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This was something I started years ago to get over my first break-up, Now polished, expanded, expounded and edited. It's the first chapter of a novel. Comments and critiques are much appreciated.

Chapter 1

"Moving in the summer is a bad idea." Nino's English was nearly perfect, but when he was upset or tired the french in him became far more pronounced. He pushed the sweat-gathered bangs from his forehead as he dropped a box onto the hardwood floor.
"You know, I appreciate your help, Nino, but I'm not sure it's worth your complaints. If it's that bad on your tender European skin you can go." Ethan was wrestling what looked like a battered side table through the narrow doorway to his new apartments. "It's an even 85, and dry. Who calls this warm?"
"People from somewhere more sensible than that god-forsaken spit of land you call home. You will never get me back there, and to that I will hold."
"Hey watch it!" Nino had carelessly placed a box marked 'fragile' on the couch which now pitched forward towards the ground. Ethan scrambled to get a foot under it but failed and the sound of tinkling glass filled the small foyer. Nino glanced at his friend sheepishly. "You owe me a new set of martini glasses, I think." The younger man stooped to pick up the box and witness the destruction he had wrought.
"Hey, it is not so bad. Only one broke." Under Ethan's glare, though, he ceased his consolations. "It is not my fault you asked for incompetent help." Defensive, now. Ethan turned away and poked his head out into the building hall. "Anything left?"
"Nope. That box you broke was the last of it." Nino took a moment to examine the flat.
"Nice, this. The address sounded really familiar, but I cannot figure why."
"Do you know anyone around here?"
"Certainly. I'm just not sure who or where exactly." Ethan fixed him with a perplexed look.
"Whatever that means."
"It means exactly what I say. I am just not certain which people I know live in this area. Ah! Speaking of which, what about those drinks?"
"What?"
"You promised to buy me drinks after I helped you move. I helped you move, now you buy me drinks. Many drinks."
Ethan snorted. Nino was as generous as the next, more so actually, but if you promised him anything you better expect to pay up. "Fine, give me a minute to change then we'll go. Do you know anywhere good around here?"
"I know many places good around here. But most will not be open until-oh! Is it yet seven?" He automatically glanced at his wrist, but who wears a watch? He fumbled for his phone. "Good, it will be before we can get there. My cousin, her bar is only a couple blocks away."
Ethan was rooting around in a shapeless duffel for a fresh shirt. Finding one he pulled off the drenched rag that has served him during the move. About to get dressed, he thought better. "Maybe we should get cleaned up first. The water should already be on."
They both agreed that was a better course of action. Nino was in and out like a flash (he claimed first rights because he "had been instrumental in the procurement of the flat,") but Ethan took his time, luxuriating in the hot water after two days of travel, bad motels, and gathering his stuff from the post. He breathed a sigh of relief. I made it! he thought jubilantly. No more too familiar streets, or long worn paths through the city. No more being reminded constantly of things best left untouched. No more remembering the humiliation. No more obligatory, empty visits to the churchyard. He had promised himself he would get out, and that was exactly what he had done even if it had taken eight years. He soon emerged from his new bathroom, toweling his hair and scrounging for a shirt. "So, this cousin who's bar we're going to: is she the one you won't shut up about?"
"Quoi?"
"You know, the one who went to Oxford, then got her business degree at Cambridge, and the only reason she isn't running some fortune 500 is because she's too cool for that?"
"I am certain I do not know to whom you are referring." His voice was sheepish, shamed, but whether sarcastically or not, Ethan couldn't say. He sighed in exasperation. Nino loved being the one in command of any and all information, much to the annoyance of those around him. Soon after the two of them were heading down the building elevator to the street.

Someone seeing the two of them now striding down the street in the waning summer light might have marked the great contrast between the companions. The one on the left was at least a foot shorter than the other, but with shoulders at least as broad. He sported a full beard of brown and red. He was dressed almost formally, in slacks and a button shirt, giving him the look of a dwarf having just left a London tailor. All he lacked was an axe and a tie.
His friend had a far more relaxed look about him. Just over 6 feet tall, with shaggy black hair framing sharp blue eyes and lean, he had the undeniable look of an Ex-Patriot, though no one could ever satisfactorily describe to him exactly what that entailed. Shoulders hunched, back perpetually canted forward to see better through his wire rimmed spectacles, he almost seemed drawn into himself, like a turtle protecting itself from a fox. But while his friend actively courted every woman he saw, while simultaneously frightening those same girls away, Ethan was quiet and seemed rather shy. However, many girls found his reticence cute and his features handsome, which he used to his advantage quite often.
