The Villa

The Villa

Standing on the patio’s edge, they watch the sky turn purple. Mika steals glances at Dominik, leaning on his elbows on the iron railing. His hands are battered, not bartender hands at all. His profile is strong, his brows earnest. A good mouth for kissing. That’s the drugs.

They were thrown together on this adventure to the outskirts of Prague, coming along to this unknown villa party with other people who ditched them. It could have been a very crappy night, but Dominik believes in Drug Buddies. He hasn’t left her side since they got off the tram.

They found this flat-in-a-villa when exploring, neither of them interested in mingling with the other guests, and high enough not to want to leave. The villa is art-nouveau gorgeous, apparently has been used as a film set recently. The tiny flat, full of books and cassettes, has kept them occupied all night. Until now. Stupid end of the night.

Dominik cuts her a side look, and the corner of his mouth quirks. “What are you looking at?”

Another wave of buzzy breathlessness crashes through her, and she blinks hard several times, focusing on his mouth. “I bet you’re an excellent kisser.”

His brows shoot up and he laughs. “Based on what?”

“Loads of reasons.”

“And what are your criteria?” He pushes off the railing and crosses his arms.

“No, that would be telling. Then you could prepare your response.”

“Are we testing this theory, then?”

Now she can see the flaw. “Oh, right. I suppose your girlfriend would object. But…it’s just for science.”

Something flickers across his face. Perhaps he’s replaying their conversations, looking for the moment when they discussed romantic partners–which they didn’t. She clocked that girlfriend at the bar before they left.

“I see. You plan to test other subjects?”

She wrinkled her nose. “That would mean going downstairs.”

“Right. And we’re never going downstairs again.”

“Exactly.”

“So only one test subject. Will the results be valid?”

She shrugs. “Well, I have kissed other people, so I have a basis for comparison.”

He grins. “Go on then.”

Mika shakes her head. “Nope. You have to kiss me. That’s part of the evaluation.”

Again, his dark brows shoot up. “Seriously?”

“Seriously. That’s critical.”

“No pressure, then.”

The sky is dark royal blue, but she’s sure she can see the reflection of the stars on his skin. She steps closer to him and raises her eyebrows to show she’s ready. He holds one of her shoulders and leans down.

His mouth is as lush as she imagined—soft and hard. It is one kiss, but it is also multiple kisses, as if he’s tasting her. Electricity shoots down her spine to her toes. She almost gasps, almost giggles, but doesn’t dare. She melts into the kiss.

When he pulls away, he doesn’t release her shoulder for a moment, but stares at her mouth, her eyes. “Well.”

She can’t speak. Then the giggle escapes. “Yeah.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. You should always kiss like that. I have no notes. Very swoony.”

He lets go of her shoulder. “No retest needed?”

She will faint if he kisses her again. Her back has become a million butterflies. Her blood is sparkling wine. She inhales deeply. “Not yet. First we should watch the sun rise.”

He nods slowly.

*

It’s getting light. The sky is pale pink and the air is gorgeous and he’s never hated a sunrise before.

Dominik watches her smiling at the sky. Mika is kitten energy: half manic, half snuggles. He’s not sure whether he wants to burrow under the covers with her forever, or jump off a cliff into a sea of sparkles.

Man, he’s still high. He knows that. He knows this isn’t real. That kiss was just for fun. Tomorrow it will be another day at the bar, another night with Natalia and her friends, who do nothing but argue about the war.

But he can’t help thinking, What if it could be like this all the time? What if this was my life? What if this night didn’t have to end?

None of this was expected. In fact, he nearly turned back before they even got on the tram. Nearly went home to wallow in his annoyance with Natalia’s insistence that they go to the club again. Nearly missed this strange, magical interlude.

From the patio railing, they can see people trickling away, past the broken stone fountain, through the iron gates, out into the world. He wonders how many people are left downstairs. No, not really. They are downstairs people, not part of this bubble of perfection. This one moment that lasted a whole night, is still extending, the surface thinning. The pop is inevitable.

Mika turns as the pink is fading to pale blue. “Are you in a rush?”

He shakes his head. He’s never felt less inclined to do Real Stuff. How can dark eyes be so bright?

“So maybe now is the outside adventure part.” She raises both eyebrows. “I mean, we have to get all the way back into town.”

They put everything back where they found it and slip downstairs. People are still talking in the kitchen but they bypass. In each room they look into, the couches are occupied by people passed out. On the grass, randomly, more people are stretched out, asleep, abandoned.

They walk up the road in the sun. She makes him a crown of flowers, winding the stems in a mysterious pattern. When she places it on his head, she grins. “You’re so pretty!”

He laughs. He feels pretty. Everything all around them is pretty, even the weeds in the abandoned lots and the rusted bins they pass. Of course, she is the prettiest thing in all the prettiness, flitting like the dragonfly tattoo on her forearm, sunlight streaming around her.

She points out her favorite house. “Do you have it all planned out? Your future home? Kids’ names?”

This is not my beautiful house. This is not my beautiful wife.

“No. I’m dream-free. That’s my new thing.”

She considers that. “Probably smart. I wish I knew how to do that.”

“I can teach you. I’m expert level. Going pro.”

As they approach the tram stop, he takes her hand, as if he can keep her on earth, tether her to him, and maybe tether them both to the previous night.

On the tram, they stand in the back and watch the tracks, and the past, retreat. She puts both hands on the handrail, and he moves behind her so she can lean on him. He lets his arm snake around her, though he knows he shouldn’t. This is all disastrous.

But there are still ten tram stops to go.

Fucking ecstasy.