Is he really a bad boy? [English]

~Chapter 72~

NICA POV

After I went back to Maxim, we left the cemetery. Maxim remained silent all the way and stared into distance thoughtfully. I didn't know exactly what was going on in his head and I didn't have the guts to ask myself, but I thought it might have something to do with his parents or even Dan. At some point, he just stopped at the street. He raised his arm and called a taxi. The first taxi that came running stopped right in front of him. Maxim opened the door for me and waited until I got in before he sat in the car. Maxim told the driver, who turned out to be a woman, a street and then leaned back into the seat.
"Everything alright with you?", Max asked me and stroked a strand of hair behind my ear. "You're so quiet."
"I asked myself exactly the same thing."
"I thought I did something wrong because I brought you to the cemetery."
"No, no. You didn't do anything wrong. It meant a lot to me, really. I just didn't say anything because you didn't say anything. I didn't want to babble you unnecessarily." He smiled all of a sudden and pulled me to himself. I buried my face in his neck pit and inhaled his familiar smell.
"It meant a lot to me, by the way, that you came with me. I had long intended to bring you here, but I didn't want to take you unaware. I've never shown my parents' grave to anyone before. Not even Dan," he said and surprised me with this statement. I didn't expect to be the only person he had ever taken with him. To whom he had the confidence to show something so personal. At least I would have counted on Dan because he had been his best friend.
"So I was the first?", I asked him.
"You are my first in so many things, babe.", he said and gently kissed me on my lips. "I-"
"One question." The woman at the wheel suddenly said. Maxim never finished the sentence. We had talked in a whisper all the time and only looked at each other, so I had already forgotten the woman.
"Yes?", Max said and looked over from me to her.
"Is that you?", she asked. We were standing at the red light and right in front of us was a huge billboard on which Maxim was. He stood in front of a dark grey background and wore only white boxer shorts.
"Yeah, that's me.", Maxim said unimpressed as if it wasn't a big deal that he was almost naked on a huge billboard in the middle of Orlando. And also for such a well-known brand.
"Really? You're a model for Calvin Klein?", she asked in amazement and drove off again, as the traffic light switched to green.
"Yes", he said indifferently.
"Wow!" she replied. Only now that I was really looking at her I noticed that she should be at the end of her 20s, beginning of her 30s at the most. I would have guessed her much older, especially by her voice. I could see in the rearview mirror that she was watching Maxim. In a way that was totally inappropriate, especially when the person was in a relationship and the girlfriend was sitting next to him. We turned into a neighborhood where beautiful family houses stood. A very affluent neighborhood, as you could easily see from the size and style of the houses.
"Stop right in front of the grey house.", Maxim said after a while. As he had instructed her, she stopped right in front of the dark grey house. Without being given a price, Maxim handed her a $50 bill and left the car. I did it the same way. The taxi driver gave Max a charming smile before she finally drove away.
"My boyfriend is on giant billboards all over America, wearing only Calvin Klein boxer shorts and I'm the last one to know.", I said outraged and he started grinning.
"In my defense: I didn't know exactly when the campaign would come out, I had expected next month. I would have told you if I had found out. But you can't be that angry; I look pretty good in the ad."
"You are quite conceited, my darling!", I replied, although he was right, he really looked very good.
"Where are we here anyway?", I asked him when I realized that we were standing on the sidewalk, but we weren't moving.
"This is my house. Or my parents' house.", he explained.
"This is where you used to live?"
"Yep."
"Who lives in there now? Do you know that?" I asked him.
"Yes. Me."
"You?" I asked in surprise, "I thought you officially moved to Miami."
"I did. But I couldn't bring myself to sell it. According to the will, I am the only one who can decide about the house, I could have sold it when I turned 18. But I could never live with the thought that someone else would live in my house."
"Have you thought about moving back in?"
"Yes, maybe when I'm older.", he said, "Do you want to go in?"
"We can go in? Can we do that?"
"Of course we can, you fool, it's my house.", he laughed and pulled me to the door. He took a bunch of keys out of his pocket and put them in the door lock. I could see that he was insecure as he stopped for a moment before finally opening the door and entering the house. The entrance area was very bright and inviting, the same applied to the living room. There was a huge living area right in the middle of the room. Then there were also some flower pots in which once beautiful plants must have been.
"It's so strange to be here again.", I heard Maxim say. He stood near the TV, which hung on the wall, and let his gaze wander from one side of the room to the other.
"How long have you not been here?" I asked him.
"When I was 12, shortly after the car accident, I came here with a woman from the children's home and had to take my clothes and other things with me. I haven't been here since that day," he said, "It still smells the same.", he said and smiled sadly. I walked towards him and put my arms around his middle and snuggled up to his chest.
"I love you, you know that, don't you?", I murmured.
"Yes.", he said and put one arm around my shoulder and the other around my head and pressed me to himself, "Yes, I know. I am so glad that you are with me, Veronica!"
"I am glad that you took me with you!" He pressed a kiss on my head and muttered something into my hair which I didn't understand.
"Do you want to see the rest of the house.", he asked me.
"Yes, with pleasure."