Learning to Fly - 22

Chapter 22 - Topsy-Turvy World

Later that day Jens called wanting to meet in the evening, but Carly declined. The last thing she needed was to complicate things further. Jens was very persuasive, but she stuck by her guns. After her shift finished, she headed to the canteen and got two meals to take away, Camilla rarely ate normally, so there was little chance that she would have eaten amongst all this drama.

When she arrived at the room, Camilla was lying on the bed, her face still puffed from crying.

"I brought schnitzel...it was the special int he canteen!"

Camilla chuckled, "it's the only special they do in the canteen!"

Carly sat on her bed and handed the polystyrene container and plastic fork, "true, but it's edible, that's the bonus."

Camilla opened the container and forked up some of the corn that came  with it, "I'm starving!"

Smiling, Carly opened her own carton, "I knew you would be."

They spent the evening sat on opposite beds talking, not really about the problems between them, but more about the future. Their desires, their need to prove to their families and friends that they could succeed on their own. It was an early night, but as they lay in their beds in the same dark room, Camilla disturbed the silence.

"Thanks Carly. For everything."

"No problem."

- - - - - - - - - - - - 

"So are you avoiding me or something?"

Carly glanced around sure that everyone in the cafe had heard Jens' angry voice. "Jens? I'm not avoiding anything!"

He sighed a little more sarcastic than she thought was necessary, "I've taken to sending you emails as you're not replying to my calls. I've offered three dates and you've turned them all down!"

Jens had no idea how close to a breakdown Camilla was, and even less idea of how much he was at fault for it.  The whole sorry story had come out over the last three days, Camilla had instantly fancied Jens, on so many levels. Almost immediately on arriving at the resort she'd wormed her way into his bed, a feat that was not as difficult as she'd imagined. The problem had been staying there. Her desire to stay with him, to mean more to him than a one night stand had seen her do all sorts of things which she swore were out of character for her. Throwing herself at him, becoming a party animal just so she didn't miss any opportunity to intervene where he might meet another woman. 

Carly also learnt that the night she'd arrived, Camilla had thrown herself on the birthday boy Lucas who was very drunk. Apparently he rarely drank, and she'd teased him into accepting some extra birthday shots, in the hope that he'd accept her advances and make Jens jealous. Carly's presence had halted their amorous plans...something Camilla was ultimately glad about, but the original plan to make Jens jealous had not worked one little bit.

As they talked through how ridiculous these plans were, it became so much more obvious to Carly that Camilla was struggling to deal with her demanding family, and that her feelings for Jens were misplaced. She saw him as freedom and independence, two things she now realised a partner of Jens' would never have.

This phone call was tantamount to that.

"There have been some real difficult things going on Jens, I thought you knew that!"

"Is this still about Camilla throwing her toys?" he asked with contempt. And it was at this that Carly saw red. She had always been a quiet and fairly meek person, but flying the nest, finally, seemed to have given her confidence and authority.

"Jens, there is more to my life than just you! We're don't belong to each other and the way you're acting I'm less inclined to spend time with you than I was. Will you please stop pressuring me?"

Her anger seemed to have hit home, the voice that replied was meek, "I just want to see you!"

Carly sighed, "ok, you mentioned skiing. I'm off tomorrow. Do you want to give me a second lesson?"

His gratitude seemed out of character, but he agreed to meet her with kit...last time she'd had to hire her own, at the ski lift.

That evening Carly dragged Camilla to the quiet bar next to the hotel. It was away from the chaos of the town, but a break from the four walls of their room. The only time Carly'd been there  had been to talk to Paul, Millie's dad. She hadn't thought about them for a while. But she had had an email a few days earlier from Millie, saying they were due back in a couple of weeks. As if things weren't complicated enough!

As with the previous time, the bar was really quiet. A few older men sat along the bar sipping dark wheat beers that were so typically European. Ordering a bottle of wine, she led Camilla to a nearby table and waited until the barman brought it over.

"So what are you doing for your day off?" Camilla asked as they sat down. It was the question that Carly had dreaded all evening. She'd agreed to the ski date to keep Jens quiet more than anything. But she also knew it would hurt Camilla. She was finding juggling life hard.

"Don't be angry..."

Camilla gave a teary smile, "you're meeting Jens?"

Carly shrugged, "he promised me another ski lesson, I can't put it off any longer, and part of me thinks I need to get to grips with these slopes whilst I'm here!"

"Then you should've asked me!" A familiar voice spoke from behind, "and it won't be the prissy skis that get you to grips with the snow, it'll be the board!"

