end up here ≫ marco reus

013

From: MaR1989@hotmails.de

Sent: Thursday, June 12, 2014, 07:14AM

To: ELO135@yahooh.com

Subject: RE: no subject

You're asleep still, but I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate all the things you do for me. I love you.

---

MARCO

The last few days were quite of a haze to me. And probably also to Eloise. She was by my side at all times. When I was in the hospital for check-ups and possible surgeries. But she also took care of my parents when they were here as well. I was awake most of the times, but Eloise looked tired, as if she wasn't getting enough sleep. I told her to go home, well my place, to get some sleep, but she didn't want to and she wanted to stay. She didn't feel like it was her right to stay in my house, if I wasn't there. I thought it was ridiculous and I told her that too, because it's her house just as much as it is mine.

"It's time to go home now, Marco," Eloise says as she entered the hospital room, "The doctor told me." Eloise seemed awkward around the doctors, because they would call her my wife, even though we are not married, and we're not even actually dating, but she never corrected them and just accepted it. As a 'wife' she could stay with me the majority of the time. We had time to talk a lot, and I knew so much about her now and she asked me several questions, and we even had the time to talk about Summer. She knew the story now, which felt like a weight lifted off my shoulders. Eloise was really understanding though.

By the time we reach home, Eloise helps me get inside the house. I don't want to put a lot of pressure on my leg, but I have to walk, the doctors say. So I do, but not that much, because it just hurts a lot. Eloise has been here longer than the plan was actually. Her ticket home was already 3 days ago, but she just stayed and never started about it. She was struggling with the amount of clothes she brought, but she never complained. She helps me on the couch.

"Thanks," I say to her, and kiss her, "it's time for you to get some sleep now." She raises and eyebrow and laughs.

"Is that an order?" She asks.

"It is," I laugh. She yawns. "See! You really need the sleep."

"I know. I know. I'll go now, just yell when you need me," she says as she walks to the bedroom, but she doesn't pick hers, she walks towards mine. And I smile. I lie down on the couch and close my eyes for a bit. And before I know it, it's already a few hours later.

"Marco! Dinner is ready!" I wake up as I hear Eloise yell at me, and the smell of fresh pasta fills me nose. I open my eyes and look at her, wide awake.

"You're up early," I mutter, still kind of asleep.

"Not at all, I actually slept the entire afternoon," she says. I look at the clock and I see it's almost 6, so that means it's almost dinner time. Eloise is dressed in one of my shirts, hair pulled up, "I took one of your shirts, mine have to be washed and I didn't feel like doing that yet, because it was time for dinner first. I wrapped some stuff up from the food I found it in the fridge and cabinets." I try to get up and make my way to the dinner table. I hold on to the crutches I have been given, making sure not to put too much weight on my leg. Eloise made a pasta, that tasted surprisingly well, considering most of the items had been sitting in the cabinets for longer than they should've been. I have never been a good cook, besides that, I really don't enjoy cooking. Eloise sits down opposite of me, and looks at me.

"How are you doing?" Eloise asks me and I look up from my plate.

"I could be better, you know," I mumble, "Just try to imagine, working on a project for over 2 years and then at some point, that entire project is shattered and broken and you will never be able to fix it again." Eloise looked down, unable to reply to what I had said. She can't imagine whatever I'm going through.

"I know," she just says, after stuffing her mouth full with the pasta she had just put together. The rest of the dinner was fairly quiet. Eloise tried to cheer me up, but there was no possible way that I would be happy. The other guys were already in Brazil by now, and I was stuck here, having to revalidate for the rest of the summer, and probably a part of the next season as well. All I could, was to tune in on the television and see how they'd be doing, but that was all. Eloise did the dishes, and she didn't bother asking me about it. Besides that, I had a dishwasher, so all she had to do, was to put it in and let it do its magic.

We are watching a stupid television show now, it's in German, so Eloise doesn't understand one bit, so she's playing some sort of game on her phone.

"Let's go to Brazil anyways," I blurt out. She looks up and raises an eyebrow.

"You can hardly walk, how on earth do you want to go to Brazil?" she asks me. She's right though. I don't think I'll be able to go right away, but maybe in a few weeks, if Germany is still in the championship, then I might be able to go.

"You're probably right," I say.

"Besides that, I might have to go home soon, because I'll have to hand in in my thesis and wait for the results for that, and perhaps graduate," she says, lowering her phone. With that, I get a little sad you could say. I don't know. It kind of made me feel sad. Eloise has been helping me out so well and she's been a great support. And I love her. Well she doesn't know that yet. But I love her.

"Oh," I say.

"Yeah, I'm sorry," Eloise mentions, "But you could come if you want, I might not have a house like this, but there's room for you there if you wish to come."

"I don't think I can," I say, keeping the physical therapy and doctor's visits in mind, "But if I could, I'd really want to."

"Yeah, okay," she says, and then is quiet again for a minute or two while she is looking at her phone, "But what even are we?"

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"Well, I've been here for like a week or so, probably longer, and we've been talking for ages and we kissed, for God's sake, but what are we? Like are we dating or are you just playing with me?" Eloise says, slightly annoyed that I didn't get her question.

"You're my girlfriend?" I say, "I kind of assumed that we were together."

"I don't really assume things anymore," Eloise mumbles.

"You don't want to be my girlfriend?" I ask her.

"I want nothing more than to be your girlfriend," Eloise speaks with a heavy French accent now, "But I feel like you deserve someone better, and someone that actually lives near you, and not in another country."

"After you graduate, you could live with me? You could learn German, and you could find a journalism job here as well," I suggest.

"But I've always pictured myself in Paris, and not in Dortmund, even though I love Dortmund, really, but I don't know," she says and she leans closer to me and rests her head on my chest.

"I'd move to Paris for you, and learn French for you," I whisper in her ear, "In fact, I already know a bit of French: voulez vous coucher avec moi?" I laugh at my own terrible jokes and the worst pronunciation of the French language ever. And so does Eloise.

"That's a song, that's not actually you trying to speak French, mon ami," she laughs, "Try again."

"Ehm okay, wait," I say and then is when I say it: "Je t'aime."