Life, Death, and Strange Encounters

The next morning I was up early for once. Lucy had conquered my room, examining my closet and also the clothes I had laid out on my bed. A big suitcase was lying open on the floor. Having promised to be her dress-up doll, I was waiting for her to choose an outfit for me to wear, so that I could put the remaining clothes in my suitcase. I had only agreed to the plan because I wanted her to stop whining about the “undying love” of Isaac and I, and how appearance was the key to success. I didn't thoroughly believe her - appearance was definitely important, but it wasn't everything. If Isaac was going to fall in love with me, it was because of who I was, not what I looked like. An effort of looking nice would just have given me extra points.

Lucy snapped me out of my daze by tapping me on the shoulder. She gestured towards the clothes she was holding and said "Put these on. You must be able to sweep him off his feet."

I rolled my eyes and grabbed the clothes. "Luce, since when did you become an expert on "clothes that sweep men off their feet"? I think you are taking this far too seriously."

"I'm not taking it too seriously. I just want you to make an effort! I know he loves you for who you are, not what you wear, but looking nice has never hurt anyone." The look she gave me was one of a scolding mother.

I sighed. "Fine, you had your fun. But from now on, I'm picking my own clothes again. AND I want to choose your outfit for the day." It was Lucy's turn to roll her eyes, but she accepted my request none the less.

At eleven o'clock, we were both dressed. I had on my best pair of black skinny jeans, a black corset top that really fit me perfectly and a black and white striped jacket. Lucy was wearing purple velvet trousers - my favourite pair of trousers of hers -, a black tight-fitting T-shirt with a white skull printed on it and a black velvet jacket.

We then went back to our separate rooms to do our make-up and hair. Since I always did my make-up in various dark shades, it was easy for me to just apply black eyeliner to my eyes and leave it at that. I then blow dried my hair and decided to just leave it down. My long dark hair fell over my shoulders in slight waves. When I was ready, I put my make-up bag into my suitcase, my black eyeliner and lip gloss into my handbag and pulled the suitcase into the living room. I then sat on the couch to wait for Lucy.

I had been sitting on the sofa for about 5 minutes when I saw Lucy come out of her room. She smiled at me and pulled me into our bathroom, in front of the full-length mirror. We stood before it, side by side, both grinning like mad. Lucy voiced my thoughts: "We look DAMN good!"

I laughed. "Couldn't agree more."

"Girl, Isaac is so going to fall for you! That is, if he hasn't already..."

I looked at her with questioning eyes. "I have been wondering, what’s with the sudden change of heart? Yesterday morning you said I shouldn't get my hopes up."

"I told you before, I saw the way he acted around you, the way he looked at you.” She sent me a meaningful glance. “You believed you saw love in his eyes. Yesterday, when I examined him carefully while he was looking at you, I think I saw it too! So, I changed my mind about him."

I sighed. "You and your mind are difficult to keep up with."

Lucy grinned. "But you must admit I'm an interesting person."

"Let's just go eat something until Isaac gets here."

We made our way into the kitchen and ate a few sandwiches. I was just finishing my tea, when I heard my mobile phone ring. Looking at the caller ID, I saw it was Isaac.

I pressed the answer button with a bright smile. "Hello?"

"Hello, darling, I'm here. Can you both manage with your bags or do you need help?"

I looked at our two big suitcases and handbags. "Oh, we'll manage. We'll be down in a minute."

"Okay, see you in a few."

I threw my mobile phone into my handbag along with my wallet and one of my two smaller cameras. I was definitely going to take pictures on the trip! I then put on my black coat and pulled on my favourite pair of boots. Lucy did the same. We both grabbed our handbags and suitcases and walked out the door, closing and locking it behind us.

When we reached outside, we saw Isaac waiting next to a taxi. He greeted me with a warm hug and a kiss on the cheek, then helped us get our suitcases into the trunk. The luggage securely in place, he made his way to the front seat, Lucy and I climbed in the back. We looked at each other when the taxi sped off.

This was going to be the best trip of our lives.

***

Six hours later we stepped out of a black London taxi to find ourselves standing in front of a very expensive looking apartment building about five minutes away from Westminster Abbey. I looked at Isaac in awe while the driver was unloading our luggage.

"You live HERE?"

"Yes, when I'm in London. I mostly live in my castle about an hour drive away."

