Disclaimer:
Characters, places and songs don't belong to me, they belong to… whoever owns them :P I'm not making any money out of this, it's just a little harmless (and pointless) fun!Author's Note:
I really have no idea where this idea sprang from… Actually I do. Blame The Beatles and them writing songs that inspire me to write fan fiction :P* * * * * * *
Chapter Two: The Morning After
Streams of sunlight scored through the darkness behind Chocolat's closed eyelids, cutting red streaks through his dreams. He groaned and rolled over, wrapping one of his arms around his head. He rolled onto his back and lay perfectly still for a moment. Then he sighed and got up. There was no use trying to get back to sleep now. Besides, Zidler had insisted that they have an early morning meeting to discuss the new direction the Moulin Rouge was to take.
Quite suddenly, Chocolat realised that she was no longer there. He sat on the side of the bed looking blankly across his meagre room.
"Well, what did you expect?" he said out loud. "These type of things… they don't mean anything. Just a bit of fun."
And yet… I like you. A lot. What the hell did that mean? He liked Zidler. Didn't mean he wanted to sleep with him. He'd never even really noticed Nini before. Sure, he'd spoken to her, danced with her at parties – he didn't dislike her. But he wasn't sure whether he liked her.
"One," he said, counting off on his fingers," she has a mean streak. Two, she drinks too much." He paused realising that he probably drank too much but decided to count it anyway. After all, it was still a vice.
"Three," he continued, "she laughs too loudly. Four, she wears too much eye makeup." He grinned, hearing her acerbic voice reply in his head "the same to you!"
"Five. It's a completely pointless relationship to pursue. What am I saying? A one night stand does not constitute a relationship and that's all it was…a one night stand."
But even as the words left his mouth he knew it was a lie. He'd had nights like that before – they went with living in Montmartre and at the Moulin Rouge. But never a night like that. A night of passion and almost unquenchable desire made all the more potent because it was so unexpected and scorching. The heat from her body had surprised him – he'd always seen Nini as cold and distant. But last night… last night she had been hot and very, very close, whispering words in his ear. Not words of love but words of nearly heartbreaking sincerity.
I like you
… How much? A lot? Enough to be with for one night only or enough to continue after the sun had risen?Chocolat stood swiftly and scrambled around the room pulling his clothes on. He had to know. One way or another.
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Nini adjusted her hat and stared at her reflection.
"Move over Nini! Stop hogging the mirror!"
"Alright, alright!" she snapped back, glaring at Mome Fromage's slightly startled expression. "You need all the mirror time you can get." She pushed past the large woman, uneasily ignoring the hurt look on her face. She was never usually this brusque with the other girls, especially Mome Fromage, but she felt the need to be today. She wasn't entirely sure why. All she knew was that she'd woken up next to Chocolat and gazing at his peaceful face she knew she had to get out that room. The smell of him and even worse, the smell of the two of them together, which had so intoxicated her the night before was threatening to choke her. No matter how long she had lain in the bath tub or how hard she scrubbed the scent still seemed to cling to her. It wasn't that she regretted the night before but rather…
She sighed. She didn't know what it was. Nini had never been one to analyse her actions: she just acted as her instincts told her to. And her instincts had told her to get as far away from that room and the man inside the warm bed as she could.
She walked out along the balconies of the dance hall and rested her elbows on the railings, resting her head in her hands. Satie and a few of his musician friends were gathered around a piano, Satie playing and humming a tune she vaguely recognised.
"Why did you leave?" asked a soft voice behind her. She gasped and turned around. Chocolat looked at her, head tilted sadly on one side. She recovered her composure quickly and rested one hand above her heart.
"What're you trying to do, give me a heart attack?" she demanded glaring at him as best she could.
"I didn't mean to disturb you," he replied in that same quiet helpless tone. She wished that he wouldn't speak like that. It made her feel helpless and cold-hearted because he didn't deserve her sharp tongue. The other Dogs… they could handle it. But there was a vulnerability, an innocence in Chocolat that she liked – no! Don't think like that!, she thought desperately.
"What do you want?" she asked, her voice softer.
"I just wanted to clear something up… Last night, you said that – that you liked me." He paused and she looked at him, half-hoping he would continue. "Do you?"
"Well, yeah. I like you," she said offhandedly, but having a sneaking suspicion he was seeing right through her with those big, dark eyes – No! she scolded herself.
"How do you like me?" he said in a great rush, his eyes never wavering from her face.
Nini turned back to the dance floor, drumming her fingernails on the rail. She bit her lip, heart pounding painfully. She half turned back to him.
"Look, I think you're a – a wonderful person…" she paused unable to think of what to say next. Her spiky wit and speech seemed to have left her and she felt as helpless as a bird trapped in a cat's claw… Gazing back at the musicians around the piano she suddenly recalled where she'd heard the tune before. At the party. It had been one of the many melodies Satie had been playing. He must have remembered some of them. Without really thinking she started singing, suddenly thrust back into the dazzle of the party, where songs and dances could be performed without anybody questioning how or why.
We said our goodbyes
Chocolat smiled slightly.
Love was in your eyes,
he countered. Her eyes widened and she turned, striding back down the corridor."Never said anything about love," she tossed over her shoulder. She couldn't decide whether she was appalled or pleased when his voice resounded behind her.
