Dream girl.

 I started today by saying I had absolutely no idea what I could do today, so I decided to pass the responsibility for my future plans onto someone else. Since the only person available today was Rafał, who had the day off from his studies, shortly after breakfast I set off to visit him.

Rafał lives in a detached house, and although he's a keen electronics engineer, he can't fix the intercom. So I went to the door, which Rafał's mother opened a few seconds after the bell rang.

"Good morning." I bowed. "Is Rafał there?

" "Yes, sir." She recognized me immediately; I was a frequent visitor to the house at the time. "He's in the basement, painting something again." She stepped away from the door. "Please come in.

" "Thank you." I stepped inside and took off my jacket.

"Will you go to the basement?

" "Yes, thank you." She went into the kitchen, and I was left alone. Without a second thought, I headed for the basement.

Rafał's basement was very bright, the white walls only intensifying the light streaming in through the enlarged windows. Although there was that distinct basement smell, the air was fresh and clean.

"Hi, Raf," I said as soon as I reached the main door.

"Come in," he said, not taking his eyes off his work. "I didn't know you were coming.

" "Honestly, neither did I."

I sat down next to him and watched him paint his figurines. He has a real talent for it. We chatted quietly about various trivialities until someone's footsteps interrupted our conversation. Raf handed me his notes and asked for my comments, then resumed painting. Just as I was lost in my reading, someone entered the basement.

"Rafik..." A clearly female voice. "Mommy wants you to drive to the store.

" "Why?" he asked, slightly irritated.

"We're out of yeast, and Mommy wants to bake a cake." The way she said that made me look up from my book.

She was perhaps seventeen, though she looked a bit older. Her medium, almost black hair curled gently behind her ears, with some sticking out slightly to the sides. While her hairstyle looked messy, it was deliberately styled and, as you could see, required a tremendous amount of work to achieve its current appearance. She could have easily stood up right now and I probably wouldn't have noticed the difference. Large, brown eyes complemented her face and, along with her lips, added a touch of mystery to her entire figure. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed she was wearing a yellow dress and a similar blouse.

I stared into her eyes, and she did the same to me. For a good dozen or so seconds, while I remained frozen, only our two worlds existed: her and me. Finally, without looking away, she said.

"Rafik, would you introduce me to your friend?" We were still staring at each other.

"So you don't know each other yet?" Raf asked, surprised. "This is Lord Raziel..." He thought for a moment. "I mean, Krzysiek." He turned to me. "Kris, this is my sister Iwona.

" "Hi Krzysiek." She said, and finally turned to Raf. I almost sighed with something akin to relief. "So? Are you going to the store?"

"Are you coming with me, Kris, or are you going to wait here?

" "I'll wait, at least I'll read your text." At that moment, Iwona emerged from the basement.

"I might be gone for a while. They'll probably make me a proper list soon. Are you sure you want to stay?

" "Sure. I'd be happy to read it.

" "Okay, whatever you want. Narx." He left the basement, and a moment later I heard the roar of his Ford engine outside.

For a few minutes, I tried to start reading, though I wasn't doing very well. Raf is an elf fanatic; elves are always and everywhere the most important and the best, and everything. This text was, of course, about elves. A dozen or so pages, printed in small type. I couldn't read it, so I just skimmed it, noting the typical errors, and finally put it aside.

I couldn't stop thinking about those big, brown eyes. They were etched in my memory and wouldn't leave. I leaned my head against the wall and immersed myself in my own impressions.

I was interrupted by footsteps. The basement was very quiet, and each footstep was clearly audible. She descended slowly, as if pausing with each step. After a moment, it turned out to be Iwona with a tray containing two glasses of hot water and a few other trinkets. I politely set a place at the table.

"Mother sent me with tea." "It sounded like some kind of mission." "So I decided to keep you company." She sat down in the armchair Raf called contemplative. He said she came to him to sleep from time to time; apparently, he thought better then, though I don't know.

I tried to keep my eyes away from her, because every time I approached the outline of her figure, my eyes were drawn to hers. I put the tea bags in the water and after a moment asked,

"Do you add sugar?" "You have to show at least a modicum of courtesy.

" "Yes, two, please." I dutifully poured some and pushed the tray towards her, afraid that if I stood up, my legs would give out.

"So you're Rafał's sister? If so, why haven't I ever seen you here?" I asked, embellishing the question with a playful tone, but Iwona answered in all seriousness.

