Chapter 9: Changement d'esprit
After the party, me and Paigey went back to our room. Still sober and awake, we both went to go do some more devoir. One hour passes by, and we fall asleep.
The next day, we both went to the cafeteria to eat our food. Today's special was tomato bisque with croutons, steak frites, and for dessert, Mille-feuille and Éclairs. We grab our food, and went to go sit at the table Gina had saved for us.
"Je aime manger de la nourriture ici, c'est tres bon!" said Paigey
« Moi aussi, pour je préfère le soupe. » said Gina
« Agréable »
To the right of the cafeteria, we see artwork being displayed on the walls. The one that really captured my attention was the metamorphosis drawing with the red moon changing into the sun with the quote "Tu es le soleil et je suis la lune" (You are the sun, and I am the moon). The drawing is from an unknown artist, whoever did this portrait is a true visionary with a good insight on what he or she has captured and created from their own two hands.
"J'aime mieux l'art, c'est tres interessant" said Gina
"Oui, et tres belle" said Paigey
Suddenly, I catch a glance from across the table. It's "Leonard" trying to grab my attention to him, there is no way in hell that I am going to go up and say "bonjour" after what he did to me last year. I'm on the honor roll for gods sake, then again he is too malheureusement. He keeps on staring at me, but I still refuse to even look at his ugly blonde French face with his hideous "lunettes" to top it all off. Ugh, I just want to get out of there.
We finish our food, and then go outside to the marches of Aix-en-Provence. First stop was the flower stands; Paigey looked at those bright pink roses and bought herself a nice bouquet to put in our room. Gina was more into the white lilies, and other basic yet simply not too girly flowers. I gazed at those lovely orangey peach colored roses, I was sighing at how much they remind me of home. After we left the stands, we go shopping for some new clothes and accessories, and end our day at the patisserie. I have one of their native specialties called a "tarte Tropezienne".
Back at the dorms, me and Paigey were walking back to our room when I saw a bouquet of flowers already put in a vase for "me?"
There was also a note attached to it, I picked up the orange peach roses along with the note and placed the flowers on my nightstand while reading the perfectly cursive handwriting written on the letter from my "mysterious friend."
"Tout l'amour que l'histoire sait est dit dans chaque rose. Encore tout l'amour que l'on peut trouver dans les deux, est inférieur à ce que je ressens pour vous. »
Translation: « All the love that history knows is said to be in every rose. Yet all the love that would be found in two is less than what I feel for you."
I was shocked, who on earth would send me flowers and knew exactly which kind I liked the most?
"Hey, where did those flowers come from?" Paigey asked
"Je ne sais pas mon amie." I replayed
"I bet that it was from that hot "Leonard" guy right?"
"Oh s'il tous plait! Leonard, really?"
"Pourqoui? You always tell me how much he annoys the hell out of you, maybe that's the real reason why he wants your attention so badly."
I look back at the beautiful vase filled with my roses, thinking that maybe Paigey is right.
What if he really does like me? If so, why would he even send me such lovely expensive gifts?
I asked the Queen of Hearts and Amelie for advice on this man's advances he made on me, and to whether or not to continue pursuing his kind gestures. The dream continues on as the dream wedding continues to shape up, while the two queens and I are gossiping endlessly for hours on end.
Chapter 10: "Frappe par la flèche de Cupidon"
It's almost Saint Valentin (Valentine's Day), and the thoughts of Leonard are still floating in my head. He appears in my dreams almost every night, looks at me wherever I go, and always surprises me with his letters he places in front of my door frequently.
I grab a seat at the table to eat my lunch in private.
"Bonjour? Est-il correct si je suis assis ici? »
I look up, and see Leonard standing right behind me wanting to start a conversation with me.
"Oui, avoir un siege."
He grabs a seat next to me, his eyes fixed on mine.
"Je suis désole, se il vous plait pardonnez-moi pour toutes les fois ou je te ai blesse. »
I refused to look at his face, even though he was right next to me.
