Chapter 7

I was eating breakfast alone, as it was only 6:30 in the morning. I didn't feel like meeting anybody or talking about the party of last night. I drank my coffee outside, in the gardens, breathing the fresh air and feeling renewed. It had been a quite hectic night. I knew that my coworkers were worried about me. When I had arrived at the hotel, the receptionist told me that several people had called asking if I was safe in my bedroom. I told him to calm down anybody who called again, and I went to sleep. I was so angry with myself for what had happened. I should have never danced with Dupont. I should have never talked to him out of working hours.

“Ilse!” Jorg crossed the doors of the garden and looked at me, angry. Great. “Why did you leave the party last night without telling us?” He sat next to me. His eyes had black circles under them and he looked exhausted.

“I didn't feel well” I murmured, avoiding his gaze.

“This is not an excuse, you had the obligation to inform us, we were there on business, you were working! Otto is your boss and I'm your supervisor, he's so mad at you and I'm so mad at you!” He paused to breath. I felt ashamed of myself. But then, the memory of the dance came.

“Why did you ask Dupont to dance with me? It was humiliating, you know?” The look on his face couldn’t be funnier. The surprise had changed the anger into some contrived expression.

“What?” He asked. I left the cup of coffee on the table.

“Dupont told me you asked him to dance with me” Jorg went on frowning, then shook his head.

“I told him he had to talk to you about the biography. I saw you sitting alone at the desk and commented that maybe it would be the right moment to have the conversation, I didn’t tell him anything else.” He watched me. “I don’t know about the whole dancing thing and I don’t want to know, just tell me if you reached an agreement”. I felt myself blush.

“We didn’t talk” I said, with small voice. Jorg sighed, tired.

“You didn’t talk? Why?” He said.

“Don’t ask me, I had no idea” I defended myself, and Jorg shrugged.

“Why would I ask him to dance with you? Do you know how ridiculous it sounds? He was with Nadine, you’re just a journalist” I knew that all what he said was true, but I couldn’t help feeling bad, and I hated myself for that. “Well, I guess we’ll have to postpone the meeting. Today is Sunday and there’s a friendly match in the main stadium of the city against the British selection” He took a small notebook and wrote down some addresses. “You have the day free, as I said, if you find someone to take you safely to the city. At 6 p.m. you must be in the stadium and call this number, they’ll take you to the press area”

“I thought this wasn’t going to be a problem anymore” I protested. “He was with Nadine yesterday” I couldn’t believe that the entire plan had been useless. Then, my realistic side told me that there hadn’t been a plan at all. He had simply wanted to take her to the party, no matter what Nina said.

“Is not that easy. There are pics of him and Nadine in today’s newspaper, but it doesn’t mean anything. People like mystery. You’re still the unknown girl who was with him inside the bus. They won’t give it up” he kept the pen in his pocket.

“I only have Nina to go with me” I said.

“Nina has an interview with some fashion magazine in the Palais Royal” It couldn’t be true.

“Will I be locked in this hotel while you all have fun in Paris? Why can’t I just go with you?” Jorg smiled.

“You don’t understand anything. Today is Sunday, football day. Do you know how many matches there will be? How much work waits for me?”

“I won’t stay in the hotel” I said, stubbornly. His words still echoed in my head. He hadn’t asked Dupont to dance with me. Why had he said so then?

“Fine. Then, if you’ll get in trouble, you’ll be fired” He stood up and looked down at me. “Ask any of the interpreters, they’ll also have the free morning” I watched him leave, feeling depressed. I didn’t know any of the other interpreters and I really didn’t feel like talking to Annika again. I left the gardens and walked inside, absent minded. So absent minded that I, clumsy as I was, crashed into a tall man who had just picked up his breakfast. He dropped his coffee over me and I screamed.

“Oh, shit! Did I hurt you?” He said. His British accent sounded so Hugh Grant.

“I’m fine, it’s my entire fault” I knew my English accent wasn’t the nicest and I expected to hear the typical remark: you speak like Arnold Schwarzenegger. But he didn’t say a word. He was as tall as Dupont, dark blond and with a kind expression. He didn’t dare to help me clean my top and he looked embarrassed. Two waiters were already cleaning the floor and I heard the murmurs from a table near us. I recognized the BBC logo in their folders. All the men were smiling.

