As soon as I explain to Dora my master plan, I see how her face transforms. Jacob shakes his head. He already told me that India won’t fall for this and Dora looks uncertain.
“You want to go abroad with India for five days, knowing that she doesn’t want you?” she asks.
“Mate, there is no way that she is going to stay with you. She’ll take the first available plane home,” Jacob adds for the fourth time in a row. He can laugh, but I’m not backing off now.
“I’ll make her stay. I don’t know how, but I will. I know India, she is always careful with money and she wouldn’t waste it just because she has to spend five days abroad with me.”
“All right, this sounds crazy, but I’m in,” Dora chuckles, like she doesn’t believe that she is agreeing to this. “But remember, India will be mad when she finds out that I set this up, so you have to make sure that this is going to work.”
Dora is right. India hates being manipulated to do anything. I have to make her fall in love with me again within five days.
“I know, I get it, but this is my only chance. She is already slipping away.”
“What about Russell, man? He is still her boyfriend. There is no way he will let her go abroad, especially if you are the one that’s going with her.”
Just like that, Jacob crushes everything. He is fucking right. She and Evans are together and his mother is dying of cancer. I can’t expect her to go abroad without him. Silence stretches for minutes. Dora looks lost and I keep working my jaw, wondering what to do.
“Oliver, are you absolutely sure about this?” Dora asks. “Because I can convince her to go. That’s the easiest part. You need to think about these five days that you’ll get with her in Italy. Can you make her forgive you in that short space of time?”
“Yes I can, but Evans—”
“We will figure something out.” Dora cuts me off. “I’ll sort the tickets out and you deal with the rest.”
“Dora, if you pull this off then I’ll owe you my life forever.”
“Don’t be sentimental, Oliver. I get it, but let me tell you, if she steps out of that plane and never speaks to me again, then you’re going to be finished. And I mean it.”
She is right. I’ll be finished if this does not work. India hates me and once she understands that Dora was never going to fly with her to Italy, she’ll go ballistic. There is another problem: Evans. He won’t let me anywhere near India. Dora is right. He is a tough guy, and India can’t think that I’m doing this just because I deserve to have her back. We will spend some time in Italy and I’ll show her that I am serious about being with her only as a friend, nothing else. Breaking Evans and India’s relationship will only make things worse for me, but he won’t let her go to Italy knowing that I’ll be there. Maybe I should do something that would make them fight so they take a break away from each other. Then Dora could convince her to go to Italy. I go to sleep thinking about this, brainstorming ideas with my own arrogant side until I fall asleep, this time with a smile on my face.
In the morning I check my inbox, but there is no mail from Dora. Last night she texted me to say that the tickets were sold out. Jacob believes that I’m crazy and should visit the psychiatric unit. He is a pessimist, but he is right to some extent. What if during those five days India doesn’t even talk to me? What if she flies home as soon as we get to Italy?
At lunch I grab Dora, but she hasn’t got any news for me, stating that I should sort out the problem with Russell first. India is not going to go anywhere if she and Evans are still in a relationship. As I sit trying to eat my lunch, my new plan seems impossible all of a sudden. The exams stretch over the next few weeks. My roommate and I are done with coursework, so Jhonny is going back to Manchester. Dora lets me know that India has one more exam, and then she is free.
The next day, I go to meet India on campus, hoping to talk to her after the exam. I don’t know yet what I’m going to tell her, but I asked Jacob to let me know if Evans is going to be anywhere around. My palms are damp with sweat and the tiny voice in my head tells me that I’ve already tried everything and India won’t listen. She mustn’t know about Sicily; otherwise, this plan won’t work.
Half an hour later, after the exam is finished, I wait patiently for India outside her class. A few people give me odd looks and my stomach churns with anticipation. She shows up a few minutes later, not even noticing me by the pillar. I hear my phone and know that it’s probably Jacob letting me know that Evans is around.
“Hey, India,” I shout, not caring for the world that he might see us.
She stops for a brief moment, then continues walking again. I start running, finally catching up with her.
“What, Oliver? What do you want? I told you that I need time,” she snaps, finally turning around.
In the distance I spot Evans, who is watching me, and out of nowhere another crazy idea pops into my head. She is probably going to hate me for what I’m about to do, but fuck it. It’s now or never. I don’t let her walk away from me. I grab her and pull her to my chest. Then my mouth is on hers and we’re kissing, furiously devouring each other. Oh my fucking God, she tastes even sweeter than ever before and my dick aches in my pants. I curl my fingers into her hair, drawing her closer. She hesitates for a moment, trying to push me away, but I hold her tight and then she kisses me back. That unbelievable moment lasts only for a few seconds, because then someone pushes me over, slamming into me unexpectedly.
“You fucker!” I hear while falling on the grass. Someone shouts something. Then I have Evans’s face in front of me and he is fucking furious. I’m not ready for the first punch and the second one comes out with even more surprise. His hard fists break my nose. The pain blinds me for a second and fresh blood pours out of me a moment later. There are more screams, but Evans is no longer on top of me. I blink a few times and spot some guy who is holding him.