"I've been on vacation with my grandmother for the last two months, I just got back last night." "I've only just realized that I've only been coming to Raf's for about two months; before that, we'd only met at the bar or at Pitek's. "

There was a momentary silence.

"Was it you Rafiq was telling me about?"

"I don't know, honestly." I smiled very gently, feeling as if my face were made of glass. I was afraid it would crumble and crack.

"I think he was talking about you; at least you fit the description, I just pictured you a little differently.

" "Meaning?" I must admit, I was intrigued.

"To tell the truth, I'm pleasantly surprised. I was expecting some kind of Neanderthal, and here you are.

What...? Impossible... Absolutely, totally impossible.

" "I'm not far from a Neanderthal, actually, though I personally prefer the term 'orc.

'" "Why?" Her surprise seemed genuine.

"Somehow. I've always said that about myself." I felt like I was losing ground. I tried to hold on to the last vestiges of confidence. I almost choked on the already lukewarm tea, but outwardly I tried to project my unwavering confidence. I desperately tried to find a direction for our conversation, but absolutely nothing came to mind. Fortunately, she didn't seem to want to interrupt.

"Are you still writing your nonsense?

" "Yeah, I'm writing nonsense." Our eye contact was almost constant.

"Can I bring you something and you can judge it?

" "Why not?" I shrugged.

"Then wait a minute, I'll be right back." She put down her glass and left the basement.

"I wouldn't even be able to stand up," I said to myself.

From outside the window, I heard the screeching of tires and the unmistakable stream of curses. Raf had returned. I quickly scanned his text and settled back. Finally, the adrenaline drained from my blood. After a moment, he entered the basement.

"So, how's it going?

" "What?" "I didn't understand the question.

" "How did you like my text?

" "Oh, that's what you mean. It might be, but there are a few mistakes. And it's about elves again..." I bit my lip to keep from laughing at the grimace on his face.

A little melody drifted from Raf's pants, and he instinctively pulled out his cell phone.

"Excuse me for a moment." He pressed play. "Yeah? What? No. I can't. Well, I'm telling you, I can't, I'm with someone. If you can't handle it, you know what I care? What do you mean, overloaded? How could you overheat it? But if it burned out, you'll pay for the repair. Fine, I'll be there." He turned off his phone. "Tell Kris, what are you doing tonight?

" "Actually, it's nothing, that's why I came over.

" "Then you're busy."

"What do you mean?

" "Do you have a car?"

"The folks are on vacation, so they won't mind if I borrow it for a while.

" "Here you go." He handed me two pieces of paper. "These are tickets to MiniMax, for some movie. Iwona really wanted to see it, so you should like it too.

" "Did I understand correctly? Should I take your sister to the cinema?

" "Yeah. You already have the tickets." That was a bit abrupt, so I agreed immediately.

"Okay. Where are you going?

" "To college. One of the assistants seems to have blown the generator of my idea, I have to help them.

" "Heh. Can you give me a ride home? I'd take the car and pick Iwona up.

" "Sure. Wait, I have to go tell her and get a beating in the process. She doesn't like me doing things like that.

" "Okay, I'll wait for you outside."

I went outside and stood next to the car. It wasn't long before Raf came out. He was slightly confused and fiddling with his ear, which he always did when he was thinking about something.

"Weird," he said and got into the car. I got in and asked.

"What's weird?

" "She didn't do anything to me. She even seemed happy. Really strange. This is completely unlike her. Too bad. "

As I got out of the car, Raf said

, "Since the show's at eight, pick her up at seven.

" "Okay, Narx.

I still had a few hours. I ate something vaguely specific, just leftovers from yesterday, remixed and heated up. Some leftover pizza, cheese, pasta, and whatever else I had left from yesterday. Fully satiated, I got ready, doing everything in a way that demanded my maximum attention. I wanted to distract my mind from a certain thing, or rather, someone. When I finished getting ready, I realized that not even an hour had passed. To occupy myself, I started cleaning, even mopping the floor. And again, a moment passed, and I was finished. The house had never looked so perfect while I was cleaning. Finally, for lack of anything else to do, I turned on the TV and killed some time.

When it was around six-thirty, I started getting ready to leave. I washed up again, put on perfume, and did everything a good boy should do before a date, because no matter how I looked at it, it was a date.

I arrived a few minutes after seven, having chatted with a neighbor by the car. Iwona was already standing outside, and every time I watched her, I felt like she was going crazy, albeit very discreetly. I smiled to myself, knowing it was for me. I opened the door for her to get in.

"I thought you weren't coming."

