NOT GIVING UP ON FOREVER

Chapter 36

It poured. It seemed to have conspired with the girl and cried instead of her. Anna's tears dried up as if passing the baton to nature. For an hour, she was sitting in a nearby cafe, flipping through the Internet in search of tickets.

Tickets to Italy.

"I'll rewrite everything," she kept on saying, opening and closing bookmarks with tourist offers. The cost of tickets soared up, but Anna did not care. She was looking for so long, not because the astronomical prices of the trip worried her. She was waiting for some sign, some unknown signal that she should choose this date or this hotel, or this...

"Host Association Milan Tours."

"No way..." She pulled away when tours of the so-known platform flashed before her eyes.

"Host Association Milan Tours."

"Of course!" Anna made some kind of inhuman laugh and read aloud the opened banner.

"Host Association Milan tours" will help You choose the ideal accommodation with the best owners on the best terms. Need a quiet neighborhood? No problem! Cheaper housing? Easy Peasy! Are you traveling with a big company? Even better! Our super hosts are always happy to accommodate You and all your friends in their beautiful apartments for a fair price! No scam! No hidden fees! Only clean transactions beneficial to both tourists and hosts. Hurry! Students get a 30% discount!"

The plan lined up in a second. She'd fix it. She would make the journey perfect.

She would cut Randall out of her life and pretend nothing had happened. In place of this empty holiday romance would be a perfect, untainted journey.

Weird? Illogical? Let everyone who thinks that go smell tomato bushes.

"My life—my rules," Anna muttered and smiled. "A book I'm writing to myself. That's what my life is. I'm free to write whatever I want and tear out all the sheets that ruin the story. A new page, a new chapter. And from now on, I'll be the author, not everyone else."

With these heroic conclusions, the listeners of which were a coffee and a laptop, Anna began to leaf through the owners' lists offering their homes for rent.

"Michaelo Razzi. Pucci Str, 35... blah, blah, blah, clean, cozy mansion, blah, blah, your entrance... aha I see..." murmured the girl, scrolling down the suggestions and adding to favorites. "Dear reader, this is Milena Mirizzi, blah, blah... Wow! By the sea! Oh, wow, how much money do you want, Milena, my darling! Blah blah..."

She faltered.

"Randall Parleo. Fizzi Strada. A charming home for lovers of Baroque style and anyone who wants to spend unforgettable days and nights in the heart of Milan."

"Liar!" Anna yelled and spat on the monitor.

"Yacks!" commented the shocked Chinese man sitting nearby and witnessing the savory spitting.

"Excuse me, sir," Anna blushed and began to wipe the screen with her sleeve.

"Even more awful! Very more very more awful!" the Chinese made a grimace, trying to express his contempt. "Bendan!"

{Bendan from 'silly,' author's remark}

"Thank you!" Anna responded, not understanding at all, and grinned.

"Shi. Shi!" the Chinese replied and turned away in disgust.

{Shi from 'yes,' author's remark }

Anna closed the promo and went on reading. Several apartments she marked as "Favorites," but then she saw this:

"Teo Reez. Apt 15-46 is the best offer you've ever seen—Luxury Villa near Santa Maria Delle Grazie for a mere penny. I don't want your money. I need your great impressions of my hometown. Yes. Such things happen!"

"Oh, no way! This is the Teo that Bernardo and Randall were talking about. Their hated rival that steals all their customers!"

She knew she would act out of resentment. She felt some dark, burning anger inside, which wanted to get out, wanted justice only in its perverted way—to make the offender as hurt.

Anna wanted Randall to suffer, to be hurt. She wanted him to lose her, to understand that he loved her, that it was not just a holiday hookup or some kind of friendship with benefits or whatever else he thought it was. But it was now that she saw in a second how things would unfold. She saw where it would lead, who would be hurt.

It was clear as day, and she wanted it. And she was about to do all required for it.

By clicking "Contact the Host," Anna began to write a request to rent the villa.