He tries to push away, screaming, “I’m going to fucking kill you for this, Morgan!”
I look at India who is shocked, pale, trying to calm Evans down. Jacob arrives a few minutes later. By that time someone has called security, and Evans is dragged away still cursing me off. My face hurts like hell and I know that this fucker broke my nose. I should have known that this kiss would enrage him.
“Mr. Morgan, causing trouble again?” says the security guard, who knows me well from my previous fights. I wiggle away from him, muttering something about seeing a nurse. Jacob doesn’t look too happy with me either. My head is pounding and with every second, the pain is mounting.
“I thought you weren’t going to kiss her? What’s wrong with you, man? Russell went mental as soon as you grabbed her.”
I can’t talk, trying to stop the bleeding, but manage to shoot him one of my “shut the fuck up” looks. Ten minutes later I’m sitting in the nurse’s room. She is adamant about taking me to the ER. My phone starts ringing. On the way to Jacob’s car, a few people gather outside to see if I’m still alive. The circle has started, rumours are flying, and I can only hope that I’ve done enough to break them apart—although I feel like the worst person on this planet right now.
Chapter Twenty-three
Surprise.
Present
I spend some time in the ER. It turns out the doctors have to put my nose back together using surgery. I don’t know what happened later, but I think I passed out. When I wake up several hours later, my whole face is numb. I have to breathe through my mouth and I don’t see that handsome motherfucker in the mirror that usually greets me in the morning.
Right now I’m probably the most hated man amongst the girls, because I managed to take India away from Evans in possibly the ugliest way there is. That fucker came on to me fast and didn’t even hesitate, punching me as hard as he could. He was ready to kill me and I’d probably have done the same thing if I’d been in his skin. At the end of the day I’m the guy with no morals. I wasn’t planning to kiss India, but I knew that she wouldn’t leave Evans on her own, so I mad
e him hate her. Surprisingly, she kissed me back, making my job a lot easier. They probably haven’t broken up yet, but I need her away from him at least for a couple of days.
The doctor shows up a few minutes later to inform me that the surgery went well, but it will take a few weeks for me to look normal again. Okay, I didn’t know it might come to this, but it’s a price that I’m willing to pay for the shitty thing I’ve done to Evans. It’s my punishment and I have to take it like a man. Jacob shows up in my room an hour later, grinning.
“You’re fucking crazy. Everyone is talking about you,” he says.
My head is pounding so I don’t think I can handle him right now. It’s going to take a while for people to get why I did what I had to do.
“What happened to Evans?”
“He was taken to the security room to cool down. I heard him arguing with India. She looked like she was going to pass out.”
“Visit me tomorrow. I can’t think about this now,” I tell him, laying my head down on the pillow. Jacob doesn’t help me feel better about myself, but he eventually leaves. I ask for some painkillers, wondering if my spontaneous kiss will bring the results that I want. My thoughts are slowly turning into dreams. The painkillers are kicking in and I drift off, dreaming about my India.
The next morning I wake up early, still in pain, and I manage to convince the doctors not to call my mother. I can’t have her here right now. Besides, I need to be ready for Sicily. The whole trip kicks off in a few days and I have no clue if Dora managed to get the tickets. Around twelve I get up not feeling my face, but at least I can move. I call Jacob and ask him to pick me up as soon as possible. After some arguments with the doctors, I get out.
“Everyone is saying that Evans beat the shit out of you in a jealous rage. At least for once the rumours are correct,” my best mate says.
“Have you seen India or have you spoken to Dora?” I ask, not caring what other people say.
He shrugs his shoulders. “I tried to call her, but she was with India all day and she couldn’t talk.”
“Fuck, the trip is on Thursday and the tickets aren’t even sorted yet.”
“I don’t know, man. It’s too short notice. India isn’t stupid. Yeah, she started screaming at Russell when he was beating you up, but I don’t think you can pull this off.”
“Just get me home and don’t worry about my plan. This has to work.”
Maybe I’m too optimistic, but in my head I can see myself winning. I call Dora, despite Jacobs’s arguments to leave her alone. She doesn’t pick up so I check my email, but there is nothing. I don’t understand what is going on and why she keeps ignoring my phone calls. I’m not a patient man, and Jacob isn’t any help at all when he keeps saying to leave them be for a bit.
The next two days I’m climbing the walls because Dora doesn’t get back to me. I send Jacob to her apartment, but she throws him out, stating that it’s not the right time. I’m constantly online, checking my emails and Facebook, but I get nothing. Black thoughts start to hunt me down and I start doubting myself, afraid that karma is not on my side, because of what I’ve done. My intentions were clear right from the beginning, but maybe this whole thing is in a shambles. India kissed me back, so she must still have feelings for me. I should have planned this better. The campus keeps buzzing with rumours, but I don’t leave the apartment. I’m not in a position to fight Evans again, and I’m pretty sure that this time he would kill me. My whole face aches. After not hearing anything about the trip, I’m ready to give up. The trip to Sicily is in two days and there is no way that Dora managed to convince India to go.
