The opening night had been a success; the company could not have asked for more, the theater had sold out, they had received a thunderous applause and the huge number of flowers thrown at the stage had covered the entire floor with a rainbow of petals. They all had done a great job indeed, but the lead actress completely stole the show, everyone adored her, there was no doubt next morning the reviews would favor her as a rising new star. The whole cast was pleased with Esmeralda's performance, but no one was as proud as her girlfriend Belle was.
She had arrived at the venue hours in advance just to have the best seat in the front row. She had been there for Esmeralda since the first audition, during every rehearsal, at home she had helped her practice her dialogues, supporting her in every possible way, excited about her girlfriend's big debut. Belle's publisher wished she would pay more attention to her new book but Belle was adamant, Esmeralda had been there for her all the hours she had spent in front of the screen working on her writing, she would do the same.
The couple had come a long way from the day they had first met. In those days, Belle's first book had just been published but the fame and success weren't even close. One afternoon as she walked aimlessly through the Parisian rues looking for inspiration her steps guided her to the sweet, merry sound of a gypsy song; there, in the middle of a crowded plaza, surrounded by other street performers and fancy coffee shops, accompanied only by a small boy who played the guitar for her was Esmeralda, dancing.
The persuasive swirl of her purple skirt would draw the attention of everyone around, she moved free of any rule, but the rhythm of the music, her provocative legs danced vigorously as her arms skillfully and graciously would sway her tambourine which she occasionally would swing against her hips, making it sing with its joyful metallic notes.
Belle couldn't bring herself to talk to the beautiful dancer that day but she came back the day after, and the next one and the one after that and she continued coming back every day for two weeks. She would get a seat in one of the outdoor tables of the Café de Lis, the nearest place from where she could look at her. Sometimes she would bring her laptop and write passionately on the keyboard, inspired by the swirl of colors, the sound of her feet stamping rhythmically on the ground, the chaos of her black hair furiously moved by her every step.
Belle could swear a couple of times the girl had noticed her, smiled her way, looking at her with a hint of flirt shining in her eyes. Maybe that was why one day without even thinking about it, on a sudden impulse, she finally talked to her. That day, after the girl had gathered the profit of the day and shared it with her young partner, she walked by Belle's side.
"Would you like to have a coffee with me?" Belle's voice was shaky and for an instant, she feared it hadn't been loud enough but Esmeralda turned to look at her.
"My admirer finally speaks to me," she said playfully and her smile left Belle defenseless, her confidence was overwhelming, her green eyes had a magical shine about them, everything about her was perfect, Belle thought.
"I-I, just…" Belle stumbled upon her own words for a second "I really like your dancing."
"I was right then, you are my fan," Esmeralda laughed, amused with Belle's response "I was just guessing but I'm flattered to have such a pretty girl be my first fan."
"I think you are beautiful… I mean your body… when it is dancing," Belle's face became red she couldn't believe what had just come out of her mouth, she could only manage to mutter an apology "I'm a fool, I'm so sorry."
"Don't be," Esmeralda was now standing right in front of her "thanks for the compliment, I'll tell you what, I'll accept your coffee invitation, after all, you have watched many of my performances and not even once have you approached to leave a coin on my tambourine."
After that day, it became easier for Belle talking to her, soon it was not only the dance what Belle admired about Esmeralda, learning about her life, her sacrifices, her dreams and sharing her own brought both women closer by the day. Every time they could, they would spend it together, talking, going to shows, walking in the most beautiful gardens of Paris enjoying the French sky.
Belle encouraged Esmeralda to pursue her acting and dancing dreams. She attended to her first play, a small part, on an even smaller venue, but they felt she had just performed at the Place de l'Opéra. That night in the small dressing room backstage, when Belle walked in, a beautiful red bouquet of roses in her hand, Esmeralda silenced Belle's torrent of compliments with their first kiss.
Now, years later, they had moved in together. Belle had introduced her to her father and he gladly had welcomed her as part of the family. They couldn't be happier with their life together, overjoyed and pleased by their success, and most of all blessed by their mutual love.
The moon shone over the Seine River, Esmeralda had her arms around Belle in a moment of blissful silence. There was nothing left to say or do but enjoy their triumph, nothing but maybe… Under the amber light of a street lamp, Esmeralda kissed her girlfriend passionately, Belle ran her fingers through the black hair of Esmeralda and not even the rain that softly started moments later would break them apart.
"We should go home; the main actress can't get sick in the opening week," Belle smiled when they finally broke the kiss.
"I guess you're right," said Esmeralda holding her even tighter.
"We will need a warm shower once we get home," Belle stole a couple of quick kisses from her girlfriend's lips.
"I'm looking forward to it," teased Esmeralda laughing, and both women started their way home under the Paris rain.
Author Notes: Thank you for reading this, I really hope you like it, I'd really appreciate if you could comment.
Important Note: I'm planning on moving my stories to AO3, I won't stop publishing here, I already have 2 stories more that just need to be translated (I publish English and Spanish versions simultaneously) but I'm publishing on that platform as well and if everything works fine I will eventually (like in a long time) move completely to that site, please consider checking my profile there Pearl_Daidouji
Other Note: I know my English is not the best, not my native language but I work hard to improve and publish better stories, if anyone wants to volunteer to proofread my fanfics and check my grammar I'd be super happy about it, contact me here or at my Tumblr pearl-daidouji.