Over the weekend, José spent time with Anna.

As he understood it, Anna had gotten lost on the metro on Friday, but by seven in the evening, she had already made it home. She ate, and by ten, she was asleep. She didn’t seem the least bit scared or upset. To her, it was just a pleasant little adventure, letting the road take her wherever it wanted.

On Saturday, they went out for dinner, and they spent the evening together. On Sunday, José took her to the center of Brussels, to the heart of the capital. Anna had been there before, but she always loved Brussels. The people around, the lights, the buildings! Everything was just beautiful.
"Even the construction sites, the mud, or the cold, cloudy weather without the sun?"
Anna replied that, with all the other things around, even those things were bearable.

Now, it was Sunday evening, and they had settled down to watch something on TV together. José had stretched his arm along the back of the sofa behind Anna, and he could already feel his eyelids growing heavy. Anna, on the other hand, was munching on popcorn enthusiastically, her eyes barely blinking as she tried not to miss a single second. José wondered how she managed to do that.

A flash of an image passed through his mind.

Dark brown eyes. Wide, startled brown eyes. The dim light from the streetlamp. The sound of water and the rustling of branches.

And an expression: a mixture of surprise and, at the same time, disappointment.

He jolted.
Anna turned to look at him.
"I know you’re not enjoying the movie, but it would be nice and polite, if you didn’t fall asleep during it."
José sighed, running his hand through his hair. He noticed it had grown longer and was starting to curl at the ends at the back of his neck. He needed a haircut.
"Sorry, love," he murmured, pulling his hand back from the back of the couch. "I don’t really know what I’m seeing. I need sleep."
"Mm," Anna agreed, setting her bowl down on the coffee table. Then she turned her body towards him, looking at him. "Tell me," she said, resting her elbow on the back of the couch and leaning her temple against her fist. "What’s wrong?"
José furrowed his brows. "What do you mean? What’s wrong?"
"I don’t know," Anna smiled. "You just look a bit lost."
He sighed again. "I’m just tired."
She shook her head. She could see it. Since he had stayed up late on Friday, he hadn’t been able to sleep well at night, nor in the mornings. Some days they made love, others they went out. He never stayed in and he indulged her every wish. On the other hand, he belonged to her, and weekends were the only time they could spend together. The weekdays were mostly just eating, sleeping, or eating, sex, and sleep.

"Why don’t you go lie down?" she gently ran her fingers through his hair.

José closed his eyes, feeling a sense of calm wash over him.
"Because I feel guilty. We have so little time together. During the week, I’m always working and leaving you alone."

Anna smiled. "It’s okay, you know that. And you know I understand, my love. How many years have we known each other? Do you think I don’t understand? You don’t need to feel like that."

"Yeah, but I do," he opened his eyes and shot her a look.

"Yeah, but you don’t need to."

José rested his head against the back of the couch and allowed himself to relax under Anna’s touch. He exhaled deeply.

"Aha," she suddenly pulled her hand away from his hair. "I’ve got it!"

He straightened up on the couch. "What?"

"Why don’t you ask that colleague of yours to go out with his girlfriend? Didn’t he say he’d give you her socials to pass on to me? We can even make plans to go out, the four of us."

José’s eyes widened.

Why? Why did she have to remind him of that?

He shook his head slightly and shuddered.

It was nothing. Nothing at all. It was just repulsive. Ridiculous that Carlos had tried to do something like that! He knew Carlos had been drunk — and it was Carlos. That was it. Carlos was always Carlos. He could’ve tried that with anyone. He was plastered. He had been drinking. He became a red flag. A red flag José wanted to avoid at all costs, even if he could see it from far away. If he saw it from a distance, he’d have even more chances to escape.
Carlos probably didn’t even remember what he’d tried to do. José didn’t want to give it a name or pay any more attention to it. If he named it, then it would matter.

It was like with people. Maybe that’s why people mattered. Because they had names.

He had never even thought about discussing it with Carlos. There was no chance. They were both taken. The easiest solution would be to play ignorant. Pretend he didn’t know anything. And if Carlos ever brought it up, then José would clearly tell him that it bothered him. That it bothered him deeply.

José knew he wasn’t gay. He had a girlfriend. And he had a good girlfriend, one that most would envy.
And now? Here he was, wanting to avoid him at all costs, and yet the universe was coming to mess up his plans, turning them into a ball and throwing it in his face with full force.

"Please, my love," Anna opened her eyes and fluttered her lashes playfully. "Do it for me, seriously," she added, growing serious. "Maybe I won’t get along with his girlfriend, but maybe I’ll make a friend. Or at least someone to talk to when you’re gone."

José cursed the moment he ever brought that idea up to Anna. He couldn’t even remember when he’d said it.
"Alright," he finally muttered, defeated. "I’ll talk to him."

Anna gave him a wide smile that spread across her whole face, and then planted a kiss on his lips with her soft mouth.
"Thank you, love," she said. "Are you going to lie down? Do you need help?"