Part 18

Kate shows me the whole restaurant at first. It's a really nice place with a lot of charm. "So, finally, this is our kitchen, we rebuilt it last summer," she announces proudly.

"April, come here, I want to introduce you to Maria." A young woman, maybe a year or two older than me approaches us.

"Hey." She shakes my hand.

"April, this is Maria, she will be our dishwasher for the next few weeks. Maria, this is April, she´s my daughter and helps me a lot with the restaurant."

"Nice to meet you," I smile at her. She seems very pleasant to me.

"My dear, be a doll and show Maria what to do in the kitchen, okay? I have to get the food orders ready."

"Sure!"

Kate smiles and leaves the kitchen.

"Okay, let's get started. First thing you should do every day is clean the range, the oven, and the steamer. We have some special cleaner for it, so it won't be that bad."

I nod. "Understood."

***

The past hour, April had shown me all the things I have to do over the next few days. I never thought that there was so much to do in a kitchen.

"Okay, we´re done. Let´s get down to brass tacks." She looks at me meaningfully. "You came here with Michael Guerin?" It's more an inquisition than a simple question.

"Yeah!" I wonder where this conservation will lead to?! Does she know me from somewhere? Does she know I´m a Hurricane and he's a Bandit. That could be bad.

"Is he your boyfriend?" She grins from ear to ear.

"Uh... no..." I stutter.

What are we? I really don't know… friends? Comrades? Mates? Lovers? No, no, definitely not lovers… well, not yet…. Oh god, I'm running off the track now.

"We... we´re just friends, I guess." I have to say something.

"WHAT?" She shrieks. "How can you just be friends? I mean, Michael Guerin ! ! ! – he's like the hottest guy in the world. He's appearance practically screams: SEX! Don't you think?"

"Well, maybe."

"Maybe? Maria, are you blind or something? Ohhhhh! I understand. You already have another boyfriend, right?"

"Um, no!" My whole body refuses to still regard Billy as my boyfriend.

"You're a lesbian?"

"What?" I rip my eyes open in consternation. "NO! I'm not."

April laughs. "Sorry, it's just that I can´t believe you´re not interested in him."

"I didn´t say that."

"After all, no woman can resist him. I think even my mother would like to get into his pants, if she wasn't too old for him. So, will you see him again today?"

"I'm kind of sleep at his apartment tonight, so yeah...!"

She gasps. "You are so lucky, Maria."

Lucky? Me? I don´t think so. Not at all.

It was 7:00 pm when I left the restaurant with my first earned 20 dollars. I'm so proud, and so glad that Michael organized this for me. Then I walked to my flat to pick up some stuff for the night and school. And now as I reach the front door of Michael's apartment I reach up and knock.

Michael opens the door with a soft smile on his lips. "Hey," he reaches for the bag in my left hand, "how was your first day at your new job?"

"It was really cool. Kate and her daughter, April were so nice to me. Thank you so much, Michael." I won´t mention the littel conservation between April and me.

"It's cool! I've known them for a long time. What do you want to eat? I went to the supermarket this afternoon and bought a few things."

"Can I shower first? I smell a little greasy, I think."

He snuffles at my hair. "Yeah, did you take a bath in the deep fryer?" He grins mischievously.

I slap him on the shoulder. "No! But, thank you!"

"Kidding!"

A knock on the door interrupts us and I look at him alarmed.

"It's Liz!" A soft voice comes through the door and I sigh. Michael walks to the door and opens it.

"Hey Liz, what´s up?"

"Do you have any good dvd´s? I don´t have to work this evening and I´m so bored without Max being around."

"You can check my films out and see if there is one you like, c'mon in."

She enters the room and comes into my field of vision. "Hey Liz," I greet her quietly.

"Hey, Maria." She smiles at me and doesn't look surprised. I guess Michael already told her that I'll be spending the night here.

"Are you hungry?" Michael asks her. "Maria and I were planning to cook something."

Liz looks shocked. "Last time you cooked Max and I could still smell the burnt sausages even a week later out in the hallway."

I laugh and Michael glares at me.

I fall silent. "Um… I'm gonna go shower now."

"Yeah, good idea. greasy-girl," he says, playfully abused.

***

"Michael decided that he wants to relax on the couch and leave the cooking thing to us," Liz says when I come out of the bathroom again.

"I think I can live with that. Have you decided what we're gonna eat yet?"

"What about pasta?"

I laugh. "You have a thing for pasta, huh?"

"Yeah. I L-O-V-E it."

"Okay Michael, what do you think about pasta?" I ask him.

"As long as there's meat in it..." he grumbles from the couch.

"I'm gonna shower," Michael tells me after dinner. Liz left a few minutes ago.

"Okay, I´m gonna wash the dishes then."

