It seemed to be a day like any other, and yet one little thing was not right. I only noticed it when Erika said once again that she felt terribly neglected and had no idea how long my brother would be away this time. Alfred had been abroad for almost a week and had not been heard from except for a short phone call.
No wonder that his young wife felt quite lonely. That was probably also the reason why she wanted to take me out this Saturday. Come inside! she said. We'll have another drink. If you want, you can stay here overnight. Are you coming? Yes, I said.
Of course. It's still early. We had been to the theater, we had eaten well, and now my sister-in-law just didn't want to be alone again. She had everything a woman of twenty-three could dream of, a huge house, money, her own car — just no company. And my brother could not offer her that either. Although he always claimed that Erika had her own circle of friends, it didn't seem to be all that great.
When we left the car, she hooked underneath and snuggled up to me. When I was nineteen I was almost a head taller than she was. This had a very positive effect on my self-confidence. Otherwise, I always felt like a silly little boy around her. Actually you're quite a nice guy, Wolf, Erika said amusedly. I just wonder why you're so damn shy. You haven't even kissed me yet, although that's quite common among brothers-in-law.
