And it all started with this meet & greet - Ondreaz Lopez

Chapter 15. "I told you I was good at this game."

 Yeah, that's a good description. The view was breathtaking, and the setting sun added golden hues to an already beautiful picture. The wind was very fresh, but I wasn't cold and the warm rays provided a mild temperature.

 "How did you know to come up here," Tony asked me after we had just sat there and kept quiet for some time. The wind blew south over London and just swept over our heads, the wall at our back protected us from it. 

 "My parents were and still are often on business trips. They had once taken my brother and me on holiday. Here. Actually we wanted to meet someone in the lobby and then leave again. 

 I didn't remember it at first, but when I was downstairs in the gym, I recognized him. I ran down to the basement because I thought it was so nice. When my parents came to get me, I took the stairs. 

 Up here I hid until it got dark in the evening. It was a coincidence that I found this," I explained calmly. Quietly I breathed out and pushed the sleeves of my jacket up. 

 "Are your parents away often?", Tony asked cautiously and looked at me. I nodded. "Yes. Matt and I have had an endless supply of nannies. We hated each one and just hoped our parents would stay longer. A month from now, they won't have been gone for a year."

I sighed. "But that's nice, isn't it?" he asked in astonishment and looked back towards the city. "No. It is not. Whenever they've been at home for so long, they usually disappear for twice as long. Then we communicate for months on Skype or by SMS. It's really sad. 

 So it'll be back soon. Then they go somewhere in Africa or Asia and they don't know what to do there. Sometimes I imagine that it's different. I imagine that we are a happy family, but we will never be. 

 Sure, I know that already and I'm old enough to handle it now. I am also very proud of what my parents do, but it just doesn't feel right. And they don't even realize it. 

 I have my brother and my friends, but I don't have parents. And even though I know it's never gonna change, I still wish it would. Simply because the very idea of giving up is unbearable. You know what I mean?" 

 Now I was looking at his face again. He nodded. "Yeah, I think I know what you mean." He looked at me, too. "Is that why? The tattoo?" 

 I pulled my knees up to my chest and put my chin down. "Yes. It's good for freedom. My parents were away a lot, but there were a lot of rules. We were only allowed a few friends - of course we didn't stick to them, but the mere fact that there was such a rule makes me sick. On weekends we were only allowed to go out together. Cinema was taboo for us. 

 Every day I had to practice piano for four hours and at least two hours for school. School was always the most important thing, bad grades were punished. Until I was 16, I wasn't allowed to do anything. I was, and partly still am, trapped in a cage. A golden cage, but still he robbed me of my freedom." 

 For a moment I thought about my choice of words. Suddenly I had to laugh. "It sounds so corny and clichéd, but that's the way it is. It's just not the kind of life you can choose. And I'm not really complaining. It could have been worse for me."

 When it came to my family, I always got dramatic. "That sounds so overblown," I laughed and shook my head in disbelief.

Tony laughed too. "Yes, a little, but I know what you mean." Then we were silent again. It was not an uncomfortable and forced silence. It began to dawn and a short time later the sky was a play of colors. 

 Red, orange, pink and purple intertwined, pushing the blue away.

 Immediately I stood up. "This is incredible," I laughed and enjoyed the way my hair fluttered in the wind. Tony also stood up and was amazed. "Yes, it is." He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and took a picture of it. 

 "Oh, shit!" he moaned and ran his fingers through his hair. "Ondreaz found Tay, Thomas, Alex, James and Chase two hours ago! He's asking us for a tip, otherwise he's desperate." 

 Oh, I really hadn't counted on this. "Just send them the photo. That's probably tip enough," I suggested and he nodded. "But one with both of us in it," he demanded, pulling me closer. I wanted to protest, but he'd already taken the picture. 

 Without asking me, he sent it to Ondreaz, who didn't take long for his answer, which Tony read aloud. "I was on the roof and I didn't find you. Come on out, you won anyway." 

 Grinning, we left our hiding place and made our way up the stairs to our rooms. "There you are," Ondreaz sighed and slapped Tony on the shoulder. "Where the fuck were you?" murmured Tay. "Yes, we had to help Ondreaz and not even the six of us found you!" it now came from Chase, who had settled on the floor next to the door. 

 Defending, I raised my hands. "I told you I was good at this game," I laughed and pushed my way past the tsix boys to their suite. There I went into the kitchen and grabbed a beer. 

 I got along so well with the boys that I forgot who they really were. They were tiktoker, famous. "Say, is it okay for you guys to spend time with me or am I a nuisance?" I asked, so I looked at her questioningly. 

 "Are you kidding us?" Tay almost yelled and shook his head in indignation. "Don't be silly, Soph." 

 "Bullshit, we all like you. It's good to spend time with someone who's not a fan. Besides, we had an agreement that you had to entertain us when we brought you out of the hospital," Ondreaz added, no less shocked. 

 I nodded. Yes, they had said that. Smiling, I took one step towards thesix of them. "Well, you'll have to tell me a bit about yourself now. After all, I know almost nothing about you"

 In fact, I knew almost nothing at all and that was frankly a bit embarrassing, considering that with a few clicks of the mouse I could learn a lot about them. But it was a nice feeling not to sit in front of the laptop to get to know someone, but simply to learn more about the people you get along with so well in conversation. 

 Agreeing they nodded and pulled me onto the couch. "Then we'll just do a little question and answer session. You ask us questions that we all have to answer, but you have to as well, so that we can get to know you better as well," Chase said and settled down next to Tony.

 "And, so you don't ask questions that would be too uncomfortable for yourself," he winked and I felt like I was getting the hang of it. That meant I could cross some off the list. 

 Snuggled up in the comfortable cushions, supplied with drinks and snacks, I started to ask the first questions.