the essence of life is love

Naamloos deel 27

"Bo, what's going on?"

"Dad!"

Before Bo can say anything to Jasmijn, Esmee jumps up against him.

"Will you play with me?"

In the room, Bo lets Esmee stand on her own feet again. He looks around, this is the first time he's at Jasmijn's house. Her taste is entirely different from when she still lived with her parents. Something that doesn't really surprise him, that was years ago. Now that she can earn well as a model, it's not strange for him to see a very fashionable interior where everything matches. Except in one corner there lie all Esmee's belongings. Her toys, drawings pinned to the wall, that's their daughter's domain.

"I thought you were at the funeral."

"I was, but I couldn't take it anymore. I had to get away. Can I stay here for a few nights?"

His ex looks at him with a look of pity and full of questions.

"What happened?"

"Nothing, nothing. No, really nothing. I just wanted to be with you guys, that's all."

Shaking her head, Jasmijn walks into the kitchen and comes back with a tray, seemingly everything for a tea ceremony.

"No coffee?"

"No, you get tea, I don't have coffee at home."

She knows that Bo would prefer something like wine or beer now. Everything in his body is screaming for it, just as there are as many cells as possible telling him not to give in. The struggle continues until he's calm, completely back in control. Chamomile tea helps best now. That and an ear that listens without judgment. After all these years of misery, she also knows her ex-boyfriend. Not that they were happy for long, not at all. It was only a month or two, then she turned out to be pregnant. That was her luck, she was pregnant, and he stayed with her as he thought was proper, more as a friend than a partner. Even though Bo drank heavily at that time, she was happy with his attention. She already had a guilty conscience back then. Of course, that night at the graduation party was an exception, and she did everything to get him into bed. If she wanted a future better than her parents' or going on to further studies, it was because of his money. How naive were those thoughts then. Strangely enough, she's later very grateful for that one night, it gave her a beautiful daughter. Something that binds them both forever. It's stronger than friendship.

Only in the evening, Esmee has gone to bed. The whole time, she looked from Bo to Jasmijn and back. Playing together with mom and dad is something she can't remember. And that Bo will stay the night is even more of a celebration.

Now that she's asleep, Bo looks at his phone. He sees that there have been only two missed calls. One from his mother and one from Seb, nothing else, no messages, no texts, no questions. It's surprising how little Kaan and Rick seem to care about him. They're just people he employs. Tomorrow he'll ask his mother to fire them, he can do without these men.

"Tell me, why aren't you just at home?"

Jasmijn's voice is calm, and she tries not to be too tense in her posture. Fortunately, Bo sees her only occasionally, so he hasn't learned her habits well in recent years.

"It was very strange, that's what it was. I didn't know that Rick and Kaan were a thing, let alone that they're married."

"Really?"

Now her voice sounds excited with joy. As soon as she looks at Bo, she startles and sits back down calmly.

"So, you didn't know either."

"Well, that they were together, you didn't?"

"No, I've been as blind as a horse. Do you know where they live then? I don't understand anything. As I think about it now, I never see them leave. There's always one of them with me when I want to go outside."

"Bo, did you not see anything? They live right next to you, there's a small apartment on the floor next to yours."

"What? Where? There's only a little office and a meeting room, that's it."

"That's it."

"What is?"

"The apartment. The office probably also contains a pantry and a bathroom. The meeting room is actually the living room, as it seems."

"Really?"

In amazement, Bo's mouth literally falls open. Only now does he try to visualize everything again, to check and think about where there might still be space. It seems like Jasmijn is right. Shaking his head, he remains seated. How blind he has been to his surroundings.