And the rest, is Johann

Chaper 1. Sui generis

Anna rapidly let her wallet disappear in the darkness of her handbag before grabbing the beverages from the café counter, smiling at the waiter before heading towards the exit.

She felt happy. No, not just happy, but exultant. Everything just felt perfect, the warm sun of spring over her skin, the lively Parisienne streets, the amusing shopping spree of the previous days...

And of course, Johann.

It had been a never-ending adventure, jumping from one city to another, chosen at random, for months. They had just returned from Saint Petersburg and there they were, spending all the money they wanted on clothing, books, jewels, sweets, etc.

Crossing the extremely crowded Place de la Concorde she headed towards the Jardin des Tuileries, where he was waiting for his iced tea sitting on a bench.

He had changed in those few months, so much she could barely recognize him.

His slightly tanned skin combined with his now almost normal weight gave him a much healthier appearance that only fueled his attractiveness. Yes, she was aware of how women around him looked at her brother with barely hidden, or not at all, appreciation. It was a comic display considering his absolute indifference.

But his appearance was the lesser of his changes. In those months she had learned to make a place for him in her life, to make some sense of their current situation and, despite fighting the demons of guilt and fear, she finally dared to say that she was glad that he had decided to stay.

His company was an endless list of surprises, in the shape of profound discussion mixed with childish talk, irrational ideas, and the brutal intimacy only someone with her same demons could offer.

It had been the correct choice, the brave one.

Now there was but one thing left, learn not to fear him. Because it was there, in his eyes, constantly. In the beginning, as he appeared in her apartment, they were dull, devoid of anything human, but now, they were different, so different...

The monster had healed, under her care, and now appeared alert, charismatic, strong.

Johann had never felt better, probably. Which also meant that he had never been more dangerous.

And she was left between the happiness of helping him, his gratitude, and the awareness of the danger she was fueling.

"An iced tea for you and a coffee for me!" She greeted him, handing him his plastic cup.

"Thank you." His icy eyes were still visible behind the sunglasses, piercing, always.

"Do you want to sit for a while, are you tired?" She waited for no answer, remembering her feet. "Actually... we can rest for a few minutes... please..." she swung her legs. "I love these shoes but, you were right... they aren't comfortable..." She made a pout, glancing briefly at him. "Remind me to follow your advice next time..."

Johann's smile was frozen on his lips, as he was occupied rolling up the sleeves of his shirt.

"You should follow my advice, always." He used such a solemn tone. "By the way, once you recover... would you like to walk a little under the trees, it would be nice to escape this sun for a few minutes, don't you think?"

"Yes! I'm still trying to transition from the Russian weather to this, and it's being hard." And pleasing, so pleasing.

"In any case, maybe it would be a good idea to stay indoors this afternoon, we are both tired," she had to agree. "We can watch a movie, check all the shopping we've done in the last days... or simply lie down." And if he asked to stay home, he really needed it. She had learned that Johann could endure real life, society, but in smaller doses. He needed to stay away from people because humans were that exhausting for him.