It was the most beautiful summer day. The sun was shining down between the big, old oak trees, that were standing together closely on the mossy ground. The sound of the gentle breeze that made the upper leaves of the tallest trees rustle, a sea of birdsong that filled the ears with the sweetest music, and the sound of the small branches and twigs that were weakly broken during the heavy steps replaced the sound of loud cars with broken exhausts, noisy trucks, and car alarms.
The scent of fresh flowers and moss replaced the smell of cold concrete and pollution. If idyll had an identity, then it looked like that.
Nick walked around and looked up at the beautiful green treetops. He enjoyed the tranquility around him, which was far away from his stressful everyday life in the big city.
He was a young man if he should say so himself, in his early thirties. He was tall, slender, and well-groomed. His blonde golden hair was combed back perfectly, and his clear blue eyes shone brightly in the sunlight. His face was beautiful with sharp cheekbones and full lips. Nick was simply as perfect as the many zeroes on his back account.
Although he loved nature, and he knew he should be wearing something more suitable for a walk in the woods, he could not quite get rid of the luxurious, tailored suits and shiny shoes. Nick was an eloquent and polite man who could not dream of saying a swear word. At least not in public.
He had built his whole life upon pure perfection and hard work, which was the reason he was as successful as he was.
He drank only the most expensive wines, and always enjoyed the most expensive whiskey when sitting at the desk, and all his wealth he shared with his young beautiful wife.
His everyday life was very stressful, so he enjoyed the freedom that nature could give him. He had been looking forward to this trip for the past three months, even though he had been quite skeptical about it when Katie had suggested it. There was just so much work to do, that the thought of a three-week vacation away from it all seemed unrealistic. He tried to tell Katie that, but she didn’t care… when she wanted something, she would get it, no matter what it took. He would never admit it to her, but he was glad that he agreed to it… he needed the quiet.
Nick strolled along the dirt road towards the house that would be his home for the next three weeks. There were many houses along the small dirt road. Some were big, some were small.
Nick stopped up in front of most of them as he studied them closely. Some were beautiful and others were not. Some looked new and others looked like they were falling apart, but each and every one of them had some kind of personality that fascinated him. He liked the old-looking houses the most because those had a soul… a memory.
The house that was closest to his was hidden away behind tall trees and overgrown bushes. He could barely get a glimpse at the old and worn façade of the house. It was small, but whoever lived there might not be needing more. It could use a renovation and a loving hand, but for some reason, Nick liked it the way it was.
He stood there for a long time and glared at the little house when a young man emerged from behind one of the big trees. He stopped up and looked at Nick with a little smile on his lips. His smile was bright and beautiful and his brown eyes were big with curiosity. The young man’s tousled brown hair was a mess, but it was fitting him well. He was wearing tight black pants with a small hole on his right knee, a black t-shirt with a black and red checkered shirt over it. The messy house was a perfect fit for the young man.
Nick couldn’t stop studying him, even though he knew he shouldn’t. The young man cocked his head a little as he walked closer to Nick.
‘’That is not really meant for a trip into the woods, is it?’’ The young man asked with a little smile. Nick was pulled out of his own thoughts as he looked up at the young man with a questioning expression on his face.
‘’Excuse me?’’ Nick said politely.
‘’Your outfit.’’ The young man said with a wide smile. Nick looked down at himself quickly before meeting the young man’s eyes again.
‘’No, you’re probably right, sir,’’ Nick answered while shaking his head a little. It wasn’t fitting for a place like this, but it was all he owned, so it would have to do. If any of it were to get ruined, he would just buy something new.
‘’Julian,’’ The young man said as he held out his hand for Nick to take, ‘’it’s a pleasure to meet you.’’
‘’Likewise,’’ Nick answered as he took Julian’s hand. ‘’I’m Nick.’’ The handshake lasted longer than it should have, but Nick just didn’t want to pull away just yet.
‘’So,’’ Julian said, a bit awkward as he pulled his hand back and crossed his arms over his chest. ‘’are you the one who moved into the big house down there?’’ he continued as he nodded towards the big mansion at the end of the dirt road. Nick looked to the side and stared at the large, white house.
‘’Yes,’’ he shrugged as he looked back at Julian. ‘’My wife, Katie, and I. It’s ours for the next couple of weeks.’’
‘’Great,’’ Julian said with a bright smile on his lips, and Nick couldn’t stop staring at them, ‘’then we’ll be seeing each other a lot these next few weeks.’’ He could see that Julian was running out of things to say, so he scratched his neck a little awkwardly before sighing, Nick thought it was the most adorable thing he'd seen in a long time. ‘’So… have you and your wife been down by the lake yet?’’
‘’No, not yet. We only just arrived,’’ Nick said as he smiled at Julian. ‘’But we’ll probably go for a walk around it later tonight.’’
