“You are too.”
She laughed. “We’re agreed then.”
“Will you stay?”
Rona swallowed, as if contemplating her answer. “Actually, I think I might go back to my room if that’s okay?”
“That’s totally okay.” I respected her choice, even though I would have preferred her to stay. Part of me felt she might be playing a little hard to get, and I was here for it. I preferred it when a woman didn’t throw herself at me completely right in the beginning. “Thank you for tonight. I really loved spending this time with you.”
Rona smiled. “Thankyoufor being my Greek goddess. I’ll see you in the morning.”
She left, quietly, softly clicking the door shut behind her.
I lay on my bed smiling for the longest time.
~ 10 ~
Rona
“How was your holiday?” Oscar, all six-foot two of him said while clasping his hands and stretching up to the ceiling, yawning.
I’d got back from Greece last week. Oscar was joining me in the studio today to meet Flavia Milan, one of the world’s hottest and up and coming young stars. He was a big fan of Flavia’s too and I wanted her to have a fun time in the studio. Oscar was fun, stylish, edgy, and super gay. Things I was not, well, except for the gay part.
“Um…”
“Did your set not go well?” He looked at me quizzically now.
I checked my watch. Flavia would be here soon. “No, my set went well. It was amazing.”
He raised both eyebrows as if waiting for me to expand. “Did you meet someone?”
I must have blushed because he smiled as if having worked it out.
“Who is she?” He smirked.
The buzzer went. “She’s here.” I stood, not knowing how to stand so as not to look too keen.
“Your new girlfriend?”
“She’s not my girlfriend. It’s Flavia.”
“So you did sleep with someone.”
“No comment.”
“We’ll come back to this. Your new star is early. I like her already.”
This was a double-edged comment. One of our ongoing tensions as friends was my lateness. Oscar was always early and found late people rude. He made an exception with me because he had a soft spot for me and I made him laugh. That and we’d been close friends since forever. It wasn’t like I was always late, but I did struggle with it, even now. Oscar had experienced some of my worst lateness incidents and would carry his grievances forever, most likely, even if I did magically start being able to see time properly.
Ignoring his comment, I quickly checked my face in the mirror and fixed my hair. Flavia would be one of the most heterosexual femme cover girl types I’d ever worked with. I tended to feel quite judged by women like that.
“She’s going to love you,” Oscar said, cool as anything with his curly hair styled into a mullet and carrying it off.
Flavia Milan sailed into the studio wearing an oversized purple hat and extra-large sunglasses. Her raincoat made her look more mature for a twenty-one-year-old. Scruffy Vans trainers peeked out underneath hugely baggy jeans.
Oscar and I met her in the entrance hall to the humble studio in a side-street off Seven Sisters Road.
“I’m so pleased to meet you,” I said, going in for a hug even though we’d never met in person before. In a way, it felt like I knew her from her music, which was my favourite way of connecting with people.
