Una Broma (A Joke)

My phone went tonight at 10 to 3 just as I was preparing to close. I didn't need to look at the screen to see who it was, I just picked it up, accepted the call and answered with "Hola Larisa". All the way from Moscow?? Erm, no, all the way from Torre centro. "When you finish, come up the stairs and call me from the top of c/San Miguel" She said. "OK" I said and having closed, came home, dumped my stuff, collected her keyset and, at 20 past 3 in the morning, climbed the 181 steps up to the top. I didn't need to call her, I could hear her talking and laughing with someone just out of sight on C/Mercedes and sure enough she burst into view from around the corner only to go into hysterics upon seeing me huffing and puffing after the climb (not easy at 3am after 8 hours work in the bar!). "I thought that you were going to Moscow today." "Una broma" was the reply through a little grin. She was in the company of her friend Irena and I had approached dangling her keys expecting just to exchange them for mine and return to my apartment, something to eat and then my bed. Oh no. I still have her keys, she wouldn't take them..."otro día" she said "you keep them "for security", where's open now?" "I don't have any money on me, I've left my wallet at home" "No problem, Irena is inviting you". "Back downstairs then, there's a bar open down the stairs" I said, and we turned to go there. Irena has a car so I said that we could drive there whereby we turned back around again, found the car, and did just that. Back to Titos Bar which is not far from here. Irena knows the bar, she has been there before in times gone by and having all got in via the knock on the window that is necessary (somewhat like an American Speakeasy bar) we had a drink. Upon leaving I told them that I could walk home from there which prompted from Lary "you don't want to come with us?" Then Irena took over saying (to Larisa) that they were going back to Málaga so goodbyes were said and here I am, bemused. She's going to call me in the next day or two. Una broma? Maybe she'd had a wine or two which made her "sound" despondent. Maybe she's upset about the fact that I may have to return to the UK if I can't resolve the problem at the bank and wants me to know how it feels to receive that sort of news, as if I don't already from previous partings of ours. She quizzed me again, tonight, about the status of my attempts to get things put right and I brought her up-to-date but I think that she's really bothered that we might not be seeing much more of each other.

Cristina caught me on the stairs as I was going out to work today. I couldn't stop but apparantly the Studio below is ready and I have first option. Tomorrow I'm going down to view it properly having just had a glimpse in the bathroom, the door to which she opened during our brief discussion. Guess what! There's a bath. A real one, well, half of full-size one. But that's big enough for me!! Where's the Radox? Let's hope that we can come to an amicable agreement about rent, and I can sort the bank.

Bed. Nite nite. Moscow? What the devil next?