resigned, and shook my head. There wasn’t much patience left for dealing with his stubbornness.
“Yes, Aleksey, it's exactly what you think. A cute little souvenir from Nikolai’s former comrades. And now that your curiosity’s satisfied, and I’ve confirmed what you already thought, can I please eat in peace?”
His usual restraint and the lack of emotion I’d come to expect, seemed to falter very slightly then. He looked a li ttle unsettled as he watched me and it seemed like he was about to say something, but then only nodded and left the room.
I stared down at my food, not hungry any more, a sour taste in my mouth. I forced myself to swallow a few pieces of the lukewarm pasta before giving up and dumping the rest in w ith the trash.
As I was rinsing the plate under the faucet, Beth burst into the kitchen like a hurricane and started pulling me towards her room, instantly changing my mood.
“I can’t believe you’re still here! Don’t you see what time it is?”
“We've still g ot an hour left.”
“That's exactly what I’m saying,” she sat down in a chair opposite the mirror, thrust her hair dryer in my hand and started powdering her face.
“I don’t have any idea how you manage to put up with having that crap on your face all day.”
“We're not all blessed with a perfect complexion like yours, you know...”
“And what's wrong with your skin exactly?”
“I have freckles!” she exclaimed, as if it were some kind of incurable disease.
“Yes, I heard you can die from that.” I laughed and flicked the switch on the dryer.
Bet went through a list of the outfits she planned to try on, the noise from the dryer only partially drowning her out, so that I heard ‘zebra pants’ and ‘mini skirt with leopard print’ quite clearly. Just thinking about the contents of her closet made me cringe, so I bit my lip in case I looked visibly embarrassed. I adored Bethany, but couldn’t stomach her taste in clothes, which were more appropriate for a zoo than a rock club.
When I was finished playing hairdresser, I left Beth to dig through the heap of clothes dumped on her bed and hurried over to the bathroom. After showering quickly and putting a little makeup around my eyes, I leaned my head inside my own closet and got down to searching for my favorite black dress. After about ten minutes I finally found it and pulled it out, together with my new black heels.
Done with getting dressed, I stood in front of the large mirror and studied my reflection curiously. The thin black dress, tied at the neck, only just reached my ass. I’d twisted my waist long hair into a low bun, but left a few strands hanging down at the sides to give me sort of a serious look, which seemed to contrast with the scandalously short dress. I almost changed my mind about what to wear and thought of going for something a little less risqué, but then remembered that Tyler would probably be there in The Abyss, and decided to leave it.
“Sasha! We’re late!” I heard Beth roaring from the living room.
“Just a minute!”
“Hurry up . I'll be down with Paolo.”
I added a little more mascara, pressed down on the perfume bottle to let out a fine mist near my neck then left the room, grabbing my purse and a thin coat on my way out.
The sight that awaited me in the hallway literally took my breath away.
Alex was leaning against the jamb of the front door with a thoughtful expression on his face, shifting his motorcycle keys from one hand to the other. It was true that even in the baggy pants and washed out t-shirts he usually wore he could turn the head of any girl he passed. Now, in black jeans and a black shirt with its sleeves rolled up to the elbows, he might have been sin made flesh, so that even I couldn’t pretend not to notice.
Trying my best to ignore the knots in my stomach, I raised my nose and tried to look decisive as I approached the door. Getting closer, Alex looked me up and down carefully, his eyes
“Yes, Aleksey, it's exactly what you think. A cute little souvenir from Nikolai’s former comrades. And now that your curiosity’s satisfied, and I’ve confirmed what you already thought, can I please eat in peace?”
His usual restraint and the lack of emotion I’d come to expect, seemed to falter very slightly then. He looked a li ttle unsettled as he watched me and it seemed like he was about to say something, but then only nodded and left the room.
I stared down at my food, not hungry any more, a sour taste in my mouth. I forced myself to swallow a few pieces of the lukewarm pasta before giving up and dumping the rest in w ith the trash.
As I was rinsing the plate under the faucet, Beth burst into the kitchen like a hurricane and started pulling me towards her room, instantly changing my mood.
“I can’t believe you’re still here! Don’t you see what time it is?”
“We've still g ot an hour left.”
“That's exactly what I’m saying,” she sat down in a chair opposite the mirror, thrust her hair dryer in my hand and started powdering her face.
“I don’t have any idea how you manage to put up with having that crap on your face all day.”
“We're not all blessed with a perfect complexion like yours, you know...”
“And what's wrong with your skin exactly?”
“I have freckles!” she exclaimed, as if it were some kind of incurable disease.
“Yes, I heard you can die from that.” I laughed and flicked the switch on the dryer.
Bet went through a list of the outfits she planned to try on, the noise from the dryer only partially drowning her out, so that I heard ‘zebra pants’ and ‘mini skirt with leopard print’ quite clearly. Just thinking about the contents of her closet made me cringe, so I bit my lip in case I looked visibly embarrassed. I adored Bethany, but couldn’t stomach her taste in clothes, which were more appropriate for a zoo than a rock club.
When I was finished playing hairdresser, I left Beth to dig through the heap of clothes dumped on her bed and hurried over to the bathroom. After showering quickly and putting a little makeup around my eyes, I leaned my head inside my own closet and got down to searching for my favorite black dress. After about ten minutes I finally found it and pulled it out, together with my new black heels.
Done with getting dressed, I stood in front of the large mirror and studied my reflection curiously. The thin black dress, tied at the neck, only just reached my ass. I’d twisted my waist long hair into a low bun, but left a few strands hanging down at the sides to give me sort of a serious look, which seemed to contrast with the scandalously short dress. I almost changed my mind about what to wear and thought of going for something a little less risqué, but then remembered that Tyler would probably be there in The Abyss, and decided to leave it.
“Sasha! We’re late!” I heard Beth roaring from the living room.
“Just a minute!”
“Hurry up . I'll be down with Paolo.”
I added a little more mascara, pressed down on the perfume bottle to let out a fine mist near my neck then left the room, grabbing my purse and a thin coat on my way out.
The sight that awaited me in the hallway literally took my breath away.
Alex was leaning against the jamb of the front door with a thoughtful expression on his face, shifting his motorcycle keys from one hand to the other. It was true that even in the baggy pants and washed out t-shirts he usually wore he could turn the head of any girl he passed. Now, in black jeans and a black shirt with its sleeves rolled up to the elbows, he might have been sin made flesh, so that even I couldn’t pretend not to notice.
Trying my best to ignore the knots in my stomach, I raised my nose and tried to look decisive as I approached the door. Getting closer, Alex looked me up and down carefully, his eyes
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