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Finally, I wipe the walls and floor with a disinfectant solution. After I have thrown the used mop into the container for contaminated cleaning cloths, I clamp the box under my arm so that I can immediately put the contents into the washing machine.
On the way to the technical room, I collect the containers from the other tattoo compartments, stuff everything into the drum, and start the machine with disinfectant detergent and a hot wash program.
Just as I have closed the door behind me, the doorbell resounds overloudly through the quiet and deserted building.
“I’m coming!” I shout out of habit as I dash back to the entryway.
Outside the door stands a cheerfully smiling man in his mid-fifties with a Santa hat perched at an angle on his bald head. “Merry Christmas and bon appétit,” he wishes, handing me a paper bag withFarmer’s Country Innprinted on it. “That’ll be €54.50.”
I dig the three twenties out of my pants pocket, which I had ready. “Keep the change. And Merry Christmas!”
He waves briefly, then trudges through the incipient drizzle to his car.
Typical Christmas weather. The realization ofDreaming of a White Christmasis even rarer in the cauldron where the River Elz flows into the River Neckar than hitting the lottery. I lock up, head for the stairs, and extinguish the lights on the ground floor before running upstairs.
Once in my apartment, I unpack the food I ordered:
I put the roast venison in wild cranberry sauce with spaetzle and buttered vegetables in the oven on my kitchen counter to keep warm, and I put the accompanying salad and the cinnamon parfait with red wine plums in the refrigerator.
Then I turn to the beef broth with bone marrow dumplings and royale.
“Enjoy your meal!” I wish myself, and for a moment I doubt my decision to have the food delivered.Should I have gone to the restaurant and helped myself to the Christmas buffet after all?On the other hand, it’s mainly couples and families who will be dining there; as a single guest, I would feel my loneliness even more strongly.
To dispel my gloomy thoughts, I dip my spoon into the soup and taste it.
It is done excellently. No comparison to what Bella or her predecessors served me for the feast.Nevertheless, on New Year’s Eve, I’m going out. I’m going to really let it rip. And, who knows, maybe I’ll even drag a girl off?
To banish the popping of Celine’s face in my mind’s eye, I grab my phone and check my messages for the contact of today’s client.
After she had such an obvious interest in me, she shouldn’t turn down an invitation…
Since I can’t think of a witty text, I first devote myself to my Christmas menu, consuming everything except the salad and the red wine plums with the ice cream.
After that, I quickly clear the table. There is no need to wash up because the disposable bowls are emptied into the bucket for the bag for the collection of recyclable waste. I put the lettuce and plums in the refrigerator.Maybe I’ll work up an appetite for a midnight snack?I wipe down the table, turn off the light in the kitchenette, and walk over to the sofa.
With a groan of comfort, I sink down onto the cushion and turn on the TV. To celebrate, I’m going to watch all the episodes ofThe ExpanseonNetflix. I’ve saved them, especially for today.
When I come to, I am briefly disoriented.
Scenes fromMCRN Tachiare flickering on the TV, but Holden and his team suddenly call itRocinante.
After some back-and-forth switching with the remote, I realize that I’ve missed at least three episodes.Great. What now? Start all over again? Scroll through until I find the point where I dozed off?
With a yawn that nearly dislocates my jaw, I decide to put the series off. For example, until tomorrow and the day after. I have nothing else to do on the holidays anyway.
I turn off the TV, get up, and suddenly feel wide awake.
Awesome. Couldn’t be going better. Now what?
Since my neck still hurts after the tattoo marathon today, I decide to relax under the hot spray of the shower first.
As I begin to undress, the buzz of my cell phone alerts me to the arrival of a message.
Grateful for the distraction, I grab the device and unlock the display.
A speech bubble from Bella pops up in Messenger:Feliz Natal, Philly!followed by a selfie of her and Jorge under palm trees.
Seeing my ex so happy together with the Brazilian artist confirms to me that the decision to break up with her was the right one.Merry Christmas, you two beauties, I type back.
