Paint the town red

Chapter XXXV

The weekend flew by almost unnoticed, because I couldn't wait for Liam to return to Monaco, if he returns at all. Anyway, my head was full of how I should behave when I saw him. Of course, if I pin him to the wall and just press him with facts, he'll deny everything. And if I start talking in hints, then he'll understand everything anyway, because he is good at psychology, and I have no idea how to stand up against his tricks. But what if he returns to Monaco but doesn't show up at the station? What if he decides to finish the job and only then returns? Should I be on the lookout again for Max and Yuki's safety?

On Saturday, Yuki taught me how to cook some dish, the name of which I successfully forgot. I just remember that I was freaking out when I couldn't catch a shrimp in a hot pan with tongs, and Yuki was standing next to me and just laughing like crazy. It was hard for me to focus on cooking when my mind wasn't on that at all. I was able to switch my attention to something unrelated to work only in the evening, when Max came to visit us. While I was in the kitchen, Yuki called him and invited him to dinner so that he'd be among the first to taste my first piece of culinary art. Although, to be honest, I'd call it a failure of universal scale.

When I finished cooking, I went to my room for a while, and when I returned, Max rang the doorbell, and I went to open it while Yuki was putting on the table. When my boyfriend and I came to the kitchen, I was extremely surprised to see a dish on the plates, and it looked like as if it had just been brought from the restaurant. I looked at Yuki in surprise, but he just smiled encouragingly and told us to take our places at the table.

Max was delighted with dinner and constantly praised both the food and my efforts. I was embarrassed by this, because I knew perfectly well that Yuki had literally re-cooked what he taught me today. I'm not a good student, that's for sure.

When we were clearing the table and Max went to the bathroom, I thanked Yuki for helping me out so much.

"Well, that's what friends are for, right?"

"Yes, you're right."

"Especially since it's the least I can do for you. After all, I've been living with you since the day..."

Yuki immediately fell silent and stopped washing the dishes, and I nodded silently, wiped my hands and gently hugged him by the shoulders.

"I miss him so much sometimes."

He barely said it, and I sighed heavily and nodded again. I perfectly understand his feelings, because Pierre was very close to me. Maybe not in the same way that he and Yuki were close, but still we were friends since childhood, so Pierre's death had a strong impact on both me and my neighbor.

We stood there in silence until Max returned to the kitchen and coughed, drawing our attention to himself. I immediately let go of Yuki, who shook his head and wiped his cheeks with his sleeve. I told my neighbor that we'd be waiting for him in the living room to watch a movie together, and I took Max by the hand and led him out of the kitchen. Maybe I was imagining it, but it was like Max was a little upset with what he saw, but he was trying not to show off.

When all three of us were already in the living room, we quickly found a movie for the evening - my neighbor had been wanting to watch "The Hangover" for a long time, so we decided to watch it. Max and I have seen it before, but we still agreed to watch it again, because the comedy is really good, although it is full of silly and cliché moments. But that's what comedy is about, right?

"Which one do you think you're most like?"

"Hmm, Charles is exactly like Alan - quiet, but he can do something that'll make your memory go away."

"What makes you think that?"

"Well, one Frenchman told me how you were mixing cocktails on his b-day, and in the morning you woke up on the other side of town, with Hawaiian beads and funny glasses on. And the coolest thing is that neither you nor Pierre remembered how you got there at all."