“Oliver, get downstairs to speak to Dora, fast,” Jacob says, barging into my room like there’s a fire. He doesn’t need to tell me twice, because I sprint out of my room.
“What is going on? Have you got the tickets? Is India going or not?” I ask, wiping the sweat away from my forehead, almost killing myself on the stairs.
“Let’s go to the living room; this isn’t going to be short,” she mutters.
“For fuck’s sake, just say it. That whole trip is in two fucking days—”
“Oliver, shut up for a second. I had a hell of a day and I don’t need another lecture from you.”
I don’t make another comment, but I’m itching just to shake her so she can pull me away from my misery. Once she is sitting, Jacob comes back from upstairs looking tense, but he doesn’t say anything, knowing that I might punch him.
“Brilliant job, Oliver. After all you’re not that dumb. Russell told India that he needs a break from her. She has been a bit down, trying to convince him that she cares for him, so that’s why I’ve been ignoring your phone calls. I couldn’t leave her alone.”
I want to fucking scream, but I’m a bad guy, a fucking psycho building happiness on someone else’s misery, so I stay quiet.
“Yeah, man, that’s great. One problem out of the way.” Jacob cheers with a smile. Dora shoots him a murderous look, which pretty much says, Shut the fuck up, this isn’t right.
I pace around the room like a stupid idiot, running my hand through my hair.
“Shit, I really wasn’t expecting that I would have pulled this off. What about Sicily? Is she coming?”
Dora bites her lips and I already know that this whole thing was too good to be true. She didn’t manage to convince her.
“That was a bit more complicated. She was cursing you off, telling me that you haven’t changed a bit and she is determined now to work things out with him. The problem is that Russell saw that she kissed you back before she pushed you away. Also, she tried to see you straight after you left and that sort of enraged Russell even more.”
“Fuck, Dora, just tell me—is this whole thing still on or not?” I ask, flexing my fingers. Right now I probably look like a complete lunatic, but I’ve been making plans about this trip for the past few days.
“Then there were arguments and when he told her that he can’t deal with her right now, I proposed the trip. She insisted that she shouldn’t leave now. Only yesterday she agreed to consider it.”
I think my head is going to explode in a second. “What? What do you mean she is going to consider it?”
“I told her that I already booked the tickets for both of us, so she can’t say no.”
I scream and then do something completely unexpected. I jump towards Dora and lift her above the ground, hugging her.
“Fuck, Oliver, put me down.”
“Yeah, man, she’s my girlfriend.”
I ignore both of them and spin Dora around before pulling away. She looks pissed, but she can’t hide that smile on her face. I feel fucking fantastic.
“Dora. So am I going to Sicily with her? Is it all arranged?”
“Technically speaking, yes. At the moment, India is packing her suitcase, thinking that we are going away together. The problem is that we haven’t thought about how we’re going to do this?”
I have been thinking about this long and hard. Dora is right, and knowing India, she won’t go anywhere if she smells a rat. I can’t even think straight after she tells me that this is not the end yet. We brainstorm some ideas and finally, I tell Dora that she has to play this game until the very end. She is going to go home and pack. Then, once she gets to the airport with India, my plan is going to be simple.
I have some contacts in Student Union. A few guys owe me a favour, so they can cover for me. No one needs to know that I’ll be coming until I’m sitting next to India in the plane. I can already picture her beautiful face once the plane takes off. There is a lot that might happen after that. She might want to go back home straight away, after cursing Dora off and killing me straight on. When I think about this more and more, my stomach churns. I’m fucking scared that something might go wrong.
But Dora doesn’t let me doubt myself, leaving shortly after we discuss the details.
“Remember, Oliver, you will have five days to convince her to trust you again. I don’t even know why I’m doing
this for you. I swear to God if you screw up and ruin our friendship, I’ll never forgive you.”
“Dora, chill. This is going to work. I’m telling you. Sand, sun and me. We are going to come back like there was nothing ever wrong with our friendship. Yeah, because that’s what I’m after. ”
Jacob leaves with Dora and I storm back to my room to check the email that I got from her. There is a plane ticket and the list of places that our group is going to stay. The group is going to go to the airport in the bus that leaves from campus. I make a few phone calls and once I get through to Michael, I tell him about my secret plan. He is reluctant to keep my name secret from everyone else. For the first time in my life I have to really work hard, and I bribe him with some cash. In the end, he agrees to keep my name off the official list.
The rest of my days pass with so much excitement that I can barely contain my short outbursts of mental laughter. I do some research about all the places we are going to cover. I need to be prepared. India won’t want to have anything to do with me. It will take me a few days to break through to her. I have to be ready.
Chapter Twenty-four
Let’s get to work.
Present
Next morning I pack my bag and call up my mother. My nose still hurts and I have to keep wearing that stupid bandage. It’s the first time I have to work hard without having my looks at hand. Mum doesn’t approve of my methods and I don’t blame her. I intentionally made Evans question India’s feelings for him. Morals are fucking important, but I warned him before that she was off-limits and he didn’t listen. She needs to see that I can keep my hands away, that I can control my anger when I need to.