Little Blue World: Installment #2

Chapter 6

Nathaniel Banter got off the plane. He fixed his glasses, and was extraordinarily confused.

He checked his notes from the phone call earlier. They said that someone would be there to pick him up, and he would most certainly recognise them.

Right. Trust the voice on the phone. He thought.

A strange man on the telephone had called him up and told him that, "Rebecca Harding is requesting your presence. Perhaps you should recognise me though, Benedict Cumberbrunch."

Of course, at the time Nathaniel had rolled his eyes, dismissing the man. But then he started describing Rebecca perfectly.

He shouldn't had trusted the voice though. For all he knows this could be a serial killer. He slapped his forehead hard.

He only trusted the voice because of Rebecca. Whoever they were, they knew who she was. That means she was either in trouble or was the trouble. Or, the extraordinarily low chance, she just wanted to see him. Of course, this is what he kept envisioning on the way over. A happy, cheery, and over dramatic reunion. She would run to him, looking as youthful as she had at thirteen, and he would hug her and spin her around.

Of course, he doubted that she would remain thirteen. Chances were she looks the like the twenty three old she was, just like he looked like the twenty five year old he was. Of course, the voice on the telephone had warned to not get to close to Rebecca because of a man who he only remembered as "insert Russian name here."

Nathaniel spun around with his bag, looking for prophetical youthful Rebecca, but figured he looked like an idiot, and simply stopped. He looked fairly simple minded though not seeming as though he were looking for someone. But how would the mysterious person see him then.

He flipped his hair again.

"You flipped your hair. Again," he heard.

He spun around and saw Rebecca, in the flesh.

She was close enough to prophetical. Considering he hadn't seen her in 6 years. Closer to 7. Despite they lived right across a border, neither one of them had bothered, even since she moved to England.

He immediately shook hands with her.

"Shaking hands?" she asked, jokingly.

"Someone told me not to hug you because of a Russian man?" Nathaniel asked.

"Oh!" she said laughing. "Vyacheslav Dvoynev. He's my significant other. He doesn't matter at the moment," she said giving Nathaniel a hug. Very quick though.

"So you have a significant other?" Nathaniel asked as Rebecca led him out.

"Russian and stuff," she said.

"Any chance I can meet this Vicodinslav Divine?" Nathaniel asked, struggling with the name much more than anyone else had. Nathaniel made John Travolta and the Idina Menzel Incident look good.

"I have a habit of turning up," he said, his deep Russian accent beaming to Nathaniel.

"What?" He asked, possibly just to hear the accent again.

"I have a habit of turning up. Vyacheslav Dvoynev," he said introducing himself.

"Nathaniel Banter," he greeted.

"I'm sort of hard to understand. I've got a Russian accent, with French, and British influence. If you ever can't understand me, Mr. Banter, don't hesitate to ask again," Vyacheslav said slowly, over articulating each word.

"Or ask me," Rebecca added. "So...do you have someone special?"

"I had someone in mind, but unfortunately she's taken," Nathaniel said, awkwardly.

Vyacheslav cleared his throat anxiously. "Let's get going," he said.

"Any chance you'll tell me who the unlucky woman was?" Rebecca asked Nathaniel.

"Maybe. Later, perhaps. On the other hand, there's another woman catching my eye. I didn't know she was in a relationship until recently. She says it's serious, but I'm hoping it's not," He said, flipping his hair.

"Ooh. Sha la la. Any other crushes? Or drama I can potentially enjoy...or handle?" she asked.

"One more. My girlfriend. Whose cheating on me. With a Canadian model. In Bora Bora," he said.

"Someone is cheating on you?" Rebecca asked upset. "How long? Details! Story!"

"We were together for two years. She's been cheating for six months. I've known for a week or two," he said.

"Her name! Everything! Why are you still with her?" Rebecca demanded.

"I don't have anyone else," he said.

"But I'm sure that those crushes like you back," she told him, confidently.

"It's nice that you think so, but honestly, I'm not so sure," He said, flipping his hair, once again.

"I am though," she assured him.

He laughed an earnest laugh, because he was positive that she had no idea.

Vyacheslav quickly interrupted the conversation, his jealousy taking over. "I'm sure, darling, that you have no idea," he said going in to kiss Rebecca's forehead.

She quickly pushed his head away. "Absolutely not. Completely unromantic," She scolded.

Nathaniel laughed, as Vyacheslav sighed.

Vyacheslav and Rebecca hadn't kissed in their 9 months of being together. Just as a reminder, their not middle schoolers. Considering that most people their ages kiss on first dates, they were far behind their curve. Also, Vyacheslav was considering marrying her? And yet they hadn't kissed?

Their relationship was entirely intelligence based. Everything they did was entirely based on their smarts, combined or separately. So they never wanted to assure each other of their relationship physically. There was no need to.

And...maybe...possibly...the fact that Vyacheslav wasn't allowed to kiss until he was married. His already traditional family had gone the extra step, and as part of a familial tradition, he wasn't allowed to kiss until he was married.

It had embarrassed him throughout school. A few kids were already married in high school. As a reminder, he did grow up in the Russian country side. Of course, Vyacheslav did have a few crushes, and a few girlfriends. At one point he did almost get married to one of them...but regardless he hadn't been as involved in relationships as most kids. Vyacheslav had been on the intelligent side of his village, so while most kids were focussing on possibly owning a bakery, Vyacheslav had always hoped to go to Sorbonne, or Oxford, or Yale, or...any college not in Russia.

But there had been Lidiya. She had almost made him reconsider. Lidiya had been his crush for years, until she finally became his high school sweet heart. Lidiya had been a short, brunette woman. Rebecca reminded him of her. But Lidiya had died from a pneumonia, Vyacheslav's senior year.

May I remind you that the Russian education system is far different from the American, and even the British. These are mere grade level equivalents (or the closest they can come).

However, Lidiya had almost made him become one of the married men. He had fallen for Lidiya, and hard.

Vyacheslav and Lidiya had been the schools favorite couple, and had fallen in love.