I Know I Shouldn't But I Just Can't Stop Myself

Welcome to Amsterdam

Chapter 16
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2 weeks later...

Crystal-Violet
It was 2 days before the trip and I was on the phone with my mom, telling her that I'm heading to Amsterdam, while packing some items in my suitcase.
"That's great, honey! I know you've wanted to go there for a while." My mom said after I told her the news. She was right, going to Amsterdam was on my bucket list, along with some other places in the world.

I'm so glad Martin gave me the opportunity to go on this trip.

"When is your flight?" Mom asked.
"Friday, two days from now."
"Well I hope you have lots of fun. Call me when you get there so I know that you're safe."
"Of course I will." I pack another fancy dress into my suitcase.
"Okay, I love you sweetheart."
"I love you too, Mommy. Tell Daddy I said hi and give him a kiss for me."
"I will. Bye, my love. Have a safe flight."
"Thank you, love you, miss you."
"Love you and miss you more."

After we ended the phone call, I packed some more things into my suitcase.

Martin
Two days. Two days until I'm with Crystal, flying to my hometown. I'm so excited, I can't wait. I finished packing for the day and I collapsed on the studio couch. I pull out my phone and snapped a selfie. I posted it on Instagram with the caption:
   "Amsterdam in two days. Can't wait!"

Once the picture was posted, I saw the likes instantly sky rocket, along with the comments. As I closed out the app, I got the most random idea that I should call Crystal to come over. I start weighing my options.

Should I? Should I not? You know what, fuck it. YOLO.

I found the girl's contact and pressed the call button before I could hesitate, trying to ignore  agonizing feeling as the phone  rings. Her sweet voice then replaced the agonizing ring, and I instantly smile.

"Hi, Martin." When she says my name, I relax automatically. Since it was a little late, her voice showed how tired she was.
"Hey, do you mind if I come over?
"No, I don't mind. But why?"
"I-I just..I um..."
"What?"
"I just wanna see you." I admit.
"Awww Martin, really?"

I nodded, then realized that she couldn't see me.

"Yeah, since you didn't come in for work today." She took the day off to rest a little before the trip.
"Im down."
"Alright, I already have your address from your application."
"Okay, I'll see you soon."
"Okay, bye."

I reach there in roughly twenty five minutes. I think it would've been a longer drive if it wasn't for how late it was, 11:30 pm to be exact. Traffic isn't really heavy at this time of night. I walk up to Crystal's door, my beating really fast for some odd reason. I swallow my pride once again and knocked on the door. Not long after, she answers the door. She's wearing pj shorts and a plain white tank top that exposes a sliver of her stomach, with her hair tied up in a messy bun. Even then, I'm blown away by how beautiful she looks.

"Hey." I say, just above a whisper. She smiles and gestures me inside.

➕✖️

Crystal-Violet
Martin and I just boarded the plane and I seem to become increasingly excited with every passing minute. I have the window seat and Martin has the middle seat. To my knowledge, no one should be in the isle seat, so we have a whole row to ourselves. Martin and I just sat down when the pilot came over the intercom to announce his opening speech.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen, thank you for choosing our airline today. We hope we satisfy you enough today. The time is currently 7:15 am. We will be flying to Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The estimated time will be 4 hours and 5 minutes. As for the weather, partly cloudy, but no rain on the radar. For safety reasons, the flight attendants will be demonstrating emergency evacuations and other safety procedures. Once again, thank you for choosing our airline and we hope to have a smooth, safe flight to Amsterdam.

Once the pilot made it clear that we could use our electronic devices, Martin pulled out his laptop and put on his headphones. He works so hard for his age. Too hard, I believe. I sigh and pull out my phone, accepting the fact that Martin isn't going to be giving me any attention any time soon. I checked my social media. Nothing important or interesting was going on so I closed out everything and pulled out a book that I brought out of my carry-on.

3 hours later...

Finally Martin gives me some attention...finally. After 3 damn hours. He's never ignored me for so long and it upsets me. Wait, why am I feeling like this. He's not mine, I shouldn't care.

"We'll be there in about an hour." He informs me.
"Yeah, thanks for telling me something I already know." I retort, failing to hide my annoyance.

"What's wrong?"
"Hi, I'm Crystal-Violet Anne Rogers, it's nice to meet you." I hold out my hand for effect. Of course, he denies it.
"I don't understand, tell me what has you so upset."
"Thanks for finally paying some attention to me. Your fancy laptop isn't the only thing you brought with you, you know." I over-exaggeratedly sigh, cross my right leg over my left one, folded my arms over my chest, and stared straight forward; I refused to make eye contact with him.

"Oh, Crystal...I-I'm so sorry, I didn't realize that..." he trailed off. He didn't know what to say, but that's how I know that he didn't mean to shut me out.

"It's okay, Martin. I know you didn't mean to. You're just doing your job."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, it's totally fine. I understand. I'm sorry I snapped."
"Well, to finish my apology, I'm sorry that I invited you on this trip, and then pretty much ignored you."

I smiled, feeling even more content that he truly didn't mean to hurt me.

➕✖️

We just landed in Amsterdam, and from the view from above, it looked absolutely breathtaking.

We claimed our baggage and we were now walking toward the pick up area.

"Martin, who's picking us up?"
"My sister."
"Oh okay. I can't wait to meet her."
"I think you two will get along just fine."

We walked out of the building, and the air instantly smelled of gasoline, a horrible contrast from the air conditioned building. I was just about to stop and wait when Martin announced that he saw his sister's car.

We walked toward the black SUV and his sister comes out of the driver's side. Martin and her excitedly greet each other. Since the both of them were speaking in Dutch and I had no idea what they were saying, I stood awkwardly aside and waited for some kind announcement that I could say hi to her.

That announcement finally came, like, I don't know, three minutes later. Martin starts speaking English again to introduce me.

"Crystal, this is my sister, Laura. Laura, this is my day-to-day manager, and friend, Crystal-Violet. But everyone calls her Crystal."
"Hi," I smile politely. "It's nice to meet you."
"Hi, same to you." She surprises me by giving me a hug. It reminded me how Martin hugged me when we first met. I guess it's a Dutch thing.

"So do you want to settle down first, or do you wanna go see mom and dad?" Laura asks Martin, in English, thank god.
"I wanna see mom and dad first. Is that okay with you, Crystal."
"Yeah, it's cool."
"Alright then."

We put our luggage into the SUV and I climbed into the backseat, with Martin riding shotgun.

Not more than five minutes into the car ride, I realized something.

I'm going to be meeting Martin's parents, and it's making me nervous. 

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Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry guys, school has started and I haven't gotten anytime at all to update. I hate school so much. I'm literally updating this in my class. I didn't forget about y'all, don't worry. I'm just going to be more busy now, I apologize. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR 200 READS!! Thank you, thank you, thank you. I don't think you guys know how excited I am. I don't even know what to say. But I want to express my gratitude. Thank you, for everything. I love you!
                       ~Lilian