun of her. No, it was best to play it safe. Thousands of thoughts went through her head but not a single coherent one. Her head was a real cacophony of feelings, memories and emotions.
His pride did not allow him to reveal more and to be completely embarrassed and "naked" in front of her. After all, the description of "true von Trapp" and a "lovesick puppy" was enough humiliation for his whole life. Yet it was one matter when he is angry with her and not seeing her at all, but another when he looked into her blue eyes and felt the pull towards her.
There was silence, he stared at her for a long time.
Then his eyes darkened, like that night in the kitchen, Maria thought. He got up from his chair and walked towards her, staggering. Slowly, very slowly, Maria flinched, she didn't like anyone approaching her drunk.
But suddenly, drunk and with a staggering step, Captain stumbled over the edge of the rug and fell on the sofa, hitting his head on the backrest and thus remained in that position.
From his gaze, Maria felt as if she were in a dream and that something was pulling her, anger long forgotten. She realized when it came to him that she had no strength, it was enough for him to just look at her.
As if in slow motion, she watched him move towards her. She couldn't have moved if she wanted to, she was anchored to the floor, until she heard "thud" and then she came back to reality.
She immediately ran to help him but he was in a deep sleep. With great perseverance she moved him to a more comfortable position on the sofa.
All she should do was to cover him with a blanket and leave him there. But she couldn't just leave him.
There were a lot of unresolved issues between them, and she wanted to be there if he woke up to give him a glass of water or just make sure he didn't try to go up the stairs in that state.
She decided to stay there to guard him.
After placing him in a comfortable position she could relax and watch him openly without feeling guilty that someone would see her. Once upon a time at the University she read the book 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde' by author R. L. Stevenson.
She could no longer remember who was positive and who was negative, but she felt like she was in that book, very conflicted. One voice told her to leave and the other to stay. One voice told her she was doing a good thing by staying with him and but the other was telling her that she was selfish and just wanted to leer at him.
While she debated with herself, she didn't even notice that she was sitting next to him and that her fingers were lovingly caressing his hair on his forehead.
Who am I kidding, she thought, already fully aware of what she was doing. Surprised by how soft his hair was and how firm the skin of his face felt, she wanted to run her fingers over his lips but was afraid of waking him up.
Luckily he was dead drunk.
She lost track of how long she sat there caressing his hair and face until her attention was drawn to his unbuttoned shirt and the tiny hairs beneath them.
And while in her head Jekyll and Mr Hyde were fighting for supremacy her fingers were already in his shirt. She looked feverishly at his face and then at her fingers as they continued exploring. His chest moving in a steady rhythm was tempting her..
The moment she began to gently caress his chest and the delicate hairs she could no longer stop, it was much better than in her sleep. After satisfying her curiosity about his chest, she became drowsy and fell asleep.
Shortly before dawn he slowly began to wake up with a terrible hangover.
He dreamed again that he and Maria were lying embracing on the mountain and spending a pleasant day. Then he felt something on his chest and saw blonde hair moving to the rhythm of his breathing.
Georg, you fool, you are still dreaming he told himself.
Then he looked around and realized that he was not on the mountain but in his study. But nothing was clear to him.
Through the fog he remembered their quarrel and her lecturing him about neglecting the children and his behaviour. He couldn't remember what happened next, except that he fell humiliatingly on the sofa. He looked hopefully at their clothes, but they were still on them, and then he realized he had nothing to remember because nothing had even happened.
Georg, you've never been a romantic so it's too late for that, you're a fool, he scolded himself.
This had to stop.
"Maria, get up, dawn is coming soon!" he whispered not wanting to scare her.
"Um, just five more minutes," Maria said through a sleepy voice and with a hand that Georg had just noticed on his chest under his shirt she began to caress him gently, then stopped and went back to sleep.
Fully awake, he could not believe the situation he found himself in.
She was lying on her side and leaning completely against him. Her head was on his shoulder and chest, her arm still tucked into his shirt and her leg intertwined with his. Her presence, the warmth, the scent of her hair reminiscent of the most beautiful flowers, set him on fire.
