Chapter Seven: Hidden in Plain Sight
To Boris, Julie was particularly gracious; she regretted his early disillusionment with life, offered him such consolation of friendship as she, who had herself suffered so much, could render, and showed him her album. Boris sketched two trees in the album, and wrote: 'Rustic trees, your dark branches shed gloom and melancholy upon me.'
On another page he drew a tomb, and wrote:
'La mort es secourable et la mort est tranquille.
Ah! contre les douleurs il n'y a pas d'autre asile.'
Translation: Death is helpful and death is silent.
Ah! against such pains there is no other asylum.
Julie said this was charming.
'There is something so enchanting in the smile of melancholy,' she said to Boris, repeating word for word a passage she had copied from a book. 'It is a ray of light in the darkness, a shade between sadness and despair, showing the possibility of consolation.'
Count Leo Tolstoy's "War and Peace", page 434 – brackets and translation mine
"I brought you something." Dawn grinned at Warren as she examined his black motorcycle. Ron had just dropped them off at the Peace residence and Dawn was eager to give her present to Warren. She had gotten it that morning before school but was hesitant to produce it, since she didn't know how it would come across.
Warren raised an eyebrow, running a hand fondly over the leather seat. "Let's see it."
Digging around through her bag, the telekinetic retrieved a can of orange paint and a large flame stencil, custom made for the model of motorcycle that Warren owned. "I just thought…you know, flames on the front might spice it up a little bit." She shrugged and handed them over.
To her surprise, he grinned and tested the fit of the stencil. "It's perfect. I'll try it out later tonight, but we should really get going."
At a nod from Dawn, Warren started to slide onto the seat of the motorcycle, but she stopped him. "Listen, I was wondering something…" She made a request and he tried not to laugh, but finally he relented and said yes.
The next thing she knew, Dawn was holding onto twin handlebars, dangerously racing and steering the motorcycle down the road to the Paper Lantern. Warren sat behind her, but instead of slipping his arms around her waist, he had his hands positioned on her arms to help guide her.
"This is illegal, you know." He called up to her, hoping she could hear him over the wind.
She turned her head slightly before responding, "I've been driving cars illegally since I was twelve; this can't be much harder. Not to mention you don't exactly seem like the kind of person who strictly follows the letter of the law, if you'll excuse me for saying so."
Dawn felt him shake with laughter, but he said nothing as they pulled around in front of the Paper Lantern.
"Go on in; I'll join you as soon as I park this in the warehouse out back." Before she had a chance to reply, he gently but firmly assisted her in getting off, and the engine roared as he wheeled around behind the restaurant.
A precariously balanced bell rang loudly as Dawn opened the door to the Paper Lantern, and she immediately smiled after hearing the familiar Chinese music playing softly in the background. "Lovely place to work," she sighed happily, and slid into a booth to wait for Warren.
"Can I get you something?" An attractive young Oriental woman stepped up to the table with a pad of paper gently resting in her hand.
"Oh, no, thank you; I'm waiting for Warren." The pyrokinetic's name slipped easily between Dawn's lips, and the lady grinned.
"Has Warren finally got himself a girlfriend?"
Dawn blushed profusely and opened her mouth to reply when she was cut off. "No, she's not my girlfriend; she's a friend from school. Mind your own business, Jai Li."
Jai Li shrugged, winked at Dawn, and gestured for Warren to sit down across from the aforementioned friend. "So what can I get you two?"
"Can we have a minute to think about it?" Warren asked, sending her a glance that implied she should go away and let them talk.
"Sure, sure." She waved a hand dismissively and wandered off to go fold more napkins.
Dawn smiled across at Warren and was surprised to see him smile back at her. "So, I, ah…who runs the Paper Lantern while you're at school?"
"Mom got released early from the hospital; she's been working it with Jai Li's help." He responded, apparently choosing his words carefully so he wouldn't have to say more than he was required to say.
"Oh, okay." Silence was present once more in their conversation, but Dawn was able to get by for a few minutes by asking him what was good on the menu and finally ordering egg rolls for them to share. She was amazed at how laid back Warren had once again become, after she recalled their abrupt and rather mean conversation at school.