"You don´t have to. I can do that tomorrow."

"There's nothing but a lot of crap on TV, so I don´t mind."

A few minutes later I walk over to the kitchen and watch the water running into the sink. I smile, lost in deep thoughts. Who would've thought that at some point I would be standing in Michael's kitchen, washing the dishes? It's funny how things work out.

I start to put the dishes and utensils in the sink and grab a dishrag. Oh my God, this is making me so happy, I can´t believe it.

I´m not alone, Michael won´t let me down, he won´t leave me like my Mom. I´m washing his dishes...

A little pain in my left hand brings me back to reality. "Ouch!" I mutter. I cut my forefinger on one of the knives and it's started to bleed a little.

"What's up?" Michael, who has just entered the room again, asks.

"Nothing. Just cut my finger a little."

He comes further into the kitchen, wearing only his jeans. I turn around to face the sink again and try to act busy.

Oh boy, don't do that to me, I can´t stand that view very long.

"Let me see." He stands still at my back and grasps my finger from behind.

The pain is all but forgotten as his upper body comes into contact with my back. He has to notice the tightness of my body... and of course he has to make a comment about it:

"Why're you all tense?" His breath touches my skin at my neck.

As if you don´t know.

"Uh... it's just a little weird, you know... to be here with you... I mean, not weird in a bad way, but rather in a good way, you know? Oh my God, now you think I´m crazy right? Maybe I lost too much blood."

He chuckles. "Maria, you're babbling."

I sigh. "Yeah, sorry."

"But I think I understand what you mean. Weird, huh?" He opens the kitchen cupboard next to my head and takes a band-aid out of it. He unwraps it and softly places it over my little cut.

"I often cut myself, too. So there is always a first aid kit in my kitchen."

I laugh. "Not a bad idea."

"You´re done" He loosens his grip on my finger and places an ever-so-soft kiss on my shoulder where the pullover ends and bare skin begins. I shudder under the brief touch.

"I'll wash the rest of the dishes."

I just nod, still in daze, and sit down on one of the barstools, because I got weak in the knees.

After a few minutes I find my voice agian. "Can I ask you something?"

"That depends."

"Have you had a lot of woman in your life?" I have to ask him. The question pops in my mind every now and then.

He looks at me, puzzled. "Why do you want to know that?"

I shrug. "I... I'm just curious."

He turns away. "There were a few in the past," he mumbles.

I nod to myself. That's what I figured.

"Not lately," he adds quietly.

"Because of your injury?"

"Not just that."

I won't ask him, even if I have to just accept his answer. Maybe because I'm too afraid that he will say no. Maybe because I already know that he won´t give me an answer.

"What about you?" He turns the tables.

"Umm, ... just Billy."

"Of all people!" He looks at me, helplessly.

"I trusted him blindly, when we met first – that was a big mistake. He acted as if he cared about me. My mother was already an alky and treated me like trash, so it was a nice change to hang out with Billy and his gang. I really thought that they're my friends. But after a few weeks things changed; Billy realized that I had no one but him. He started to make out with other girls, cause he knew, that I wouldn't say anything about it. He wasn´t interested in me anymore. He just wanted to get in my pants now and then. I didn't have the courage to say no to him, I was too afraid that he would leave me – I didn´t want to be alone."

I pause for a few seconds and wipe a single tear away. "Today, I know it would've been better to be alone than to be with him. But it´s too late; I can't leave him anymore without dealing with some pretty bad consequences. I´m already too involved."

He puts the dishtowel away when his phone, which is lying on the counter, starts to ring. "It's just Liz, I´ll call her back later. He comes up to stand in front of me. "So ... you´ve had some not very good expieriences with men, huh?"

"No doubt!" I answer, tensing again. I can´t stay calm when he's so near.

"You know..." he leans forward and supports himself with one hand on the edge of the barstool, "... I think someone should change that..." His other hand brushes a strand of hair out of my face.

"Someone?" I croak quietly.

He smiles at me warmly. "I think you´re clever enough to know who I mean."

I smile back slightly and lean into his touch with closed eyes.

"I'll give you some better experiences..." he breathes into my ear.

I shiver with excitement and I start to feel dizzy.

"Someday," he adds, his breath feathering against my neck.

I can´t answer him; I can't think straight right now so I just sit there, waiting for his next move. He places feather light kisses on my right cheek while both of his hands slide down my thighs to the backs of my knees. He brings me up against him and leans his forehead against mine.

I open my eyes a bit – to find him gazing at me ... his lips so close. My shaking hands take a hold of his strong upper arms.

"You ready for your first good expierence in kissing?" he whispers with a little smirk. Luckily, he doesn´t wait for an answer – I´m not sure if I could have give him one – and brushes his lips against mine lightly.

TBC