“It seems we both need some sleep, after last night” He said, and then frowned. “That didn’t sound too well, did it?” I smiled. “I’m John. From BBC”

“Ilse. From VOX TV” We shook hands.

“I know. I saw you the other day at reception, you were having an argument with the receptionist and Dupont was walking around. I was sitting on a sofa and heard everything” I watched him, surprised. I realized that we were standing there and he was still holding his dish full of croissants.

“I should be going, you have to eat your breakfast and I must get changed” I pointed at my chest.

“Please, sit with us” he said, taking me by surprise. I shook my head.

“I really can’t, sorry” He looked sad, for a while, but then smiled.

“Ok then. Nice to meet you” He said, sitting with his co workers. I left the room, feeling a big better.

I changed clothes after taking a shower and left my room. I didn’t plan to obey Jorg’s orders; I couldn’t spend the whole day locked in the hotel. I had to think of a way to escape from there. I took the elevator and met Nina inside.

“Ilse! God!” She was very dressed up, ready for the interview. “Where were you? I was so worried! We were so worried!” She hugged me.

“I’m fine, I came by taxi” I explained.

“Never do that again! We thought something had happened to you!” The elevator doors opened and we walked outside. The reception was crowded. I recognized the VOX team of technicians getting ready to leave to the stadium, working under the orders of Otto. When I saw him, I froze. He looked at me, pointed with a finger and shook his head, before going back to work. I breathed, relieved. He was too busy to lose time with me.

“Nina, I don’t want to talk about yesterday” I said.

“I saw you dancing with Jerome” I couldn’t decipher her tone of voice and she looked shy for the first time. I blushed.

“He said that Jorg asked him to do that” I explained. “But Jorg told me it wasn’t true”

“You know” She said, with a nervous laugh. “For a second I thought that you guys liked each other” She spoke carefully, like expecting a reaction from me.

“I don’t like him” I said, in a firm tone of voice. “Jorg asked him to do that, to talk about a project. But I can’t tell you more than that” I didn’t want to think why had Dupont lied to me. I just wanted to forget. She relaxed.

“I’m glad, because, you know…” She hesitated. “He left with Nadine quite early and we didn’t see them again” Her eyes observed me. I shrugged.

“It’s OK, I told you I don’t like him. Come on, Nina, you know what I think about football and players” I tried to smile and hoped I was convincing. Now, she smiled widely.

“I know and I’m happy that you said that. Jerome is a quite complicated person when it comes to women and well, I was so surprised to see he was actually leaving with Nadine, as he had always said he didn’t like her. I guess we all change eventually” I really, really didn’t want to talk about that. But of course, I couldn’t tell her the reasons.

“You’ll be late” I told her, and she jumped.

“It’s true! See you in the evening, I hope you’ll enjoy the day!” She said, waving me goodbye and leaving the building. I stood there, with my bag on my shoulder, my jacket in my hands and wondering how to escape from there without being seen.

I walked around the crowd, slowly, towards the doors. Otto seemed to be too distracted, arguing with the receptionist. I saw the technicians of the BBC Channel walk around like bees. I walked a bit more, a bit more… and I was suddenly outside. The road was full of expensive cars and the bus of the French selection was parked there, with the doors opened. Some of the players were already sitting inside. I hoped Jerome wasn’t there and turned around to go back to the hotel, when I saw him walking towards me. My heart stopped beating and I froze on my place. He was carrying the Adidas bag and was dressed in a sport suit.

“Good morning, Werther” He said.

“Good morning” I expected him to keep on walking but he left the bag on the ground.

“Where were you last night?” He asked. I looked up at him. Today, the rain had stopped but the sky was still covered with clouds. His eyes looked so blue under that light.

“How do you know I left? Nina told me you spent the night with Nadine” I suddenly realized that that wasn’t too accurate information and it was none of my business.

“Why would Nina tell you that? It’s private” So, he didn’t deny it. Great. “Were you girls talking about me?” I didn’t have an answer for that and thought that the best defense was a good attack.

“Why did you lie to me?” I snapped. He frowned. The coach walked behind us and looked at Jerome.

“Don’t be late” He said, with a warning look that Dupont ignored.

