created a symphony of lights in a magical world.
"You certainly have a view here," Michael said. "It is awesome."
"You like it? Daytime is even better. It is in my name. My father put it in my name I think for tax purposes but still it is in my name. Behind me there lives an elderly couple; a retired general and his wife."
As the night was beautiful with a nice soothing breeze they decided to eat the pizza on the balcony. As they were eating Aphrodite said, "Well, I am listening."
"What?"
"Why did you come here?"
"Well to see you ...to eat the pizza."
"No you came here to tell me about the deal you want to offer me."
"Oh yeah... that is true. I want to make a proposition to you. From now on whenever we go for dinner I will turn my phone off."
She thought for a moment and then she said, "Whenever we meet outside to eat whether it is breakfast, lunch or dinner you will turn off your telephone."
"I'll settle for breakfast and dinner but not for lunch."
"Why not for lunch?"
"During lunch times are made the biggest deals in the world. I may wait for an important call some day and disappoint you. I want to be straight with you."
"Okay, then; breakfast and dinner," and they shook hands.
"Is it a deal?"
"It is a deal."
"So I know roughly now about the phone call you received last time when we nearly..." and she signed air-quotes with her fingers... "...had lunch down at the waterfront. One newspaper even suggested your name as being the driving force behind what happened to this place ... they call it WCE or anyway something like that... and the Teacher. What I don't understand is why? Why a young guy like you would bother with these things?"
Michael took her hand, saying, "Aphrodite don't bother this beautiful head of yours with things you don't understand as you say, come on, let's go inside. It's started to get chilled out here."
They went inside still holding hands but this time Aphrodite led him to the bedroom. They sat at the bed and in silence, as they looked each other in the eye; they started to undress one another. It was like a scene from bygone times, or perhaps like a scene from a silent movie, but it was much more than that. Here were two souls that after wandering in their lives here and in the beyond had finally met each other again. They shared an unstoppable attraction that neither could resist.
They wanted to become one as they were once, before regardless of the difficulties they were facing this time due to the different paths they had chosen since.
Finally they were naked and they lay on the bed. With an instinctive move he penetrated her. It was a wonderful sensation that he never felt before. It was a sensation out of this world for it was incomprehensible to him, but somehow familiar.
He held her tightly for he wanted to become one with her. He did not want to lose her now that he found her ... and then after some soft choreographic movements like the branches of a tree doing a synchronistic dance during a soft breeze suddenly they became one.
He held her tight so tight that at last a voice waked him from this wonderful moment.
"Not so tight. You are going to suffocate me."
"It was so beautiful; I don't believe it could be so beautiful."
"Do you feel with all girls the same or only with me?"
"Well I... I..."
"I... what?"
"I..."
"Don't tell me you were a virgin!"
"I..."
"You were actually a virgin?"
"Yes," he said in a low voice.
"You mean I am the first woman you have ever gone with?"
"Yes."
This man ...this boy was full of surprises; he was an endless bag of surprises. She turned towards him to add something more, but Michael was asleep.
He lay in this peaceful state with an innocent angelic smile on his face.
Aphrodite thought of all the circumstances that led them in to this act. She had fallen in love with him at some point! She could not stop smiling, and she also fell asleep.
Michael woke first. For a moment he was profoundly in a tentative state but as he turned around and saw how beautiful and serene she was he was so glad all this happened.
He gently squeezed her hand and she squeezed back. They both smiled as she woke and she said, "I still cannot believe you were a virgin in our time in your age?!"
"I was waiting for the goddess of love."
"I don't know if I should take this as a compliment or not."
"Why should you put a label on it?"
"Anyway, I will cherish this moment for the rest of my life."
"Me too. After all it is not common to make love for the first time of your life to the goddess of love."
They had a shower and Michael asked if he could have a coffee.
"You know what," Aphrodite said, "I am going to have one too; I never had a coffee this late in my life before. Tell me where you stand right now. What do you intend to do? All these things I don't understand and which you don't want to talk to me about... It's about work but where are you going to live?"