He wondered if there was any limit to how far Maria could drive him into madness.
Oh God, how many times had he dreamed of lying like this with her.
His body had already begun to react to her and he had to act quickly before he completely embarrassed himself.
And fast.
"Fraulein, it is now completely clear to me why you are late for breakfast every morning," he said loudly and arrogantly. He bent one leg to hide his aroused condition.
"What!" Maria suddenly woke up from a deep sleep, raising her head, and in a panic seeing him, she lost her balance and with a loud thud, fell to the floor.
"You, you're no gentleman, at all!" she said the first thing that came to her mind as he moved to a sitting position with great amusement.
"I'm sorry "lady" but I've never been the third wheel in my life, so I won't start now!"
He deliberately emphasized the word lady, thereby mocking her by reminding them both how she loved to climb trees, whistle, slide down the bannister and pull pranks on Franz.
Maria was confused, how did he even know about the tricks she played on Franz?
Perhaps Franz had complained to the captain that someone was constantly ringing his doorbell. Maybe it was another case of the captain being "all mighty" all seeing and knowing everything, but she didn't have much time to dwell on that, something else caught her attention.
"Third wheel? What are you talking about?" Surely this man had appeared in her life only to confuse her endlessly, she thought.
"Oh, you mean it's just a passing romance and you will continue on to new conquests?" he asked mockingly, looking at her sharply.
"What a romance? I have no idea what you're talking about, please explain!"
Already quite irritated, she stood up, realized she was holding a pillow in her hand that she had lifted from the floor.
"Romance with your Italian, with whom you spent a day on the mountain and with whom you kissed passionately in front of the house. And don't try to deny it, it's obvious you're in love with him!" he said in a low voice, but clear enough that every word hit Mara directly in the heart.
She was shocked to the core.
Everything was spinning in her head, but most of all, she wanted to punch him for his low opinion of her and ill-treatment.
She went crazy.
"Firstly, I was alone on the mountain and fell asleep there, then I was late for the bus and set off on foot. Halfway down I met Luca who offered to take me to the Villa. Secondly, we are just good friends and we greeted each other in front of the house because he is returning home to his fiancée. And it was not passionate kissing, he kissed me in friendly way, just a peck on the cheek!" Maria replied angrily and with a convincing attitude.
Georg didn't miss that, as he watched her carefully and couldn't believe it.
He didn't dare to believe, but she seemed so honest and sincere.
But he had to be sure.
"Fraulein, it's obvious you're in love with him, your crumpled dress and the grass in your hair confirms you had a good old tumble on the mountain!" Georg exhaled at the last word, finally saying what had bothered him the most.
But, momentarily, he was confused by her shocked expression and the fact that each word accentuated the fire in her eyes.
His heart told him he was wrong, but his analytical mind was still struggling.
With a sound of disapproval and shock, Maria fired the next sentence in one breath.
"Listen Sherlock! I danced, sang, and then rolled down the slope and fell asleep. That made my dress crumpled and probably put blades of grass in my hair. And as for Luca, like I told you, we are just good friends and nothing else. But given the fact that he is nice, smart, handsome and most importantly NOT annoying me, I could have fallen in love with him, but the problem is that he came TOO LATE! " she was yelling at him angrily.
With Maria's last sentence, his head and heart finally reconciled.
He felt immense relief as if all the burden of the world had been taken away from him.
He couldn't believe it.
He had tortured himself so much for nothing.
"So you're not in love with him!" he asked hopefully and gently, still not believing what had happened.
The last Georg's question drove Maria's mind from anger to madness. With a puff, she hit the pillow directly in his face. She heard only a thud and an "ouch!"
If she hadn't been so mad, she would definitely have started giggling.
"You are so pigheaded!" She hastily headed for the door, which she slammed hard on the way out.
xxx
"So, we are approaching very fast to the end of story, I hope you liked this chapter. Let me know, did G deserve pillow in his face :)