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 Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:09 pm
Eden cleared her throat and took another breath as she rubbed at the black smudges on her sleeves. “I guess I did,” she admitted. “It’s okay, you really don’t need to be sorry--” She smiled, the expression quick and fleeting as she glanced up at him and away again. She pulled her lip between her teeth and swallowed thickly, and a hand came up to brush few strands of hair from her face. “But uh--no, it’s alright. I can’t really, um… I can’t really explain it well. I’d probably just end up crying again!” She laughed, but it didn’t sound entirely genuine.
Without another moment of hesitation she pulled her purse closer to dig through it a bit too eagerly. She produced a small compact mirror and meticulously examined her face. Any smudges of mascara were carefully wiped away, and a tube of concealer took care of any revealed darkness under her eyes and the redness around her nose. The redness of her lips was passed off as intentional with a quick swipe of sweet-smelling gloss. Aside from the redness in her eyes, all traces of her breakdown had been wiped away.
“But thanks for, you know, not freaking out. I’m okay though.”
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Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:10 pm
Cesc watched her quietly as she busied herself with her makeup, carefully hiding as much as she could of her outburst. As much as it had hurt to watch her cry, something in his chest tightened further at this. A tube took away the redness in her nose and under her eyes, gloss hid the swell of her lips. She had a mask that traveled, that she could seal when it cracked, and there was nothing he could do for that. She preferred it. At least for now, she preferred it to letting things out or letting them go. At least with him.
“It’s…” He hesitated, looking down, passing his tongue over his teeth and frowning. She didn’t want to discuss it. She said as much, said it plainly. He couldn’t pull more out of her when it was so far embedded. “I just want you to know, everything--I think everything you do is more than enough. I hate--hate that you’ve called yourself, or think of yourself as…” Cesc couldn’t quite say it, the word: leech. It was the second time he’d heard her say it, two times too many, and he didn’t want to hang it in the air. “I hate that you feel like that. And if you do want to talk about it, not now but any time, I am here.”
She couldn’t wipe the red from her eyes so easily, and Cesc found himself pulling off his baseball cap with one hand. He ruffled the flatness of his curls back to life with the other hand.
“If you want,” he said. “It’s hard--with the beanie and the braid, I mean--for your eyes.”
Rhedefre gave a half-smile and a laugh then, one that made gentle his expression. “We could trade. I think I could rock a beanie look.”
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Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:15 pm
Despite her fresh efforts to conceal how raw and vulnerable she was, Cesc’s words brought the burning threat of tears back to Eden’s eyes. She blinked quickly and looked toward the ceiling again, watching the golden light bounce off of its white paint. She swallowed so hard that Cesc could surely hear it as he struggled to find words. The way he avoided the name she’d called herself only cemented its venom in her mind, even if she knew he refused to use it out of concern. She managed a tight but appreciative smile as she dropped her chin again--but only when any remnants of blurry tears had vanished. She’d done enough crying today.
“Thanks, I… I know.” Her reply felt extremely lame compared to his heartfelt assertion, but she had nothing else. At the very least, Cesc seemed a better option for deep conversations than Vesna. The idea of not being able to go to her absolute best friend still lodged a firm ache in her chest, but she pushed it down. If Vesna was her best friend, then Cesc was behind her by only a hair.
Eden looked up when Cesc removed his hat and watched his curls. She envied the color, a shining raspberry pink so unlike her own faded, dusty pastel. The offer took her by surprise and she couldn’t help the soft laugh that bubbled up. She knew the redness in her eyes would fade in a little while, but how could she refuse? “Oh I’m sure you can. The question is whether or not I can pull off a baseball cap.” She had only barely toed the athletic look in the past. She pulled her beanie off with a gentle flourish and carefully smoothed any flyaways down before letting the cap settle on her head. She made a little ‘ta-da’ motion and smiled. It fit about as well as she’d expected, but at least her hair didn’t stick out of the holes he’d made for his ears.
“Oh! Your ears--the beanie doesn’t have holes…”
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Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:16 pm
That, Cesc supposed, was going to have to be that. At the very least, he let her know that he was open to talking—was open to listening—whenever she needed it. If she took him up on it, it would be a relief. But if she didn’t…
…well, he couldn’t dwell on that. Not now, anyway, when she’d made it abundantly clear she didn’t want to continue the conversation. And the waitress, with a golden tray full of their goodies, was approaching.
