„Adrian? “ Valerie asks.

My eyes shoot up to her and I get up so quickly that I lose my balance and almost fall back into the chair. I unhappily prop myself up with my hand on the table and throw down some of the chess pieces. Speaking of embarrassment... Great!

"V-Valerie!" I stutter nervously and try desperately to maintain eye contact with her. She´s standing right in front of me. In the time that my thoughts have been on the merry-go-round, she has discovered me and crossed the room.

"Wow, it was ages ago, when we last met! It's so nice to see you again!" She says enthusiastically. Before I can process what is happening, she hugs me!

Aaron's eyes widen. I am so shocked that I freeze and do not return the hug at first. When I realize this, I quickly put an arm around her. Now Aarons jaw drops open. 

"Man, that's really incredible! What are you doing here?" I ask. My nervousness has just increased tenfold. Valerie turns around and lets her gaze wander over the people.

"I'm here with Yara. She knows some guy who knows a guy who lives here." She laughs. "or something like that." Her cheeks, slightly reddened by alcohol, remind me of the past. She also has dimples when she laughs. As if I could ever forget that...

"Oh, really?" I ask with a hesitant smile. "Yara, who went to school with us back then?" Shoot! I remember Valerie always had that one friend on her sleeve when she went out earlier. 

"Yes, exactly! But you probably wouldn't recognize her at all! She now has long, fiery red hair and looks totally stunning! I was searching for her because we lost sight of each other and I don't know anyone else here..." Valerie looks around the room again.
Suddenly I have a lump in my throat... I might have an idea, what girl she means by that.

"And, how do you find it here?" I ask, afraid she leaves me standing and goes to look for Yara, whose boyfriend I  just pushed over at chess...

"Well, it's quite..." She looks at the stucco on the ceiling and the dark wood paneling of the walls. "Pompous."

"Pffft" I have to laugh because I thought exactly the same thing when I was here for the first time. She giggles too.

"Well, it reminds me of an old mansion, but it's kind of cozy. All these old leather armchairs and all these rooms for chess and billiards and whatever else there is."

"You'd be surprised. There is a torture cellar here!" I say jokingly. Her eyes widen briefly before she starts laughing heartily.

"And, is it still in use?" She asks laughing.

"Yes. Every now and then we are forced to iron our shirts down there." I'm joking. "Otherwise, it's used for fencing."

"Oh, fencing?" she asks in amazement. "You're fighting?"

"Not in a million years." I say dryly. "I'd rather have my nails painted." This makes them laugh again. Where do these sentences come from? How embarrassing. My brain seems to have switched to autopilot. Was I able to make them laugh in the past or did I bore them with all my computer games in the past? My thoughts circle incessantly.

"So that means you live here?" she asks after her laughing fit has subsided.

"Yes." I tilt my head to the side. "Seems like now you know someone who lives here yourself." I say mischievously and grin.

"Yes, it seems so." She agrees, giggling.

An embarrassing silence ensues. I want to keep her happy somehow so that she stays a little longer.
"Oh, I'll get something to drink. Do you want something too?" I ask her, pointing my head in the direction of the kitchen.

"Sure!" She says relieved and follows me through the crowd. Aaron is left alone in the armchair and looks after us in silent amazement. I notice him pulling out his phone and tapping on it. A few seconds later, my phone vibrates in my pocket.

In the crowded kitchen, I get us two beers and lead Valerie out into the hallway.

"Do you want to see the best room in the house?" I ask. She takes her beer from me and nods enthusiastically.

I lead her up the stairs to the first floor, then through a smaller inconspicuous door that looks like a closet, then up another staircase to our Gentlemen's salon in the attic. This is where the old gentlemen often sit when they drop by.

As we climb up the last steps, I feel for the light switch. When the room is suddenly lit up, I hear a whispered "wow" behind me and can't help grinning.

"Attention, the last step is higher than the others." I warn her and reach for her hand to help her. A shiver runs down my spine when I feel her hand in mine. I quickly let it go as soon as we reach the top.

This room is nicer than the rooms below. Because everything here is even older and even more valuable, we don't let the party guests go upstairs. Stunned, Valerie looks around the large attic room with a small turret. In the middle of the room are large heavy oak furniture upholstered in genuine leather, probably older than my grandmother, and more expensive than my life. 

The floor is made of old wooden parquet, the walls are wood-paneled, but due to the many high filled bookshelves this is not visible in some places. Stucco is attached to the ceiling and huge paintings of biblical scenes decorate the empty spaces. But what impresses most is the glass roof-dome, which you can't see from the street in front of the house. The stars can be seen through the dome. It is now four o'clock in the morning. Soon the sun should rise.
This is one of the last, clear September nights before the winter semester starts again. 
On the left outer wall of the house is a floor-to-ceiling window that opens to a tiny balcony. I wave Valerie over to me and open the door. Together we lean against the narrow, wrought-iron railing and look down on the garden. From up here you can see all the students walking around, drinking and partying down there. The sky on the horizon is already getting brighter and the first birds are chirping down in the garden.

"It's really nice here! It must be great to live here." Valerie notes. "Do you get along well with your roommates?"

Embarrassed, I look to the side.
"Well, to be honest, I'm in the lab most of the time. It's rare that I come here."

Valerie laughs. 
"You've always been the reclusive type." A little discomfort spreads through me. She has always been the exact opposite of me. Courageous, willing to take risks, socially active and always friendly. I never understood what motivated her to be friends with me at the time.

"But I get along well with Aaron." I say, at least not to be seen as a complete loner. "And, of course, my lab colleagues."

"Lab colleagues?" she asks, raising an eyebrow. "Do you have a Hiwi job?"

Oh, that's right, we haven't seen each other for ten years and she doesn't know anything about me.

"Oh, well, not quite... I am a PhD student." I tell meekly.

Valerie's eyes widen.
"What? Y-You're not a bachelor-student?"

"After you moved away, I skipped two classes, graduated from high school and studied biochemistry. After completing my master's degree, I looked for a doctoral position here." I summarize briefly and concisely.

"What? Wow, I don't know what to say!" Valerie seems to be searching for words. "Congratulations? To the Abi. To the Bachelor, to the Master..." She counts the individual things on her hand.

"No no no no no no!" I interrupt her and push her hand down. "Not all congratulations at once!" Valerie laughs shyly. "Honestly, I can't handle it!" I say jokingly.

"All right!" She says and her eyes light up. "Then we'll celebrate our graduation tonight! And we'll save the other celebrations for later!" A broad grin flickers across her face.

"That's the best idea I've ever heard!" I say truthfully. "Well then" I push myself off the railing and go to one of the tall dark oak cabinets next to the stairs. Up there in the closet is a hidden minibar with the best champagne and whiskey we have in the house. The old gentlemen like to treat themselves to the good stuff here, and by that, I mean the really expensive shit. I don't know anything about it, so I just take out some fancy looking champagne bottle and open it, fill two glasses and hand Valerie one of them.