Two days had passed since Orlando and Dominic�s accident and everyone was trying hard to keep them away from eachother. Dom still swore he would hurt Orli as soon as he saw him, though luckily he didn�t want to kill him anymore. The guys and girls however were still convinced it was better to keep them apart for a while more, �just to be on the safe side�, like Billy put so nicely. The only odd thing was the fact that Daphne was visiting Orli quite often. Tamara had even asked about it once but Daphne had shrugged it off with �we need a good plan to get back at Lij and Dee� but nobody was believing that anymore. They all thought Orlando and Daphne had finally ended their argument and now were becoming pretty good friends. What a big shock it would be for them to find out the real truth�
Having spent all day at a smokey LA office without even airconditiong all Dee wanted to do was to get back home as soon as possible and take a long soak in a hot bath. Her boss had been sending her to several fashion-shows that week and now it was Dee�s task to judge the outfits of the rich and famous designers, a nice but tyring job. Some designers would phone Dee and complain about a not so friendly review, but she couldn�t care less. It was her job and she enjoyed it, even though some people wanted to kick the sh*t out of her. But she always had a certain bunch of male friends when it really came to that, one of them even with a black belt. Nah, she would be fine.
Finally arriving home she checked the mailbox, which she knew was empty anyway. It was a silly habit she�d picked up a few years ago and she couldn�t get rid of it, no matter how much it annoyed her housemates. To her big surprise however she found a simple white envelope, a huge red heart drawn on the front, and she picked it up. No name, no address. Hmm, now that was strange. Well, maybe Lij had been in one of his romantic moods again and had decided to send Dee something sweet. The girl with the short black hair smiled at that and retreated to her room to read the letter in peace. There she ripped the envelope open and a short note fell into her lap. The first thing however Wendy noticed was that it wasn�t Elijah�s handwriting�
Roses are red
Violins are blue
You are mine
And I love you
Always yours, Orl
i
Dee grinned at the corny text, thinking on how to make fun of Orli with those lines, until it suddenly hit her square in the face. He must have written it for Daphne! Slowly all pieces fell into place : Daphne locking her door up when Orlando was around, Daphne�s concern for Orli after him falling down the balcony, Orlando and Daph spending every free minute together. Oh my dear God and Goddess, the once biggest enemies were now lovers! No, this couldn�t be happening! This was a nightmare!
Dee took a deep breath and tried to come up with a good idea. She had to know if it was true, if they were really going out. Only one way to find out and that way meant crossing the street to the small house on the corner of the next block and asking Orli�
Orlando was watching some talkshow on the telly when the doorbell rang. His first thought was that Daphne must have read his poem and had now come to �thank� him. As soon as he saw Dee though he realized it must be something else. He opened the door and the younger girl entered.
�Hi Orli�erm, I have a question.�
�Sure, what is it?�
Dee took a deep breath before finally stating �Are you and Daphne going out?�
Remembering the promise he�d made to his lover he of course denied that fact.
�No, of course not. How do you get on a crazy thought like that?�
To the actors�s big shock the piece of paper with his poem appear from behind Dee�s back and she waved it in front of his face.
�For the next time, remember to write Daphne�s name on the envelope. I thought it was meant for me and opened it.�
�It�it was meant as a joke.� Orlando replied but Wendy looked right through him and shook her head.
�I don�t believe you. C�mon Orli, just admit it. I�ll find out anyway when I ask Daph about it. She can�t lie to me.�
The Brit knew at that moment he had to give in and he sighed deeply. �Alright then, we�re seeing eachother. It happened when you and Lij locked us up in that closet.�
�What!? My, my, never knew our action was so successful.�
�That was the idea. You weren�t supposed to find out about it yet.�
�But how can it be that you first almost killed eachother and now you are a couple? That seems at least a bit strange to me��
Orlando shook his head at that and asked himself the same question. Dee was right, it was weird, very weird.
�It just�happened. I don�t know how or why. We were arguing and suddenly we kissed.�
�Fine, I�ll forgive you two for not telling me sooner. I still don�t get it, but okay, I�ll give you the benefit of the doubt.�
�Thanks.�
They stood together in an awkward silence when Orli gently questioned �You won�t tell the rest just yet, will you?�
Dee smiled and shook her head.
�Of course not. I�ll leave it up to you.�
�That�s very much appreciated.�
�Fine, I�ll be jetting off again. Need a nap after this whole thing.�
Dee wasn�t even properly out of the door yet when she fished her mobile out of her backpocket and dailed Elijah�s number, instantly forgetting about her promise to Orlando. My God, Lij really needed to know about the new couple�
Two days (and a whole bunch of teasing for Daphne and Orlando) later, the entire group was spending a cozy evening together at Orlando�s apartment. Of course neither Dee nor Elijah had kept their mouth shut and now everyone knew about the little secret Orli and Daph had been able to keep to themselves for so long. Not that they really minded. At least now they could touch eachother in public!
