I meet her that night out front of her apartment building, and the two of us walk the city streets down the few blocks to the restaurant. It is in the basement of a small older-looking brick building. Astrid gives me a questionable look and takes my hand as we walk down the steps.
“Trust me, it doesn’t look like much, but it’s amazing.”
I’m asked to order, given my expertise, and find that my mouth is much bigger than my stomach. Astrid gets a ramen bowl to eat for herself but at my insistence allows me to force sushi on her. I watch curiously as she tries to work the chopsticks to pick up a piece, to no avail. My hand covers my mouth to stifle a laugh. She looks up at me frustrated.
After I finish my food, I move over to her side of the table, sitting beside her. My hand wraps around hers, demonstrating how to correctly hold the chopsticks. When it seems like she has a handle on it, I let her attempt again, and again she fails miserably.
I pick up a less fishy roll with my own set of chopsticks and hold it out for her to try. She looks at me for a moment before she takes it in her mouth. As she tastes it, I watch her facial expression change to one of pleasure. She lets out a small sigh.
“That was amazing,” she says when she opens her eyes and looks at me. When our gaze meets, my heart skips a little beat. My thoughts wander on about her adorable face and those perfect pink lips. Suddenly, all I want is to be alone with her again.
In record speed, we finish our food, yet it doesn’t seem fast enough. The entire time, the two of us stare at one another longingly. I feel Astrid’s foot softly rub against the side of my leg. As soon as we make it outside the restaurant, having completely forgotten our to-go boxes, I bring her along the alleyway and press her body against the brick wall. Our mouths come together in a passionate fury. When we break, I gasp. “Let’s go to my place.” It’s right down the street.
Our hands are clasped together the entire walk home. Running up those three flights of stairs seems like an eternity. Luckily my father is at work for a few more hours at least. I realize, just before I open the door, that Astrid hasn't been to my apartment before. We stand outside for a moment, and I turn to her.
“It’s kind of small,” I explain. Her big eyes stare at me curiously. “And I don’t know how clean it is. I’ve been kind of busy—“ My voice trails off as I watch Astrid draw into me.
“Penelope,” she says softly, her face very close to mine.
“Mm?” I reply, doing my best not to kiss her right then and there.
“Open the door,” she says, putting her mouth on mine for a moment. We stand there in the hall, our lips moving over one another’s before I finally manage to turn around and shakily open the door.
Brutus and Smokey are there to greet us as soon as I do. As I wave them out of the way, I hear Astrid behind me. The minute she closes the door, she erupts into a sneezing fit. When she recovers, her eyes are red and her nose runny. I feel horribly guilty.
“Are you allergic to cats or dogs?” I ask, shooing the animals away down the hall.
“Both,” Astrid admits as we make our way into the kitchen. I shuffle through the cabinets for allergy medication and fetch her a glass of water. She takes it graciously.
“I see why you’re always sneezing around me now,” I laugh. “I should have realized sooner.”
“What are their names?” She asks, and I call them over to introduce them to her. Even amidst her allergies, she pets them both softly. Brutus takes to her immediately, wagging his stubby little tail as she scratches his back.
With Astrid’s allergies abound, we decide to sit and chat for a while. Eventually, I start craving dessert and the two of us root through cabinets for ingredients to make cookies.
“Let’s make Haselnussmakronen,” she suggests to me once we find everything she’d been looking for. “Do you have jam?”
“Hasel-what?” I reply, digging through the fridge door for some raspberry jam. When I hand it to her, she smiles at me.
“Macaroons,” she says. “They’re easy.”
Just as I thought that Astrid couldn’t be more perfect, her baking skills proved otherwise. The two of us work like a well-oiled machine. Much like her skills at helping me with clinic, she is a great teacher at baking German food as well. Before long, we’d made two dozen tiny and beautiful cookies with jam in the center.
I heat the tea kettle, and the two of us sit, admiring our hard work. By then, Astrid’s allergies had settled, and she’d resumed playing with the animals. It made my heart happy that she got along with them so well.