The bar they came to caught Ethan by surprise. The description he had given of Nino's cousin had been too kind, judging from what he had heard. While trying to make her sound impressive Nino had managed to make her sound arrogant, pretentious; a blowhard, someone who would love to flaunt their superior knowledge on any topic before you. If this was her bar, he expected that pedantry to be obvious, as most establishments are an extension of their owner's personality. Instead as they walked through the glass doorway, Ethan saw the place was small yet comfortable, and with few enough decorative material to make even the limited area seem spacious. He surprised himself by liking it rather a lot.
Though the place had only been open an hour, there was already a fair crowd around the bar top, and Ethan found himself feeling a bit bad for the bartender, though she seemed to be handling the crowd with ease. Nino shouldered their way through to where drinks could be had, acting as a bulldozer through the crowd. "Hey, Nino, watch it; we're not in any hurry or anything." But though Ethan may not have been his friend most assuredly was. They came to the bar with a veritable crash.
"Bar girl! A Bombay martini and...what is that swill you drink?"
"An old fashioned?"
"Yes! Exactly! Women do love their sweet ones."
The bartender, tall, attractive, came to them a moment later and set their drinks on the lacquered brown counter-top. She glared at the shorter man. Her English was also good, but while Nino had almost no accent from living in the States for so long, no one would mistake this girl as anything but french. "I always like a man that takes an old fashioned. He's not trying to impress anyone."
Nino recoiled. Ethan vaguely wondered if he'd been taking nips from the flask he usually kept on him. He already seemed a bit gone. "Not trying to impress anyone? With that fancy thing? My dear, there is no other reason for one to be ordered." The girl sniffed in disdain.
"I think it is one of most masculine drinks, really. Like Don Draper." Ethan laughed, and Nino retired to his own drink sullenly. But the girl continued. "Really Nino, you shouldn't be judging anything others drink when you don't even like the ones you always have."
"But I do!" He proclaimed indignantly.
"Then why did you hate them until you saw Dr. No?" Nino was now rather angry and he switched to his rapid french that Ethen could follow but not replicate.
"I'll have you know he only drank vodka martinis, not gin, and if that was the deal I would be using Gordon's, anyway." The girl responded in kind.
"Or you're just more clever than you lead people on to believe." Nino clammed up, and the girl walked away to serve some one else, looking triumphant.
His friend elbowed him playfully. "Looks like you picked the wrong one tonight, man."
Nino looked puzzled, then surprise washed over him. "Ay! I did not even introduce you. Christ, what an idiot. Bar maid!" He kept calling and calling, until after serving everyone at the bar, including several that had arrived after Nino began to call for her, the bartender returned and snapped in his face.
"What, Nino? I have customers."
"I just wanted to introduce you." Ethen glanced at him, then extended his hand to the girl in a polite way that didn't quite mask his confusion. "Nevi, this is my friend Ethen that I've told you about." Her face lit up with recognition, but the boy still looked confused. "Ethen, this is my cousin Nevi." With that minor revelation, Ethen finally gave the girl his full attention. She was maybe an inch or two above average height, about a head taller than her cousin, with dark auburn hair worn long and expressive brown eyes. The smile she turned on him now, even if a bit distracted, would have been radiant had he cared enough to notice. But the warmth and friendliness did not fail to register even with him. He returned the genuineness the best he could and they shook.
"Nino never shuts up about you. It's...Nevi?"
"That is what Nino's father called me. It is short for Genevieve."
"So..." he was interrupted as she shouted for someone named Bridgette, and a shortish blonde with quite a full figure appeared from the back. Nevi commanded something, Ethen thought in German, and the blonde girl began to serve people. Nevi came around the bar and sat down, so Ethen was between the two cousins. "So this is your bar, then?"
"Yes, it was my parents'. My uncle ran it until I finished school when I decided to come back and take over. He was very glad to retire, in fact." Ethen nodded, not really sure what to say. Normally he would have asked where she went to school, what she studied, things like that, but he was already well-informed. She continued. "I can see that Nino has already told you much about me, but he has told me almost nothing of you. What do you do for work?" It didn't surprise him that Nino had said nothing. Ethen was fairly certain his friend viewed his "work" with a mixture of contempt and envy, and therefore never brought it up. Still, Ethen wasn't really any more comfortable discussing it. He felt it gave people a very odd view of him.
"Oh, ah..." Normally he just lied. Said he was in banking, like his friend. But for some reason, he didn't want to with this girl. And she interrupted, anyway.
"Oh, if it is something you do not want to share-"
"No, no, it's just a lot of times people are really surprised and it gets tiresome."