“What are you talking about?” He observed me, impatiently.

“You told me that Jorg asked you to dance with me. Jorg told me it wasn’t true. That he asked you to talk to me” I spoke, feeling the blush on my face. Why did it all sound so stupid and childish? Come on, he was a football star getting ready for a big match, and there I was, asking for an explanation about a stupid two minutes dance! Before he could reply, I heard a nice voice behind us.

“Hey, you’re there again” Jerome looked at him and frowned.

“Do I know you?” He asked with arrogance. But the man ignored him. He was the British guy who had splashed the coffee over me. I smiled.

“Hi John” I felt Jerome’s gaze on me. “Are you going to the city now?”

“Yes, my colleagues will go directly to the stadium, but I have some free time and planned to go for a walk” he said. I saw him doubt. “Do you have any plans?”

“I’m not supposed to go alone to Paris, I had some troubles the other day” I said. I couldn’t believe we were having this conversation in front of Dupont, and I couldn’t believe that Dupont was still standing there! Why didn’t he just go to the bus and leave me alone?

“Do you want to come with me? I have to do some research but you won’t get bored, I promise” He smiled and I smiled back.

“Great, I’d love to!” I said.

“Good! I’ll wait for you inside, I still have to talk to my boss” He left us alone. I turned around to face Jerome. He blinked and watched John with a strange face.

“Are you going to Paris with an unknown guy?” He said. I couldn’t tell if he was worried or if he just thought I was weird. “You know what, I don’t want to know. Have fun, Werther”

“You should get some sleep at nights, in order to be in a better mood” I couldn’t help saying that. He stared at me.

“If you’re so curious about my private life I can tell you that nothing happened last night, OK?” He said, in a loud tone of voice. A group of people watched us, amused.

“I don’t care at all about what you did, Dupont. I just want to know why did you lie to me” I said.

“Why is it so important? I don’t get it, really!” He did sound bored about the subject. I started to feel like a crazy girlfriend and felt so ashamed of myself. I was acting like a harasser, a jealous fan! I was just a journalist working for a TV channel who had no right to interfere in his life.

“Why are we having this conversation at all? I don’t like you and you don’t like me. Sorry, your life is none of my business. You had your reasons to lie to me and I won’t ask. I guess you thought that I would fall in love with you like any other crazy fan and this was a way to protect yourself. I get it. But you shouldn’t worry, Jerome” I was surprised he still hadn’t interrupted me. Actually, he looked taken aback. “This will never, ever happen, so, there’s no reason to lie to me again, I’m a grown up woman and a professional” I finished, taking a deep breath. “Good luck today” He watched me in silence. Didier was standing close to us and he touched Dupont’s arm.

“Jerome?” He asked, worried, looking at both of us. Dupont blinked, then took his bag and put it over his shoulder.

“Thanks, Werther. Have fun downtown” He said. Then, he took the bag from the ground and left. The crowd went back to their chat and work and I went to reception to find John, feeling in a way that scared me to death. When we left the building together I saw Jerome watching us from the bus’ window seat. I looked away and got into John’s car. I tried to forget about our conversation. Paris was waiting for me again.

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John had to cover a report in Musee D’Orsay and I took the chance to visit the room of the Impressionists, my absolutely favorite ones. It was a small space with some of the paintings I had always admired so much. The museum itself was a place worth seeing: it was an old train station and it still kept the huge clock and the glass façade. I could imagine myself there, one century ago, watching the trains come and go.

Van Gogh’s portrait was next to me and I felt a shiver. It was the first time I had a chance to see one of his paintings face to face and a huge feeling of respect and devotion invaded me. A few meters away there was a woman painting. She was copying one of the works of Cezanne and the reproduction was perfect. I watched her mixing the colors and wished to have her talents.

“Do you like Van Gogh?” John said, joining me. He smiled. “My work here is done, but we can watch some more paintings if you want”

“Really?” I asked, happy. I couldn’t believe my luck. John seemed to be a great guy. He was good-looking, kind, modest, smart…he was all a girl could wish for. Anyway, there was something inside me that didn’t let me enjoy the morning completely, and I was horrified to realize that maybe, and just maybe, I was falling for Jerome Dupont. I couldn’t believe I was putting myself into that situation, a no-win one. It would never, ever happen. My feelings would never be returned. After those two months my heart would be broken. How the hell did that happen? I had only been one week in Paris! That couldn’t be true, it must have been some kind of spell: the new city, the new job… it was impossible to fall for someone you barely knew, for someone you hated, for someone who was so out of my reach!