‘’You have something to look forward to then. It’s amazing and the water is perfect for a swim.’’ Julian explained and Nick just nodded. He liked listening to Julian’s voice. It was so soft and gentle, and Nick felt hypnotized every time he opened his mouth. ‘’What do you do for a living?’’ Julian said, but he looked like one who’d regretted his words as soon as they’d left his mouth. He bit his lip nervously before taking in a deep breath. ‘’I mean… your clothes are so neat, so I just got curious… you don’t have to answer!’’ Julian wrapped his arms around himself as he stared down at the ground with reddening cheeks. Nick couldn’t help but laugh a little.
‘’It’s fine,’’ Nick said, ‘’I work with innovation and product development, it’s not really that exciting.’’ But for Nick it was. He loved it. Julian looked at him and nodded.
‘’It doesn’t sound boring either,’’ he said with a little wink.
‘’How about you, sir?’’ Nick said politely, and Julian just laughed.
‘’Just call me Julian… I’m not so formal.’’ He said with a shrug. ‘’But I’m a journalist… right now I’m working on a book though.’’
‘’So you’re an author?’’ Nick asked as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
‘’Not yet… I’m trying, and we’ll see how it goes.’’ Julian said. ‘’That’s why I came here… I needed to get away from the big city so I could focus on my writing.’’
‘’Then I won’t disturb you any longer,’’ Nick said as he took a step back without taking his eyes off Julian. ‘’as you said… we’ll probably be seeing each other around anyway.’’ Nick took a deep breath, sent Julian a little smile before walking down the dirt road towards the mansion.
He couldn’t stop smiling, as he entered his house.
He walked into the beautifully decorated living room where expensive design furniture stood perfectly located around the room to make it seem bigger. The huge panoramic windows overlooked the beautiful lake Julian had been talking about, which was the only positive thing about the house. It was too clean and too perfect for a location like this. It had no soul and no charm. Nick had wanted a house where he could relax and escape reality … not a house that looked like his own. But it was what it was. Katie wanted luxury and Nick just had to give it to her.
Katie was unpacking their things in the bedroom on the first floor. She’d called for him several times to get him to help her, but he’d ignored it. He would rather just stay in front of the windows and look at the beautiful view of the lake.
‘’Nick!’’ Katie screamed angrily, and Nick just sighed. Her voice was high-pitched and irritated, so Nick knew it was about time he went to her before she got too angry. He looked out of the window one last time before heading up the stairs towards the bedroom.
She didn’t look at him as he entered the room, ‘’Could you please put our suitcases away on the top shelf in the closet?’’ She asked annoyed as she nodded towards the large walk-in closet. Nick didn’t answer but did what he was told. ‘’What took you so long?’’ She asked after a while. She sat down onto the soft king-sized bed, and for the first time since they’d arrived, she looked at him. She tried to smile, but Nick knew her well enough to know that it was fake.
‘’I went for a walk through the woods.’’ Nick shrugged. She stared at him for a second before bursting out laughing.
‘’A walk in the woods?’’ She laughed mockingly. ‘’You?’’ Nick tried to ignore the mocking tone in her voice, but it was difficult. ‘’Since when did you become a fan of Nature?’’
‘’I grew up on a farm, Katie!’’ He answered annoyed, and it only made her laugh harder.
‘’The only ‘nature’ I’ll be enjoying is the Jacuzzi on the balcony.’’ She said as she stood up and corrected her expensive white designer dress.
‘’I thought we could go for a walk around the lake later?’’ Nick suggested. She looked at him with a mocking expression on her face as she began laughing again.
‘’I’m not visiting any lakes! It’s disgusting… that’s why we’ve got a pool.’’ She kept laughing as she left the room.
Nick stared after her while shaking his head. He sat down on the bed and hid his head in his hands. Their marriage seemed perfect from the outside, but in reality… it wasn’t. They looked like the most perfect, happy, and successful couple, but behind the façade of kind smiles and sweet kisses was the truth.
They weren’t happy together… they weren’t even a real couple. They were married, yes, and they did share the same bed, they did kiss each other and they did have sex sometimes, but none of it was real.
When they’d first met, Nick had fallen madly in love with her, and she had fallen in love with him. He saw her for the first time at a huge charity party. Katie had been absolutely gorgeous that night. She’d been sending him flirty smiles and little winks the whole evening, and Nick had had a hard time finding the courage to talk to her, but after a lot of wine he finally did, and that night she’s put her mark on him with her blood-red lipstick from Dior on the collar of his white shirt. He was hers now.
The first year of their marriage had been amazing, and Nick had never been that in love with anyone before, but after that year everything changed. They would fight all the time, they could never agree on anything, and sometimes just the sight of each other made them lose it.
Nick wanted to get a divorce, but Katie talked him out of it. Their relationship was good for the business. Katie’s smile and flirty personality brought in a lot of new customers and she liked Nick’s money too much to let it all go. They gave up their happiness for their success, and that worked perfectly for them. They could have their affairs on the side, as long as it didn't affect their professional life, and Nick was absolutely fine with that.
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