"Can we go to your castle, too?" Lucy inquired, appearing next to us, holding her suitcase and bag.

"Of course, I'd been hoping you'd want to see it. I don't like to be in London much, it's too noisy."

"When did you plan on leaving?"

"Tomorrow morning, if that's okay. I'll call my housekeeper to inform her of our plans. Then she'll have time to prepare two guest rooms for you."

I smiled. "Fantastic! Then we can walk around the city today."

Isaac turned his head that had been looking off into the distance and fixed his gaze on me. "Sure. But why don't we go up and put away your bags?” He gestured towards the building. “Afterwards, we can go out to eat and walk around a bit. We have the whole evening ahead of us."

Lucy jumped up and down. "Let's go eat, I'm starving!"

Isaac and I looked at each other and burst out laughing.

I looked at Lucy, amused at her exclamation. "Hyper much?"

She frowned at me. "What? I'm just hungry!"

I shook my head. Did she really think that was a sufficient explanation for her behaviour? She reminded me of a four-year-old. In a good way, of course. "You are so peculiar sometimes."

"Oh, but you still love me."

"You know I do. Bitch."

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

Lucy started laughing and tackled me, which caused us to almost fall over. Isaac managed to catch us at the last moment. He looked at both of us, smiling. "You girls are weird."

I laughed. "Sure we are. Lucy, could you get off me, please? We should go in, people are staring."

Lucy and Isaac looked around and sure enough, the people who walked by were looking at us like we were complete lunatics.

Our handsome host shook his head in amusement. "Okay girls, let's go."

He paid the taxi driver and took both of our suitcases into his hands, despite our many protests. We made our way into the building and up to the highest floor. Isaac opened the door to his apartment and we stepped in. I choked a breath. The place was HUGE!

Isaac gave us a little tour. Three bedrooms, all with joint bathrooms and a living room with an open kitchen area. From the very first moment, Lucy and I were in love with this flat. We had always thought WE had quite a goodlooking place, since the Old Town has the most expensive houses and apartments, but this was just... wow.

I looked at Isaac who was smirking at our bafflement, clearly pleased that he could get such a positive reaction. "I love your apartment. Can I have it?"

He smiled. "Of course, darling."

I stared at him.

"But you'll have to marry me first."

My heart jumped but I tried to stay calm. He was joking, of course! "Oh, very funny, Isaac! Now, Luce, let's go put our things away. Then we can go OUT!" I shouted the last part and both Lucy and I ran into our rooms at light speed.

My bedroom was beautiful. It was quite big but the room size didn’t sway me. The most important thing was that it was equipped with a king size bed! I couldn’t wait to sleep in that heavenly place. The room had dark green walls and a dark wooden floor. There was a furry black carpet on the floor. The furniture was made of dark wood with an antique feel. It may have actually BEEN antique, for all that I know. There was a bookcase in one wall, an armchair pushed into the corner next to it, a closet and a comforter in the wall opposite of it. I also noticed a closed door in the same wall, next to the comforter. The bathroom door. There was a little table with a lamp next to the bed. It was also the only table in the room. The bed had black silk sheets and many bigger and smaller pillows that were in different shades of green. There was a huge window looking out to the street, from the ceiling to the floor, taking up almost the whole wall. The bed was in front of the window. There were two curtains pulled over it, one black and the other a dark green.

I opened the door to the bathroom and just stared. The bathroom wasn't huge, just like my bedroom, but it was big enough and very beautiful. It had probably been designed to match with my bedroom, since the walls had dark green tiles and the floor was covered with black ones. The furniture and the mirror frame were made of dark wood. The only white things in the bathroom were the sink, the toilet and the shower cabin.

When I was done with my exploration, I went back to my bedroom and tried to decide whether I should unpack or not, since we were leaving the next morning already. I settled on just picking out an outfit for the next day and laid it on the armchair. Also, I took out my make up bag and put it on the table. I then wandered back into the living room where Isaac was sitting, waiting for us.

When I sat next to Isaac on the sofa he greeted me with a smile. His beautiful expression made my heartbeat quicken. What was wrong with me? Every time he smiled, a jolt of fire went through me.

"You ready, darling?"

"Yes. Now all we have to do is wait for Lucy... and knowing her, it might take a while."

"I wouldn't mind waiting with you." He winked.