"It crossed my mind, but if I did, Raf would have hooked me up to one of his engines, and that wouldn't have been so funny." I think this amused her a bit, because she smiled, a very nice one, actually.

"Maybe I can convince him to hook you up after all.

" "No problem, but only if you tie me up." She laughed openly now.

After we'd been driving for a while, I asked.

"So, what are we going to see at the cinema anyway?

" "Werewolves, vampires, demons, and so on.

" "All in the male form." I feigned indignation. "How about some female werewolves or vampires?

" "The main character is a werewolf." When she said this, I looked at her discreetly and said to myself, "Most certainly."

The radio made the journey more enjoyable; I tried not to think about my passenger, and she stared off into the distance. We arrived at the cinema quite quickly, although thanks to my being a bit late, we arrived almost in time for the screening. When we entered the auditorium, the commercials had ended and the film had started.

We sat next to each other, and I kept secretly glancing at her, discovering that although she was glued to the screen, she was also glancing my way, but my gaze seemed to intimidate her. I spent half the screening like that, trying to watch the film as well, which was a very difficult task. It was quite an interesting film, not American, with an interesting approach to the subject matter. By the time the screening ended, it was around ten o'clock. The stars were illuminating the night sky.

"Honestly, I don't feel like going home. Do you?" I asked.

"Neither.

" "Do you have a curfew?

" I said I didn't know what time I'd be back; I had to be home by three because a friend was going to call me.

"Three a.m.?

" "No. What! Three p.m.." She smiled subtly, with an obvious hint of meaning.

"Hmm." So maybe we should go to Heaven?

"Where?" she asked jokingly.

"A pub, a friend of mine is a waiter there, we often hang out there with the crew.

" "Lead the way, knight." "That gave me an incredible vibe, just like that.

" "Follow me, my lady, I'll lead you through the nooks and crannies of the concrete jungle, all the way to Heaven's gates." She laughed.

"Why can't I walk beside you?

" "If you want, please.

To get to Heaven, you have to know which gate to turn twice to get to. A camouflaged pub.

" "Are you sure it's here?

" "Yeah, unless this pub has truly become a ghost pub."

We finally reached the gate, and with an elegant gesture, I opened it for her. I entered first and noticed that only Jacko, the owner and bartender in Heaven, was there. I took a few steps and stopped. Jacko emerged from behind the bar and stood opposite me. Iwona followed me. The atmosphere was electrified. We both placed our right fists to our hearts, and Jacko began executing our gesture.

"En Taro Adun.

" "En Taro Tassadar.

" "Hello Kris.

" "Hello Jacko.

" "Sit down." Only then did he notice there was someone else behind me. And as we approached the bar, he stood on his side and, leaning on his elbows, began to examine Iwona. "What kind of angel follows an orc like you?"

"An angel like Raf's sister.

" "What? Raf has a sister?

" "I didn't know either.

" "My little angel, where has that disgusting Raf been keeping you all my life?" Jacko was around thirty, but had the demeanor of an eighteen-year-old.

"Hmm." I coughed politely. Jacko composed himself and said.

"I'll be right back, I have to take the food out of the oven." He went somewhere to the back.

"Something unusual." She said.

"Where?

" "I'm talking about the decor of this pub. So delicate.

" "Yeah, Jacko did it. What are you drinking?

" "I don't know, what is.

" "Oh. Right. Haven't you ever had Wind Rider?

" "What?

" "A cocktail like that, The Rider of the Wind.

" "Strong? I don't like strong alcohol.

" "Almost water. Don't worry." Jacko returned, holding a plate of something resembling pizza, and hid it under the counter.

"What can I get you? The usual, Kris?

" "No, I'm driving. Give Iwona the Wind Rider and I have the Yggdrasil Fruit.

" "Siur." Jacko made a little show of making cocktails. Finally, he set two glasses in front of us. Iwona carefully tasted her brew.

"It tastes like... Like... I can't find the word.

" "Wind." "I suggested.

"Yes, the wind. Incredible." She took another sip.

"Excuse me for a moment, but I have to leave you for a moment. I'll be right back." Walking towards the restroom, I noticed that Jacko was clearly hitting on her. I felt a little offended, but it quickly passed in the restroom when I released the pressure in the valves. I washed my hands and returned to the bar. More people had appeared, and Iwona was reading something on her phone. I sat down in my seat and finished my cocktail.

"I have a problem.

" "Whack.

