Show Off
I do not own The Hobbit in any way.
Young Bard was known for being a show off. But he only showed off to impress one girl.
Adelaide Vasi.
Her mother and father owned the fabric shop not far from Bard's house.
He saw her every morning when he accompanied his father to his barge. His father knew that Bard fancied Adelaide. Bard would write Adelaide small notes and shoot them into her window sill. He never signed them, but Adelaide knew they were written by him.
Adelaide was sorting through fabrics one day. She heard several splashing noises. She set the fabric down and made her way outside. She saw Bard hopping from one boat to another. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. She watched him for a few minutes.
Bard knew she was watching him.
"Adelaide!" her father yelled.
"Coming papa!" she yelled back.
When Bard looked up again, she wasn't there.
His eyes searched for her, instead of watching his footing. He slipped and fell into the lake. He surfaced and heard people laughing at him. He cursed himself so being so stupid. He swam over to a walkway and started to pull himself out of the water. Once he had managed to pull himself out, he felt something thick and warm being placed over his shoulders. He looked up and saw Adelaide standing there. "Good morning Miss Adelaide", he said, giving her a crooked smile.
She helped him up and said, "You don't have to show off to get my attention".
Bard wrapped the blanket around himself.
"Let's get you warmed up and then I'll see to that cut on your forehead", she said.
Bard lifted his hand and touched a tender spot on his head. He pulled his hand away and saw blood. He must have hit his head on a boat when he fell.
Adelaide led Bard to her family's home, which sat above the fabric shop. She lit a fire and told him to sit by it while she fetched warm clothes. "These were all I could find. They used to be my brother's", she told him. She left him to dress while she went to find some medicine for his wound.
When she returned Bard was sitting there shirtless with the blanket around him. She sat down across from him started to tend to his wound. He hissed in pain a couple of times to which Adelaide would quietly apologize. When she was done, she placed a bandage on it.
"Thank you", Bard said.
"You're welcome", she said, "I meant what I said. You don't have to show off to get my attention. I enjoy the little notes you leave me, but you don't need to put your life in danger. There are easier ways to get my attention".
"Like what?" he asked her.
"Like this", she said. She took his face in her hands and kissed him.
Bard's arms wrapped around her waist as Adelaide's hands slid into his hair.
Even as the years went on, Bard would still enjoy showing off for her.