Maike asked, ‘What about your father? Huh?’

Franzi answered, ‘He listened, he talked about everything. We even had a petty disagreement; like who was the most stable man in my life.’

Maike asked, ‘And who was he matched up against?’

Franzi answered, ‘Daniel at Mocca.’

Maike asked, ‘And who won?’

Franzi said, ‘We decided that Daniel was the second most stable.’

Maike said, ‘So you cracked and just said your father.’

Franzi knew Maike was just making conversation. She wasn’t trying to be rude or insulting. ‘No. It really was a tie. I just didn’t want him to feel left out. But what have you been up to? The last time I saw you, you were helping with a crappy come out.’

Maike said, ‘Yes. You weren’t all too thrilled about Paula not being sure about her feelings, or how you felt for her.’

Franzi agreed, ‘Yes. So what are you doing? Are you still in the group?’

Maike said, ‘Yes. In fact we’re setup away from Berlin. I’m only here during the school year. When summer hits, I take a break and go full throttle with Earth Friendly in Munstertal.’

Franzi said, ‘That’s a good place for that kind of work. There’s fresh air and not much bullshit to deal with.’

Maike said, ‘Yeah. It’s the kind of place one could dream of, wake up to the scenery and think they were still asleep.’

Franzi replied, ‘Yeah. My uncle lives there in a cottage. He’s been there most of his life and he lets me crash there sometimes.’

Maike said, ‘Well, that’s very considerate of him.’

Franzi and Maike talked some more about Maike’s work. She offered Franzi some support if she wanted to come back anytime soon. Franzi didn’t feel any pressure but she declined and Maike understood. Franzi didn’t have her wristwatch on so she asked Maike what the time was. It was 14:47 in military time, 2:47pm in standard time. Franzi decided to go home and Maike gave her a kiss on the cheek and a friendly hug.

Maike said, ‘You take it easy, okay?’

Franzi replied, ‘I’ll try.’

Franzi slipped in and out of a daze. She thought about going back to school, taking it easy, getting her job back, and she still managed to make no sense out of it all. Maybe it was just her being tired or maybe she didn’t want to do anything. Franzi couldn’t even bring herself to think ‘What do you want?’ When Franzi got up from the bench, she went back to the flatshare for cleaning. She organized the shelves, set the bed and table, did the dishes, anything to keep herself busy. When almost everything was cleaned, Franzi decided to call Paula and see about dinner for tonight.