In Between

CHAPTER 7: DEAL

Ariane woke up in the morning with a radiant smile. She felt so happy and excited for an unknown reason—but not until she remembered something.

“Shocks! I haven’t made any plans for today’s tour!” She abruptly got up from her bed and was about to run towards the bathroom when another memory popped into her mind.

“Let’s just move our dinner tomorrow. And in the morning, I’ll tour you in the places here in Florence that you haven’t visited yet... as a compensation for our postponed dinner.”

Ariane smacked her forehead at the memory of Matteo’s offer.

“I almost forgot. He’s the one in charge for today’s tour. No need for a planner then,” she mumbled to herself.

Instead of doing her daily routine early in the morning like she planned just now, Ariane laid back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, lost in her thoughts. She was like that for a couple of minutes and was just pulled out of her reverie when her phone rang, notifying her of an incoming call.

A smile crept into Ariane’s lips as soon as she saw Matteo’s name on her phone screen. And without further ado, she answered the call as if she were afraid that Matteo would dismiss the call if she kept him waiting.

“Hey,” Ariane greeted him with a cheery smile, but she maintained a lethargic tone.

“Good morning,” Matteo greeted her back with a hint of a smile in his tone. “Did I disturb your sleep?”

“Nope. I was already awake when you called,” she instantly answered.

“Great. How’s your sleep?” Matteo asked her, genuinely concerned.

Ariane chuckled at Matteo’s question. “You sound like a worried boyfriend,” she remarked in a playful tone.

Ariane is not naive when it comes to romantic relationships. Yes, she might not have experienced it herself, but she learned various things about it by being observant of her surroundings. And she can tell that what Matteo is doing right now is the act of a concerned boyfriend. But well... since it is Matteo, she can’t put any malice on it. He’s just being his usual self, maybe. Besides, Ariane knows exactly how thoughtful he is based on the things she learned yesterday.

Matteo just chuckled at her remark. “Well, I was just checking up on you. No malice. But if you want, we could work things out and put some on it,” Matteo teased her.

“Silly.” Ariane rolled her eyes. “Anyway, why did you call?” she diverted the topic before things became awkward.

“I just called to inform you that I’ll pick you up at seven... maybe. We’ll be using my car for less hassle,” Matteo informed her, making her brow arch.

“Hey. There’s no need for that. You are already my tour guide, so I won’t let you act as my chauffeur,” she firmly answered in disapproval. But Matteo isn’t Matteo if he isn’t persistent when it comes to this matter.

“Well, you have no choice. I don’t take no for an answer,” Matteo responded despite her protest.

Ariane sighed in defeat. There’s no use in arguing with him or fighting for her stand. Matteo is just being nice, and here she is, taking advantage of his kindness.

“Yeah, right. Whatever,” she mumbled while rolling her eyes as if Matteo could see her.

Matteo just chuckled at her listlessness. “I’ll hang up now. See you later.”

“Yeah. See yah.” Ariane ended the call and put her phone on top of the side table afterwards.

Ariane inwardly smiled as she slightly shook her head before walking towards the bathroom’s door to prepare. But unlike yesterday, she’s taking her time. She bathed for nearly half an hour and chose a simple yet charismatic outfit that looks good on her. She even applied light makeup and curled the tip of her medium auburn hair, which complements her brown, upturned eyes.