"Oh." There was silence. "So, what do you do?"
"I-ah-I'm a writer." Nevi looked almost aghast.
"For a living? Oh, I'm jealous! I always wanted to do that, but never had the patience. Why would you not want to share that?"
Nino chimed in. "Because he writes trashy romance novels, that's why."
"Not only!" Ethen was indignant. "Yes, that's what I've mostly done, but the other stuff is gaining ground, now."
"What is that?"
"I'm been writing a series of graphic novels. That's actually why I moved here; my publisher is here and I thought it would be easier when it came time for negotiations again." Now the girl was eying him suspiciously, as though thinking he was a braggart. "What?"
"What is it called?"
"What is what called?"
"Your comic? I must have read it. I read all the ones that are published locally." Ethen was perplexed by her intensity, but saw no reason to not be truthful. He was about to answer when she interrupted. "And you must not have written those Romances under your name, else I would recognize it."
"I'd rather not say the name I used." He was ducking his head, looking ashamed, and Nino began to laugh. He addressed his cousin.
"Do you know the poet E. E. Cummings?"
"Vaguely."
"Well..." Nino nodded towards him significantly, and Ethen went red.
"I thought it was clever." Was all he could manage as the girl erupted in hysterics.
"My God," She said, having recovered somewhat. "What a terrible name. I do like your books though..." Ethen turned an incredulous look on her, and now she was blushing. "It is just, well, you write the love scenes so well." She took a sip of Ethen's drink and was quiet for second as her cousin snickered. "But so, what is this comic?"
"It's just called The City. It's kind of a-"
"You? You write La Ville?" She was extremely animated now, grabbing Ethen's hand as she asked this.
"uh...what? You, you read it?"
"I told you, I read all the ones published here. At least as many of them as I can before you Americans pollute them."
"Like the Smurfs?"
"Precisely."

The two friends did not leave the bar until it closed as 0230. They were both quite drunk, as in addition to the drinks they had paid for Nevi had comped them a fair number. As they passed the corner of the building which housed the bar Ethen smacked the back of Nino's shaggy head. "Why the hell did you tell her about the romance novels? If many more people find out that I wrote those I'm going to take my own eyes out so I can't see the amused scorn anymore."
"What are you even speaking of? She loves those, she said she did. And you saw how she lit up when she heard about your 'zine. You need to stop projecting all over every-oh, excuse me- overyone."
"Overyone?"
"Yes, overyone. It means 'everyone that came from an egg.'"
"What are you talking about?"
"You, me, all of us. Eggs! Tiny Eggs!"
"You're being exceedingly strange, even for you. And wouldn't that be the same as 'everyone', anyway?"
"Take six shits and die, then." Ethen laughed suddenly. As they rounded the corner that headed towards the apartment, Ethen walked directly into Nevi as she was trying to light a cigarette. It was knocked from her hand into the gutter.
"Merde! Watch were you are go-oh!" She took a second to compose herself and continued in English. "Where are you two headed off for?"
Nino must have been drunker than either of them had realized. He was calling for the cigarette in french, whistling for it as if for a dog. So Ethen answered after a moment. "My flat is just a couple blocks this way, we were heading there. I think Nino's staying with me until he has to head back to Brussels day after-well, it's two, so...goes back tomorrow."
"I am going that way. Would you mind if I walked with you? I forgot my wallet for cab fair and I do not fancy walking here alone at this hour." Ethen glanced around. The streets were well lit, quiet but not empty; in short, they looked like the last place anyone would be in danger. He figured she must have some ulterior motive, but at this point didn't really care.
"Sure."
They all three began to head down the street, though only Nevi and Ethen were talking. Nino leaning heavily on them singing "God Save the Queen" for some ungodly reason.
"Christ, I hate the Sex Pistols." Nevi growled this at her cousin as he tumbled into her.
"Is it true you went to Cambridge?" Ethen had been wondering that all night. She certainly didn't remind him of the others from that program he had met, and he had run across a few. His own agent, for one. Nevi was just too...normal.
"Mm-hmm. I got my business degree there. I thought it might help with running the bar, and to be honest I simply enjoyed being in school."
"Did it? Help with the bar, I mean."
"I think so. We were struggling before I took over and I can afford a place of my own now, so..."
"It's a very nice place."
"Thank you. I love it, most nights, anyway." They walked in silence most of the rest of the way until all of a sudden Nino cried out in as if in torment and ran off into the night.
"Nino! Nino, where are you going?" Nevi made as if to run after him but Ethen stopped her.
