The other side: The Assessment

Chapter 5: You've got beauty and brains

Isabella's POV:

After the day I had with Niccolò, all I wanted was to take a shower in my room and go through the questionnaires. From the stack of papers lying on my bedside table, I knew I would need at least two hours to go over them all.

I sighed, went into the bathroom, and did a thorough shower. I washed my hair and moisturised it, I exfoliated my skin and put lotion on it. It was my way of procrastinating. Once I was feeling refreshed, I took my pen, put on some mellow music, and started circling the responses that would describe me the most accurately. Samantha found me in the same position two hours later while I was in the middle of the last questionnaire.

"Oh, great, you almost finished them. So that means you can come with me to this club in the centre," she enthusiastically stepped into my room and took a seat next to the window.

"Huh, what club?" I asked in confusion.

She shrugged, "I don't know. But Linda from Australia said it's great and we're all going. Me, Rose, Matt, Linda and now you."

I wasn't feeling like going out, "I don't know, tomorrow we'll have to be up bright and early."

"Oh, boohoo," she rolled her eyes while she put her red fingernail on her chin so she could emphasise her next words, "Come on, Isa. It will be fun. You've finished with the questionnaire, and for God's sake, we're in Milan. We should do something fun. Something exciting."

"Fine," I caved because I was intrigued by this club. "Let me just finish this last bit, and then I'll change."

"Okay, knock on my door when you're ready," she said before leaving me to get ready. I finished the last page of questions while thinking about what I was going to wear. I decided on a red silky dress that was a gift from my roommates, who all thought I should go out more. When they gave me the dress, it was probably in mockery. However, I packed it for Milan just in case, in case of what I didn't know. But I had a hunch it would come in handy. I guess I wasn't wrong.

I put on black kitten-heel sandals and a matching black shoulder bag, where I stashed my phone and a small wallet. I wouldn't need that much money or a card, I thought to myself. Those shoulder bags were so small that I felt like an architect trying to find the space in them.

All in all, it took me half an hour. My brown hair had already dried up from the shower, and it fell down my shoulders in small waves, like I was used to. I decided to keep my makeup minimal because I expected to be sweaty by the end of the night.

Going into Samantha's room, I didn't know what to expect. However, Rose and Linda were already there. One was a student from New York, while the other came from Germany, respectively.

We met Matt in the lobby. He was a little bit boyish with his red hair and freckles scattered across his cheeks and nose. Then, we made our way downtown. Matt had decided to rent a car for the two weeks of his stay here so he could explore the vicinity of Milan. And his car was extremely convenient in times like this. It was a big Jeep-like car, so there was enough space for all of us.

The car ride was relatively short, and we soon found ourselves in front of a newly opened club, Marcelo. Matt seemed to know the bouncers as he went first, with us following him close behind. Once inside, I gasped, it was beautiful. I wasn't into the whole nightlife in London, but even I had to admit that the club was elegantly furnished.

The ceiling was covered with little chandeliers that reflected the lights coming from different parts of the walls. The bar was situated against the left side. Behind the bar, there was a giant mirror covering the whole wall except for the parts where the shelves with liquor popped up. The bar and the stools were made of some light wood that paired beautifully with the whites of the chandeliers and lights.