Ethan's Andante (Sequel to Special Tutoring)

7. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (part 1)

if you are new to Mai and Ethan's story, please read the prequel, special tutoring (rated mature)

https://www.wattpad.com/story/7787423-special-tutoring

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It is a silent car heading up (or is it down...) to Rothenburg. Nobody has uttered a single word since we all faked happiness, kissing and hugging goodbyes at the doorstep to the B&B.

"Remember to visit us before you go back," Herr Kaufmann's voice is gruff as he grabs his son in a near stranglehold. My peripheral vision latches on the fleeting expression crossing Bastian's face. I guess the most polite way of describing it is that "wait for hell to freeze over."

In his desperation to get it of Michelstadt, he doesn't even care how we arrange the baggage this time around. He is obviously no longer interested in taking the scenic route. The car zooms past tree after tree on the winding Autobahn, and I feel the familiar motion sickness coming back on.

I turn to Ethan for sympathy but my boyfriend is not even looking at me. Instead he is resting his cheek on an uplifted hand, staring out of the window. Is counting trees more important than his poor girlfriend's welfare?

It's all because of that grumpa tomcat's yeowling just now. While I don't dispute that classical music, like cheer, require many hours of practice, but seriously a couple of days break wouldn't kill Ethan's "learning". Just because he doesn't live near us, that's why he doesn't know that Ethan puts in hours of practice everyday. I should have told him that. Hmmph.

I can't take the silence anymore. Retrieving my phone, I decide to turn on Spotify (my sister had purchased a data plan at the airport so that we could Facetime our parents, as instructed).

Fingers hovering over the screen, a great idea pops up in my head. I look up "Der freak" .

Insert confession here: I have been checking out the competition, ie loading old "Der freak" MVs and PVs to evil stare at the treacherous Natalie and Joachim. I am devastated to see that other than the same red hair and frame, Natalie looks nothing like her slutty cousin Natasha. Instead she exudes an ethereal aura with her delicate features. Hardly imagine that she would do the nasty in the treehouse with Joachim.

As for Joachim, other than the blond hair, stalwart and muscular build, he is not handsome but wears the detached sangfroid of an aristo with excellent breeding in all the videos. Strange how Ethan, despite growing up in the same family, does not give off that vibe. Maybe it was another marketing strategy, just like the blond hair, to package each guy with a different persona to attract fans. In this case, the good (Ethan), the bad (Bastian) and the ugly but "you want me because I am rich" (Joachim).

YouTube starts playing the first MV, which is Gustav Mahler's Piano Quartet in A Minor. While I do not know how to appreciate classical music but I had found this piece pretty palatable (probably because I heard it on Shutter Island). It helps that other than the heavy old classical compositions, Der Freak also played contemporary and anime covers (they still have a massive Japanese following after disbanding).

Bastian groans. The first sound he made in 1 hour.

"Use headphones, if you must. It's got to be the worst one you had to pick." He glowers at me through the rear view mirror.

"What's wrong with it?" I demand. Does he have a problem with Shutter Island?

"It was the start of my nightmare!" I turn to Ethan in bewilderment, who points at his hair.

Ah.

"If not for that stupid piece, we wouldn't had attracted the attention of that olde Goat."

"Schrott," snorts Ethan. "I recall that you were the most excited among us 3."