Dominik Śliwiński did not live in any guarded housing estate. His house was in a nice and quiet neighborhood on the border with the suburbs. If Andrzej decided to go there by train, they were only two stations away. The photographer did not know what the actor's day plan looked like, so he decided to be more mobile and not rely solely on public transport, so he drove his car to the house from which he was to observe.
The house that Śliwiński lived was absolutely ordinary - the ground floor, first floor and a small backyard garden, where young thuja were used as a hedge. The editorial office of the newspaper, where Andrzej worked, rented a house next door to him by means unknown to him. Nobody ever lived there, it seemed. The floors were freshly laid, there was no furniture, and the air smelled of plaster and paint. There was no refrigerator or stove in the kitchen, but water and electricity were already connected. Only the bathroom looked fully finished. So the conditions were quite Spartan, but the vantage point was excellent.
Both houses were new and the greenery around them was young and low. From the windows of the ground floor it was difficult to see anything in the neighboring building, but on the first floor, which was clearly intended to serve as a children's bedroom, Andrzej had a perfect view of Śliwiński's kitchen, his living room and bedroom upstairs - that is, the place where the most interesting actions could take place. .
Potentially, the kitchen was the least interesting, unless someone liked to watch someone else cook. There were more or less official meetings in the lounge, so this space was quite interesting to observe. It could not be concealed, however, that the bedroom gave the most promises, provided, of course, that Śliwiński would invite someone to it. Andrzej sincerely hoped that it would happen soon and that he would finally be able to leave this place, which he disliked even before he entered it.
Bloody work, he cursed and mounted the tripod in the upstairs room. Boring, ungrateful and not entirely ethical. But if he had not taken this student loan, he would not be able to study the field he dreamed of and would have no tools for the job. A good camera does not cost five PLN, and poor equipment will not allow even the best photographer to spread their wings. He could not count on the support of his family. His parents, when they were still alive, preferred him to go into management or banking, although he barely passed any math subjects. They wanted him to have a good, stable job, find a nice wife, and spend the rest of his life as an exemplary middle-class citizen. They did not understand his passion and did not share his dreams. They wanted well, but he wanted more.
Which is why he must be playing voyeur now, he thought bitterly.
All right, then where is the object of his observation?
He was not visible in any of the places he watched. Andrzej did not know the layout of the rooms in his house, so he could only guess that on the other side of the ground floor there was a study, maybe a guest bathroom, or a guest bedroom. There was almost certainly at least one extra bedroom upstairs.
The interiors were clean which indicated the frequent visits of the cleaners. There was no pile of dishes in the sink, there was a kettle on the stove and a small pot covered with a lid. There were no casual clothes scattered about in the living room or the bedroom as in almost any single man's apartment. Everything was clean, tidy and surprisingly modest. Looking at the simple decor, it was easier to think that an ordinary middle-class man lives there than a movie star known on the streets.
Andrzej wondered what secrets will they reveal in front of the lens?
The living room felt warm thanks to the pastel walls in an apricot shade. There was a pentaptic on the wall depicting an arrangement of some maroon flowers with tulip-shaped cups. The couch and armchair next to the dark brown coffee table were a light beige shade and looked very comfortable. The room was nice, clean and pleasant but in no way intriguing.
About an hour passed when Śliwiński appeared in the salon. It took Andrzej for a while to recognize him. He had never seen him in private and was not a fan of his work, of course he recognized his face in the posters, but that would be it. In "In Light of the Accusation" he played a tasteful young prosecutor fighting the mafia - in a good suit and neatly combed hair, while he saw a thin boy in a washed T-shirt and threadbare jeans, with long hair that reached his shoulders. He seemed smaller than on the screen, and utterly inconspicuous - at least until he looked up.
Andrzej has never seen such blue and shiny irises. He considered those on the posters to be contact lenses or the work of a photographer, but being alone at home in such informal attire, the actor had no reason to wear lenses. Their color had to be natural and surely intrigued the people who talked to him more than once.
Śliwiński looked thoughtful and busy. Only after a while Andrzej saw some papers in his hand. The actor tossed them reluctantly onto the low coffee table and headed for the kitchen.
