James pushed the door to his room open and walked in.
It looked exactly the same as it had when he left.
The simple kitchen remained pristine and unused. Before the past month, he had gotten all of his meals from the in-house food ordering and delivery service. However, now that he had learned how to cook, maybe he could practice here and surprise Gina.
James unpacked the clothes he had brought back, before sitting down at his desk and powering on his computer and clicking on the familiar icon to launch his poker program.
[ Finally! System is ready for some action. While System has enjoyed riding along with you in the past month, System is hungry. ]
James mentally facepalmed. His system had been mostly well-behaved over the past month, with the exception of routine reminders about how hungry it was, and how James was wasting time. The only thing James didn't quite appreciate was how his system kept reminding him of it's omnipresence in his life. He would have appreciated a little more privacy.
James clicked on a few tables with empty seats and studied the other names of the other players. He recognized most of the names from his practice in the past three months, and most of these tables were playable. However, James just couldn't bring himself to sit down and focus on poker.
Before his system could launch into another whiny complaint, James' phone buzzed. It was a text message that finally brought him back to reality.
"Hey James. It's Phil. Meet me at the villa rec room?"
"OK Phil. I'll head over right now"
"Great, I need to run an errand, but feel free to chill there."
James turned his computer off. It looked like poker would wait a little while longer.
---
James parked in front of the white villa, and was struck by an odd sense of melancholy.
It was here where his life had turned. Where he had previously been escorted here as a guest by the staid old butler, he was now driving himself as an employee.
Unlike the last time he was here, there were no other cars parked outside Villa 2. The surrounding villas also had empty lots, and it looked like it would just be Phil and him today.
James walked up to the entrance and tested the right door. It was open.
"Hello? It's James." James called out as he stepped into the villa. Silence was his only answer. His original guess about the number of guests was probably right, and Phil had clearly not yet arrived.
Consciously deciding not to go up and revisit the entertainment room he had spent the night in, James turned left and walked through the foyer to the rec room.
Once again, he was struck by the opulence and the view of the room. The wet bar looked like it was fully stocked, and the pool table, couch, television, and poker table were immaculate. The six chairs had been neatly arranged around the table, and just beyond the table, the speckless glass windows revealed the pool once more.
There was no one at the pool, of course, but for a moment, James imagined seeing Gina again for the first time.
In his mind's eye, she was lying on the chaise in her black bikini. This time, because of his newly found familiarity with her body, he could picture her in full clarity.
James settled down on the couch and lost himself in his recollections.
---
Phil sat in his car and started the engine. As he drove away, he noticed a nearby tree that looked like it had been split right down the middle. A fitting omen.
---
James took a bottle of water from the bar and went back to his seat on the couch. He had been waiting for quite a while now, and was starting to get a little impatient.
James wondered briefly if he should text Gina and see how she was, but decided to demur. It would probably not be good if Phil caught him mid-message.
The throaty roar of a loud engine approaching interrupted James' musings. That had to be Phil's new, ostentatious 911.
James sat up at attention and mentally prepared himself.
---
"Ho James, how goes it?" Phil asked as he walked into the rec room. Without waiting for a reply, Phil walked over to the bar and grabbed a beer.
"It's good Phil, how was your trip to Monte Carlo?" James asked politely.
"Could have been better." Phil said diplomatically.
"I'm sorry to hear that Phil." James offered.
"It's okay. There will be opportunities to make up for it. Speaking of opportunities, it's about time we got to work." Phil segued.
"Sure." James responded.
"Here's the deal. There's a game coming up next month that you need to play in. For reasons that I will not go into now, it is imperative that you perform well. Between now and then, I'll arrange a couple of quick live games for you to practice. Hopefully you've been working on your game while I've been away." Phil gave James a quick briefing.
"Also, I think it's about time I introduced you to some other people in the crew. Let's plan that for tomorrow evening. I'll text you when it's time to go, and a driver will pick you up from the employee area." Phil continued.