My cheeks started to burn. I was definitely blushing, but fortunately Lucy saved me from answering him. She ran straight to me and slapped my arm in mock anger. "Hey you! I DO NOT take a while to get ready!"

"Um...Yes, you do! Especially considering we didn't even have to change our clothes."

She shrugged. "Whatever. Are we going?"

Isaac and I stood up from the sofa. We took our coats and made our way downstairs and out onto the busy streets of London.

We walked around the city for a few hours. When darkness had fallen over the city and it was already quite late, Isaac suggested we should go to a private club he owned. Lucy and I were so surprised that he actually owned a club that we agreed in a second. We fetched a cab and were standing before the entrance in fifteen minutes. The club was called "Grim Reaper's Children" and was definitely styled in a gothic theme. Nice!

Isaac led us past the long line of people waiting to get in, to a door next to the main entrance. There was a huge bulky bodyguard standing before it but when he saw Isaac, he stepped aside with a nod and let us in.

We moved ahead through a long dark corridor. There were red lights in the floor, so that we could see where we were going. We could hear and feel music pulsating from the dance floor and through our bodies. It provoked an irresistible urge to dance.

Isaac told us we were going to the VIP room, where it wasn't so crowded and we could get free drinks. Lucy squealed at the mention of free drinks. Isaac and I burst out laughing. He then noticed that I wasn’t all that pleased.

"I'm really not into drinking," I told him.

He smiled at me. "Me neither. I'm not making you drink if you don't want to. We do have non-alcoholic drinks available."

I sighed, relieved. "Thank you."

"No problem, darling. But I do think we have to keep an eye on your friend if you say she's quite a party animal."

Laughing, I nodded my head in agreement.

We finally reached the VIP Lounge. It was quite empty, I quickly managed to count 7 people. A guy came towards us, grinning from ear to ear. Lucy grabbed my arm and squeezed it hard, whispering "Oh my God, that guy is SO HOT!" I had to agree with her. The guy was tall, definitely over 6 feet like Isaac and had light brown hair that sparkled like gold in the light. His face was of an angel! The features were in perfect harmony and I couldn't detect any scars or other faults. The smile he was giving us reached his eyes - that meant he was kind and sincere. Exactly Lucy's taste, I could see it.

Reaching us, the man pulled Isaac into a one-armed hug. Then he turned towards Lucy and I.

"My-my, what do you have here, Isaac? Where did you find those two beauties!?"

Isaac smiled. "Damien, where are your manners? You have to introduce yourself first, you can't start flirting with them the second you meet!"

The man addressed as Damien grinned. "You are right. I apologize, ladies. As you heard, my name is Damien, I am a friend of Isaac's." He bowed to us as if he were a true gentleman, which made us giggle.

Lucy looked at Isaac. "Your friend is hot!"

This made us burst out laughing and Damien bowed once again, now to Lucy. "Thank you, m'lady. And what are the names of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen?"

The sharp-tongued girl beside me grinned like a cheshire cat. I could see she liked Damien and his flattering comments. "I’m Lucy and this is my best friend, Johanna." She gestured to me.

Damien took both of our hands and kissed them at the same time. "I'm honoured, ladies."

Isaac rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Enough with the theatrics, Damien. Do you want to join us on the dance floor?"

The self-appointed knight in shining armor grinned. "Of course, but I think we should share a drink first in the name of these two beauties. You still didn't tell me where you met them, by the way.” He sent us a curious glance. “They are not British, that much I can tell from their accent. But where are they from?"

I decided to answer him myself. "Lucy and I met Isaac in Estonia."

Damien’s eyes went wide. "Oh, I've been to Estonia! A very beautiful country, I must say. But Isaac, what on Earth were YOU doing in Estonia!?"

Isaac shrugged. "I went with Jonathan to one of his modelling assignments. While visiting a café in the Old Town, I met this charming girl over here," he gestured towards me and smiled, "and later her friend Lucy. Then I found out that by some weird coincidence Johanna was Jonathan's modelling partner! It turned out she worked as a waitress, but also as a model. So I visited her in the café and we started to get along really well. Jonathan invited her to London and I repeated the invitation. Gladly, she and Lucy said yes. Now here we are."

"Bloody hell! This is one of the weirdest stories I've heard about how people have met!" Damien exclaimed.

Our host gave a light chuckle. "Well, it really is pretty unusual."

"We have to drink to that!" Damien made his way towards the bar and we had no other choice but to follow him.