Although small, it seemed functional and quite cozy. Nowicki had seen it before and found that it was absolutely nothing special. Śliwiński put the kettle on and took a blue mug out of the cupboard into which he dropped an Earl Gray purse - nothing special, normal black tea from a normal grocery store. Even Andrzej drank this brand.
The ordinary behavior of Śliwiński was surprising. For someone who already had his place on the promenade of stars and was the idol of women of all ages, his day was nothing special. He did not run around the house in anything controversial, did not drink alcohol since the morning, did not take cocaine and did not ask for girls. He ate, slept, worked, and watched TV from time to time. He cooked and cleaned himself, like most guys live alone. Nothing interesting was happening around him.
Absolutely nothing.
Andrzej sighed. It was going to be some bloody boring days.
***
Time was running out and Śliwiński looked more and more like a Little Mr. Perfect. He got up politely at six in the morning, spent half an hour in the gym, then took a shower and had breakfast. He only changed routine on the days when he had to meet someone in the city, and they were always business meetings. Andrzej was so bored with the monotonous life of the actor that, for fun, he started counting the cups in his cupboard and reading the yoghurt labels in his refrigerator. How could a young, handsome and popular actor, idolized by women of all ages, lead such a boring life?
Andrzej yawned. It was only two o'clock in the afternoon on the fifth day of observation, and he wanted to start tearing spiders' legs out just to kill the long time with something. In addition, the heat returned, which made sitting in a newly built house without air conditioning a torment. The photographer shifted his uncomfortable position, yawned again, and looked around for some spider.
Then a high-class silver German car drove up to the actor's house. A well-dressed, maybe forty-year-old man with a very self-confident manner got out. Andrzej immediately got a boost of energy, recognizing Marek Marczak, Śliwiński's manager, in the man. It might not be a compromising situation, but everything, absolutely everything, was more interesting than the actor's everyday life.
The manager pressed the intercom button and the gate gave way immediately, letting him into the property. Three several-year-old thuja blocked Andrzej's view of the entrance, so he could not see Śliwiński's face when he greeted the manager, but Marczak entered without even slowing down.
They only appeared in the range of the lens after a long while, and the actor for some reason seemed moved by something. Andrzej cursed. He would have given a lot to hear the exchange that took place in the hall.
However, it was not terrible, because Marczak was smiling with satisfaction. He unceremoniously sat down on the couch and threw his briefcase on the table. His host went into the kitchen, from which he brought chilled water and two glasses.
Andrzej thought that he would like to drink cold water himself, but there were no household appliances in the kitchen yet, so he was condemned to the one that was heating with him in a room without air conditioning. Suddenly he wished that the bore would somehow do something interesting, so that he could shoot any quite interesting photo. Whatever, if Andrzej could finally leave this hot and boring place.
For now, however, he had to be satisfied with what he had, i.e. an obvious business meeting. Marczak took out a thick bundle of papers from his briefcase and Śliwiński sat next to him on the couch so that they could look at them together.
Andrzej yawned. Apparently, Marczak was just showing his actor the script, new or old - it didn't matter. It was boring. No one is interested in such a scene, and Andrzej felt bored with the mere awareness that it was happening. Dominik took the papers and began to look at them carefully. Marczak was talking to him and he put his hand on the actor's knee.
What?
Andrzej blinked his eyelids and looked more closely through the lens. Marczak's left hand was clearly resting on the actor's right knee. Śliwiński ignored her completely when immersed in reading the text.
Nowicki's finger moved while taking the photo.
Marczak's hand slowly moved up the man's hip, approaching his crotch. It was unbelievable that the young actor could not feel her. In a moment it will be impossible to ignore it.
In fact, Śliwiński moved restlessly, trying to move away from the man harassing him, and said something. In response, Marczak took his chin with his right hand and kissed him.
Surprised, Andrzej automatically took another photo. And next.
For a moment, Śliwiński tried to defend himself. The pages he was holding scattered in chaos on the ground. He tried to free himself, push the man away, but finally gave in and hugged his back.
Andrzej's heart beat uneasily. He swallowed hard.
Dominik Śliwiński, idol of women, kisses a man?