ARCADE | Rebić

5

"And the clothes you left, they lie on the floor
And they smell just like you."

28 August 2018

The sun was beginning to peep, its light filtered by the white curtains of the room.

Slowly even birds began to sing, while the smell of the sea flooded the nostrils, mixed with the strong vanilla fragrance of the blonde by his side.

Ante took a deep breath, admiring the candid beauty of the woman in front of him, still sleeping. She looked so innocent.

He thought of never getting used to is, to her.

He remembered their first meeting, one year and half ago in a bar in Zagreb, and now here they were, in her beach house in Split.

They promised themselves it would have been only sex and nothing else, in the beginning, but over the time that useful and stupid promise went forgotten.

He, a football player for a notorious Bundesliga club, second place to the latest World Cup, where she never missed a match of him.

She, former beauty pageant, model for several international brand, face of many fashion covers, with the dream of having her own fashion line sooner.

They were the example of perfect couple.

Even though almost none knew about them, just like they wanted to be.

A love without sounds. Rumours.

Like the bullshits of world not touching or ruining what they had.

"You are starring." The soft voice of Ivana broke the flow of his thoughts. Her eyes were still closed, but she was smiling.

"Because you're beautiful." He smiled as he leaned it to leave a soft kiss on her lips.

Ivana giggled as she opened her eyes and made her hand run through his bare chest. "I really could stay like this forever." She said for then laying her head on his chest.

Ante placed his arms around her, leaving a kiss on her forehead. "Me too."

But unluckily, Ante knew better that it would have been his last day in Split. He had to return to Frankfurt the next day.

He knew he could have asked Ivana to come with him, but he knew that her whole life was there, in Croatia. He just couldn't ask her to leave everything for him. That would have been extremely selfish of him.

And, for how much it hurted him too, he just wanted to do the right thing for her. Or at least what he believe it was the right thing.

On the other hand, Ivana knew it too that sooner or later he would have to come back to Frankfurt, but she just hoped to put off that day as much as possible.

She was constantly living with that fear of him to tell he had to go, but was determined to enjoy every little second they had together.

And if he asked her, she would have left everything behind her to follow him.

She could never imagined that was their last day together, and to be woken up the next day with a pathetic goodbye letter from him.

—

They said time flied, but people didn't change.

And a lot of other bullshits about love never fading away.