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Marriage is supposed to be something sacred. You marry the person you love and stay with this person for the rest of your life. “Till death do us part”. Well, that’s the theory anyway... But who still believes in this old-fashioned nonsense? Only sentimental fools do. Today, people get married because they are afraid of dying alone and because marriage brings them financial advantages. Who cares if you don’t love your wife or husband?! Everything’s fine as long as you don’t have to throw up every time you look at your partner. But marriage doesn’t mean you’ll never be lonely again. Even when you’re married to someone you can still feel as lonely as a man standing all alone on the top of Mount Everest. Sometimes, it takes a lot of time to realise this and it takes even more courage to change your own situation even if it means to break the bond you tied when you still believed in true love...

“Who is this guy again?”, she asks while going through her bags again. She tends to forget things when she’s in a hurry.

“He’s an actor. Used to be really big in the eighties. You must have seen one of his shows!”, Rage answers and looks worried. They have to leave as soon as possible. They are late again and even a private jet doesn’t wait forever. Judy is a great actress and a lovely woman but sometimes she’s nothing more than a walking, talking disaster that pulls at her nerves.

“Great, I’ve lost my passport. I can’t go to Hawaii without my passport.”, Judy says in an anxious voice and empties the contents of her purse on her bed.

“Why does this always happen to me?”

She’s close to tears now.

“Mrs Winchester?”

The man in the corner clears his throat to get her attention and when she finally looks up he waves at her with some papers he’s holding in his hand.

“Maybe you’re looking for these...”, he says and smiles at her with his sunglasses on.

Judy lets out a relieved sigh and walks up to him.

“What would I do without you, Ark?”, she laughs and gives him a quick kiss on the cheek before taking her passport and putting it in her handbag. She doesn’t notice the look he gives her and when she looks at him he’s already back to professional.

“Can we go now? Please!”, Rage tries to speed up things again.

“I’d love to, believe me. But we can’t leave before Crawd is here to collect Michael.”

Whenever the name of her husband is mentioned the atmosphere gets noticeably colder.

“We can take Michael to his grandmother. It’s on the way and we would save some time.” Rage doesn’t want to give up just yet.

“Of course we could but last time Crawd promised him that they would spend some time together and if he breaks his word again Michael will be devastated. Let’s give him another five minutes, okay?”, she pleads though it is obvious that she’s annoyed.

“Fine..”

Rage brushes away a forgotten lipstick and sits down on the huge bed.

“There’s nothing you can do. Just go with the flow...”

These thoughts run through her head like a mantra in these kind of situations. But they never quite work...

There’s the sound of a key turning in the lock of the front door.

“Anybody home?”, a deep voice calls from downstairs.

“Bedroom.”

A sufficient answer that leads him to the right room which he now enters with a broad smile.

“Sorry I’m late.”

“Damn right you are. We’ll miss our flight because of you. Can’t you be on time just for once?”, Judy greets him.

“Do you always have to be so melodramatic?”, K replies and seems a little annoyed by this “hearty” welcome.

“Where’s Michael?”

But the question’s unnecessary because right at that moment a little boy comes running into the bedroom and throws himself at K.

“Daddy! You’re here. I’ve missed you!”, he calls out and his father puts him in his arms and throws him up in the air. The child lets out screams of joy.

“I’ve missed you, too, big boy. Now what are we doing today?”, K asks while turning around in circles while his son tries to imitate the sound of a plane.

“Can we play basketball?” Michael asks and his blue eyes get all big and shiny as usual when he wants something.

“Sure. I love that game!”, his dad responds.

“No wonder. With that height...”, Rage mumbles under her breath.

“What was that, love?”, he turns towards her with a smile.

“Nothing. Now you’re here we really need to go!”, Judy ends the discussion before it has started and takes up her handbag from the bed.

“Okay Baby. Mommy will be back in three days.”

“For that time you will stay with your granny, alright?”, she addresses her son again when he doesn’t react at first.

Interrupted in his play he looks at her in surprise.

“I’m staying with dad!”, he answers with pouted lips.

“Course you are, honey. But when daddy’s busy he’ll take you to granny. Right daddy?”, she asks and gives K a warning look.

