Adrian: Good morning, kitten. I hope you like your gift. I already programmed my number in. Let me know if you need anything. I had to go to an early meeting. I’ll bring something nice home for dinner. Do you have anything in particular in mind, or shall I choose?
I grin as I type out the reply. My first message on my new phone.
Me: I love the color! I’m excited to try out the camera too. Thank you so much for this. It means a lot. For dinner… I think we should have some fun and make homemade burgers.
Adrian: Well, making burgers with you sounds like way more fun than the takeouts I had planned. I’ll get all the ingredients and see you around five this evening! PS. I loadedthe bank card onto the phone. Go wild. Browse some online shops. Get whatever you want. X
I stare at the x.
It’s just an x. It doesn’t mean anything. I can’t read into it, even though my heart is fluttering at the sight of it. I can’t help it. I just lost my virginity to the man, and he was so gentle with me. So wonderfully thorough in pleasing me. How can I not have a fluttering heart?
With a smile on my face, I drop the phone onto my bed and head into the shower.
***
It’s four, and I’m excited for Adrian to get home. I got a fire going downstairs, and I’m lying on the sofa playing on my phone while I wait.
This afternoon I went out into the snow and took beautiful wintery photographs of the trees, and I can’t wait to show him.
I’m busy playing with a photo editing program, increasing contrast for a more dramatic effect, when my phone rings.
At first, I thought it had to be Adrian. But it isn’t.
I answer with my brows knotted.
“Hello?” I say cautiously.
“Pumpkin?” His voice sears through me.
“Dad?” I stammer in disbelief.
“Hi pumpkin, how have you been?” he asks as though everything is totally normal and as though it’s not a complete shock to hear from him.
“I’m ok,” I say quietly.
“That’s good. I thought to myself this morning, you know, I haven’t spoken to Athena in a while, and I figured, hey, why not give you a call?”
“So, today was the first day you tried to phone me?”
“Well... uh, I was a little busy. And I didn’t have airtime. Uh. I would have called earlier but…”
“It doesn’t matter,” I say quickly, not really interested in the thousand excuses he could come up with.
“So how are you?” he asks.
“I’m alright dad.”
“That Adrian guy, you aren’t still hanging around him, are you?”
“TheAdrian-guywho you kind of sold me to?” I ask with heat in my tone.
He laughs nervously. “Oh, come on now. It wasn’t like that.”
“Ok,” I say coldly, not really wanting to have this conversation.
“Listen, kiddo, that guy is bad news. I don’t know if you know, but his brother is a mafia leader. The whole family is part of the Bratva. Adrian has killed people. Ask anyone who knows him, and they’ll confirm it. That family has done terrible things. Murder, stealing, violence….”
I sigh loudly, interrupting his little rant. “Apparently, thievery is common,” I mutter, pointing the finger back at him. My dad can tell me what he wants to tell me. I’m not the same person I was when I last saw him. I’ve grown enough to not believe everything he says.