When I held you near, you were so sincere.
Treat me like you did the night before.
Oh god, what have I started? She wondered as she turned back to face him, eyebrows raised. He smiled and took a step closer to her.
Were you telling lies?
Was I so unwise?
"I didn't promise you anything!" she cried. He shook his head.
Now today I find, you have changed your mind.
Treat me like you did the night before.
Nini wasn't entirely sure whether this was the most romantic moment of her life or the most horrifying. If he noticed her discomfort, he ignored it and carried on singing.
Last night is the night I will remember you by.
When I think of things we did, it makes me want to cry!
"Then don't remember me at all! Why do you need to remember me?"
The sparkling, champagne feeling of the party evaporated away, leaving only the cold air and the man standing in front of her.
"I never promised you anything," she whispered again.
"So?"
"So?!"
He took another step closer and Nini felt the air constrict around her, practically forcing her to take a step closer to him.
"You like me. I like you." He paused, waiting for her to say something. When she didn't he continued. "Why can't we-"
"Because!" shouted Nini, surprised at the anger in her voice. "Because it would never work!"
"Why not?" he shot back.
"Because I'm… I'm afraid." She looked down at her feet, unable to believe she was actually saying this.
"Afraid?" he queried, sounding genuinely puzzled. She did not dare look at his face.
"…Afraid that I could more than like you." She heard him suck in a breath.
"Nini…"
"Just forget it alright?" she said, wiping her eyes, furious at her own stupid weakness. "Forget I said anything."
"No." His voice was filled with a quiet authority and she looked at him in surprise. He cupped her face.
"I'm not asking for a full-blown relationship. Just that we… spend some time together. Liking each other. Not love." Her eyes flicked away from his, down to the dance hall. The others were gathering there, chattering quietly to each other, complaining of hangovers. The writer stood with the other bohemians, laughing at their pale faces. Just then Satine and Zidler entered. The writer stopped talking and gazed at her. There was something beautiful in the way he smiled at her, as though he were hearing a song or seeing a dance that only he understood and therefore, there was no need to guard his expression. Satine smiled at him and turned, apparently listening to Zidler but Nini could somehow tell, from the way she tilted her head, the swing of her hips as she moved, that whatever the writer was hearing, she understood it too.
Nini turned back to Chocolat. He smiled at her, his expression naked with his feeling for her.
"Just liking?" she whispered. He nodded.
"Nothing heavy."
"I don't know…" Nini knew as well as any woman knows that whatever control she could exert over her body or mind, she had no control over her heart. That was her one vulnerable spot. Perhaps Chocolat saw that because he stood back, releasing her face and looked down. Nini could only just make out the expression on his face but she knew that he was disappointed.
"Chocolat…"
Silence bloomed between the two of them, an awful gulf that swallowed Nini and made her want to shout. Chocolat looked back at her almost shyly.
"What if we take it slowly? Really slowly."
She looked quizzically at him.
"I don't mean we should have... dinner together, or… whatever couples do." He smiled lopsidedly. "Just that we talk. Go to parties. Dance. Make love."
She raised her eyebrows. "And that's taking it slow?"
He laughed shortly. "Well?"
She hesitated.
"Let's see how we go," he offered, almost desperately. "Do whatever comes naturally?" Nini smiled slowly.
"So if I want to kiss you, I can and if I want to ignore you, I can?"
"Well, I suppose. Same would go for me too."
Nini looked back down to the hall. Zidler was calling for everyone to take a seat and that they would be starting soon. Satine and Christian smiled a secret smile. to each other. Isn't that what everyone dreams about? she thought. To be able to share a secret smile like that and know that only one other person knows what it means? I've never wanted that. If that person leaves you, what then? I can't invest all my hopes in one person….
Another voice piped up at the back of her mind. But what about investing only some of them with one person? Surely that can't hurt?
Nini sighed, realising she was fighting a losing battle. She'd known, the moment he had kissed her the night before, that this would not be one night only. If she hadn't pulled away then, well, she'd made her own bed. Time to lie in it.
She turned to Chocolat and smiled. He grinned, relieved, and stepped towards her, encircling her corseted waist with powerful arms. She hugged him, listening to his muffled heartbeat through his clothes.
"This is probably going to be the most dysfunctional relationship ever forged at the Moulin Rouge."
She felt him laugh, a deep, throaty sound.
"Well, we are pretty dysfunctional people." He kissed her forehead and took her hand. "Come on. Zidler calls."
She smiled back at him, the expression illuminating her face. "I want to sit with the other Dogs."
"That's fine, I want to sit behind you."
"Why?"
"I want to stare at you-"
"Ha!"
"-And your hat." She stopped, staring at him in amazement. "What?" he asked somewhat indignantly. "It's a very interesting hat."
"You can borrow it if you like."
"Really?"
"Green's not really your colouring though…"
He laughed and bent over, kissing her lips lightly. He stroked the side of her face, smiling.
"See?" he said. "We have fun."
"Yes," she replied. "I suppose we do."
The End
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Hope you enjoyed! In fact, why don't you let me know… Reviews are good for your health!
BTW, 'The Night Before' is by The Beatles and used without permission.