"Just let him go, he does this all the time. Well, not all of the time, but fairly often."
"Where does he go?"
"I have no idea. But the next morning he usually just shows up in a cab. I can't catch him, anyway. Oh, hey." They had reached Ethen's building before he'd even noticed they were close. "This is me. How much further for you?"
"Are you joking?" She sounded suspicious, actually a little wary.
"What? No, I live here."
"Since?"
"About...8 hours ago. Why?" The building had locks that were disarmed by keycards. Each resident got two. Nevi pulled one out and beeped them through the door."Hey! That's cool. You live here too? That'll be nice. Have someone friendly around the building."
They rode the elevator up in silence, and it wasn't until the doors opened that he realized Nevi had pressed the button for his floor as well. "Are you on 12, too?"
"Oh, I guess so. What are you?"
"D."
"This has been a weird night." They walked down the hall the Ethen's apartment, and as the flats were all mirrors of each other, the door to F was about a meter down from his. In front of this, Nevi pulled out her keys.
"No...really?" The door unlocked.
"Do you need any help getting in? You seem a bit drunk still. And yes, really."
"We're neighbors?"
"So it seems." The last two shots Nino had convinced him to take on their way out the door were now hitting him rather hard, and she was right, he needed help.
"I think my keys are in your right pocket. I mean, my pocket, your right. Here, this one." Ethen pointed a little uncertainly to his left pocket, from where he extracted his new house key with great difficulty. For several seconds he tried them in a lock, before realizing it was Nevi's door, and it was unlocked already besides. She took the keys from him.
"Here. Let me." She opened the flat, and flicked on a light. "Do you have a bed or anything set up."
Exhausted and having had way too much, the bourbon was taking Ethen under rapidly. "Bed, beddy bed bed...hmm?"
"Do you have one, Ethen? Set up, I mean, I am certain you have one somewhere."
"Nope!" He replied far too loudly.
"Then, will the couch be okay?"
"Very okay. Comfy." Nevi guided him over to the couch where he sat and then slumped onto his side. "Comfy couch." She rummaged around in some boxes and came up with a coat which she tossed over him as a makeshift blanket. She wandered off out of Ethen's field of vision, and returned in a minute with a pillow (sans pillowcase) and a glass of water. She dug into her bag and came up with a bottle of aspirin.
"Here, so as to keep you from begging me for death in the morning."
"Morning? I don't know what those are." But he sat up and took the offered water and pills. "You're sweet, Nevi. And very pretty."
She laughed, and her cheeks colored nicely. "um...thank you?" She looked a little surprised but pleased anyway.
"Very, very pretty." And he drifted off to sleep. She adjusted his pillow so that it wouldn't fall, left his keys on the ground next to him, switched off the light, and went home.

Ethen awoke the next morning with a groan. He sat up gingerly, hand over his face, and realized he wasn't even quite sobered up yet. s**t, it's only 10 o'clock, no wonder. He made his way unsteadily to his feet and headed for the shower. He thought back over the end of the evening; it was mostly pretty clear and he was fairly certain he hadn't done or said anything stupid. Plus, he had woken up alone; usually a good sign that he hadn't gotten too out of control. Vaguely he wondered where Nino had gotten off to, but that was hardly his concern, anyway. Probably passed out at a bus station somewhere, if history was any gauge. He had long since ceased to worry; more often now he felt guilty for not worrying over his friend, but there it was. Threw on his robe after getting out, feeling refreshed and almost fully functional, and started to rummage around his boxes for cooking supplies. Pan, spatula, good, good...then he realized he didn't have any food. All his things they had brought straight from storage or the post, and all he had was some old rice crackers from god knows when and a bottle of scotch. He toyed with the idea of opening up the bottle and just writing the day off already, but instead got dressed and ready to leave.
Keys, check. Wallet, check. Phone...Phone? Nowhere to be found. Probably, he realized, he had left it at the bar last night, but that mattered little as he had every intention of returning that evening. It had been a nice place and the owner, he was 98% sure her name was Genevieve, had been charming. Lo and behold, as he turned to lock his door on the way out, there she was, stepping out of her own door. Ethen was not quite able to mask his surprise. "You do live next door; I thought that had been some weird dream."
She smiled at him indulgently. "No, that was real. How are you feeling?"
"Fine, fine. That was far from excessive for your cousin and I. Kept both our eyes on, anyway."
"Excuse me?"
"What? oh, that, sorry. I meant I didn't get too crazy." While talking they had been walking and were about to leave their building. Ethen now remembered that he had no idea where to even go to get food and such.
"Where are you going this morning, Ethen?"
