To Color Your Life

Kelly wanted to hide under the table. She glanced sideways at Gregor and only now noticed that there were the same hickeys on his neck just like those on hers. Did she do that? An idiotic question. And clearly rhetorical.

Gregor said nothing, shrugged his shoulders and continued eating his breakfast with an indifferent expression on his face. As always.

Without knowing why, Ohara felt annoyed. Does Barkens even care what friends think of them? After all, the first thing that can come to mind is that they spent this night together! They both had too similar "signs" that this was true.

How could he behave so naturally? Like... like that night meant nothing to him? Or maybe it was so? And only her inner world reeled from new and incomprehensible sensations?

Kelly clutched the menu in her hands. Control. It was necessary to urgently take control of the situation. As a child, she swore that she would not allow any man to unbalance her. She will not be like her mother. Never.

Ohara brushed her hair back over her shoulders, exposing her neck completely. If he didn't care what others thought, she wouldn't either. And, by the way, who said it should be Barkens? She could have spent the night with any man!

The best defense is the offense. In her case, it is preventive denial. She can tell it was some local waiter, for example. No, probably, it would be too much.

"Sometimes you can allow yourself meaningless liberties, which you will forget about in a day," Kelly replied, without going into details. The fork in Barkens' hands scratched across the plate. Something suddenly burnt in her chest. Maybe she shouldn't have said it like this?

"By the way, what are your plans?" She changed the topic, trying to distract herself from the unpleasant thoughts.

Justin put his hand on his wife's shoulders, pulled Emily to him and kissed her on the temple. "Since we have a whole week of honeymoon..." He said the last with such importance as if it was not a week, but the whole year. It sounded more like sarcasm, though.

Evans leaned forward a little. "You know, I think I'm starting to get jealous of my wife for her job. Maybe you guys can manage everything without her somehow, huh? A couple of months?"

Emily poked her husband in the side.

"Okay, a couple of weeks?" he lowered the rate.

"I think we can," Barkens replied. Kelly nodded.

"Justin, I told you, I have an important meeting with Chris in a week about the Nefertiti franchise," Emily sighed.

"You'd think Denver won't find something to keep himself busy for another week. Your favorite barista won't be too upset either." Justin made his case. "And I have to fulfill the promise I made to your grandmother. A week may not be enough. We must act for sure."

"What promise?" asked Kelly.

Evans lifted his nose and proudly said, "Grandchild." Emily choked on her tea. Justin patted her on the back. "So I'm taking my wife for two weeks, and you'll deal with everything yourselves somehow."

The rest of the brunch was more relaxed. Friends discussed several working moments, yesterday's celebration and future plans. Then they went out into the street.

Kelly smiled as she saw off the white Cadillac as it drove away from the hotel. She was genuinely happy for her best friend. It is a pity that she did not manage to catch the bridal bouquet.

There was an awkward silence between her and Barkens. Or was it just her imagination? The man was looking at the park in front of the hotel with the look as if he had lived here since birth and the picture had already become boring to him.

"Well, I guess, this is it?" Ohara said nervously in a voice that sounded more like a choked squeak.

Gregor turned his head and stared at the girl. He didn't say anything, he just stared, and it seemed to Kelly he could hear her every thought. Even the one that she was afraid to voice to herself.

"Are you ashamed of me or of what happened between us?" he asked unexpectedly.

Kelly was confused. This man could knock the ground out from under her feet with a few words. The girl bit her lip and turned away. Under Barkens' gaze, all her thoughts turned into a shapeless mess. So it's absolutely impossible to answer the question!

Gregor took Ohara's reaction differently. For the second time that morning, she winced at one glance at him. He knew he was not handsome. But he did not consider himself a freak either. According to Barkens, among the important qualities of a man, appearance was not even included in the top twenty.

Yesterday he tried to convey his thoughts to this girl, but apparently failed. He gave his five hundred percent tonight to show her what a man should be like when he makes love to a woman who is truly dear to him. But this was not enough.

Her fiery hair and snub, cute nose with tinted freckles caught his attention from the very first meeting. Then, seven years ago, when she came with her she-friend and her boyfriend to his band's concert.

It was dark in the club, but he immediately saw her in the crowd. She looked at him with such admiration in her eyes that Barkens hesitated for a moment and forgot the words to the song.

But even then he was mistaken. The girl admired only the image of the singer, but not himself. His public mask, but not what he really was.

"Forget. I understood, let's pretend that nothing happened." He said first when the girl opened her mouth to answer his question. Gregor pulled a disc from his pocket that he forgot to give her yesterday and handed it to the girl.

"W-what is this?" Kelly took it, her fingers were trembling slightly. She read the title on the cover, "Colors of Life?" She opened the case. There were signatures on the back of the cover.

"This is the first and only disc of this group. With their personal signatures. There are only ten of them. Emily said you're a fan."

"Is this really their album?" Ohara's gaze resembled Bambi the fawn from a children's cartoon. "And which one is the soloist's signature?"

Barkens could have replied that he had no idea, but instead, he silently poked at the signature, which was located in the very center.

Kelly smiled and ran the pad of her index finger along the lines, repeating them. "Look, it has the same curl at the end just like your signature."

Barkens blinked. He hasn't used this signature in seven years. The man bent down to study the drawing.

"Hmm, really," he whispered. And how could he forget about it? It is not a fact that he will be able to sign the same way again.

His gaze slowly rose up - along the girl's chest, her neck, lingered slightly on her lips and stopped in front of her eyes.

She was so close that he smelled the shampoo she used to wash her hair.

Gregor swallowed. He so wanted to touch her lips again, crush them in a greedy kiss, so that Ohara would forget about everything, even her own name and shouted only his. Take her over and over again with his own songs playing, if she likes them so much. Better yet, in silence, to hear only her moans and how their bodies are joining together. Faster. Deeper.

Kelly shuddered and took a step back.

Barkens chuckled. Apparently, his desire was so obvious that it frightened the girl. Well, it's not in his rules to impose on someone who didn't like him back.

"Sir, the car is waiting for you," the doorman approached and gestured to a taxi parked nearby.

"Let the girl take that, I'll take another one. See you at work, Ohara. Have a nice day," he nodded, turned around and walked to another car.

Kelly watched as the man got into the taxi and it, picking up speed, left the hotel.

She looked at the disk in her hands. The girl did not even know that such one existed. And now, now it was with her. One of ten disks of the band that no longer existed. A gift she couldn't dream of. So invaluable and unexpected that she lost touch with reality for a few seconds.

And when she shuddered and remembered, she almost fell, from surging feelings. She even had to retreat from Barkens, otherwise, she would have rushed at him with arms and legs, making him suffocate in her tight hug.

But he left. He wished her a good day, turned around and just left as if they had finished a working meeting and each went to their offices.

Kelly hugged a present to her chest, for which she had not had time to thank. She was happy. Probably. But then why did she want to cry so much?

Her thoughts drifted into the hotel bathroom. The moment the man leaned over to kiss her, and she turned away.

If she hadn't turned away then...

Kelly closed her eyes and exhaled slowly.

She went to the taxi and got into the car. The hotel quickly disappeared from her sight, like a picture in the sand, washed away by a wave. And only somewhere there, in the memories, there was a room in which something new could begin, but it never happened.