Lucas. He'd been such an ally thorough the last week, Carly honestly knew she'd not have coped without him. Since he'd intervened in the office when Camilla was about to lash out Lucas had been completely involved in this amateur counselling that they were working through. He pulled up a seat and sat between them, nodding to the barman for a beer. 

"Lucas," Carly put her hand on his arm, "this is all about Camilla, it's not the time for the snowboard/ski debate!"

"I'm ok with it Carly. I swear!"

Lucas scoffed, "well I'm not. He's a shit, and he'll only cause more problems, and boarding IS superior!"

Camilla giggled as Carly shook her head, "I don't even like you Lucas Slater, so please do not go there!"

It was Lucas' turn to laugh, they'd come a long way from the animosity of the first few months and he knew that she now thought of him as a friend.   

"I am serious though Carly. I don't trust Jens, can't you at least delay the lesson? I'll teach you anything you want!"

Carly shook her head, "I'm going on the lesson, and that is it! Now please, let's enjoy the evening, ok?"

  - - - - - - - - - 

"Wow! You're a natural!" Jens' voice carried across the slope as she slid past him as speed. He was a great instructor, she had to give him that, he knew exactly how to verbalise things, and she was able to adjust her balance, transfer her weight, loosen her knees just enough to allow her to ski. And HOW she loved it. She remembered in college someone describing the kinetics of walking as a controlled fall. But she had to disagree, this exhilarating slide over the snow on her well waxed skis was the closest thing she could imagine to that description. Each time she stopped she wanted to go higher, further, faster and longer. 

Jens spent the day sat on the snow laughing at her enthusiasm, helping her up when she fell, and talking her through every second. A real brick. 

Eventually she collapsed in a heap next to him, "enough, enough, enough! I remember how sore I was last time...for above ten days!"

Jens chuckled, all hint of the aggressive and possessive man had disappeared since their call the previous day. When he was like this she found him fun, attractive, but the emergence of his more sinister side had definitely sullied her real opinion of him.

"So do you want to come to Toto's tonight?"

Toto's was a nightclub in town, Carly'd been there once and found it awful. Scantily clad women dancing on podiums, awful dance music and extortionate prices, even for bottled water! It was the last place she wanted to go.

Shaking her head she shielded her eyes from the blaring sun, "it's awful there! I'm actually going to the cinema, a few of the girls are wanting to see the new Tom Cruise film. He's not my idea of a leading man, but it's about nice food and company of an evening!"

She saw his face fall and reached out to lie her gloved hand over his arm, "you don't want me cramping your style...you and your mates. I'd only whinge about how expensive the beer is!"

"As if money is an issue!" he spat as a retort, an ugly grimace distorting his face. Suddenly Carly regretted getting involved with Jens. 

"It's one night out Jens, and just because you have more money than me doesn't mean that I appreciate it being wasted on over hyped prices." She stood from her position on the floor. "right I'm going to try once more, then I'm DEFINITELY calling it a day!"

A few days later, Carly was joined by a few people at breakfast, the longer she worked there, the more friends she seemed to make. This morning two of the table staff, a French and a German guy Pierre and...she was racking her brain for the name when she picked up on their conversation. 

"So has he got the job? Or is it a shortlist?" Pierre asked.

The other man, she still couldn't remember his name, sighed, "apparently there aren't that many applicants. They were expecting a lot more."

"I suppose that everyone imagined there'd be a cat fight for an opportunity like that. Apparently the whole company only creates half a dozen trainee management posts a year, that's across more than twenty venues."

"So instead, no one goes for it and Karl walks straight into it?"

Carly felt as though all the air was sucked out of her lungs, she'd been virtually offered a chance to apply for that. The management were letting her know when the applications were out. Suddenly she felt sick, this was her chance, this was why she was working so hard. Leaving her breakfast, she stormed up to the management suite, taking the stairs two at a time. 

Danica was sat at her desk absorbed by something on her computer screen, she looked up when Carly tapped the door.

"Hey Carly. How are you?"

Carly couldn't hide her anger, frustration, disappointment, "not great really Danica. Was I wrong in thinking that you were going to recommend me for the trainee manager job, if or when one came up?"

Danica nodded, "I and all the department managers were asked to recommended someone, you were my suggestion, but apparently there was only one other candidate. I'm not sure..."

"Karl from the restaurant?"

She shrugged, "you know more than me."

"He's been offered the place apparently. No interview required as there was no other applicants."

Instantly Danica paled, "I did recommend you Carly. I promise."

Suddenly Carly felt sick, Jens, the decision stopped with him.