Chapter 13: Chapter 13

Blair

" And then? What did you think? " I whirled around in front of the cell phone camera, showing my mother my outfit.

" You look great with your new haircut," she complimented from the other side of the screen, "it should be easier to pin up now.”

" Mom, focus please," I groaned.

" Sorry, but I don't understand what you want me to see," she returned.

" Mom, I showed you three different outfits," I threw myself on the bed in the hotel room I occupied in Madrid, "I have fifteen minutes to finish getting ready.”

" You look nice in all the clothes," she returned.

" You're not helping," I muttered.

" I don't even understand what you want help with! Shouldn't you be back today?”

" I am, but I have two hours before I have to go to the airport, so I can have lunch with a friend at the hotel restaurant," I hurriedly explained, "and I need to meet him in ten minutes, so if you can help.”

I went through the options I had sorted out, trying to make a decision. Why couldn't I just choose? It wasn't supposed to be so difficult.

"And why didn't this friend of yours set this date earlier?" my mother rolled her eyes.

" Because he landed about an hour ago and that is all the time we will be in the same country for the next ten days. So, again, if you can help.”

" Wear the second-to-last outfit, with that lace blouse," my father's voice sounded from somewhere in the room, causing me to freeze in my seat.

" Mom, why didn't you tell me Dad was home? " I growled.

" Blair, this makes me think you don't want my opinion," he complained, appearing behind my mother, "by the way, who is this friend?”

" A friend, and I have to go," I crooned, ending the call.

I didn't have time to explain anything, I had to get ready. I hurriedly took off the burgundy sweater I was wearing and put on the blue lacy second skin my father had indicated, remaining in the same jeans and wearing a pair of sneakers before hurrying towards the hotel restaurant.

Dimitri was standing in the place we had arranged our meeting, wearing a white shirt with the first buttons open and dark jeans. I was always amazed by his beauty in the photos he sent me almost every day, but in person he was even better. The proof was in the eyes of every woman who passed by, and I could consider myself lucky, since his gaze was locked on me as I approached.

He took both my hands in his and brought them to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on each. My heart raced at his gesture, leaving me a little bewildered. It had been exactly eight days since that impromptu meeting in Vienna and I didn't know how to define what we meant to each other. The only thing that was clear in my mind was that he was winning me over a little bit every day.

And I felt stupid for allowing it!

" здравствуйте.”

I blinked in astonishment at hearing those words.

" I had never heard you speak Russian before! Have you been waiting long?”

" I just arrived, shall we go?”

I followed him into the restaurant, thinking of everything I wanted to say but not knowing where to start. Why did I feel so lost around him?

" You look nice," he complimented as soon as we settled in.

" Do you like it? " I ran my hand through the freshly cut strands of my hair.

" You look beautiful," he emphasized, opening the menu, "so did you see a lot of places in Madrid?”

" It's been raining since I landed," I pouted, "I haven't left the hotel spa.”

" And that's a bad thing? " he smiled.

" Of course not, but…”

My cell phone started ringing, interrupting my answer. I rolled my eyes before rejecting my father's call, turning my attention back to Dimitri.

" But?”

" I like a change of pace. I enjoy the hotel and the city.

" Next time…”

My cell phone rang again, interrupting him once more.

" Shouldn't you answer it? " he frowned as I rejected the call again.

" No, I already talked to him! " I hurried to explain.

" All right," he smiled, but soon after a video call notification popped up on his phone screen, "look, I think I'd better take this.”

I forced a smile despite feeling mortified by the situation as I put on my headphones to accept the call, watching my father's face appear on the other side of the screen.

" Dad, did something happen? " I struggled to remain calm.

" No, I wanted to see how it was going with your friend.”

" Dad, I'll call you later," I mumbled in Turkish.

" Wait, I want to meet him!”

" And you thought that now would be a good time for that? Not at all.”

" Blair.”

" No, you're not going to talk to him," I whispered, trying not to show my irritation.

" Blair, I can talk to him if you want," Dimitri offered.

I stared at him stunned, not knowing what language I had been speaking to my father in before.

" Sorry, I'm learning Turkish, so I can understand a little," he explained.

For a few seconds I didn't know how to answer, and my father took his chance.

" Splendid. Where is the young man?”

