Sunsets and storms ✓

Chapter 4

MATTHEW

The plane gets closer to the island, the sun coming in through the windows. I know this is just the airport, but damn, this place is beautiful already.

We get off the plane and wait in line to go through passport control and get our luggage. The lady we're staying with will pick us up and drive us to her house, so we don't have to find a taxi. Logan's mum found the house on Airbnb and booked the room for us to stay in for three weeks. I don't know why she was so eager to get us out of the country for most of the summer but she was willing to pay for it apparently. She either wants Logan to find a girlfriend and is taking it a bit too far. Or she wants to have the house to herself and her new boyfriend. Probably both.

The lady introduces herself as Adele Melis, she's around seventy and freely chats for the short drive. I have a feeling that she and Logan will get along perfectly. Maybe that also means I don't have anyone talking to me in the mornings as long as they keep each other busy. I'm not a morning person, or rather not at all. Lucky for me, Evan isn't either so the mornings at our flat are usually quiet.

Adele offers to make us dinner every day if we want to and that we can eat everything in the kitchen. I don't think she realises what she just got herself into, offering three twenty-something guys free access to her kitchen. But I do want to take her up on the dinner offer. I can cook. In the sense that I can keep myself alive, but tasty it probably won't be.

Adele points us to our room and I am highly surprised to see how modern it is. There are three twin-sized beds with a huge flatscreen on the opposite wall. The room isn't huge but it sure will be a nice place to be for a few weeks. Adele lets us unpack before showing us the rest of the house. The other rooms are equally modern with white furniture with blue accents. How Greek do you want it? We can use the whole ground floor of the house as long as we don't make a mess.

We all get a drink and settle in the living room. Since we'll be staying here for three weeks, we get to know each other for a bit. Adele asks us questions about our lives at home, where we're from, what we study, how we know each other. A few hours easily get filled with conversation. She tells us about a girl that's staying with her as well.

"She's the granddaughter of my best friend, bless her soul. She's been staying with me for the summer for a few years already. She's such a sweetheart. You'll definitely like her. And beautiful she is too."

I don't set my expectations too high, grandparents, or in this case their friends, always think their grandkids are the most beautiful. I remember my own grandmother telling me I was the most handsome guy in town when I was going through puberty. Well, gran, you were definitely lying. I saw the pictures and they are not pretty. At all.

"My darling is from England as well. Her father is. Her mother is Greek. Never came back to the island."

She goes on about all the young people that barely ever come back to the island. She doesn't hide the fact that she's less than pleased that her children only come once a year. When we ask her if she has grandchildren of her own she laughs at us. Like straight in our face, laughing at us.

She tells us more about the girl and the more I get to know about her, the more I look forward to meeting her. Adele tells us she's into photography, something I really got into when mum told me she was pregnant with Louis. I never had a lot of good memories of my childhood and I didn't want my little brother to have the same experience so I take pictures all the time. From a growing baby bump three and a half years ago, up to last week, I have it all. I still have the memories but I cannot wait to look back at them when he's older and tell him all about it. Sometimes when I miss home, I go through them, maybe not the best idea, but well...

When we finally get back to our room, we hurry to get in bed. I'm exhausted. First saying bye to my family, spending hours on a square meter with my friends, chatting with a stranger for hours. I'm ready for a good night of sleep.

We talk about the girl a bit before we turn off the lights. All of us think there's something interesting about her and of course, we wouldn't be best friends without annoying the shit out of each other because of it. None of us has been in a relationship over the last year, so the idea of having someone is rather interesting. Evan has had his fair share of hook-ups, but Logan and I don't really roll that way, so it's safe to say we won't mind finding someone on this holiday. Maybe it's even better that it's just three weeks, no need to get too attached.

Evan and Logan went for a run early this morning. I kindly refused their offer to join them. I could use another hour of sleep to be honest. And who wants to go for a run on their first day of vacation?

Unfortunately for me, I cannot seem to fall back asleep, so I lazily make my way to the kitchen. Adele yesterday told us that there's plenty of food in the kitchen and to help ourselves, so that's exactly what I do. I just wasn't anticipating to have company this early in the morning.

Being the morning person I am, cough cough, I ignore the presence of this stranger at first. Then I realise that it's a girl, looking about my age, from behind at least. This must be the girl that lives with her for the summer. I open a few cabinets, hoping to find some food, without much luck.

"Can you be even louder?"

Again, the morning person I am, I close the next door a bit harder than needed.

"Fucking hell. Way to annoy a person."

She slowly turns around. Her hair is tied in a messy bun on top of her head, wearing a pair of shorts and a T-shirt.

"Not a morning person?"

"Oh, I am. Just not when I'm hungover as hell."

Aha, that explains the moodiness. It's only then that I really look at her face and I realise something. I know this girl.