I was looking on my phone for volleyball scores. Today is Tristan's last game for the group stage against Poland. They were putting up a good fight even though it was pretty obvious that the two-time defending world champions were better. I watched as many games as I managed and Tristan was becoming more and more of a star each game. He was the top scorer for 3 out of 4 games they played and if he continued performing as he has been he will be the best player in this match as well. His face was plastered on every sports magazine cover, calling him a revelation. I was happy for him. He deserves everything he's got coming and I couldn't be prouder. The only thing that left a little bit of a bitter aftertaste, was that he was inevitably leaving when the championship was over.
When the doors opened I put the phone back in my pocket. My new partner entered with a smile on her face. She always did.
"Victoria is very pleased with our work."
"That's good to hear."
"Though she always says that, because she likes you. So honestly I don't even know if we are doing an objectively good job or if just wants to get in your pants."
I snickered.
Danvers was a lawyer, but since she was just transferred she has been assigned to work with me. Danvers was easy to work with, which threw me off at first. I wasn't quite used to being agreed with.
"I think Rogers knows more than he lets on. They should talk to him again."
"Ok. I'll pass it on."
"What? Just like that."
"Yeah. It makes sense."
Is this how being taken seriously feels like?
I smiled at the memory.
"Philip wants us to look his case over."
She threw the file to me and I clumsily caught it.
Philip's cases usually involved some form of abuse, so as much as they were many times fascinating, they always took an emotional toll on me as well.
"Why?" I asked as I opened the file.
"He suspects this chick is lying. His client was accused of physical abuse. He wants to know if his client is bullshitting or her."
I pursed my lips. Philip rarely worked for the accused. He was a great lawyer, I don't think he ever lost a case, so it was a shame he's mostly known as the company hoe. But he really usually sided with the victims.
Denver's opened a new pack of gum and threw the empty one in the garbage can. She, as always, missed, but that didn't stop her from trying every single time. She was completely different from what she presented herself to be at the beginning. She was way more laid back and gentle. A far cry from what I was used to.
"I think it might be a ploy to get a divorce."
She was twirling her pen, not paying attention to me as she said it. It made sense. She filed for divorce twice but then annulled it both times. So she was probably convinced into continuing the marriage. Her husband was a rich man. I knew the family. They were old money plus he was a C.E.O. of some bank.
"I want to talk to him."
"Why? I mean, sure, but why?"
"The theory with faking for the divorce is the most likely. Of course, if he isn't actually abusing his wife."
X
I came home to my sister watching the after-game interviews. She has been curiously invested in the championship, watching every game and sometimes even the interviews after, which she never did. I pretended not to notice, but her ears always perk up when Tristan was mentioned. Her eyes were glued to the screen, not wanting to miss a second of his interview. His dark red hair was slicked back with sweat and his hands were firmly stationed on his lean hips.
"Of course we are disappointed, but their team was better. Our block didn't work and we made too many serving mistakes."
"You are playing The Netherlands next. Your thoughts?"
"The Netherlands has a great team and we'll have to play much better to win. They have some really good players that play all over the world and we have to be ready for them. We have a few days off, but then we'll be back to work."
"And lastly, you were once again the best scorer with 20 points. That's the fourth time in this pool faze alone. How do you feel about that?"
He gave him, a bright, winning smile and wiped some sweat away from his forehead.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Margo's mouth quirk up slightly. Her expression was almost...fond. Well, that was interesting. Something must have happened between them and based on her sparkling eyes it couldn't have been bad. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know, but if it'll help her forget Isaac I support it 100%.
"Honestly when you're playing you don't really keep track and you're happy for whoever gets the point, so you really know how you did after. But without Andrew, our setter, and the other guys my points wouldn't have mattered. It's always a team effort."
"Thank you, Tristan. Good luck with your next game."
Tristan smiled again, thanked him and left. Margo turned off the TV and stretched her arms.
"How much did they lose by?"
"3:1. They more or less won that one set by accident."
"Tristan's still dominating I see."
She shrugged: "He was alright."
I rolled my eyes. Who was she kidding?
She stood up to leave the apartment without another word, but I stopped her.
"Do you want to tell me why you were watching here and not in your almost million-dollar apartment?"
"My TV broke."
"And you came all the way here to watch it? To watch something you don't even care that much about?"
"It's not that far."
"You could have just not watched it."
"Do you have something to ask me Aronus? Because I'm frankly not in the mood for you poking around in my head."