"That thing that was at the school today," Warren suddenly commented, "would've killed me if you hadn't intervened. So thanks."
Dawn was momentarily speechless. "I didn't…I didn't think you thanked people for things." It wasn't exactly what she had meant to say, but it was the truth.
A pained expression flitted across Warren's face, and he lowered his head slightly. "Have I become that inhuman to you?"
Dawn immediately regretted her words, and she reached across the table to take Warren's hands in her own. They were as hot as they had been in the cafeteria, but the pyrokinetic's soulful dark eyes were completely distracting her from the warmth of his hands. "You're not inhuman, Warren. You're just introverted, and that gives people the wrong impression, and..." she sighed, "I should've known better. I'm so sorry, Warren."
His gaze was a troubled one, as usual, but Dawn could now see sorrow in his expression.
"It's hard to be lonely," he muttered, squeezing her hands before releasing them, "people just can't learn." Warren lit one of his hands and examined it. "I'm lucky I was given fire. Fire inspires fear, and when you're feared, people don't try to pick on you for being alone."
"Sometimes you're hard to warm up to, though." Dawn replied, quickly assuring him that no pun was intended.
"Being mean makes it harder for people to mock you." Warren responded simply, extinguishing his flame with a sizzling hiss. "But it has its pros and cons. People don't like me."
"Warren, I…" Dawn stopped short. Was she really about to tell Warren Peace that she had a crush on him?
"…You what?" Warren raised an eyebrow and waved a hand, indicating she needed to finish her sentence.
"I like you." She completed, "I like you a lot. In fact, some people, um," she faltered and started to hesitantly play with her "True Love Waits" ring again, "some people might call it a little more than just liking you."
There. Dawn had finally admitted it, and she looked up hopefully, wondering if he would be romantic and kiss her, or hug her, or profess feelings of the same fashion. Something moved in her peripheral vision, and she noticed Jai Li hovering just over in the corner with a plate of egg rolls, trying to wait for an opportune moment to slip in.
"You like me." Warren repeated, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Yeah, ah, is…is that a problem?" Dawn blinked; she had expected a larger reaction.
"I don't do relationships."
The pyrokinetic stood abruptly, standing up out of the booth. He met her gaze and shook his head before brushing his hair back over his shoulder and walking out of the Paper Lantern. The bell above the door clinked cheerfully, but Dawn was too taken aback to hear it.
"Here are your egg rolls, sweet heart." Jai Li said softly, setting the plate in front of Dawn. "Do you want me to help you finish them?" She asked gently, her brown eyes warm and comforting.
Almost as warm and comforting as Warren's had been.
Dawn nodded dejectedly and swallowed hard. "I thought maybe he'd understand, you know? I don't need to be in a relationship with him, I just wanted to be his friend and let him know I liked him, and it all turned out wrong, and now he'll never want to have anything to do with me, and - "
Before she could continue, Jai Li spoke words of consolation to her and pushed an egg roll in her general direction. Dawn realized she was starving and gladly devoured it, trying to hide the tears that had sprung to her eyes. She tried to explain further to the Asian waitress, but her words were periodically marked by hiccupping sobs, and it made the explanation difficult to understand.
Cloth napkins and wads of Kleenex were soothingly given to her, but it was some time before Dawn finally calmed down again. "I didn't need him to be my boyfriend," She whispered to Jai Li, awkwardly playing with, staring at, and ripping up a Kleenex in her lap, "I just needed him to be my friend."
Pyrokinetics were awfully good at sneaking around restaurants and through back doors to listen to the remainders of conversations. If Dawn's eyes had wandered to the open window of the kitchen to her right, they would have noticed dark, flaming eyes watching her, and listening ears softly shielded with strands of black hair.
"I just needed him to be my friend."
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A/N: Eesh! Yes, this was a short chapter for such a long wait, and for that I apologize. I'm working as fast as I can, with school and work and whatnot bearing down heavily on me. I ask for your patience and your reviews; thank you kindly!
Corvaisis