"Well to start with, I have finished with the WCFET and the Teacher's business. I did what I had to do about that. There are three challenges I am facing right now. The first is to find an apartment, the second is to find a job, and the third is to finish my studies in law. Oh and to get a car to go to and fro."
"That is not much, is it?" she said, laughing. "You are just starting from scratch, that's all."
"I am starting from scratch."
"Let me see... how can I help you? Where do you live right now?"
"At the same hotel; you know the one you saw me at the last time."
"How about we go and get your things and for the time being you stay here. That leaves only two problems although I could solve another problem too; I could ask my father to give you a job."
"Hang on... not so fast. To start with don't involve your parents with whatever we do. Is that a deal?"
"Okay, it is a deal."
"Secondly, do you think it will be a good idea for me to move in here so abruptly?"
"Why not? This is the time you need help," she said. "Come, I'll show you. You see this?" and she opened a door to a room completely furnished with even a desk and computer. "I hardly open this room. It is about time someone used it." Then she said, "You see this? This card is the keys to your apartment, and these keys are the keys of your car. My dad gave me the Boxter for my twenty-first birthday, and since I hardly used it and it waits idle there for you."
"Oh, Aphrodite," he said and squeezed her in his arms. "You are so helpful. I'll tell you what—we'll make it as an experiment. If it works we'll continue. If it does not work for you, you tell me and I'll go. If it does not work for me I'll tell you and I will go. Is that a deal?"
"It is a deal. Let's go and get your stuff from your hotel."
Next day it was about lunchtime and Michael was enjoying the magnificent view from his new home. The phone rang. It was Mr. Clarke, who said he had great news.
"I talked to the committee of the Free the Teacher fund. I didn't have to persuade them at all. They seem to know everything that happened. As a matter of fact, they want to organize some function in your honor. Anyway, they agree to pay for all your studies until you have finished law school. They put another ten thousand dollars in your bank account as a small token for your services and the inconvenience you faced to free the Teacher."
"That is fantastic!" Michel said, excited. "That means that from tomorrow I can organize myself about my law studies."
"Exactly."
"That is marvelous news."
"And another thing," said the ex-chairman. "Don't forget if you find some difficulties with your studies, I'll be here. Don't forget that I am a lawyer specializing in international law."
"I will remember; thank you very much, sir."
Michael was ecstatic. He took the car and went straight to the university and they told him
a semester was starting in ten days' time and he could come provided he paid the fees.
He rang the ex-chairman, who told him not to worry and that he would take care of that.
Michael rang Aphrodite and asked if she could make it for lunch.
She said she was hungry and that she was going to be finishing in about half an hour.
"How about if we finish the lunch we left in the middle last time?" he said, "and this one is on me?"
"That sounds great."
"Shall we meet there in an hour then?"
"That will be great," Aphrodite said.
Michael reached the restaurant first. Luckily the table that they used last time with nearly disastrous results was empty; he sat in the chair he had used last time, and ordered the same entrées, which were oysters au naturel.
Not long after, Aphrodite arrived saying, "I am starving."
They ordered the same main course as the last time.
"You won't believe what I am going to tell you," Michael said, excited.
"What is that?"
"In ten days' time I begin my—"
"Your new job?"
"It is even more important than that."
"What is then?"
"In ten days' time I am going back to my law studies."
"You are going back to college?"
"That's right!" and they got up and embraced.
"That is fantastic," said Aphrodite.
At that time Michael's phone rang.
"I am well, sir; how are you?"
Aphrodite started to worry.
"Sorry, sir, I cannot do it today. That will be good, sir, I appreciate that, sir, and I'll do that tomorrow."
"You scared me for a moment. I thought, here we go again," said Aphrodite.
"I would not spoil your day for anything," said Michael. "Not even for him."
"Why?" she asked curiously. "Who was that?"
"He is the CEO of the network I was working for; you