"Do you have something to tell me, Morgana?"
Her face was hard, dark blue eyes sharp.
"No."
She turned around and walked out of my home. I chuckled.
Good luck Tristan.
X
(Margo POV)
The next day.
I was pacing from the car door to the garage door and back. Tristan came back this morning and he sent me a text around 16.30, so an hour and a half ago, about what hotel he was staying in and his room number.
I presume you've been rooting for me since I played so well. Well, why don't you come over so I can thank you properly :)
That self-congratulating, cheeky bastard. My heart first skipped a beat, then I was appaled by the message, then I was smiling at it, then I was angry for smiling, then I decided to ignore it, which didn't last because the very next thing I did was grab my car keys and dashed to the garage. All in the span of like five minutes. And now I was here, stuck in this loop of "Go for it. Who cares? YOU CAN DO WHATEVER YOU WANT!" and "This is a terrible mistake. And it's gonna blow up in your face so fucking hard."
I almost gave up and returned to my flat, but then an image of arrogantly ginning Tristan materialized in my mind. That idiot probably thought his text was super fucking clever. Someone should tell him how stupid it actually was.
I was sitting in my car, driving, probably over the speed limit and reached his hotel in record time. I ignored all the alarm bells in my head as I strutted out of the elevator toward his room. Only when I already knocked, my common sense returned and I almost bolted, but the doors opened before I could.
Tristan was standing before me with that self-satisfied smirk, his red hair tousled.
"Well look who came after all."
"Your message was idiotic."
"And yet it did the job of getting you here perfectly."
I scoffed and crossed my arms: "I only came here, because a sport's anime has been calling me. They want their protagonist back."
His eyes told me that he indeed excepted the challenge. He stepped forward.
"I would have picked up, but 90s teen movie has been blowing up my phone. Apparently, they are looking for their villain cheerleader."
We were almost chest to chest, but I didn't back down. There was something different in the air now. He wasn't smirking anymore, his eyes flickered down to my lips more than once.
"What should I tell them?"
He asked in a slightly gruffer voice that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
"That she is preoccupied."
With that, I practically launched forward. Our lips locked in a heated kiss. We stumbled into the apartment, almost tripping over one another, yet our lips managed to stay together, tongues exploring each other's mouths. We broke apart only to take off our shirts, leaving them on the floor. Tristan pinned me to the wall and lifted me against it so my legs could wrap around his bare and toned torso.
He started kissing my neck and I couldn't help but moan. I felt him smiling in between the kisses and licks. He travelled down to my shoulder, where he sucked until it probably left a mark. I grabbed his head and pulled him into another kiss. This time I roughly bit his bottom lip, to which he responded with a groan. He carried me to his room, where we stayed until late in the noon of the next day.
X
(Aron POV)
Two days later
I was walking with a very quick pace toward our office. It was 7.57 and even though Danvers was not that punctual herself I didn't want to be late. Again. I opened the doors, expecting the blond to be sitting behind her computer, typing away. Instead, the scene before me almost made me drop my things. My heart sped up to a dangerous degree and I forgot to breathe for a moment. Because there he was, standing all tall, focused enough on whatever he was reading to not even notice me. Like he never left. But he did. For five months. And there wasn't a day I didn't think about him. His face suddenly turned to me and my stomach dropped. Because in the back of my mind, I didn't actually believe I'll see those eyes ever again. He was slightly skinnier, which made his features even sharper. I don't know if I liked it better or not, but I couldn't deny how devastatingly gorgeous he was. He was wearing a plain white buttoned-up, fitting his lean figure perfectly, and grey trousers. I gulped when I raked his body up and down. There weren't many people that could wear suits quite like him. But the biggest difference was his hair. Gone were the long wavy locks, now replaced by a shorter cut. It was still a little longer at the front so it gave him that James Dean vibe.
And it was making my mouth dry.
"Hi."
After five months, hearing his voice again was almost overwhelming. I left my things on my desk and in two quick strides crossed the distance between us. I threw my arms around him in a tight hug, hanging onto him like my life depended on it. I let out a sigh of relief, feeling like I've been holding my breath since he left. His smell was comforting, familiar. After a few moments of both of us being still, I realized how strange and awkward this must be for him. I started pulling away and mentally preparing an apology, when I felt his hands wrap around my waist, pulling me closer again. I closed my eyes, feeling Lukas rest his chin on my shoulder.
"I missed you too Spencer."