"Um...I just realized that's a problem. I don't really know, even. Is there a market or something near by?"
"Right across the street from the bar. I was actually heading there, too, but I was going to have some breakfast first. Want to come along? There is a coffee shop between here and there; it is quite excellent." Ethen hesitated. If he was perfectly honest with himself, he had mainly moved here to get rid of the majority of social connections that he had. Most had been too painful to deal with anymore, and those few that weren't he simply needed a break from. He really just needed a break from people, he thought, focus on writing, maybe finish something worth mentioning. But then this was his neighbor; if for no other reason than proximity, it would be unwise to alienate her, and besides she seemed pretty nice. What he didn't notice was that he had entirely forgotten to answer her question until she spoke again. "Or if you need to get home quick I understand and I could just point you there."
"Sorry, sorry about that. No! Sure, I'd be happy to come along." Nevi led the way down the next block then took a right, heading towards some river, but stopped at a small cafe. It seemed a fairly standard shop, with the wrought iron fence enclosing a small outdoor seating area, but it looked nice enough. They were seated and while they waited for their order the conversation stopped altogether. Never very good with people, unless he was just trying ot get a girl into bed, Ethen kept staring down at the tabletop, and every so often glancing up at his companion. Added on to the problem of his natural reticence, he noticed something about the girl that he had entirely missed the night before and could only really appreciate now as she sat with the rising sun catching her profile. Maybe the bar had been too dark, or he had been too drunk to really notice. Maybe he'd written it off because everyone looks good in low light through trademarked Drunk Vision. Maybe it was because he had been, and still was, so actively trying to avoid any romantic sort of entanglements; they hadn't gone well for him. And this girl, as nice, obviously smart, and fun as she was, added on to that that she lived right next to him, would be far from ideal for a simple one-nighter. Maybe he had simply been too exhausted. But Genevieve was...
He had thought he had noticed her eyes last night, a pretty light brown, but on closer inspection that was selling them short. They were deep, rich, almost golden and rather large for her narrow face. Though that just made them more prominent and cute at the same time, somehow. She had high, narrow cheeks and a delicate nose with the barest bit of a ski-jump at the end, and lips of an almost cherry red though she clearing wasn't wearing any make-up. They were full and would best be described as pouty, though inwardly Ethen steered away from that description as it made it sound like he was describing one of the "heroines" in his books. Loose curls of red and brown tumbled down past her shoulders, and it was hard not to imagine waking up with your fingers still laced in her hair. Her smile cause small dimples to appear, and against her pale skin a sprinkling of freckles dotted the bridge of her nose and cheeks, making her look younger than she certainly must be. To put it simply, she was heart-stoppingly beautiful. For some reason, Ethen was betting that she made far more from tips than sales. He actually found himself staring after a few moments of silence, but she just smiled and stirred some sugar into the coffee the server had brought. She lit a cigarette, then glanced around guiltily before swearing and hastily putting it out. She looked at him sheepishly. "I do not think I am supposed to smoke here." Ethen laughed; she just looked so embarrassed, but she continued speaking. "So, do you have any family, Ethen? Nino has never mentioned."
He took a sip of his coffee, and looked at it appreciatively. He was well aware of how there was coffee and coffee, and this was definitely the latter. He nodded as he swallowed. "I do, but not like, a big family or anything. Just me, my sister, her husband and son."
"Oh, that is small. Sorry."
"Oh, no, no I know, believe me. My brother in law, well...I think he has 24 first cousins? something like that." She was silent for a few moments, I could see her working up the courage to ask something; probably the same thing everyone did. He had long since ceased to mind, though, so he came to her rescue. "You can go ahead an ask, Nevi, I don't mind." He said gently.
"What happened to your parents."
"They died when we were about 4; car crash."
"Oh, I'm so sorry." Most people, when hearing that said that same thing. The difference was the genuineness, the actual care that was conveyed. Ethen actually looked her in the eyes in surprise. The distraught tone certainly looked sincere. "Then what-what-"
"My uncle raised us. Or actually my grandfather's older brother. He died last year. Not really anything tragic though, he was 87."
"Oh." Nevi was looking down into her cup, not meeting his eyes. Suddenly she banged her coffee on the saucer, spilling a fair bit, and grabbed his hand that was free of his own mug. "You must love your sister very much, then." She was watching him closely, those brown eyes showing an unexpected intensity. He just smiled at her.
"I do." He didn't take his hand away.

Ah. yeah, as someone who has trouble reading a two stanza poem, I am sympathetic to that.
Glad you liked it for the most part, though. More will be forthcoming, the books actually about half done.