"YOU HAVE NO BOUNDARIES! MUST YOU ALWAYS HAVE WHAT IS MINE? BUY IT YOURSELF IF YOU WANT IT!"
So loud... he is so damn loud. I hold back at the last moment. "Oh, no thanks! I don't want to take anything away from you if it tastes so good."
"But I’d like to share it with you. Please." Adrien's voice is honest and friendly, I think he means it.
"Okay..." I carefully bite into the soft mass in his hand. The chocolate cracks and the sweet sugar foam with the chocolate and crunchy pieces of brittle is absolutely amazing. Obviously,my face can't hide my excitement, because Adrien laughs heartily.
"Isn’t it amazing?"
His laugh is infectious and I realize that a grin is spreading across my face. “It really is!"
***
Adrien didn't let go of my hand the whole evening. Constantly stroking me gently with his thumb. Such a small touch, but it felt so good.
Now we are standing in front of Nika’s and Élias's house. I’m going to spend the night there, it's far too inconvenient to drive back to the German side of the border now. We have to say goodbye. But... how? Does he want to kiss me? Do I want him to? I don't know.
Adrien hesitantly stands in front of me. "Good night, Philipp! Thank you for this amazing evening!" Then he kisses me gently on the cheek. His lips are soft, but his stubble is a little scratchy. It feels good, unexpectedly good. My stomach warms up. "Sleep well." With those words, he lets go of my hand, waves to Nika and Élias and leaves.
"Sleep well!"My fingers search for the spot Adrien just kissed. That was... oh wow...
Chapter 13
Adrien
"When are you going home?" Ahh... valid question. To be honest, I was wondering when Élias was going to ask it. Tomorrow is the last day of lectures before the holidays, the day after tomorrow he's leaving to visit his family near Rennes and he's really looking forward to it.
I'd like to go home too, but that's a bit difficult after everything that's happened in the last year. "I'm staying here."
"Excuse me?" Élias looks at me in such horror that I have to laugh. "No, seriously now! What do you mean? You're staying here?"
"Just as I said. I'm not going home. It's no good. My parents don't accept me for who I am and I don't want to listen to all thenice girls I could bring home-bullshit. I'm staying here."
"But... will you be here all alone over the holidays?"
I nod my head in confirmation and wait for my best friend's reaction. Five, four, three... "Oh no! Definitely not!" That was faster than I thought.
"And how exactly are you going to stop me? I'm not going home. Period."
"Then come with me, but I'm definitely not leaving you here alone!"
"You can't just invite me to your parents' house. That's really nice of you, but it's not that easy." I shake my head with a smile.
"Give me five minutes!" Determined, Élias pulls his cell phone out of his pocket and holds it to his ear after a quick tap. "Hey Maman! It's me! Look, here's the thing..."
Élias briefly explains my situation to his mother. I try to read her answer from his face, but he doesn't bat an eyelid. "See you the day after tomorrow! I'm looking forward to it too! Love you!"
I thought the conversation was over, but he doesn't hang up. Instead, he grins all over his face. "We'll take care of us. See you then!" Us?...Us!?! I look at Élias questioningly.
"Yes, you heard right, you're coming with me. My parents are looking forward to it."
"Do your parents even have that much space?"
Élias shakes his head in disbelief. "Do you think I would have asked if my parents lived in a two-bedroom apartment? Space isn't the problem. But if my brother is late, we'll have to decorate the Christmas tree."
Okay, I can manage that. But the well-behaved boy in me still wants to thankfully decline. After all, Christmas is a family holiday. You don't necessarily want one of your son's buddies there, do you? That would have been absolutely unthinkable at my home. But the lonely little kid in me is super relieved that I don't have to spend Christmas alone after all and is keen to accept the invitation.
While the two of them are still discussing, my adult self sees Élias's demanding look and understands that a discussion on this topic is absolute garbage because he'll give me hell if I don't go along. "Thank you... I... I don't even know what to say. I'm happy, honestly."
