The Alchemists

Finland was very happy at work that day. Subconsciously she was humming almost all day while completing her reports on the computer. Her colleagues were surprised by this change in attitude. They have never seen that girl so happy.

[Dinner with Katia Sorrenson at De Lune Restaurant at 8 pm is confirmed. Do you want to go to my place first or just go there directly?]

An SMS from Jean came in after lunch. Finland thought for a moment and replied.

[I will stop by Robertson Road. See you later.]

Finland felt that every opportunity she could spend with Jean had to be used as well as possible. They rarely met, and if after three years she decided to be with Caspar, she would probably never see Jean ever again.

In three years, Finland would be 26 years old. She would be older than Caspar who was forever 25...

Although the man was willing to wait indefinitely, Finland realized that sooner or later she had to decide.

***

When Finland arrived at Jean's apartment, the guy had just finished his workout in the gym and they met in the hallway. Jean slanted his cat eyes when he saw Finland arrive. He felt a different aura coming radiating from his best friend, but he wasn't sure what it exactly was.

"What happened to your face?" he asked, pressing the passkey button into his apartment. "Why does it look so sad?"

Finland shook her head, "I'm not sad..."

Jean opened the door and invited Finland inside. He placed his duffel bag in the corner of the room and poured water for them both.

"Let me take a shower first. Make yourself at home; feel free to watch TV or read a book."

"Okay."

Finland watched Jean with a sad look as he entered his room. The man knew her well. He didn't guess wrongly when he said that Finland had a sad look on her face. She was sad because she couldn't imagine living a long life without Jean in it.

Finland decided to kill the time by working while she waited for Jean. Her new assignment was to organize B2B meetings in Jakarta with prospective distributors for a new brand that worked with LTX International. She read various company profiles in her database and made brief summaries.

"You are a workaholic, aren't you?" Jean commented after coming out of his room with a fresh look. He closed Finland's laptop and scrambled the girl's hair, shaking his head. "Work stops here. Don't work if your office doesn't pay overtime."

"I don't know what to do if I don't work..." Finland shrugged.

"You can read books, watch TV, go on Facebook... anything but work." Jean slanted his eyes and looked at Finland deeply, "People who grow old never regret not working harder. When facing death, everyone regrets why they didn't enjoy life more. Don't love work too much, your work won't love you back."

Finland realized that Jean was right ... Her life always revolved around work, so she forgot to have fun and enjoy life.

"Uhm... you are right." Finland finally nodded.

"Of course I'm right. Well, I'm still in Singapore for the next two weeks. During that time I will teach you how to have fun. We should go clubbing, watch movies, eat, go sightseeing, and the list goes on..."

"Sounds like a plan."

"That's my girl."

At 7:30 they left for De Lune Restaurant to meet Katia. The girl arrived 5 minutes after them and the three enjoyed dinner like old acquaintances. Such a small world, thought Finland.

Who would have thought that she would work on a project for Caspar's ex-fiancée in Singapore, who happened to be acquainted with Jean.

"Katia is very famous in London," Jean said during dinner. "She was Karl Furstenberg's muse for some of his most famous designs."

"Ahaha... that's because Karl was friends with my grandmother, so there was nepotism involved..." Katia said with a laugh. "You are the most wanted supermodel in Europe now, Jean; I'm lucky to be able to meet you here in Singapore. When will you go back to France?"

"Uhm, in two weeks. Actually, Singapore is my second home. I still have an apartment here. My father is Singaporean, and I had a chance to study at the university here, and that's where I met Finland."

"Oh, I didn't know you're half Singaporean. So, you guys have been friends for a long time?"

"It's been four years..." Jean glanced at Finland with a broad smile. "I will retire from modeling in two years, after that I will travel the world and make travel videos with Finland."

"How exciting!" Katia comments with sparkling eyes. "I'm jealous to hear that. I don't have close friends in my life."

"How long do you plan to stay in Singapore?" Jean asked later.

"I plan to open a six-month installation of my works in Singapore. Finland is helping me with the design. I really like her ideas so far."

"Very good. I'm glad to hear that."