It's difficult to find the way everything fits into place once it's broken, even if a surgeon gives you a pretty significant first push. Alexia's recovery is progressing with hope. Her knee is responding well to rehabilitation, but she doesn't feel...
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Alexia's POV
"It's a beautiful dream," I told her.
"It's sad," she replied, taking the last sip from her fifth glass. "Normal people dream of exciting things like winning a Nobel Prize, becoming the president of the country, a super spy, or simply being the best at what you love most in the world." She fixed her gaze on me during that last part.
"Why are you looking at me? My dream is to discover immortality. Only for dogs, they are the only ones that deserve it" I said, and Mía rolled her eyes. I laughed and then responded more seriously, "My dream isn't exciting. A large percentage of boys and girls in this country consider it at least once in their lives."
"It must have been tough," she commented. "To desire something so strongly that so many people want and fighting so hard and against so many people for making it a reality".
I swallowed. My brain had forgotten to do it, getting lost in her words, and it was accumulating at the back of my mouth. How could she choose her words so well?
"I like yours," I said.
"Wanting to work in what you studied is the least original thing in the world. It should be taken for granted," she scoffed.
"To me, it seems pure and genuine. It has no dark sides. Just a person and a vocation and a passion so great that it doesn't need to chase other people's wild dreams to feel like it has something unattainable that will never disappoint. It's brave not to be afraid of that."
"I'm very clear about it," she smiled sincerely. "And on top of that, my first patient has been fucking Alexia Putellas."
We shared a knowing glance and a few seconds of silence with two twisted but genuine smiles on our faces. We had already had about five drinks each, and our bodies weren't made of stone. The floor of the bar was slightly moving under me, and the left hand that I conveniently used to anchor myself to reality connected me with gravity from the beginning of the game.
"Okey, my turn!" I exclaimed.
"Shoot," she replied, pointing at me with two fingers and pretending to aim through a sight on her thumb.
"Was the guy the other day your boyfriend?"
I knew the question surprised her because she wasn't good at hiding her reactions to begin with, and with alcohol in her system, it was even worse. Her face was so expressive that sometimes I thought she could be a distant cousin of Emma Clarke.
"Yes, his name is Marc," she answered, taking another sip of the new drink she had poured for herself.
I nodded several times, preventing her from thinking that the information had slightly discouraged me.
"Have you been together for a long time?"
"Hey," Mía looked at me amused and moved her index finger back and forth in front of my face, "it's my turn now. Who do you love the most on the team?"
I widened my eyes at her question.
"You can't ask me that!" I complained.
"I just did," she shrugged. "And you have to answer."
I covered my eyes with both hands and cursed under my breath.
"Mapi."
She laughed gracefully. I shook my head. This girl...
"It wasn't that difficult," I took a sip from my glass, and she stared at me. She was visibly more affected than I was. Alcohol was affecting my vision, but she seemed lost in her own thoughts. "Three years."
"What?" I furrowed my brow.
"We've been together for three years," she said.
"You didn't let me ask," I smiled mischievously. "I've changed my mind."
"That's not fair!" she complained, hitting my arm.
I was surprised by her sudden closeness. She hadn't realized how much she had to approach me to hit me without missing. Her eyes connected with mine. They were bright, and her eyelids were drooping. She didn't move away, even though I kept looking at her, pretending not to have noticed how close we were.
"Why do you know my name? I've never told you," she said, furrowing her brows, analyzing my response without any intention of hiding.
And perhaps because of how close she was, especially because she hadn't moved away, I decided not to lie, not to take advantage of a lucidity she didn't have and that would easily get me out of the situation.
"Mapi told me," I said.
"Did you ask her?"
"Yes, I asked her."
Silence again. She didn't move away, and neither did I.
"Why?" she asked after a few seconds.
"It's my turn," I said patiently. She nodded and moistened her lips. She was really drunk. It was probably a good idea to go home. "It's three in the morning."
"Yes," she whispered. "We should go."
I let myself be the one to break our closeness. I grabbed the glasses from the bar and put them in the dishwasher. She whispered a thank you. She stood up and searched for her jacket in the storage room.
We walked to the entrance, and I waited for Mía to throw the key and lower the metal barrier that protected the bar's entrance from the street. We looked at each other again, and she looked at me with embarrassment.
"Can I give you a ride home?" I asked her.
"You can't drive," she laughed.
"We can share a taxi," I insisted. I wanted to stretch this night as much as I could. I didn't know how long it would take to repeat, and beside her, I felt incredible. "Where do you live?"
She took a step toward me.
"No, no. It's my turn," I laughed. "Are you doing this again?"
"Comingto the bar?" I asked, laughing. If she only knew.
"To talk to me like this."
I wanted to say yes, but would I actually do it? Would Mía lose the excitement of the moment and leave only the strangeness and discomfort of the closeness she had with me when she saw me as a normal person and not Alexia Putellas?
"I don't know," I honestly replied.
She nodded silently, without wiping away the smile, but with sadness in her eyes. I didn't know what to say. She started walking towards a taxi at the opposite stop.
"Then maybe next time I'll tell you where I live," she said. I put my hands in my pockets and, once I saw her open the car door, I turned around. "Oh, and Alexia," I turned back to her teasing smile, "making dogs immortal is a horrible dream. All their humans would die and they would suffer too much. Only a monster would make that happen"
Leaving me there, she winked, closed the door, and a few seconds later, the white car merged into the traffic on the street.
**********
Mía needs to reflect a little on those strange nerves she only gets with Alexia. It must be because she's a big fan. 🤦🏼♀️
But after she reflects a bit, exciting things are coming, especially progress in their relationship.
