Ready for it? (Joost Klein)

12

"Wha..."

He doesn't wait for my response. He rests one hand on my hip and the other on my cheek.

He kisses me.

His lips feel soft and he smells good.

As soon as he notices me kissing him back, he kisses me even harder. It is as if we are alone in the room.

He pushes my back against the wall but doesn't let go of me.

After a few seconds, we are both out of breath. He rests his head against mine. "Why are there no women like you in the Netherlands?"

I smile. "Joost..." 

"No. Don't talk. Let tonight be perfect."

I nod and take his hand. "I want you to show me Amsterdam."

Before we go outside, he gets 2 glasses of water. "Drink this. I want the alcohol to go out of our system. I want the assurance that you want this, sober. Not the drunk version of you."

We each drink a glass of water and walk out. He takes my hand and pulls me with him.

"Tell me if you want to go back to your hotel, okay? If you're tired or cold, tell me." He slaps his arm around me.

"I will. Thank you."

He takes me to a long bridge over water. Lights from buildings and lampposts shine on both sides of the river. The view is very beautiful.

Joost and I sit down on the stone edge of the bridge.

"It's so beautiful here. Do you come to Amsterdam often?"

Joost shakes his head. "Not really, only when I have to be here for work."

"Who would have thought we'd be sitting here after the first day we saw each other."

Joost laughs.

He regularly looks up at the dark sky. "What are you looking at?", I ask.

He looks at me. "I think my parents would be happy if they could see me now." I put my hand on his but let him continue. 

"My mom would be proud that I'm sitting here with a nice girl."

"Oh Joost." I don't know what to say or do. "I'm sorry."

"I miss them so much."

I give him a hug. "They are proud of you. With everything you do."

He tries to smile. "Thank you. You're one of the few I can talk to about them."

He stands up, takes me by the hips and straightens me up, too. "Now it's time for something fun."

A moment later, we're standing beside an electric scooter. "I'm going to show you the city while we ride this."

He gets on. I sit down behind him. "Do you know how to drive this thing?"

He ignores my question and turns on the motor. "Hold on tight!"

I giggel. "That won't be a problem." I wrap my arms around him.

"You're so cute."

Before I can even say anything, he hits the gas pedal. We drive through the streets of Amsterdam. He shows me beautiful buildings and parks. But I enjoy holding him the most.

Being with him makes me feel so at ease. It's exactly like I have no more worries when I'm with him.

We drive around for a while before stopping at a fast food place. "Didn't you once say in an interview that it's a regular ritual to eat fast food the night before you perform?"

We step off the scooter. "I can't believe you remember that."

He winks and takes me inside.

There we order fries and 2 hamburgers. We sit down at one of the tables. "How much was it?" I grab my wallet.

"No, it's fine. My treat."

He sees the look on my face. "If you really want to pay, you can pay me back in other ways."

I almost choke on my water which I then drink.

He looks at me with a grin.

"You wish."

Joost nods. "True."

I laugh and he takes my hand. "I love to make you laugh." 

After dinner we decide to go back to the hotel.

"I don't want you to leave. Can't you sleep somewhere here?", I ask. Joost caresses my cheek.

"I haven't booked a room, honey. But I promise you're going to see me tomorrow. At the pre-party but also before."

It feels bad to say goodbye to him already. How is he even going to go home? And even before I realize it, I've asked my question.

"Do you want to sleep in my room together?"