Madrid English Version

Chapter 27

The journey back to the capital was a silent one, with Aria overwhelmed by emotion and Carlos still angry at the family man's comments. Their hands were tied, as always, from start to finish. The pilot waited for the engineer to return to the safety of her apartment before entering his own. However, the brunette realized that her keys were not in her bag, but in her apartment. The only person with the spare keys was Alba. Aria tried to call her, but she didn't answer - she must still be at the Christmas table.

- Is everything all right, Aria? asked Carlos when he saw her pick up the phone and call the Italian lady.

- I forgot my keys inside and I can't open the door from the outside, she replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

- Oh, you want to come sleep over? he murmured.

- No, don't worry. I'll call Alba and get the spare keys.

- Don't bother her, she's probably with her family. Come to the house, there are two bedrooms, he said, turning his gaze to her door, accentuating his words.

- Oh, but I don't have any pyjamas, or make-up remover and...and... Added she, not knowing how to react.

- But don't worry. I can lend you some clothes, my sisters left some last time, and there's some make-up remover too, he suggested, trying as hard as he could to convince her.

- Are you sure you don't mind? I can always get a hotel room.

- No, there's no way you're going to sleep in a seedy hotel, come on. You know as well as I do that I'm not going anywhere until you come inside. he asserted, in a firm tone, making the Spaniard understand that she had no choice.

- Thank you Carlos, thank you very much, she replied simply, entering the apartment, embarrassed to be invading her neighbor's home.

Aria entered the pilot's apartment, and waited in the living room, like a child, for him to arrive. He pointed her in the direction of the bathroom, where there were products to remove her make-up. Before she entered the room, Carlos led her into his bedroom, and opened his closet so the brunette could choose her pyjamas from among his and her sisters' clothes. Aria scanned the shelves for a few minutes, thinking about what to take. The pilot's closet was very well organized. Every item of clothing had its own place, everything was neatly folded and nothing was sticking out. It was so tidy that Aria didn't dare disturb the order. Nevertheless, Carlos noticed her and assured her that she could throw everything on the floor if she wanted. As always, she smiled at him and chose a Lando sweater, T-shirt and jogging suit.

The engineer went off to shower, savoring the feel of the warm water running down her body. Aria stayed in the room for twenty minutes. Once the lock was closed, she scanned the room to see a bathtub, the shower in a corner of the room, and, next to the double basin, a small cupboard, which she opened and saw: towels of all sizes, bathrobes, washcloths...

Before entering the shower cubicle, Aria opened the drawer under the sink and found cotton pads and make-up remover, just as he had told her. Once she'd finished showering, she wrapped herself in the towel, which was far too big for her, and put on the pilot's clothes, which were, as she'd expected, far too big. Yet she had never felt so comfortable in clothes. The brunette delicately sniffed the collar of the sweater, which gave off her scent, which she cherished even more.

The Spaniard stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the pilot emerge from a room at the same time as her, his wet hair dripping drops of water onto his large white T-shirt. They stood motionless in the narrow corridor for a few moments, before Carlos invited the engineer into his kitchen with the help of his arm.

Having left the family dinner early in the evening, Carlos set to work in the kitchen, promising himself to cook for the brunette at any cost. He refused to let her go to bed hungry. Now that he was aware of her aversion to peppers, he was tempted to cook some. He figured he could confirm Alba's theory that she would feel more than friendship towards him. The dark-haired man took out what he needed from his cupboards and the fridge, turned on the speaker on his worktop and launched a playlist of Lana Del Rey to match the mood of the evening. Aria watched him perform all his actions, taking a seat at one of the counter stools.

She watched him break a few eggs into a bowl, mix them with a fork, pour them into a frying pan and add salt, pepper and paprika. With his back to Spanish, he cut half a bell pepper into small pieces and added them to the mixture. But he was careful to leave some of the scrambled eggs plain. Carlos took two plates and divided the eggs into two parts, leaving the plain part in the pan. He added a slice of wholemeal bread, which he had previously toasted, and placed the two plates in front of and beside Aria.

Carlos watched the Spaniard's reaction to the peppers, and to his surprise, she smiled and took the dish he'd made into her mouth.

- Oh, my God, I've never eaten eggs this good, she said, tasting the dish.

- Thank you for that. Are you okay with peppers? he asked softly, his eyes riveted to his plate, while the engineer's were riveted to his face.

- What do you mean? she retorted, surprised by his unexpected question.

- I've heard you don't like it, he enunciated, happy to see that despite her deep-seated hatred of the vegetable, she was eating it all the same.

- Who... who told you that?

- Alba.

- Oh, um, it's true that it's not my favorite food, but I like it, lied the brunette, not wanting to offend the pilot.

- Aria, I know you hate it, there's a slice without peppers left in the pan, do you want it? he asked, seeking her gaze. Aria nodded, and Carlos took her plate, slid her slice out and stood up to give her the plain eggs.

- Thank you, Carlos, for cooking and for the plain eggs.

- You're welcome, you deserve it, he said, smiling gently.

Once dinner was over, Carlos asked Aria if she preferred the guest room or her own. She chose the guest room. She didn't want to take advantage of his kindness, for he had put her up, lent her clothes, his bathroom and cooked for her. They embraced, saying good night, before entering their respective rooms, on opposite sides of the corridor. Carlos made sure that Aria had entered his room before entering hers, sad not to feel the brunette's presence in his room.

Thirty minutes passed and neither Spaniard could get to sleep. An idea crossed Aria's mind and she got up to carry it out, but immediately sat down again, hesitating. She repeated this action a few times before deciding to do it. Aria tiptoed through the small corridor, knocking gently on the pilot's door, who told her to come in. She opened the door, closed it and lifted the dark-haired man's comforter, before slipping in and facing him.

- I don't mind you being in my bed at all, on the contrary, but is there a problem? Were the sheets stained or torn? he asked softly, gradually moving closer to the engineer.

- There's a big bed and it was cold in there, she replied in a soft voice.

- Next time I'll buy a bed three times as big, to make sure you come and take refuge in mine, he announced, which made the brunette laugh.

Aria brought her body even closer to the pilot than it already was and brushed her small hand against his beard.

- You're beautiful.

- You're even more beautiful.

- Thank you, Carlos.

Carlos placed his hand on the brunette's hip and pressed his body to hers, before doing the same with their lips. They repeated the action for several minutes, before both falling into Morpheus' arms, while still in each other's arms.