AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Does that mean that, so far, what we’ve done has been careful?” She looks breathless.
“You’ll find out later.”
“If there is one good thing in the midst of so much death and fear, it’s people paying attention to their loved ones again,” her mother says.
We’ve been talking outside the house for almost two hours, and unlike most people I live with, I don’t feel like leaving.
Socializing for me is usually unnatural. I do it in moderation. Zoe and I have that in common, but in my case, it’s not because I’m shy; it’s just a lack of desire to talk. Her parents, however, are very interesting, and Scott raised a debate that I had already considered: even when the vaccine starts to be manufactured, it won’t eradicate the disease due to the mutations of the virus. We are more likely to take it for the rest of our lives, like the flu shot.
“I was like that too,” I say, a little embarrassed. “I barely had time to eat. I rarely ate lunch and was always involved in a thousand commitments.”
“And what has changed?” Zoe asks.
“I used to watch you from a distance; now I’m obsessed with doing it up close,” I say, much more seriously than joking.
I don’t know how much she’s told her parents about the two of us, but they both start laughing while Zoe blushes.
“My private stalker.” She recovers and faces me.
“You can bet on it.” I kiss her hand. “But now, I see things differently.”
“Like what?” Scott asks.
“I want to help people. I’ve always donated generously to various causes, but I want something more effective, like building good hospitals that are more accessible to those who can’t afford good insurance.”
“Yes, unfortunately, that is one of the illnesses in our country, son. Access to healthcare for all citizens, including the less privileged ones, isstill a dream. Even before this situation we are experiencing, some people got sick and refused to seek care for fear of getting into huge debt.”
“I have some ideas,” Zoe says.
“About helping people?”
“Yes. I have always been concerned about humanity’s future, but my attention is mainly focused on children and elderly people.”
“Both ends of the spectrum,” I say.
“Exactly. The elderly deserve a dignified end of life and often don’t have any family members close by. I’ve been researching in my spare time for the last few weeks, and I’ve imagined recreation centers. A sort of free club where they can get together to play games, chat, have a meal if they’re hungry.” She pauses to breathe for a moment. She’s beautiful at any moment, but watching her defend her ideas so passionately makes me horny. “I thought that, when everything went back to normal, we could look for volunteers willing to give an hour of their day to just listen to them in this center. Sometimes, all a person needs is a friendly ear. Loneliness can be as lethal as a physical disease.”
I offer my hand, inviting her to my lap. “Each time I think you can’t fascinate me any more, you prove me wrong.”
She smiles, embarrassed, perhaps because we are in front of her parents, even though she has no reason to be. Scott and Macy received the news that her marriage is invalid with relief, and my lawyers are already making sure that Zoe is never associated with that jerk again.
“I’m glad to hear you have plans to help humanity, Christos. I hope other entrepreneurs like you are aware. Maybe the world needed that break.”
I silently agree.
We lived so fast, thinking we were immortal—or at least that we had a lot of time to live—and suddenly, God came and proved to us that maybe our time on this planet is shorter than we thought.
“When are you planning to go to Greece for Zoe’s photo shoot?” Scott asks.
“We need to organize everything to make sure that as few people as possible are needed, but I think that within a month, tops, we will go there.”
“Enjoy it for me,” Macy says.
“Soon, you will be able to come with us.”
Zoe turns to look at me, and I see a thousand questions on her face. She is so transparent.
“Yes,with us,” I reiterate.