“Ilse?” I jumped when I heard John’s voice. He was looking at me, worried. “Do you feel well?” He asked.

“Sorry, I was so absent minded, there’s so much going on” I tried to smile. We went on walking and watching the paintings.

“Can I ask you something?” He said. I looked up at him. “What’s going on between you and Jerome Dupont? I mean, how did you meet each other? I’m pretty surprised that a football player keeps a private talk with a journalist, especially before a world championship and in front of everybody” I tried not to blush.

“I’m his personal interpreter and interviewer. His best friend is dating my friend Nina” I explained.

“Oh, so you knew this Nina before you came here” He said. I shook my head.

“No. I met all of them one week ago” John stared at me, shocked. He stopped walking and faced me.

“Do you know how hard it’s been to get a private interview with Dupont? They’ve only managed to do it once, and just for ten minutes”

“That’s strange” I commented. John nodded.

“He always said he had a compromise with someone else, and then we found out he only spoke for VOX TV, this means you” I blinked, confused.

“I thought he was busy with the French media” I murmured, thinking of Nadine.

“No, he only spoke with you. Luckily, the rest of players weren’t such bastards and they kindly agreed to do that” we entered the last room and John checked his watch. “It’s almost midday, should we go back to the hotel?” I nodded, still speechless and more confused than ever.

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“Is this your first time in a stadium?” The security guard screamed as we walked among the noisy crowd. The huge structure rose in front of me. I could hear the screams, songs and clapping of ten thousand people gathered inside. He led me to a door guarded by a bunch of guys with guns. Once inside, my ears relaxed.

“Yes, it’s my first time, and I hope the last” I replied, and he laughed.

“VOX TV has the cabin fourteen. That way, straight on”

“Thanks” I said, and walked through the halls, together with hundreds of journalists. The cabins were like rooms with glass windows with a view to the playground. We were on the first floor, and the room was isolated. No noise came from the outside, but I could see the view and the audience and I couldn’t help staring, impressed. One thing was to watch it on TV, another very different to be there.

“Ilse, take a seat” Said Jorg, passing me the headphones. “You’ll have a chance to watch the match and listen to it” he smiled.

“How lucky I am” I replied, with sarcasm. I was sure I was going to be bored to death. We took our seats and after half an hour of preparation, they announced the players’ names. I had a small screen in front of me, as the cameramen broadcast it. The French selection showed up in a row and the audience went mad. Dupont greeted with one hand, as well as the rest of players. The British men stood in another row next to them and the national anthems played. One by one, the faces of the players were shown on TV. My heart raced when I saw Dupont, looking at the sky and murmuring something. I wish I could read his lips, and I heard a laugh from one of the reporters.

“He’s sending the pirates back home” I didn’t get the joke and didn’t want to ask, but I couldn’t help wondering how come he was so serene before such an event, with all those people watching.

“This is just an exhibition match” Jorg explained. “The host selection greets the former world champions. You will see next week, when the real competition starts” I looked at him.

“Next week already?” Jorg nodded. “But I thought it would take one month…”

“No, it will start already. Of course, the first matches go slowly, as all the teams have to first play against the teams in their groups. Once they’ll pass to the final quarters, then we’ll be really busy, Werther”

“What makes you think they will make it to the quarters?” Someone asked, surprising both of us. “Dupont is playing terrible today” Jorg turned around to check the screen and I did the same. Of course, I couldn’t tell what good game was and what wasn’t, but when the cameras showed Jerome, I could see his distressed face.

“Coach is not happy” Jorg said, and I saw the face of the man in the screen. He was frowning deeply.

“He had too much fun at the party yesterday” Someone commented, and the rest laughed. I suddenly felt insecure. He had told me that nothing had happened, but could I believe him? I barely knew him. Anyway, why was I caring so much? Suddenly, my world seemed to turn upside down. I saw a British player pushing Jerome and he fell on the grass, showing a face full of pain.

