When Love’s In Fashion

Chapter 9

Elmira heard the knock but absolutely did not want to move.

“Come in!” She yelled from the comfortable place she had on her bed. She knew it was Sven anyway. It’s not like he was going to kill her.

“Seriously? You need to lock your doors!” She could hear him from the doorway as he walked his way back to her room.

“I knew it would be you.”

“Doesn’t matter. You should lock your doors, Elmira. This is New York City.” Sven paused and looked at her tucked into her bed. “How are you feeling?”

“I’ve definitely felt better. That’s for sure. I felt so miserable and listless I didn’t even get back up when I realized I had left my phone in the other room.”

Sven chuckled as he sat down on her bed. “Well that would explain why you never called me back. I brought you some soup if you want it.”

“Did you make it?”

“Yes. My meeting ended early and I couldn’t get a hold of you. So I went home and threw something together.”

“Well if you made it then of course I will eat it!”

“Want me to help you to the lounge?”

“Why can’t you just bring it in here? You know I love any excuse to eat in bed,” Elmira said as she curled further into her blankets as if to signal that she wasn’t moving.

Sven shook his head and sighed. “Yeah, okay. I’ll go heat it up for you in the microwave.”

“Hey! On your way back in, can you grab my phone for me? The world must be so concerned that I haven’t been on it in hours.”

“Yeah I’m sure they are. This is unheard of. Considering you live tweeted your shower the other day.”

“Hey! Your shower is the most phenomenal thing I have ever seen. Nobody can blame me for that. Okay? Stop calling my professionalism into question.”

“Yes, Dear.”

“Ugh, just go make me some soup.”

“Yes, Dear,” Sven said with a chuckle.

As he got back to her, he handed her the phone and then put down the bowl of hot soup. He knew better than to try to feed it to her.

Elmira was clicking around on her phone when she saw a voicemail from Sven. “Oh I need to hear this. I want to hear the desperation in your voice when you couldn’t get a hold of me. You must have thought I’d died or something. This is gonna be good.” Then she clicked on the play button and tossed the phone down on the bed as she turned to the soup.

As the sound started playing, she heard a very unconcerned Sven say, “Hey Elly, it’s me. I bet you’re asleep. Why else would you not answer your phone? Anyway, my meeting ended sooner than I expected. I’m on my way over with some soup for you. Call me back if you want anything else. Bye.”

As she spooned hot soup into her mouth, she glared at Sven over the bowl.

“Seriously? That’s it? I haven’t been at shows all day and you hadn’t heard from me in hours and that’s all the emotion you pour into that? I’m very disappointed, Sven. I thought I meant more to you,” Elmira said, trying to lay the guilt on pretty thickly.

“Sorry, Babe. But it’s not like you’re dying of the plague or anything. You just caught some stomach bug. I promise you that if you were dying I would sound more distraught,” Sven said with a placating pat on her knee.

“That’s really all I wanted.”

“I’m glad.”

“Ugh, I need to sit up more. Here, hold my bowl.” Sven grabbed the bowl of soup from her as she repositioned herself on her bed. As she was bracing herself, she tapped the next voicemail on her phone and it started playing for the room. Sven grabbed her phone out of her way as he heard a woman speaking through it.

“Hello, Elmira. It’s your mother again. I know you said you were busy with the shows, but I just wanted to remind you that your father and I are throwing a party this coming Friday and we would really love to have you be there. It will be friends and family and people who know you and want to see you as much as we do. Please consider coming. You could even bring a friend if you needed to. Whatever gets you here to Brooklyn. Let me know, okay? Goodbye.”

There was a long pause between the two of them. Sven shook her phone in his hand a little, as he asked, “What was that about?”

“Eh. It’s nothing. Just a stupid party my parents are having. I can’t go though.”

“Yeah, you don’t have a show to attend on Friday night. I remember because I just checked the schedule today.”

“I just don’t want to go, Sven. Being on assignment is a good excuse for not going,” Elmira said, trying to end the conversation. Sven, for some reason though, wouldn’t let it go.

“I’d go with you. You know, if you wanted me to. Your mom said you could bring a friend…”

“That’s sweet. But no. Besides, I’m pretty sure she meant like Sascha or someone.”

“What, do you not want me to meet your parents?” Sven laughed out. He stopped laughing when he saw the guilty appearing look on her face. “Elmira, do you not want me to meet your parents?”

“What? No of course not, Sven!” Elmira replied, though not convincing him.

“What other reason would you have for not wanting to go, though? Do you not get along with your parents? Is it me?”

“No, Sven. It’s not you. It’s not. My family is just…I don’t know how to describe them to you. But I just don’t want to go and I definitely don’t want to go with you.”

Sven seemed a bit taken aback by her phrasing. He decided to just drop it. She certainly wasn’t going to answer any of his questions. “Okay. But you know, sometime, I would like to meet your parents. It doesn’t have to be Friday, but at some point. I mean we are dating, aren’t we? And I do know that part of dating is meeting each other’s families. But I guess I get it. It’s too soon. How’s the soup?”

Elmira sighed, realizing that Sven really was going to drop it. She took another bite of soup and licked her lips, smiling, “The soup is delicious.”

Sven kissed her forehead before he moved to settle in beside her. When she finished eating, she curled into his side as they watched a movie on her laptop. Sven had no clue what was going on in it though. All he could think about was whatever it might be that Elmira wasn’t telling him.

*****

Sascha finally reappeared from her days long disappearance. Ever since she’d met Atalia she’d been MIA. She’d sent Elmira a vague text on the third day after Elmira had made five missed calls, to say that she was fine and that her friend shouldn’t worry. It wasn’t the first time that Sascha had gone off with some chick but it was the first time it had lasted so long.

“Glad to see you’re alive,” Elmira called from the bathroom.

“I’m more than alive! I’m fantastic.”

Elmira could hear the happiness in her friend’s voice and couldn’t help the raised eyebrow. “Huh.” She said.

“Huh is right.”

“So Atalia huh?”

“Atalia, Atalia, my love,” Sascha was performing pirouettes around the lounge area.

“Wow. You gonna see her again?”

Sascha stopped dancing to glare at Elmira, “I actually just came to get my clothes. Atalia and I are off to Paris.”

“What?!?”

“Yeah girl. Me and my gal are off to the city of lights.”

“You cannot be serious. You just met her!”

“And?”

“Aaand…you don’t do sh*t like this. You don’t go off half cocked with some chick you hardly know…”

“Don’t I though?” Sascha asked even as she was gathering her clothes that were strewn all over the place.

“You don’t run off to Paris with them.”