“Your mom’s right, son, but we’ll have a lot of fun together this weekend.”, he replies as he is supposed to and hands Michael over to his mother so they can say goodbye.

“Bye Baby. I’ll miss you so much! But I’ll call you everyday, okay?”, she says and showers her son with little kisses.

“Come back soon, mommy.”, he whispers and hugs her tightly.

She hates to leave him behind but these business meetings would just be deadly boring for him. She swallows back the tears that are rising in her throat and is about to leave the room when Michael calls her back.

“You haven’t said goodbye to daddy.”

“Oh...”

She rushes back and gives her husband a faked kiss on the lips. They smile at each other without real emotions and then she’s off to the airport.

On the plane she is unusually quiet and neither Rage nor Ark dare to break the silence. Husband and wife aren’t the only ones who feel uncomfortable in this situation...

Getting of the plane about an hour later they step right into the warm Hawaiian breeze and the blue sky makes them forget their worries in an instant.

“Why can’t we live here? I mean New York is a fascinating city but this is absolutely amazing!”, Judy gasps and looks around with eyes wide open.

“Because it’s not very well situated to pursue your Hollywood career. A little… of the track.”, is Rage’s answer and she’s already off to the check-out.

Outside the airport a black limousine awaits them and Judy is about to get in when Rage holds her back.

“So be nice to Mr Magnum and I’ll see you in two days.”, she smiles and gives her boss a quick hug.

“Where are you going? I thought you were coming with us.”

Judy seems genuinely surprised.

“Oh come on. I told you last week that I had some business to attend to here in town. And then I told you again two days ago. And I think I mentioned it yesterday, too… But I’ll join you when I’m done and I’m sure Ark will take good care of you as he always does.”, she replies and gives the bodyguard a friendly dig in the ribs. Then she waves at a taxi and Ark opens the door of the limousine to let Judy in.

Both of them watch the beautiful view that they pass by on the drive to Mr Magnum’s residence.

“It’s amazing, isn’t it? That’s what I imagine paradise to look like.”, Judy says without taking her eyes of the clear blue ocean.

Ark looks at her with affection and it isn’t quite obvious whether it’s for her or for the landscape outside.

They drive up a long gravelled driveway that leads them to a building that looks more like a castle than a house.

“I’m used to luxury but this is…”

“…impressive.”, Ark finishes her sentence and gets her baggage out of the trunk.

They stand in front of the door for a while before it is finally opened by a little man with greyish hair.

“Yes? How can I help you?”, he asks in a British accent. From the inside they can hear loud voices. The old man gives an apologetic wave towards the noise before he goes on.

“We have some “unexpected visitors”…”

“I see… My name is Judy Winchester and this is my bodyguard Ark. I have a meeting with Mr Magnum today.”, she explains and reaches out to shake his hand.

“Ah yes, Mrs Winchester. You are expected of course. Please come in. It’s lovely to meet you. My name is Higgins.”

He gives her a warm smile and leads them into the hallway.

“You can sit down over there in the living room while I take your bags to your room. Let me take your coat. You must be melting away. Mr Magnum will be with you in a second.”

On the way to the living room Judy catches a glimpse of a huge black man with an unusual haircut and huge amounts of gold around his neck who is standing a little further down the hall.

“I’m beginning to wonder what kind of movie they want to make here…”, she whispers in Ark’s direction who is already checking the surroundings for potential dangers.

The second turns out to be something more like fifteen minutes but then they are joined by a man in white shorts and an open shirt that exposes his hairy chest.

“Sorry I’m late but the house is in a bit of a mess in the moment. I normally wouldn’t let a lady as beautiful as you wait for so long. Hello, my name is Thomas Magnum. Pleasure to meet you, darling.”, he greets her and places a polite kiss on her hand. His moustache tickles her skin.

“Hi Mr Magnum. I’m happy to be here. I’m Judy Winchester and this is Ark, my bodyguard.”, she says and presents one of her winning smiles that her fans love so much.

“Oh, hey buddy. Can’t leave this girl alone, right?”, Magnum laughs but Ark doesn’t move a muscle and keeps watching him through his sunglasses.

“Doesn’t talk much, hu?”

“Well, he’s always a little sceptical when it comes to strangers. But that comes with his job. Don’t take it personal.”, Judy apologises and looks at him more closely.