The following morning, at 8 o'clock already, neither Daniel nor Jack had yet come down. Madame Simone ascended to awaken them, hoping to find them both in the same room as usual.
"Daniel. Jack. Breakfast is ready," she announced behind the door. After repeating it several times, she finally heard Dan's sleepy voice respond.
"I will be down in five minutes," he said.
"And what about young Jackson?"
"Let him sleep, Simone," Dan replied.
"Very well, Daniel," the forty-year-old acquiesced before descending once more.
"What a lousy morning!" Dan grumbled as he got up and went to take a shower.
After changing, he descended to the kitchen. "Hmm... it smells delightfully good," he remarked to Simone. "It makes my mouth water."
"They are just pancakes," Madame Simone replied with a smile.
"They are not just pancakes. They are pancakes covered in maple syrup and fresh fruits," Dan added, causing Simone to laugh.
"You are in quite a good mood this morning," Jackson's voice rang out, teasingly, accompanied by Joy's loud yawns.
Dan rolled his eyes, and Simone immediately understood why the boy had red eyes and dark circles underneath. But she didn't dare ask. "His feelings were not reciprocated, it seems," she thought simply.
"Good morning, Mr. Jackson."
"Please, call me Jack, Simone. You forget every time."
"Sorry, habit dies hard. Jack. And who is this charming young lady?" Dan rolled his eyes once again, taking a big bite of his crepe.
"My name is Joy. Joy Foster, ma'am," she replied with a smile.
"Come now, call me Simone, young lady."
"Alright," she said timidly. Jack found her increasingly cute and polite, while Dan found her annoying and hypocritical. It's amazing how people see things differently.
"Sit down, I will fetch your breakfast."
"Thank you."
"Thank goodness I prepared extra food..." Ms Simone said, as she went to fetch the dishes for the guests.
"Hello Dan," Joy said. "Did you have a good night?"
"It's Daniel to you. And..." Daniel was about to insult her, but the look Jackson gave him stopped him. "I had a great night. I even dreamt that someone was giving me a blowjob," he added, causing surprise in Jackson and embarrassment in Joy.
"Are you an idiot or something?" Jack exclaimed, as Joy burst out laughing.
"I hope the girl who gave you that blowjob was hot," she added.
"Correction. It was a man," he admitted, not looking at them. "And he was... terrible."
"Hm," she simply said. "Dan, can I ask you a question?"
Dan put down his fork and took a tissue to blow his nose before answering.
"Sorry to ask you this, but... are you gay?" she asked, looking him in the eyes.
"Does it bother you?" he replied, meeting her gaze.
"Oh no, not at all," she assured him. "My brother is gay, so... it's no problem for me."
"So why did you ask?" he said, not breaking eye contact.
"I was just curious, that's all."
"Why? What's it to you?"
"Stop it, Dan," his friend told him, and Dan continued eating. Breakfast continued in silence for Dan as the couple chatted and laughed.
"Hmm, Dan..." Joy began, trying to get closer to him even if he didn't seem to want to be friends. "Are you majoring in the same field as Jacky and I?"
"Jacky?" Dan repeated, eyes wide as he looked at the couple.
"Oh, it's just a little nickname I gave him," Joy explained shyly, while Dan rolled his eyes once again, this time under Joy's hurt gaze.
"Dan."
"What now?"
"Why don't you like me?" The two boys stopped eating to look at each other, then turned to her. Dan struggled to swallow his last bite of crepe.
"It's not that I don't like you, it's just that..." he stammered.
"Is it because..." she began before cutting herself off, biting her lower lip. She hesitated to ask her question. "... are you in love with Jack?" she asked him seriously, without joking.
Dan looked at Jack and burst out laughing, doubling over. "You're kidding, right? Never. He's like a brother to me," he said.
Jack thought silently, "A brother you sleep with."
"Plus, I've had feelings for someone for a long time, but... he's not attracted to men so..."
Joy felt relieved to hear that. The young woman was naive and gullible, just like her boyfriend who seemed to believe everything Dan said.
"You've never told me that," Jack remarked as he took a sip of his freshly squeezed juice served by Simone, who was watching the scene with enthusiasm, as if it were a telenovela.
"Just like you've never mentioned Joy to me," Dan retorted. "But let's move on... Joy, when I have a boyfriend, you'll be the first to know," he added before getting up from the table. "I hope you've already packed your bags, Jack, because ready or not, I'm leaving tomorrow," he told his friend. "Have a good day, lovebirds."
"Where are you going?" Jack asked.
"I'm going out. Can't you see?" Dan replied.
"You brat. I've already finished packing my bags..." Jack tried to say, but Dan had slammed the door in his face. Well, he had closed the door while Jack was talking to him. Isn't that what slamming the door in someone's face means?
"Is he always like that?"
"Like what?"
"Like that. Irritable. Violent and..."
"No. But he doesn't like being lied to. He hates it. And I don't think he hates you. He's not mean, he just doesn't like being lied to because of you."
"But it's not my fault," she exclaimed, pouting.
"I know, darling," Jack said, approaching her and kissing her tenderly. "But you also have a part of responsibility." Joy raised her eyebrows. "You are so beautiful that..."
"Blah blah blah," she said, wrapping her arms around Jack's waist, resting her chin on his collarbone and gazing at him lovingly. "I love you, you know," she declared.
"I didn't know that," Jack replied, teasing her. As she tried to break free, she was quickly caught by him and found herself trapped between him and the table. Their foreheads touched as he offered her a sweet kiss that made her moan softly... just a little. Jack clearly had talent for that. Thanks to Dan.
"Thankfully, young Daniel isn't here to witness this," Simone mumbled to herself.
Thankfully, indeed!