“Oh my god!” I screamed, standing up. I felt all gazes on me. Jorg was quite shocked. I saw then how Jerome stood up and went on playing, as if nothing had happened. I sat down slowly.

“What was that?” Asked Jerome, intrigued. I blushed. “Ilse, players fall all time. Relax”

“I just thought I saw a spider on my leg” I lied. “I hate spiders” Jorg looked at me as if he didn’t believe me, and I tried to spend the rest of the match in the most calmed possible way. But soon, on the second half, England scored and France went quiet.

“Only ten minutes to the end of the match, they’re screwed” Jorg murmured. Then, minute ninety came and the whistle announced the end of the match. England 1, France 0. “Let’s go to the press room” he told me, and I picked all my things. “Dupont will be in such a bad mood”

We waited a whole hour until he showed up after the shower, dressed in clean clothes and with his hair still wet. He gave the press conference with a neutral face and once he was done with them, it was our turn to interview. Jerome shook hands with Jorg as soon as we were alone in a private VIP area, and he didn’t look at me. They discussed some facts about the match for fifteen minutes, while I prepared all necessary things for the work. We sat around a small table and Jorg looked at me.

“Ilse, once you’ll be done with the interview, please, call me. I must go to Otto and work on something else” He then looked at Dupont. “Jerome, it will only take a few minutes”

We were alone again and I didn’t know what to say. He looked so upset that I didn’t dare to open my mouth. I had a mix of all sort of feelings and found myself speechless. Then, when I saw his impatient look, I connected the recorder and gathered forces. One by one, the questions came and the answers were brief and sharp. He barely looked at me and I kept my eyes on the paper. Fifteen minutes later we were done and I took my cell phone to call Jorg. Suddenly, Jerome spoke.

“Wait a minute” I stopped dialing the number and looked up at him. My heart raced. “I want to talk to you”

“Why?” I said, nervous. He stood up, walked around the table and sat on the chair next to me. The sharpness of his voice and movements made me worried.

“I thought I made very clear that you were just a journalist and that I didn’t have the time and the energy to deal with you” he said, slowly, full of bitterness.

“What did I do now?” I felt his gaze on me.

“You know, I don’t get you” His face was close to mine and I felt paralyzed. “You said you hate football players, but you’re friends with Didier. You said you hate football, but you’ll move to London to write my biography” I saw the confusion in his eyes. “I would like you to be honest for once and tell me directly why do you dislike me so much” I swallowed.

“I’m friends with Didier because he’s Nina’s boyfriend, I spent quite some time with her” I replied, but Jerome shook his head.

“Then why can’t we be friends? Why can’t we just work in peace? Why is there always something wrong for you, some stupid argument or some accusation?” I didn’t have the answer for that. I just closed my eyes and tried to calm down. “Why are you closing your eyes?” He asked, amused.

“It’s easier to talk like that” I replied. Silence came and I opened them slowly, fearing he had left the room and that I was sitting there alone. But he was still there.

“What’s so wrong with me, that you’re making such a big deal out of everything?” He asked. “Can we please, be friends, get along well and be professional at work?” He looked sincere and I had to nod. “Good”

“I’m sorry about the match” I said. He smiled.

“I was just letting them win. There’s nothing worse than a team that has high self confidence. The first championship match will be against then, they will think it will be an easy job. But we’ll surprise them” I gaped at him, shocked.

“You let them win?” He nodded.

“I’m a good player, also out of the playground” He said, mysteriously. Then, he stood up. “How much have you seen of Paris?” He asked.

“Not much… Eiffel Tower and Musee D’Orsay, John took me there” I said, and Jerome walked towards the door.

“Tomorrow is our last free day” he began, doubting. Then, he looked at me with a gaze that was more shy than arrogant. “If we’re friends, now, I’ll be happy to show you the Paris that only a Parisian knows”

“I… I don’t believe that’s possible” I heard myself saying, and for a second I thought his face had showed disappointment. He watched me, waiting for an explanation. “People will recognize you” He smiled when he heard that.

“I have my own way to disappear among the crowd” He said, as he opened the door and left. I realized that I had been holding my breath all the time. When I met Jorg, I was feeling so lightheaded that I didn’t remember at all how we spent the rest of the afternoon.