"Je voulais juste que vous me aimez, mais il fait plus de mal que de bien, et je veux qu'il soit a vous… »
« Qu'est-ce que vous avez a l'esprit ? »
« Je pensais peut-être aller sur une promenade le samedi ? »
« Bien »
That following Saturday, we met up near the fountain at the Place d'Albertas. We walked on this path that had two statues on both sides facing each other from a distance, the trees showing the spring green leaves, the swallows singing, the smell of the freshly made food in the marches of Provence, and chocolat.
We talked about our hobbies, personal pursuits, and lives. I was surprised he knew a lot about me than I though he would, despite the fact he used to stalk me all the time.
*The conversation is in English this time.
"Tell me Stephanie, if you were to change one thing about yourself, what would it be?"
"Hmm, that's a tricky one." I said "I mean personally I wouldn't change anything other than my tendency to be self-centered most of the time."
"I would agree with that."
"Why?"
"I guess you can say that I once was a person I never fully liked in the first place." He said smiling.
Where was he going with this?
"When I was ten, my parents never spent any time with me. They tend to favor my cousin Julian for everything he does in his academics, I felt as if they never wanted me in the first place. Whenever I try to please them, it's like all they cared about was themselves and their careers. My dad wasn't like that before, he would always spend a lot of time with me in the park, and sometimes he would take me to the zoo to pet the animals in the menageries. There were also times where we go ride the carousals, build sandcastles in Nice, and even ride hot air balloons together."
"That sounds like a lot of fun; I have always wanted to ride in a hot air balloon."
"You have?"
"Yeah, no only that but go do the things you used to love doing."
"I still do, just by myself though. I never usually ask anyone to hangout with me, and the girls I used to hangout with just do nothing but humiliate me as if they weren't really interested in the first place. All they would ever try to do is get inside my pants. I'm also a virgin, and don't plan on having sex until I'm married."
"Have you ever dated any of them?"
"Technically yes, I kissed every single girl you can imagine, that was it. I could tell none of them wanted anything to do with me, it made me so angry that I wanted to punch a mirror or something, and I thought…" He paused for a moment, looking up at the sky. "That I wasn't going to stop, and end up becoming a monster from what I've become. A man with a big ego, no life, no friends, parents who barely even notice their own son, an intelligent yet sophisticated and snooty cousin who probably hates me, and then I see you..."
"Doing what?" I asked all worried and confused
"Probably thinking that I'm the worst person in the world trying to fit in like everybody else."
"I would never think of anything like that! Yeah, I hated that you were an asshole in the first place but that doesn't mean you are a bad person Leo!"
His face flashed back to mine all surprised "You don't?" he asked all teary eyed.
"Of course not."
He moved closer to me on the bench, and placed his hand on mine.
"I'm glad you think so, because I'm not what you think I am. All those rumors you hear about me sleeping with every girl I date, pushing people around, and me being a bully are not true. Everything Julian told you are all lies, every girl is jealous of you because of me wanting to…"
"To what?"
"Be with you, an innocent young woman whose hair is as red as the flames from the fire, eyes with the rich chocolat color hidden inside each iris, skin pale as the ivory statues, a mind filled with many talents and structured yet complex inner thoughts, a heart build like metal that's strong like the fleur de lys, and a rose that's never been plucked."
I was left breathless, not even a single breath I inhale could fill my lungs with air.
"Stephanie, I think you're an amazing person. You are everything that I look for in a girl like you, kind, understanding, outgoing, adventurous, creative, and intelligent. Will you be my Valentine?"
My heart fluttered with every pounding vessel in my blood stream.
"Yes Leonard, it would be my honor."
Later in the dorms, Paigey comes in and asks.
"Hey, watcha doin?"
I look at her smiling.
"What's going on?"
"Paigey, I got asked to be somebody's Valentine!"