The second I finish making our tea, the front door rattles and my father steps inside. He looks exhausted but happily greets the pets who run up to meet him. When he spots Astrid and me in the kitchen, his face breaks into a smile.
“I didn’t realize we’d have guests,” he says, looking at me for a moment. “You must be Astrid. I’m Thomas, nice to meet you.” My father holds out his hand, and she takes it into a firm handshake.
“I didn’t realize Penelope talked about me,” she says innocently, looking in my direction.
My father laughs. “Oh, Penny talks about you all the time.” As soon as he says it, I nudge him playfully in the side, feeling myself getting red from embarrassment. He offers me a hug, and Astrid smiles between us.
“We made cookies,” I look him, trying to change the subject. He looks at them, impressed, picking one out of the bunch to try. “Haselmuchen.” I butcher it terribly.
Astrid laughs. “Haselnussmakronen. Macaroons.”
“Tasty,” my father says, having another after he finishes the first.
The two of us sit at the table a while, munching on cookies and drinking tea. My father has a cup of coffee, given the fact that he’d head off to his other job in a few hours. Astrid gets bombarded with questions about her life overseas. I can tell at points she seems uncomfortable to answer.
“You look so familiar to me,” my father says to her as he finishes off a final cookie. He must have eaten nearly an entire tray just by himself. “I can’t place it. Are you sure you aren’t a famous German actress that I should know about?”
Again, Astrid has a strange look on her face that I can’t place. She offers a small smile and waves him off. “I wish,” she laughs quietly before taking another sip of tea.
“Alright kiddo,” he says to me, standing up from his seat. “I’m going to go get a few hours of sleep.” He looks up at Astrid, holding out his hand. “It was a pleasure to finally meet you.”
“You too,” she says.
“I think I’m going to go over to Astrid’s for a while,” I tell my father before he leaves. When I say it, Astrid gives me a playful look, which I return before he turns to nod at me.
“Have a good night you two,” he waves, calling the animals down the hall with him.
The two of us leave shortly afterward. Quietly, Astrid sneaks me into the dark penthouse, lit only by the city lights outside. I would have stood to admire the view if I hadn’t been pulled along softly by a demanding hand. As we walk, she turns to steal kisses from me every couple of steps. We giggle when our mouths meet.
Our clothes hit the floor seconds after we’ve made it into the suite. Astrid looks beautiful in the faint lights of the city around us. I push her naked frame up onto the glass window in her kitchen, pressing my mouth to her neck. My hand runs down her flesh, in between her legs. She moves against me, gasping softly as I work. Her fingers dig lightly into my back, holding on to me as her body begins to quiver. Every stroke I make causes her to gasp into my ear. I continue until I feel her relax into me.
We move into her bedroom, lying down on the bed. Our mouths meet over and over, and Astrid tries desperately to stay awake, but soon I find her nestled in the sheets, her hand resting on the side of my body. Between the medicine from earlier and her intense release, I knew she couldn’t help but be exhausted. My hand strokes down her softly and then rests on her cheek, looking at her in the faint light around us. She i
s the most beautiful thing in the world.
“Es gibt nichts schöneres als dich,” I whisper softly, running my hands over her again and kissing her on her forehead. My eyes glance at her once more before I take the image of her with me in my dreams.
Chapter 8
Astrid
When I awake the next morning, I find Penelope sleeping soundly beside me. Her blonde hair is tousled, her mouth just slightly open while she breathes quietly. She looks peaceful. For a few minutes, I watch her sleep before I draw my lips on to her skin. My body moves on top, while my mouth works over her. She stirs, her eyes fluttering open as I move over the flesh of her breasts.
Penelope lets out a soft sigh, and I continue downward till I reach her middle. When I come down on top of her, her hips buck upward towards me. My mouth and fingers work together, pleasuring her senseless. When she finally releases, she cries out my name softly into the sheets, her hands buried in my hair. Penelope’s thighs squeeze around my head, and I feel her go for a long while. After she relaxes, I move up to kiss her.