" Father? " I muttered in a warning tone before handing one of the headphones to Dimitri who pulled his chair almost to my side.

" Look at the guy," my father smiled and soon my mother joined him.

I couldn't believe that the two of them were doing this to me, it just couldn't be happening!

" Good afternoon Mr. and Mrs. Ozkan " Dimitri greeted them.

" Lauren, it's the Russian pilot " his smile widened, causing me to give him an annoyed look.

" Yes, I think so," Dimitri frowned, looking at me uncomprehendingly.

Forget the Turkish-Russian war, please, let him forget the damn war.

" Tell me, Dimitri. What do you know about the Turkish-Russian War? " he asked directly, making me want to bang my head on the table.

" It was a war that happened over a hundred years ago”.

" Dad!”

" All right, all right. I know you don't have much time and I won't be in your way anymore. I just wanted to meet the friend who made my daughter spend more than half an hour showing us clothes, not knowing what to wear," my father decided, after a discreet pinch from my mother, "it was a pleasure to meet you, Dimitri.”

" Likewise, Mr. Ozkan " he gave me an amused look, handing me back the phone

" And Blair, remember. Don't accept anyone who treats you less than the princess of the universe.”

" Princess? " I replied the same way, receiving a curious look from Dimitri.

" You know that the queen is your mother," he winked before ending the call.

Dimitri returned to his seat as I turned off the cell phone so as not to take any more risks, and then put it back in my purse.

" I'm sorry about this.”

" It's okay, you seem close," he smiled.

" Are we close? They managed to break into my high school winter dance! ' I couldn't help but laugh at the memory.

" How'd they do that?”

" They volunteered as monitors. All my friends loved them, and if it were possible, they would have been elected king and queen of the ball.”

Dimitri laughed at this unusual story.

" But what about you? Any embarrassing stories?”

" No, I've always been a winner," he shrugged, staring at me pityingly, causing me to stare at him dumbfounded before laughing.

" Did you just call me a loser?”

He continued laughing instead of answering me.

" I was one of the most popular girls in school, Commander.”

Dimitri laughed, holding my hand across the table. I watched our hands together, again feeling anxious about the meaning of all that was happening between us.

" So, you are learning Turkish," I decided to change the subject.

" Yes, I started learning a few months ago.”

" Russian, English, Turkish.”

" Greek," he added to my surprise.

" Greek, really?”

" Yes, and you? " he asked, looking into my eyes.

" Turkish, English, Spanish, and I'm learning French.”

" French," he repeated thoughtfully.

" Oui ma chérie," I winked at him.

Time passed quickly as we ate lunch, and before we knew it we were walking side by side through the common area of the hotel.

Our arms touched sometimes because of the closeness, until Dimitri took my hand in his.

" I wish I had more time today," I commented, feeling him squeeze my hand gently.

" I wish too," he intertwined our fingers, "but in a few days we can meet again.”

I took a deep breath as I felt the warmth of his skin against mine.

" Zurich.”

" Yes, but now I have something for you," he released my hand, placing himself in front of me.

I stared at him expectantly as he held out a small paper bag he had been carrying. I picked it up, taking out the small music box he had bought in Vienna.

" It is even more beautiful in person," I outlined the details with my fingertips.

" Yes, it is," he declared without looking away from me, making me blush a little.

" It's time for me to go, I need to get ready for the flight," I tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear.

I interlaced the fingers of my left hand with his, reaching up to meet his cheek, bringing our lips together. Dimitri matched the kiss immediately, wrapping his free hand around my waist, while I felt the contact of the cool metal of a ring he wore on his little finger. My mind wandered back to the exact moment I had put him there in Amsterdam, causing all the frustrated desire I had felt that day to well up in me. Dimitri however interrupted the kiss, giving me a look that was a mixture of confusion and amusement.

" Blair.”

What am I doing?

My heart raced as I realized that I must have gotten it all wrong, he probably just wanted my friendship, and how could it be otherwise? I know it wouldn't work, we don't even live on the same continent!

" I really have to go. Thank you for the gift, Commander," I turned away, letting go of his hand before turning my back and hurrying off, taking advantage of the elevator that was stopped on the floor.

I hid my face with my hand as the elevator began to move. What was I thinking?

