"You still have a flaw." Johan said, looking up at Erick again.
His expression, despite being pale from blood loss, was nothing short of unbelievable.
Johan looked at Erick, as he headed towards the bathroom, where he had stored the first aid kit, with a mixture of delight and laughter.
Erick frowned and shook his head, completely disbelieving what he was seeing there.
"A... Flaw?" Erick asked, reining in the surprise in his voice.
"Yes, a flaw." Johan retorted. "I don't know what your story is, nor what kind of people permeate your social circle. But I can say one thing for sure..." Johan paused, opening the first aid kit, and taking out the necessary materials to patch his hand up. "Some things still take you by surprise. Seriously, did you really think I'd never seen death? That you thought someone with a life like mine would actually still have some trace of warmth?"
Erick scratched his head, unable to take his eyes off Johan.
The concentration with which he prepared the materials to suture the hole in his hand was frightening, and when Johan began to stitch the wound...
Erick couldn't help but shiver.
Delicate, subtle, short and precise movements, the thread passing through the skin just after the needle, and no grimace of pain was revealed on Johan's face.
Not even Erick was that good at tending to his own injuries.
"Ha..." Erick couldn't help himself, bursting into laughter.
A slightly nervous laugh, but he tried with everything he had to hide that part.
"Who knew... You really got me right... Who knew that one day, I would be fooled by someone like you. No offense."
"None taken." Johan smiled. "I guess I'm going to have to make up a story to explain the origin of that injury, right?"
Erick nodded, heading towards the bed and sitting down.
"Tomorrow is the big day, ready?"
Cutting the suture thread and tying it carefully, Johan nodded, and after exchanging some more information, the two went to sleep.
Johan leaned his head against the back of the sofa, and looked at his hand, shaking like a branch full of leaves in the wind.
To lie to someone like Erick, hiding one's true emotions and making him mistake them by a down right lie...
It was almost impossible.
***
When the day dawned, Erick went to the motel owner's truck to check its condition.
Seeing that everything was in order, he returned to the room and got dressed.
Johan was amazed at how the young man before him had progressed in healing.
Or he was hiding his real condition very well, seeing as there wasn't any grimace of pain on his face, and the stitches weren't even bleeding anymore despite still being relatively fresh.
"Are we going to dispose of the truck somewhere?" Johan asked, scratching his head.
His cropped, slightly long hair still had a new feel, difficult for Johan to get used to.
"No, I'll call one of my drivers, and he'll bring the truck back here."
Johan nodded.
***
Halfway there, they disembarked and Erick ordered an Uber. Inside the car, a very new and comfortable Honda Civic, Erick took his smartphone out of his pocket and called someone.
"You can get the truck." Was all he said before hanging up.
A few minutes later, they were in front of the hotel where Erick had stayed when he arrived, and upon seeing the two entering, the hotel manager immediately came to meet Erick.
"Mister Vaughn, did something happen? You disappeared, so-"
"I'm fine, Crawford, I just had a few setbacks. Call one of the maids and help us with the preparations for our return, otherwise, don't bother us."
Crawford, the hotel manager, a man in his late sixties with wrinkles on his face, olive skin, and a judgmental expression, bowed his head courteously, heading toward the reception desk.
Not long after that, both Erick and Johan were ready to say goodbye, and each go their own way.
Having already exchanged the documents, Johan looked at Erik once again, before heading to the Uber that was already waiting, while the bellboy took the luggage.
"Are you sure you'll know your way around?"
With that question, Johan had another in mind.
'What will my life be like when I get back?'
"Mind your own business." Eric laughed. "Just try not to ruin my name and image while you're in my position."
With this last exchange of pleasantries, Erick turned his back and headed somewhere at the end of the street.
Johan, in turn, got into the car, a lump forming in his throat, and a tingling sensation taking over his limbs.
'Now it's all or nothing...' He thought, slowly closing his eyes, preparing himself for the first step he would take towards a completely new life.
Nervousness almost took your focus away from what really mattered.
How much Johan would enjoy that life, while Erick fulfilled his part of the agreement.
However, one thing had become very clear in the days leading up to that exact moment.
Johan knew that Erick didn't want to disappear simply for some banal reason.
No...
Whatever was waiting for Erick when he returned home, it was something Johan needed to fully prepare himself against, even if only mentally, to avoid getting hurt.
'A cheater trying to cheat another cheater... Let's see who comes out on top in this...'
With that thought in mind, Johan watched the cityscape grow thicker and thinner as the car headed towards the airport.
Johan looked at the passage, and sighed.
A return ticket for the six-fifteen flight to the other side of the country.
'Don't worry, when you arrive, they will be waiting for you. Just one more word of caution... Don't trust anyone.' Erick had said, before the two got into the truck, and Johan was prepared for whatever it was, after that advice.
For anything, yes.
But not for what Johan saw after the flight and the exhausting car ride to the most sumptuous entrance gate he had ever even dreamed could exist outside of the movies.