Thunder

5

POV George:

Eight days have passed since then. In these eight days, I went over our conversation multiple times. But the longer I think about it, the more I understand it.

Flashback

Clay twitches a little and then suddenly wakes up from his sleep. He scared me too, but I don't have time to react because I'm still struggling with his statement. What does he mean by that he has to leave me?

Doesn't he love me anymore? Does he want to end the relationship and just don't know how?

Maybe he also noticed that I am not, what he wanted. Now he wants to go back to America as soon as possible. What should I do now? Talk to him about it, ask him to speak with me?

I'm so lost in thought that I don't even notice, how Clay has recovered. For a while, he just sat motionless on the bed, his arms around his knees, his head buried between them.

He slowly lets himself fall back on the pillow, one arm still over his face. Then he open up his eyes again and looks around. He must have found that I'm no longer lying on top of him.

When he sees me, his features soften again. Again he lets himself fall back. This time he wants to pull me along. But I just pull my arm away and turn away from him.

Since I can no longer see him, I can no longer hold back the tears. My hands fall naturally over my face. A quiet, suffocating sigh leaves my mouth.

Shortly afterwards, I feel his hand resting on my shoulder. I flinch, startled. As fast as I can, I free myself from the blankets and run out of our bedroom.

"George!"

Blind with tears, I don't even know where I'm going, but a little later I close the bathroom door behind me. I slowly slide down the cold tiles.

As I suspected, a little later, I hear a knock on the door. Over and over again, he asks me to let him in. But I prefer not to see him right now. I'm too confused, too emotional, too tired to understand anything right now.

At some point, I only hear a soft, hollow knock, which is why I suspect that Clay has sat down on the floor in front of the door, with his head on the door. It was clear that he couldn't just leave me alone now.

Silence. I don't know how long I've been sitting here, but at some point the tears have dried up. I've calmed down enough that I can wash my face at least once. Clay must have heard the water rushing because now I can hear his voice again.

"George ..."

I want to avoid spending the rest of the night here in the bathroom, but I prefer not to see Clay either. I have his face in front of my eyes all the time. Suffering, scary.

But slowly I'm getting pretty cold here, which is also due to the fact, that I'm only wearing a T-shirt from Clay. I don't think I have a choice.

So, I pace carefully to the door and turn the key. As soon as I open the door, I am surrounded by two strong arms. All I can do is stand stiffly and let it happen.

However, I have to stick to myself, on the one hand, not to burst into tears again, but on the other hand, not to just give in and let myself fall into his arms.

"What happened George?"

Are you serious now? Doesn't he know what he said earlier?

"George, please talk to me."

"You have to leave me, that happened."

Slowly, his arms sink and left my body. Shock is written all over his face. But I can also discover something else there. Guilt.

So, it's true.

To have that confirmation now hurts. It's extremely painful.

"Let me explain, George."

His voice has become monotonous. I don't like it at all. Tears well up in my eyes again, and I want to turn away from him. But he holds me tight with his big, warm hands.

"Please listen to me."

I don't dare to move anymore, which is why I just stop and stare at the ground. If he let go of me now, I guarantee I would just collapse on the floor.

"Yes, it's true. I have to leave you. But not as you might think now. It's not what it looks like. Please, George, I love you."

I am still staring at the floor, trying to give some meaning to his words. He probably takes the fact that I'm silent as an opportunity to continue speaking.

"My VISA is causing problems. It was not my intention to burden or scare you off, which is why I didn't say anything. But I have to go back to Florida in three days. I don't know for how long."

"What?"

"I'm sorry, George. So much. I didn't know how to tell you. Especially since we planned to come out in two days."

Now I slowly lift my head a little and look for his eyes. They are red. He cries. I hate to see him cry.

Hesitantly, I raise my hand and move to his face. I hold his gaze. His face takes on a softer expression with my action. A few isolated tears still flow down my cheeks. Then my hand finally reached his cheek.

* CLAP *

Flashback end

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