Marlene and Dorcas
Marlene checked and double checked the address Bathilda had reluctantly given her.It was a big old house that didn’t look like the kind of place someone like Dorcas would live. Still, she took a deep breath and rang the doorbell.
The door was opened by a tall man with long auburn hair and a dangly earring. Marlene froze. What on earth was she doing? Was this man Dorcas’ boyfriend? Husband?
He looked at her expectantly, “Ja?” He said with a wonky smile.
“Don’t suppose you speak English?” She said apologetically. “Um, ist Dorcas… hier?”
The man laughed, “Well, you must be Marlene, then.” He looked her up and down appraisingly, as she was thoroughly taken aback by his Scouse accent. “I’m Bill. One of Dori’s housemates. And no, she’s working right now. You’re welcome to wait for her though. I’m sure she’d be thrilled to see you. We’ve all heard so much about you. Congratulations on the book.”
Marlene floundered, not having planned this far ahead. “I— uh, thank you, well— Hi, Bill. Nice to meet you. I’m a little scared that I’m going to lose my nerve, honestly. Is her job near here?”
Bill grinned, “Ten-minute walk.”
A tall woman with waist-length platinum blonde hair appeared behind him. “You are letting the heat out, mon cœur!” She chided him in a sultry French accent. Marlene blinked at her as she tiptoed and pressed a kiss to Bill’s cheek. She turned to look at Marlene. “I know you from somewhere…”
“This is Marlene.” Bill said pointedly. “Marlene, this is my fiancee, Fleur.”
“Quite the multilingual house you have.” Marlene laughed, “Nice to meet you, Fleur. I was just going to go and find Dorcas…”
Fleur turned to look at her fiance, a wicked smile crossing her face, “Is she…” She looked back at Marlene, “What for? Why do you want to see her?”
“Well, I suppose you’ll hear it from Dorcas one way or another anyway, but I seem to have fallen in love with her over the last few weeks. Which, I’m aware, is mental, but I just didn’t want to leave without telling her.”
Fleur and Bill exchanged a smug look. “We’ll walk over there with you, give us a few minutes.”
Marlene nodded and stepped into the house, closing the door behind her. The interior of the house matched much more with the home she pictured Dorcas in. Eclectic. Bar mats covered the entirety of one wall, a stunning mural opposite it, plants everywhere and bright colours. It was cosy, much cosier than the cabin.
She pulled out her phone.
Barty
Wish me luck, I’m going to talk to him now. Hope you get your girl, babe!
Marls
It’s all going to be fine, bby. One giant leap for love.
I just met her housemates and they seem weirdly invested which I hope to fuck is a good sign.
Going to see her now!
We got this.
Let me know how it goes!
Fleur and Bill reappeared and the three of them set off, with Marlene trying to make small talk with the obnoxiously attractive couple. It turned out that Marlene worked in a bar in the evenings and had taken more hours over Christmas. ‘In case she had to make any last minute travel plans…’ Bill had said somewhat ominously.
When they reached the bar, Marlene entered first and the three of them looked around but couldn’t see Dorcas so they went to the bar to order a drink and wait.
“Macht Dorcas ihre Pause?” Bill asked. [Is Dorcas taking her break?]
“Nein, sie ist oben.” The man behind the bar said, before turning and calling out, “Dorcas, hier sind Leute, die dich sehen wollen.” [No, she is upstairs. Dorcas, there are people here looking for you.]
The few patrons in the bar at that time all turned to look as Dorcas peered over the railings of the upstairs balcony.
“Marlene?” She asked breathlessly. “Was machte du hier? Ihren Flug…” [What are you doing here? Your flight...]
Marlene smiled up at her, then tried desperately to engage her brain. Before realising that was’t going to be enough, holding up a finger for a moment and pulling up the words she had translated earlier on the train. “Dorcas… Ich weiß, das wird verrückt klingen, und das ist in Ordnung. Aber ich konnte nicht gehen, ohne dir zu sagen, dass du der schönste Mensch bist, den ich je getroffen habe, und dass du nett, lustig und klug bist. Ich glaube, ich verliebe mich in dich, und ich wollte nur, dass du es weißt. Ich bleibe, wenn du willst. Oh, außerdem hoffe ich, dass es Ihrer Schwester und ihrem Baby gut geht.” [Dorcas... I know this is going to sound crazy, and that's fine. But I couldn't leave without telling you that you are the most beautiful person I've ever met, and that you are kind, funny, and smart. I think I'm falling in love with you, and I just wanted you to know it. I'll stay if you want. Oh, also, I hope your sister and her baby are OK."]
Dorcas almost dropped the mug she was holding and grinned sheepishly. “My sister and her, um… son are good. Thank you. I… I am loving you, also. I thought I was being… very stupid.” She inhaled sharply, then nodded, “I would love for you to stay. Maybe I can take you out for a date? For some wine? More nice than the wine you drink. It is awful.”
“Yeah, I’d like that.” Marlene breathed, forgetting she was supposed to be speaking German, but Dorcas understood anyway. She gazed up at Dorcas for a second before taking the stairs two at a time and almost tripping twice. When she reached the top, Dorcas was waiting for her and cupped Marlene’s face in her hands for a second, before pulling her into a searing kiss.
They didn’t hear Bill, Fleur, the barman and the few patrons cheering. They were in their own little bubble, one they never wanted to leave. When they broke apart, panting, Dorcas pressed a soft kiss to the tip of Marlene’s nose, and they both laughed. Marlene pulled Dorcas into a hug and as she inhaled the scent of Dorcas' fruity perfume, she let herself feel happy, actually happy, for the first time in weeks.