The Idea of a Holiday

By the way, what do people do when they are on holiday?

For the past two months, Martin had been doing either research or reading. In an attempt to be more sociable, he tried to go out, eat out at restaurants and talk to some locals. But Martin still wondered if that was what people call 'being on holiday.' He didn't know what time for relaxing was supposed to look like.

"Celine, do you want to go swim again today?"

Looking prim and proper, Celine wore a casual dress today. She was startled as soon as she heard Martin invite her. This morning after eating breakfast, she could be spotted sitting on the patio, looking into the distance. He thought she didn't seem like herself.

He had questions to ask her. The mundane questions of what people do on holiday. She was his hope in enlightening him on the topic. She knew how to enjoy life. He had so much fun yesterday because of her. He never thought swimming could be fun. If he was to properly go on holiday, Martin thought that the woman in front of him could 'teach' him how.

"Why are you asking? I thought you had a lot of work to do." She asked him back softly. Celine wasn't looking at him. Instead, she kept staring at her hands.

What is wrong with her?

"I thought you wanted me to take more breaks?" He asked frankly in disbelief. He walked closer to her, bent down to bring their faces to the same level, and smiled. But his actions caused her to turn her back on him.

"Today, I…I want to spend time alone." She acted strangely. Her voice was softer and even less audible—as if she was unsure of what to say.

"Is anything wrong? You can tell me if you are feeling unwell." He asked worriedly, and the response he received was a slight shake of her head.

"I'm going out. I think we need to spend time apart today. I have a lot on my mind I need to sort out." Martin wasn't sure she was talking to him or herself. But she soon rushed out of the villa without saying much more.

What is wrong with her today? Whatever, I could just go out by myself.

The place of choice was always a small Italian restaurant near the villa. It might be a good idea to talk to Adriana. She had a great sense of humor and taught him a great deal about Italian culture.

He worked a bit more on his laptop the whole morning and aimed to stop by the restaurant by noon. Adriana spotted him when he was just about to walk in. This Italian beauty always greeted him warmly with a hug. There had not been that many tourists in the past months, and he was among the few regular customers here.

"Hello, Martin! What would you like for lunch? The usual? Hey, are you here alone today? Where is your friend?" Her bright, friendly tone made him feel at ease as soon as he heard it, although she fired so many questions he didn't know which to answer first.

"Hi, she said she wants time to herself today. Time for reflections, I guess." He answered truthfully. In fact, he was a little confused as to why Celine suddenly had a change of attitude. He didn't understand why she wanted to go out alone. But it was her personal matter, and he didn't want to ask questions out of respect for her privacy.

"Did you guys quarrel?" The tall woman asked. Adriana was sitting with him at the table. She took full advantage of being the restaurant's owner's daughter—when there are not many customers, she just slacks off a bit and chats with him or other regular customers.

"Not that I am aware." He hesitated for a few seconds before answering. He didn't know if he had offended Celine without his knowledge. Maybe he had made a fool of himself again and said something wrong. He didn't understand her well, and this could be like the incident a few days ago when she got upset, and he didn't realize why at first. Maybe it was the generation gap—although he was only six years older, that is significant enough. Moreover, he was tone-deaf in assessing people's emotions; he himself liked to think he didn't have much emotion to begin with.

"Are you sure? I observed that she wasn't so pleased when you ignored her and talked to me the other day." Adriana's smile widened until he saw her dimple. She was trying to convey some unspoken message. But he didn't care to probe further.

"That is such a small issue. It shouldn't mean anything." He quickly brushed that issue aside. But again, he couldn't possibly understand Celine.

The Italian woman in front of him continued to smile. A pair of big brown eyes stared straight at him. She stared at him for a long time before laughing loudly as if she knew something he did not.

"So, it is the truth then—that you have told me you don't go out dating much. I thought you were joking."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

She grinned.

"Well, take good care of your friend. And oh, I think she might get lost. This morning, I saw her walking around looking confused."

"Did she come this way?"

"Yes, she headed to the rocky area over there. I think you should go find her."

"But she told me that we should spend time apart today."

This time, Adriana let out a loud sigh and reached out to touch his hand.

"Martin, you are a smart man with zero basic instinct about a woman." After that phrase, she laughed and walked away, leaving him to dwell in more confusion. Women are confusing. He would rather spend time cracking mathematical problems.

Martin's day plan was basically empty. He had no other work to do and no intention to go back to solving the problems that had been plaguing his thoughts. After he decided to 'go on holiday' and enjoy life like a normal person, he finished as much work as possible and postponed some until after the time Celine had to leave the island. He wanted to spend more time with her, but since she wasn't around, he was dumbfounded. Although he was sent to this beautiful Mediterranean island, exploring nature and relaxing were not his comfort zone. He was always the type that felt more comfort working rather than relaxing.

He chose to walk around town aimlessly. In truth, he knew his way around town well. Part of him wished he might run into Celine. But a coincident is like a gamble; the result is not always what you expect because the person he ran into was someone that got on his nerves the most—the man with charming and perfectly gelled hair, someone who told people around here he was doing a business in Italy. At least that was a story he chose this time.

"Hello, Carlo." Err, is he really following me everywhere?

"Well, well, well, Martin, you always scowl at me. Looks so gloom. You can just smile when you say hi, you know." The charming Italian man smiled at him.

"I know you can smile. I saw you smile at that new friend of yours. And now I see you made a new friend, very surprising, very out of character, you should be proud of yourself. I haven't seen you spend time with anyone that long. And how long will she stay here?"

Words suggesting that he was also keeping an eye on him caused Martin to frown.

"A week and a half."

"So, how is the task that my boss has ordered you? How is that one going?" The young man continued to smile as he asked this important question. The question outraged Martin.

"Don't rush me. I'm working on it."

"Yes, I saw your email. You asked for a ten-days holiday. Does this have to do with your new friend?"

"..." He chose to keep his silence because Carlo shouldn't know more than necessary. His silence didn't bother Carlo at all because he laughed. A good-natured laugh.

"Ahh, you are so you. Sure, see you after ten days. Ciao."