It doesn't matter, it already happened and anyway, it was a great kiss. At least I didn't feel like it!

I kept my cell phone off while I put on my uniform and fixed my hair, only turning it on in the cab as I made my way to the airport. There was a message and some missed calls from Dimitri on there.

"Are you okay? I think we need to talk.”

Great, he's really going to want to talk about this!

" I'm about to go into debriefing, can we talk later?"

I lied hoping I could put that conversation off by a few hours.

" Call me when you land?"

" It will be late"

"It doesn't matter.”

"Fine"

I gave up trying to argue, turning the device back off.

The flight didn't last as long as I would have liked, it was almost eight in the evening when I finally arrived at my loft, feeling good to be home.

I carried my suitcase up to the mezzanine floor before taking a shower. A few minutes later I was wearing my silk pajamas, and settled on the bed with the music box in my hands. I gently turned the crank all the way, listening to the melody that sounded through the mechanism.

Why did I do that? I don't want to ruin this friendship! It's the best thing that's happened to me in a long time.

" You can't run away forever, Blair," I muttered before reaching for my cell phone.

"Are you awake? I won't disturb you if you're not.” I wrote in the message I sent him.

I ordered Chinese food while waiting for some response. Just when I was sure it wasn't coming, a video call popped up on my cell phone screen.

Okay, Blair. Act naturally. It was no big deal, you can still fix it.

I settled on the bed, running my fingers through my hair before accepting the call.

" Hey, I thought you were asleep. It's late there, isn't it?

" It's after one o'clock, but I said I'd wait for you to call me," he offered me a restrained smile, "how was your flight?”

" It was good," I turned the crank again, hearing the melody playing once more, "I loved it.”

His smile was complete this time, he seemed pleased to see me with his gift, but inside me the shadow of that kiss still hung.

" Dimitri, about before…”

" Before when you kissed me? " he asked naturally, making me blush slightly.

" Yes that before," I bit the inside of my cheeks, "Dimitri, I'm sorry.”

" For what? If you hadn't kissed me, I would have," he shrugged.

" Really? " my smile broadened immediately.

"Blair, we are having the best days with you. I think you're gorgeous, you want to marry me. Not that it's a big surprise," he winked at me.

I couldn't help but laugh at his last sentence, he hadn't forgotten that nonsense.

" You're an idiot, Voitovich. I wouldn't marry you if you were the last man on earth," I teased him.

" We both know what you want, Blair," he returned.

" So, are we okay? " I combed my hair with my fingers, feeling his gaze follow my every move. “We are still friends, right?”

I noticed a slight note of confusion cross the Russian's face, before the intercom sounded announcing the probable arrival of my food.

" My food has arrived," I crooned, getting up from the bed before running down the stairs.

" Be careful not to fall," he ordered, ignoring my earlier question.

I let the delivery man in, before turning my attention back to Dimitri.

" So, friends... " His tone sounded more like a statement than a question.

I felt a twinge of sadness as I thought about my answer. Our situation was not favorable, so it couldn't be otherwise, it would be stupid to imagine anything else, right?

" Yes, friends who are attracted to each other and kiss sometimes," I laughed, opening the door and looking down the hall, waiting for the delivery man to arrive.

That comment seemed to take Dimitri by surprise.

" What?”

" What? You said yourself that you think I'm pretty, haven't you ever had a friend like that? " I smiled at his confused look.

" Maybe when I was a teenager," he frowned, "Are you in your pajamas in the hallway?”

" What's the matter? It's all covered up, it's not like you're just in a towel," I scoffed, "and teenage years were a good time, don't you think?”

" Blair…”

" He's here " I celebrated as I saw the delivery man exit the elevator.

" I'll let you eat, we'll talk tomorrow? " Dimitri decided to leave the previous subject aside.

" Sure, sleep well, Commander," I smiled before walking over to the delivery man, accepting the paper bag and walking back into the apartment.

I settled back on the bed with the yakissoba box in hand, feeling strange about everything that was going on with Dimitri. It was obvious that I didn't want to be just friends with him, but what could I expect? That was ridiculous, we didn't even live on the same continent. It was impossible to keep something concrete with all this distance. It was better to take care of what we had and avoid disappointments.