Chapter 4
Elphaba towel dried her hair, then took a look at herself in the mirror, and made a funny face. Who could love a face like yours she told herself.
"Sorry I took so long. I'm ready for dessert," she said, joining Fiyero in the family room.
The prince stared at her as if she was the dessert. He smiled feeling the heat, passion, and love.
Her wet locks fell freely against her shoulders which dampened her tee shirt. "What? Is something wrong?"
He shook his head. Wild thoughts went through his head. The old prince would have done exactly what his mind had envisioned. But he had too much respect for Elphaba. He pointed to the coffee table. There was a bottle of champagne placed in an iced bucket and two long stemmed flutes filled with the sparkling drink on the side.
The room had a romantic ambiance. His movement was quiet. Fiyero sat on the sofa and patted the seat next to him. Elphaba sat beside him, unsure of what was happening.
"Why don't you slice the cake," he said. His voice was smooth or maybe just nervous.
She noticed his eyes. Was it lust or was he just being a gentleman? She couldn't tell. Placing a piece of the cake on a dessert plate, she stared at it for several seconds...red...the color of blood and fire. Or the way she was feeling at that very moment...love, passion, and desire.
Elphaba blinked her eyes as if to come out of her trance, handing Fiyero the red velvet cake.
"Thank you," he said. Red he thought to himself was the color of seduction. Grabbing his fork, he poked a piece of cake, rising it slowly to his mouth, savoring its taste.
Elphaba somewhat knew at times what was on someone's mind. Was Fiyero trying to say in a quiet way that he loved her...had feelings for her? Could he be capable of loving someone like her? She didn't know. Sitting back comfortably into the sofa, she ate every piece of her cake, having it melt into her mouth.
Fiyero placed his empty plate onto the table, taking hold of his flute. He held up his glass as if to toast her. Grabbing hers, he lightly tapped his against hers. Questions popped into her head. Was he toasting her or toasting the drink and cake?
They sipped quietly. Every so often, they'd converse in small talk. He was polite and did not speak in his usual utter nonsense. She spoke about her days at school on how much she loved teaching the little ones. It had felt like they were on a first date trying to be on their very best behavior.
All too soon, the bottle of champagne was empty. Elphaba felt the heated flush on her face, pulling at her tee shirt, she fanned herself with a napkin. "It's hot in here."
Fiyero showed no signs of being even slightly inebriated. "No, it's not. It's the champagne. Do you want a cold glass of water?"
She nodded. "Thank you."
It only took a couple of minutes before Fiyero had returned with the glass of water, and found Elphaba sprawled on the sofa fast asleep. He watched her for several minutes as she laid peacefully before planting a light kiss on her cheek.
Fiyero loved her, and it terrified him. He had never planned on her. But who's to say you get to pick the one to love. Love picks you. Elphaba was intelligent and beautiful. Would she want someone like him? It frightened him that one day she would find a place of her own, eventually leaving the castle...leaving him all alone.
TBC - Chapter 5
Author's Note: Thank you again, James Birdsong for your review. :)