“Good morning,” I let out a small laugh when we break apart.
She smiles up at me, brushing the hair from my face. “Well good morning to you too.” I feel her push her legs together, savoring the remnants of my pleasuring. She wraps her arms around me, holding me close to her. We stay there for a minute before my stomach starts to grumble.
“Want some breakfast?” I ask, looking up at her. Penelope nods eagerly. “Okay, be right back. Don’t move.” We kiss again briefly before I break away from her and wrap myself in a robe.
I make my way out into the penthouse. It is still early, so I do my best to keep quiet. Partially because I didn’t want to disturb my aunt. Partially because I didn’t want my aunt knowing that I had company. The hopeful thought didn’t last for long.
As I round the corner in the kitchen, I am surprised to find my aunt and cousin sitting at the breakfast bar together, drinking coffee.
“Good morning, Schatzi,” Nina says to me with a smile. Zoe hides a bashful face behind her mug. I look at them curiously as I make my way over to the fridge.
“Good morning,” I reply, pulling out eggs and bacon.
“Why don’t you have Penny join us for breakfast?” my aunt says behind me and I feel my heart start to race a little bit. “I was going to make pancakes.” This was bribery at its finest. She made the best pancakes, and she knew I wouldn’t turn them down.
“I’ll go get her,” I reply quietly, making my way out of the kitchen. Before I turn the corner, I look back at her. “How did you..” Nina gives me a mischievous smile. “Never mind, I don’t want to know.”
As soon as I make it into the suite and back into the bedroom, Penelope pulls me back on the bed, and the two of us kiss softly for a moment. “I change my mind. I’d rather lie here a while.”
“My aunt invited you to breakfast,” I say when we meet eyes. Fear washes over her face at a rapid pace.
“Did you..” she asks.
“Of course not,” I reply quickly. “Somehow she figured it out. But she’s making pancakes. And you don’t turn down Nina’s pancakes. Trust me.”
Penelope and I dress swiftly, and the two of us head out into the central part of the penthouse. She holds my hand until we round the corner into the kitchen. I watch her step behind me, making a bashful entrance. My aunt wastes no time trying to make her feel comfortable. We sit at the bar next to Zoe, and the four of us get lost in conversation.
As promised, Nina’s pancakes are to die for. They’re German style, cooked in a deep cast iron skillet. It is typically served with lemon and powdered sugar, but my aunt liked to put jam on hers. She made one for each of us, giving Penelope hers first. By the time I had gotten mine, she’d finished hers off and started to steal some from me. I batted her hand away, laughing.
“Astrid’s a scrooge when it comes to food,” Zoe says.
“I’ve noticed,” Penelope replies, looking at me. I roll my eyes at her playfully and push my plate towards her. She takes another sliver from the side and munches on it happily.
After Nina makes herself a pancake, she joins us, sitting on the opposite side of the bar. Mostly the conversation turns to questions about Penelope, which she gladly answers.
The four of us work together to clean the kitchen after we’d finished eating. Penelope hops right in, drying dishes after I wash them in the sink. Our hands touch each time, and it sends shivers through me. We meet eyes, and all I want is to take her back into the bedroom again.
Instead, we are interrupted by the loud ring of the doorbell.
“Now who on Earth is that,” my aunt says curiously, walking into the living room. Zoe, Penelope and I watch from the corner of the kitchen as she answers the intercom.
Every ounce of blood runs out of my face. My heart races furiously in my chest. I can’t breathe. The minute I hear her voice, it’s as if the entire world comes to a standstill. When her pristine German came echoing through the house, it was all I could do to keep myself upright. I suppose I was starting to fall over because I felt Penelope arm around my waist.
“Are you alright?” She asks me. Suddenly it occurs to me that not only was it a bad sign that my mother had decided to show up in New York, but it was even worse that she was here with Penelope.
“One-second dear, I’ll let you right in.” Nina turns swiftly when the intercom turns off and heads to us. “I’ll keep her distracted, but you have to be quick.”