The golden glare barrier Cesc put up dissolved, like the sun passing behind a cloud. He reached a hand out and took the soft beanie from the tabletop, and as the waitress approached, he stuffed it onto his head in a single motion, smoothing both his hands over the sides of it. It did necessitate him to flatten his ears against his head and it did muffle sound a touch, but his hearing was sensitive enough for it not to truly hinder him unduly. He sent Eden a winsome smile: “I don’t know, I think I can pull it off…”
“I hope you guys are hungry!” The waitress said politely with a smile, setting down her tray and gracefully unloading dish by dish before them. Each dish was exquisitely designed and decorated: the finger sandwiches were sublime, small and sliced as though measured with a ruler, the sides clean and tidy. One dessert was a profiterole, the woman explained, with almond brittle and whipped cream in the middle, piped in ridged florettes. The top of the perfectly golden pastry sported a chocolate bow dusted with gold leaf. The second dessert, a cylindrical white cake cut into smooth layers, had pink and red alpine strawberries arranged in perfect layers. The top of the cylinder was dusted with powdered sugar and topped with a small mountain of glazed miniature strawberries, aligned with golden pearls.
Cesc’s Bellini, too, was expertly decorated—passion fruit flavored, the waitress explained—served in a vintage pink champagne flute. And Eden’s smoothie, pink as she was, had berries cut in the shape of a rose perched on the rim of her curved glass.
“Looks amazing,” Rhedefre told the waitress with a smile.
“You guys do, too!” She replied genially, pointing at them both and then criss-crossing her arms: “I like the switch. Very chic.”
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Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:20 pm
Just as Cesc pulled her beanie on, the waitress arrived with a tray laden will all sorts of delicious, gorgeous treats. Eden gaped at them as she laid them out on the table, unable to keep the smile off her face. She bit her lip and tried not to dwell on the fact that she couldn't really eat them. She would do her best, with Cesc's help. Surely a place like this would pride itself on organic, minimally-processed ingredients. And at the very least they were beautifully plated. It would make for a great Instagram post.
The Frei beamed up at the waitress and toyed with her braid. “Thanks! Oh my gosh, this is incredible!” She held onto the edge of her seat in an effort to possibly conceal her ribbon.
When the waitress left, Eden couldn't help continuing to grin. “We do look pretty good, huh? We should um… Maybe a selfie? That'd be cute, right?” She felt a small little thrum of energy flow through her at the thought. It would be a good picture, that was certain. And perhaps taking a selfie would help convince him, at least for now, that she was mostly okay. Picking up her phone, she quickly checked the lighting--perfect, as she'd guessed in this place--and looked at him expectantly.
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Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:22 pm
Cesc was looked down at Eden and let out a breath of a laugh at her suggestion. It didn’t seem calculated or for his benefit; she seemed to genuinely want to take a selfie, which, at least in some measure, meant that she was feeling a touch better. At least for the moment. At least for now.
He’d take that.
“Oh yeah, gotta capture this fashion look right here,” he said, grinning. “And then you can take as many pics of these as you want. Here to help with the lighting, even.”
He scooted closer to her and slid down slightly to get nearer to her level. He tried on a smile, half-tilted. “I’m an amateur, now, so you just direct me how you want."
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Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:25 pm
Eden's smile grew bigger when he agreed. She hadn't expected him to say no, but it was still nice. She rolled her eyes and waved a hand. “Oh puh-lease. Just smile, we don't need anything fancy.” Oh, if only that were true. She cued up the camera and held her phone expertly in one hand, the grip practiced and surprisingly stable. It took little if any effort for her to find a shot where both of them were perfectly visible with the soft pink velvet of the booth behind them.
The Frei puckered her lips and smiled as if preparing to kiss the camera, and held up a hand near her face as she leaned closer to Cesc. She pinched her fingers together in a tiny heart and winked just in time for the shutter to catch it. She wouldn't make him try more than once--actually, it has turned out pretty well for a first try. She beamed and eagerly held the screen up to show him. “So cute! Okay, time to dig in. I can't not try some of this stuff, even if I get sick later. So worth it!” She reached for her smoothie first, making sure to snap a photo with Cesc's bellini before she plucked the strawberry from the top.
Her worries may not have gone away, but at least she could push them aside for now. It was only fair, even if Cesc had made it clear he was there for her. Surrounded by such beautiful things and such tasty desserts, she would hate to bring the mood down any more than she already had. He had invited her here for a good time, and she would have plenty of time to mope later.
Besides--she wasn't sure she wanted to see that sad, pained look on Cesc's face again for a very long time.
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