Ohne Dich (Sequel to Stirb Nicht Vor Mir)

Chapter 9

June 10, 1999

"He told me that he loves me and that he can't be around me when I talk about other guys," I told my mom. 

"That's why he was upset?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry."

"It's alright. I won't really have to worry about it for long because Ville and I are going to go look around for apartments."

"Wait, hang on a second. You guys just met each other yesterday."

"I mean for me."

"Oh. That makes sense."

There was a knock on the door, so I opened it up and saw Ville standing there. 

"Ready to go?" He asked. 

I nodded my head as I got into his car. "I don't have a list of places I want to look at."

"That's alright; I do."

"Why?"

"I was bored yesterday and I figured that I should bring a list, too. You know, just in case."

"You are a lifesaver."

"I've been meaning to ask: Can you speak any German-I mean, knowing your dad and all?"

"I know 'Nein' and 'Wunderbar' and 'Stirb Nicht Vor Mir'."

"No, wonderful, and stop night for me?"

I chuckled. "No. Don't die before I do."

"How romantic."

"Ew!"

"What?"

"I told my dad-well, Till-that."

He chortled. "That's great."

I smiled as we pulled into a parking lot. "This looks really nice."

All of the buildings were grey and there were multiple trees surrounding everywhere. It was very, very green. 

We looked inside one of the apartments with someone else with us and I was very impressed. It had three very average-sized rooms and two bathrooms. 

"How much does it cost?" I asked. 

"$1700 per month," The lady showing us around replied. 

"Holy shit!" I gasped. 

"That's not that bad," Ville said. 

"Not that bad?" I faced him.

"You have a job right?"

"No. I'm not even moved out yet."

"Okay, this was a mistake then. I'm so sorry."

"Can I put myself down on a list or something to reserve one?" I asked her. 

"I'll be sure to mark you down," She smiled. 

"Thank you," I said. 

Ville and I walked into his car and we sighed. 

"You didn't tell me you didn't have a job!" He exclaimed. 

I flinched at the sudden raise in his voice. "I'm sorry."

He gave me a quizzical look. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"Hey, I'm sorry," He kindly put his hand on my shoulder. "Did something happen?"

"I-My mom had an abusive boyfriend and he would always yell, so yelling kind of triggers me. It's not your fault."

"I'll keep that in mind," He put his hand on the steering wheel and drove out of there. "Where to?"

"I don't know."

"A bar?"

"Sure."

"How old are you?"

"20."

"I don't know if you're old enough."

"I don't really want to drink anything."

"We could go to a restaurant with a bar and just sit at the bar if you would like."

I nodded my head. "That's fine."

We got out of the car and sat down at the bar. I saw a sign that read, "Hiring Now" with a bunch of details at the bottom of it. 

"Hey," I lightly tapped Ville's arm. "I can work here."

"It probably doesn't pay good," He grabbed his drink from the bartender. "Thank you."

"Well, what's the salary?"

"I don't know."

"Excuse me!" I called over the bartender. "How much do bartenders get paid monthly? I'm thinking of working here."

"Around $23,000 per month."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome," He walked away. 

I turned to Ville. "And that would pay for the apartment."

"Yeah, but think about the groceries and your car and everything."

"Everything revolves around money now!"

"And your kid, too."

"Everything doesn't revolve around my kid."

"I was talking about money," He chuckled. "Do you really want to work here?"

"I mean, I wouldn't mind. It seems fun."

"Then you should do it."

"Or I could be a prostitute," I smirked. 

"Now you've gone too far," He joked. 

"What are your type of women?"

"Um, beautiful women."

"No, seriously."

"I don't really have a type, per se, but what I look for in a woman is that they are intelligent, funny, beautiful, and that they have feelings for me, too. Your turn."

"They're pretty much the same as yours."

"That's very good."

"And they have to be kind of nerdy in a way."

"Nerdy?"

"No...that's not a good word. Um, they're really sophisticated when it comes to something that they have passion for-like your music. Or for Neil, his acting."

"That makes sense."

He paid for his drink, then he drove me back to my house. 

"Thanks for inviting me," He walked me up to the door. 

"Thanks for coming with."

"You should call that restaurant and take a look at the job offers they have."

"I will. What's the name of the restaurant again?"

"I don't remember, but I'll call you once I do."

"Okay."

"Goodbye."

"Goodbye," I smiled and waved at him. 

I think I was developing feelings for him that were more than a celebrity crush.