Going downstairs, Greg tried to analyze the situation as sensibly as possible. But as a result, he got angry even more. It just could not be an accident. It was not a surprise now that these two seemed so familiar to him. Nicky and Vicky were babies who lived with Lana and her aunt 13 years ago when they first met. Nicky was seven, and Vicky was 3. They were a charming couple. Always reasonable Nicholas, who was so fun to pick out from his shell and make him smile and the charming Vicky, who was always ready for some mischief and spent hours talking about everything in the world. But Greg thought that they were Lana's brother and sister.
Then why now they call her Mom ?! He no longer knew where the truth and where the lie was. Did she send them especially to trick him?! Judging by the questions that Nicky asked him, everything indicated precisely on this point. Is she realy so stupid to thinks that she can get back to his life this way ?!
By the time he caught up with their little group, which was talking sweetly in the parking lot, he was so angry that he was ready to tear somebody apart.
"What the hell is going on, Lana?" he snarled at her as Lana turned around. She instinctively leaned back from the surprise, she turned pale as a canvas, and her eyes widened to the limit. It seemed like, she did not expect to see him here. Meanwhile, Nicholas stepped forward and tried to stand between them, pushing his mother behind his back.
"Don't talk to her like that!" - Nicky growled no less menacingly. Lana seems to have recovered from the shock, as now she tried hard to resist and push her son aside.
"Let me go, Nicky! What are you doing?" - she finally managed to wriggle out of her son's hand and stepped aside turning to Greg. - "What are you doing here? What do you want?" - her voice was full of perplexity mixed with anger.
" Nicky, Vicki, this is my business. Wait for me in the car, " - she began, but then she saw Vicky's strange expression, who was peeping from behind her brother and her eyes were full of vivid interest and a little shame. Besides, Nicky was not at all surprised at the appearance of Greg also. Understanding came upon her like a cold stream.
"Damn!" she hissed through clenched teeth, covering her face with her hand. - "In the car, NOW! We'll talk at home!" - she commanded in a completely different tone and turned to Greg, knowing that her children would listen. They knew perfectly well when the jokes ended.
"Let's go, we need to talk," - she said, trying not to look him in the eye. And without looking back she headed for the corner of the building where there were not so many people. Having reached the place where no one would have heard them, Lana turned and prepared for Greg's anger. But the man, stopping two steps away, just folded his arms and remained silent. She had no choice but to start the conversation herself.
"First, I want to apologize for my children. I don't know what they told you. I didn't even know that you work here, you're working here, right?"
"When are you going to stop lying?" - He hissed through clenched teeth. Lana clenched her teeth, starting to get angry, too.
"Greg, can you exhale for a second and stop thinking that the world is spinning around you," - she said, minting every word.
Greg narrowed his eyes in anger, a muscle in her jaw twitched. After a few seconds he finally squeezed out:
"So you want to say, that Nicholas being my new student and our relationship with you, has no connection? How about our meeting at the airport. Also an accident?"
Lana hesitated with an answer. That already told Greg a lot.
"First," she began at last, "our meeting at the airport was really an accident. And if you remember, I tried to avoid this meeting even jumping out of the window into a blizzard. It's you who chased me."
Her face turned pale, and her nostrils began to swell.
" Secondly, you can believe me or not, but I did not know, that you are working as a teacher here, all right?"
"Your son (or is he your brother?) Only a couple of minutes ago asked me for details of my personal life. And this happened after he didn't make any sound at all in my classes for a month." - Greg prefixed. Lana frowned, showing that she knew about it.
" I said that I did not know, that you work here. But they could have known. Actually, I'm more than sure that this was their plan." - Lana finally sighed.
"Lana, are you sane?" Are you trying to blame your own children, now?! I didn't know that you were such a person. However, if I knew what you are 13 years ago, I would bypass the café as a plague."
Lana jerked as if slapped and looked away. Greg wanted to finish this conversation. He had nothing more to say to this woman, as she said softly:
"You can blame me for anything you want. But my children are not to blame for anything. They didn't want to do anything bad. And if I'll find out that you are somehow mistreating Nicky because he's my son, you'll regret it."
Greg could not believe what he heard. She almost whispered, but the words were full of menace.
"Are you threaten me now?!" Greg did not know whether to laugh or get angry, but Lana's eyes were not joking.
" Our relationship ended 13 years ago. My children had pleasant memories of you, so they hammered into their little heads that we can be together again. But this will not happen. I'll talk to them. They will understand everything. End of the story."
With that, she turned around and headed back to the parking lot, leaving Greg behind gapping. "That should be MY last words! She is always turning everything in my life upside down! ": He thought in frustration, and could hardly resist stomping his boot like a small offended girl.