Some silly conversations about nothing in particular were going on when all of a sudden Orlando burst inside, phone still in hand and jumping up and down like a loon.
�Hey lads, Atti is coming tomorrow! He just phoned me about it!� Orli shouted happily while snatching the apple that Dom was eating from his hand and taking a bite off it.
�Hey, that was my apple!� the other Brit complained and Orli just shrugged and handed the now half eaten piece of fruit back, the gesture being met with a disgusted look by Dominic.
�Who�s Atti?� Daphne asked Billy, who groaned dramatically and replied �You really don�t wanna know.�
�Andre Schneider. He�s Orli�s best friend and just as mad. He�s a great guy but he and Orli together is a total nightmare.� Elijah explained while throwing a new apple at a pouting Dominic.
�We�re no nightmare! In fact we�re very nice and descent blokes who very well know how to behave!� Orlando exclaimed hurt but Billy shook his head and smiled.
�So that�s why there�s no club in London left where you and Atti are welcome?�
�We only had a few small incidents!� the younger man shot back, the comment being met with sarcastic laughter from the rest of the boys.
�Laugh, just laugh. Me and Andre will get back at you soon enough.� Orli pouted until Daphne ran a hand through his hair and exclaimed �I believe you.�
They kissed and Jenny made a gagging sound while Tamara exclaimed �Get a room you two!�
Daphne just stuck up her middle finger at them and continued being busy with her boyfriend. Elijah threw a look over at Dee, raising an eyebrow, and she immediately understood what he meant. They stood up at the same time and Lij told the rest �Right, we�re going. See you lot tomorrow.�
Faster than a flash of lightening the lovers had left the house.
�All that shagging is making me feel lonely.� Dom exclaimed to Jenny, who nodded in agreement.
�Let�s drown our sorrows?� she asked and Dom smiled.
�That�s the best idea I�ve heard in ages.�
�Erm�Tam? Feel like doing something else? Anything? Just as long as it means getting out of here?� Billy questioned Tamara and she picked the girls� carkeys from the table and held them up.
�Let�s go.�
And that�s how a whole room got deserted in less than two minutes�
The Next Day�
Because it was the biggest house the whole gang had come to the girls� place to welcome Andre. They had planned some sort of a �welcome to LA party� for him, just to make him feel at home a bit more, but although it was only still in the afternoon a big part of the drinks had gone already! The sound of a cardoor was the sign of the arrival of Andre and Orlando, who had picked him up from the airport.
�This is officially the end of peace.� Billy told the rest with a deep sigh as the door was being tossed open and two men appeared in front of them.
�Hello everyone!� a tall guy exclaimed while being ushered inside by Orli. He had some resemblence to Orli with the short hair and brown eyes, but the most remarkable thing was the grin plastered onto his face.
He walked over to Dom and gave him a steady kiss on the cheek.
�Hey horny hobbit of mine. So, have there been any hot adventures with Brad Pitt lately?�
Dom�s face turned into a deep crimson and Andre laughed loudly before moving over to Elijah.
�Lij, you crazy little cunt! What did Orlando tell me, you�ve actually find yourself a girl? How much did you pay her?�
But despite the harsh words Lij knew it was all a joke and he gave the guy a hug and a smile.
�It�s good to see you Atti.�
�It�s good to see you too mate.�
�And you old man� Andre continued while looking over at Billy, who was desperately trying to hide in the cushions of the sofa, not wanting to get either kissed nor jumped at, �You still being DIY?�
�Watch your mouth, Atti. I might be the oldest but I�m still the wisest and have a black belt.�
�And unfortunately I�m very much aware of that.� Atti replied while rubbing his jaw in obvious remembrance but still with the grin on his face.
�Atti, come here and meet the girls.� Orli said while wrapping an arm around his mate�s shoulders and leading him away.
�Right, let�s see. This is Jenny.� Orlando explained while motioning over to the petite blonde and Andre shook her hand enthusiastically. After being introduced to both Dee and Tamara they came to Daphne and Orli said �And this is Daphne�andweredating.�
�You�re what!?� Atti yelled in shock while hitting himself on the forehead with one hand and clutching Orli�s arm with the other.
�We. Are. Dating.� Orli repeated like he was talking to a four-year-old �And we�re very happy.�
For a moment it looked like Andre was going insane but then he threw his arms around Orli�s neck and knocked the air out of his lungs.
�Fuck Orlando, that�s the best news I�ve heard for ages!�
And then his face clouded over again and he demanded while placing his hands on his hips �Why didn�t you tell me before?�
�I thought it was nicer to tell you in person.�
�Ahh, very friendly of you.�
Andre looked around the place, his glare resting on the table with drinks and food, and questioned �Well, shouldn�t we start what we�re here for? Which is getting drunk and all the rest?�
Needless to say that evening was a whole new dimension of the word �debauchery��