“What’s going on?” Penelope asks, rather confused.
I can hear my mother's voice echo through the living room. My aunt rambles on with her, both of them chatting in German. They are very excited to see one another. It had been many years since my mother had visited the states.
"Let me show you what I've done with the place since you last visited," Nina says, and I hear them trail off down the hallway to the other end of the house. As soon as they do I pull Penelope along, straight towards the elevator. When we reach it, I turn to face her.
"I can't explain right now, but you'll have to trust me," I tell her quickly.
"Who is that?" She asks me, still looking confused.
"That is my mother," I reply, slightly panicked. "And she can't know you are here. I'll explain everything later, I promise."
As the elevator opens, I help Penelope inside, and when she looks at me again, I move into her, planting a firm kiss on her lips. A kiss that I hope says everything that I couldn't say at that moment. Her eyes stare into mine until the elevators close.
I feel Zoe's hand wrap around my wrist. "Come on. They're coming back." The two of us race towards the other end of the house. We make perfect timing, my mother, and Nina roaming out into the living room just as we did.
"Mama?" I do my best to act surprised. "What are you doing here?"
My mother moves in one swift motion, wrapping her arms tightly around me. "Oh Schatzi," she says, kissing the top of my forehead. "I missed you so much."
In my mixed emotional state, I can't help but feel happy to have her around me again. As much as I want to escape that other world, it didn't take away from the fact that I missed my family dearly.
"I missed you too," I smile at her when we part.
We sit on the couch, the four of us, making conversation and enjoying each others company. Finally, my mother explains the real reason that she had come all the way here.
"I want to take you home," she says, squeezing my shoulder. "It's time for you to fulfill the plan that was laid out for you. Time for you to marry Lukas. Time for you to play your part for your country."
Ever since my birth, that was all I ever heard. My duty to my country. My role in my family. My marriage to Lukas. And I lived in it, accepting my fate for so many years. Finally, when Lukas and I decided our lives were never meant for one another, my mind changed. Suddenly I saw my world for what it really was. Exactly that. My world. So I decided to leave, no matter the consequences. To decide my own fate. And once again
, my mother was entangling herself in it.
"I'm not going home, Mama," I tell her quietly, trying my best not to argue.
"You've been here four months," she argues. "Don't you think it's about time you come home to your family? It's Christmas. You have a wedding to plan and Lukas to think about."
I can feel Zoe's hand slowly slide onto mine when my mother says those words. It is the only reason I manage to stop myself from replying with something I shouldn't.
"Mama, I'm never going to marry Lukas. I'm not in love with Lukas."
"This isn't about love, Schatzi. It's about duty," my mother says.
"Lukas and my marriage is merely a formality, and you know it," I found myself rising to my feet. "It doesn't matter if we marry."
Nina stares at us. "Perhaps it would be best-"
"I'll not argue with you," my mother's voice is stern and demanding. The scolding voice she'd gotten when I was a child and disobeyed her. "You're coming home, and that is final."
"Mama, I can't come back with you." The tone of my voice has turned pleading. She stares at me a long while, waiting for the rest. It takes everything in my power to force myself to say it, knowing full well the consequences that would likely come with it.
"I'm going to medical school," I tell her, and I watch her facial expression drop. There is silence between us for a long time. Nina and Zoe look incredibly uncomfortable. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," I apologize. She still says nothing. Instead, she takes a sip of her coffee. I feel Zoe's hand squeeze mine again, and I squeeze it back.
"Astrid," she finally says, and the two of us meet eyes. "I'm going to ask you this once more."
"I can't Mama," I tell her before she even speaks.
"If you've made up your mind, I have no choice but to let you make your own decisions." Relief floods my face when she says this. It doesn't last for long. "However, it doesn't mean I am going to agree with them."
"That's fair," I reply, but she cuts me off quickly before I can say anything else.
"Turning your back on your duties to our family, the people of our country, when you know you have a responsibility. I won't be able to forgive you for that."
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