"Why do we need a driver Phil? I can drive if you need a ride. It's the least I can do after you gave me your car." James asked curiously. He decided not to comment on his lack of practice over the past month.
"We don't drink and drive here James." Phil answered.
So it was a social kind of meeting, James thought to himself.
"OK Phil, that works for me." James acquiesced.
"Alright man. That's pretty much it for now. Sorry to drag you all the way here, but it's good to see you again. I'll tell you what, why don't you take the rest of the day off? It's going to be like drinking from a fire hose from here out." Phil offered.
"Thanks Phil, that's very generous of you." James said gratefully.
"One of my guys, James, one of my guys. Here, before you head out on your liberty, hang out with me for a little. We're friends right?"
---
By the time James got back into his car, it was already evening. He decided to drive over to Gina's place instead of heading back to his room.
Based on what Phil had said, this could be the last opportunity he had to see Gina in a while. Maybe he would be in time to eat dinner with her, maybe he could even spend the night.
---
As James parked in front of Gina's house, he saw a clean up crew working on the split tree.
Looks like people work fast around here, he mused to himself, as he walked up the path and knocked on Gina's door.
James heard a couple of hesitant footsteps before the door opened partially and Gina poked her head out from behind the door.
Compared to how he had left her this morning, Gina looked a little worse for wear. She was still wearing the same clothes as before, but her normally tidy hair was mussed and her eyes were bloodshot.
"Hey babe, is everything okay?" James asked concerned.
"Not really... we need to talk James." Gina said with a hitch in her voice. "Come in. We can sit down at the dining table."
Gina pulled the door open and James walked in. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach.
As James sat down at the dining table, his premonition at the door got stronger. Even though it was dinner time, he didn't see any signs of a meal having been eaten or even being prepared. Also, Gina would have normally kissed him or at least shown him a sign of affection by now.
What had happened in the short time he was away?
Gina sat down on the opposite side of James.
"James. I've been offered a full scholarship to pursue my Master's degree at Harvard." Gina started.
"But, that's great news! Congratulations! Why do you seem so down?" James interrupted.
"Let me finish James. I've also been told that upon completion of my Master's, I'll be offered the chance to continue on to a doctorate, and that I will be competitive for a research position there."
"That's amazing! I think you should totally go for it! I know it's going to be long distance and all for us, but I'm sure we can pull through." James encouraged.
"That's the thing James. I want to be realistic here. I don't think there is going to be an us." Gina dropped the bombshell.
"But why? I thought we were special. You mean the world to me. I was willing to wait the two months, and I'm willing to wait however long it takes. The last month with you has been the happiest month of my life." James said, a little horror struck by her words.
"Let's be perfectly honest with each other. It's going to be at least five to seven years that we're going to be apart. With your obligations to Phil, there's no way you can just drop everything and come with me. Even if you did, he has an extremely long reach. He'll find a way to get to and hurt you." Gina's voice cracked as she forced these words out.
"You mean the world to me Gina, I know I can't realistically get away, but let me try and clear my obligations, and then I'll come to you?" James persevered.
"I'm sorry James. I've made up my mind. It's not fair to you or me to wait this long. Let's break up." Gina's voice cracked again.
"Why? I don't understand." James said pitifully.
"I've made my decision James. You should leave now." Gina said.
James was completely dumbfounded. He had gone from cloud nine to the seven depths of hell in the span of a day.
His anger rose up within him, overwhelming the anguish and despair he was feeling. How was this fair to him?
Before he could say something he would regret, James got up and stormed to his car, slamming the door on the way out. Then, starting the engine, he sped off back to his little, empty room - the only place he had left to go.
---
Back at the house, unseen by anyone, Gina sat on the toilet and let her emotions go.
From the depths of her heart and soul, she cried.
Even though she knew this was for the best, she cried.
Even as she wanted to be selfish, and hold James to herself forever, she cried.
Struggling for breath between each heart-rending sob, she bent over and hugged her stomach protectively.
On the floor, by the wastebasket, lay a bright pink box. It was labelled "First Response."