" "My parents are away for the weekend and my brother is at university." She looked straight into my eyes; I felt the electricity shoot through my ankles.

"As much as a problem.

" "Maybe so, but I don't have the keys. And the house is locked.

" "Hmm." I rubbed my eyebrows. "And what time does Raf get back?

" "He texted me that he's not coming back until tomorrow, staying with his girlfriend in the dorm."

"Oh." I don't know how it got through my throat, but I finally managed to get it out with complete ease. "You can stay the night at my place.

" "Will it be a problem?

" "Absolutely. The old folks are gone, so I

have a spare cabin." "Thanks, you owe me.

" "She knows.

" "It's getting late, don't you think.

" "Well, actually." I showed Jacko our farewell sign, he told the others with a greeting, and I headed for the exit.

Driving in the car, I asked,

"What do you think of your brother?"

"Rafik is a bit of a nutcase, but that's what gives him his charm.

" "Wasn't he adopted by any chance?

" "Why would you say that?" She sounded a little indignant. "I

've been thinking about it. You have a very pretty mother, your father is handsome, you... you know, and Raf looks like a cross between a squirrel and a goblin.

" "Ha, ha, ha." She laughed loudly. And replied a bit mischievously. "And what do I look like?

" "You know." I won't compare you to myself, because that wouldn't make much sense. After all, we're different genders. "Actually, I felt very calm and relaxed in her company; the stress from earlier disappeared.

"Tell me what you think of me," she insisted with a smile.

I stopped the car on the side of the road. Very slowly, I turned my head towards her, touching her hair and leaning in for a kiss. She slowly approached too, even closing her eyes. When I was very close to her, I whispered,

"I won't tell you." I started the car and we drove off. Although she didn't say a word to me, that mysterious smile never left her face.

Finally, we reached the house. I got out of the car, locked it, and, walking towards the stairwell, I accidentally tripped and landed facedown in the swamp, which hadn't had time to dry from the overnight rains.

When I stood up, I started laughing, and Iwona giggled with me. In fact, when I stopped, she continued crying, gasping for air.

Once home, I threw off my coat.

"Make yourself comfortable, you'll find something to drink in the kitchen. I'm going to wash up." I took a quick shower, dousing myself with ice-cold water at the end, just to cool my head a bit. After drying myself off with a towel, I put on my boxers, threw on a robe, and left the bathroom.

Iwona was sitting in the living room, watching TV.

"Do you prefer hard or soft?

" "Hm?" She responded rather lethargically.

"That 'hm' was implied; I already know people like you." I smiled.

"Hard,

huh?" "What do you mean? No sexual connotations." "I liked the teasing, and so did she." "The bed, of course.

" "Oh. I don't really care." She smiled mischievously.

"So you're sleeping in the living room, I'm going to sleep in mine." I quickly made a bed in the living room and then in mine. Since I was already warm, I hung my robe in the bathroom and stood there in just my boxers. I went to say goodnight; I was already tired and wanted to lie down.

I couldn't get any peace and quiet.

When I entered the room, I noticed Iwona's bra lying on the armchair and she was standing in my silk, semi-sheer nightgown by the window, gazing at the sky. I barely swallowed hard and kept repeating, "Peace!" to myself.

"I just wanted to say goodnight." "Oh, I'm about to explode. Such an angel in my home, in my clothes. This is too much." I turned away, though it was a bit rude. And with a quick step, I returned to my room. I lay down and, lying on my back, stared at the ceiling. After a moment, the light in the living room went out. But at the sound of footsteps, I jumped up and turned on the light above the bed. She stood in the doorway in just her thong.

"I thought it wasn't fair. You're only wearing boxers, so I took off my top too." She roughly pushed herself into my bed, covered herself with the covers, and stared into my eyes.

"You know if your brother finds out, he'll kill us both, or at least me." I lowered my voice a bit. I even blinked slower.

"But he won't, right?" I turned out the light. She snuggled against me, and I nuzzled into her hair, taking in her scent. I felt her heartbeat, and after a moment, our breathing evened out.

We lay there, so connected, feeling each other. I'd never experienced such a feeling before.

Wait. Something's wrong. I'm lying on my back, and I feel pressure on my forehead. Please, let it just be my imagination. I always feel this way when I wake up halfway through a dream. I slowly open my eyes and look around.

FUCK!

It was a dream. A damn, fucking dream.

I could have guessed it; it was too nice. Unfortunately.

"If those damned ghosts come to me again, I won't go to sleep the next night. No way.

Although I won't forget Iwona."