Chapter 18 Social Isolation

Social Isolation

Nina was too worried about everything that was happening. She didn't comment to him, she didn't want to distress him more than she already knew he was distressed. In her mind he was still her patient, going through critical moments right after having emotional crises linked to stress, work, and fame. But she was trying with all her strength to keep him safe and sound from it all. But even with all her efforts, as time went by she saw that something was missing in their daily life and simple things started to become tremendously difficult... it wouldn't be long before both of them suffocated inside that house day and night.

So Nina took him to the famous mountain huts in Norway. Where he would live in the purest and most beautiful nature. There they could fish, go boating all along the coast of Hordaland and SognogFjordane, now called Vestland. They could swim naked and even run without clothes in the forests if they wanted to.

Nina rented a cabin almost four hours from Bergen, in Ytrehus, Svelgen. A modern cabin, with a hot tub outside, a boat all to themselves, no neighbors or unexpected visitors. The house was two stories high, overlooking the sea and the famous Norwegian fjords. A spectacle that mother nature had designed for them. There was also an outdoor hot tub, with music and colored lights, where they would enjoy each other's company with champagne, wine, and lots of lovemaking. There was a huge TV that broadcast channels from all over the world and high-powered Internet so that both could watch their favorite channels from their respective countries.

- I just wanted to thank you for bringing me here, Nina. You nailed it! You are the best therapist and nurse in the world! I love this place! Splendid!

David said this while pressing her against the dining table, trapping her, kissing her, biting her lips as he pulled her panties down to her knees. Being between her legs was like a medicine that made him relax in every way. He commented that he had heard about the fame of Brazilians when it came to sex, but he didn't know it was so intense.

- Many couples in Brazil enter a motel on Friday and only leave on Sunday night or Monday morning. - Nina explained.

- Really?

- Yes. Although people think that sex is a very explicit topic in my country, there is still a lot of taboo about it.

- Just like everywhere else in the world. - David backed up.

These motels Nina had mentioned were over-equipped with specific chairs for oral sex, mirrors on the ceiling, air-conditioning, music, lights, round beds, whirlpool tubs, baskets with erotic products, such as edible panties, and many other varieties brought directly from sex shops. It is very common in Brazil. In Europe and the United States, a motel is just a room in an inn or a gas station to spend the night. Nina taught David a lot about Norwegian and Brazilian culture, and he reciprocated by teaching her about the culture of the United Kingdom, the United States, and other places he had been.

The days passed slowly for some, while for Nina and David it seemed as if time was flying by. It was May 4 and the country had already recorded 7,884 cases and 214 deaths. The two were literally cut off from the world in an exotic cabin situated in a paradise location. He was recovering from exhaustion and stress while she was learning to cope with him.

David had joked that he was the bigfoot of the Norwegian mountains. And Nina had replied in a double entendre that he was really big! She was referring to the large size of his male member. David just smiled. The two of them had reached a very dangerous degree of intimacy and comfort zone. Something Nina had not planned for. Nothing was being normal for anyone on the planet at that time.

They had been kayaking, fishing, boating, canoeing, camping high up in the mountains, swimming naked in the sea and the hot tub, among many other activities.

This time they were bathing in the hot tub when suddenly it started to rain. Nina ran out of the water, holding a towel, while she went to the car to get something she had forgotten. David saw this scene as Nina was leaning with one leg raised on the back seat of the car looking for something. He immediately got out of the hot water and went to her. He reached down and penetrated her under the rain without her expecting it. When she thought to object, he was already inside her. Both were wet from both the hot tub water and the pleasurable liquid that flowed readily from her warm insides and feeling a burning in their insides, they weren't sure if that pain hurts or stimulated.

He caught her unprepared, so it was as if his penis entered tearing the skin inside her genitals. Both he and she felt the impact. A delicious pain that lasted only a few seconds, as their bodies quickly pumped natural lubrication out of their private parts. He turned her around, put her legs wide open on his waist, leaning her legs on his hips, took her to the hood of the car, and under the fine rain they loved each other as if there was no tomorrow. A scene that would be kept forever in their memories.

They had been together all the time for months, they had sex non-stop. Nina was no longer afraid that he would get sick of it all and leave. What she had in mind now, was that she only had that time with him, so she wanted to truly enjoy every second of it. "Better to regret it than to regret it," she thought.

The next day they decided to drive away from the cabin, they wanted to explore the deserted places, follow trails, and camp high up on an isolated mountain.

- What would have happened if we hadn't been infected by the corona, Nina?

- What do you mean, Rich? - Nina asked as she set up the picnic table outside.

- Would we be here? Would you have dumped me in Italy and gone off with your friends?

- Rich. We promised each other not to fall into the same trap that most couples fall into...speculation... "what if... "is too dangerous. We could never know!

- I know. But how do you think we would be?

- I think what has to be, will be. That's why I don't spend a lot of energy on causes that I consider lost. If we were meant to be together, we would have somehow found our way to each other.

- What do you mean?

- I think that with or without coronavirus, I could have stayed a few more days with you in Italy if you had asked me, which you didn't do before we checked into the hospital, or you could have boarded with me. After all, you were still on leave from work. You haven't recovered yet. And we could have been here, yes, not because of the pandemic, but to keep a low profile and for your well-being.

- You also didn't ask me to board with you before we got sick. Be fair! But what did you mean by "I don't fight for lost causes"?

- Ah... I'll give you some very silly examples... The woman is dating a guy who lives in the same neighborhood as her. He barely answers her messages, never calls her, only comes to her when he wants to. The woman freaks out every time they meet, has fits of jealousy, accuses him of being cold, and says that he has other women...

- Analysis... - said, David.

- Yes, let's do an analysis. Man... it is obvious everything she is saying. Do you understand? She herself is narrating the reasons she has to stay away from this type of relationship. Those are her words! But she doesn't listen. She accuses him, she curses him, she cries and suffers for him, and she stays there maybe for years. The guy doesn't give you any attention, he never has time for you, but he's always having time for parties, friends, and other things... So he doesn't want to be with you. And vice-versa. If you want to stay, you stay; if you want to take care, you take care. This goes for men too, of course. People complain too much about dissatisfaction in relationships, being that they are free to go instead of being unhappy.

- Is this why you are so uptight?

- No. This is a bonus of my DNA. I don't play games. I don't pretend. I don't articulate. It's black and white. - Said Nina smiling and making faces at David, who reciprocated by throwing a grape at her.

While time seemed to never pass for some people who could no longer stand the quarantine, for Nina time seemed to run. Suddenly it was already May 16, and Nina read the news that non-residents were forbidden to enter Norway. On May 19, residents were forbidden to stay in huts outside their home municipalities, to avoid overloading the rural medical infrastructure. People suspected or confirmed to be infected were required to follow stricter rules of home isolation. The government established fines for people who violated quarantine and home isolation rules or organized events. The two had to return to Bergen immediately.

On June 23, the country continued to maintain its position of keeping its borders closed under strong pressure from the tourism and hospitality industry. On June 26, the country opted to reopen its academies. By July 15, more than 80,000 people had died in Brazil and almost two million were proven infected with the virus. Not to mention the thousands of other individuals who have not been tested. Nina and David were always up-to-date about what was happening around the world at that time. She kept reading and watching all the news:

"July 29, 2020. US records nearly 1,600 deaths from the new coronavirus (SARS- CoV- 2), covid-19, in one day in the last 24 hours. Reported the Johns Hopkins University Center on Tuesday night (28). "The number of victims is the highest since May 15 and shows that the pandemic continues to advance across the country.

While many countries were still living under the peak of the covid-19 proliferation, Norway had loosened the rules throughout the country. Travel was also already allowed to some countries in Europe where they had almost no records of people infected with the virus. They called it the green zone.

David had already received news a few weeks ago that the recording studios would be open again. Many other actors had already started their sequences on the set. He had not yet told Nina, but the day of his departure was drawing nearer and nearer. She didn't understand those looks that wanted to say something but were silent. David was very intense in the Ytrehus hut. Now back in Bergen, he was restless.

- I don't know what else to do to calm you down. You seem a bit impatient..." Nina said, starting up a conversation in an attempt to get some information about what was going on in his mind.

- I have to leave on Monday morning. - David replied flatly.

Nina felt all the blood in her body freeze as he closed his mouth. She dropped one of the glasses she was putting in the dishwasher. And the glass remained there. He couldn't even tell if she heard it break. She hadn't expected that sudden uneasiness. She stood paralyzed in the middle of the kitchen. She lacked words, lacked action, lacked oxygen to her brain, lacked the ground under her feet! She looked like a robot doll malfunctioning, draining the battery... The mental "anti-heartbreak" programs once downloaded into her mind were now short-circuiting. David continued standing in front of the glass door that led to the balcony. He had his hands in his pockets staring at her. He walked slowly over to her and stopped in front of her.

- Did you hear what I said, Nina?

He stared into those huge, frightened eyes, came closer, and continued:

- Aren't you going to say anything? - Nina was holding her breath until then. - Talk to me! Say it's a relief! Say you'll finally get your life back, your home back...say you hate me! Say anything!

She just stared at him. Then she slowly let out her breath...her color was slowly returning to normal. She repeated in a very low tone of voice everything he asked her to say:

- It's a relief! I finally have my home and my life back! And I don't hate you.

Nina didn't even want to stop to think about the words she had just heard. She knew that this day would come soon. She also knew that her pain would be miserable, but she didn't know it would be so quick. She would never be ready after all.

He could see in her eyes the sadness that was taking over her soul. He tried to hug her, she tried to disguise how shaken she had been by that news. The battery had charged again and her system was back online. She managed to slip under his arms, and no one knows where, how, or when, she began to talk and smile as if she wasn't feeling anything.

- Wow, today is already Thursday, July 30th. Are you traveling on Monday, August 3rd? We have to pack quickly, get everything ready... and if there is any sightseeing you want to do, we have to hurry. - she said as she walked down the stairs.

David's face was heartbreaking. He was a real man, determined, sure, and strong. But even he felt a pang in his heart when he saw her desperation. She was suffocating inside, alone, not wanting to show him this terrifying suffering.

David came down behind her. - Of course, he would. He already knew that she had locked herself in the bathroom. - Nina, please open this door! I'm begging you. Open it!