Acacia
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Oh heavens. I'm sorry to leave you hanging (this isn't all of the date...), but this is all I could write. I won't have access to the Internet for the next week (I think I might die), so I won't be able to finish. And Blind-chan won't for awhile, either. D: So so sorry guys!!
★☽★☾★☽★☾★☽★☾★☽★☾★
That night, I couldn’t sleep a wink, my mind whirring as I contemplated everything that had happened between Dante and myself as well as our plans. Though I’d spent hours replaying it in my mind, I couldn’t figure out what had led him to invite me out. Would it really be a date? What kind of date? The possibilities nearly drove me insane.
After all the time I’d spent with him, I was beginning to question how I felt about him, how I truly felt.
Ignoring the cliche, I sensed that we’d made a connection on a level too deep for me to understand. In the least, he trusted me, seemingly more so than the others. Having never experienced any real relationships, let alone any of the romantic variety, I had no idea how to be sure if what I was feeling was truly... love or not. Though I had a feeling I knew the answer.
Nonetheless, it wasn’t the time to worry about that. In fact, there was never a time to deal with it. Such sentimental, frivolous things were pointless to dwell on.
Yawning, I pushed off the thick gray quilt, shivering only once in the chilly dawn air, and, as I let out a sigh, I rose to my feet, throwing a white cotton t-shirt and a pair of jeans on when I made it to my dresser.
~around 8:45 am~
“Colette, I appreciate you helping me, but I am not wearing this... this robe de bal,” I explained, backing away from the carnation pink gown. “I don’t think Dante would want me in something that atroce.” With a sigh, she replaced it on its hanger, clasping her hands as she peered at me.
“If you are looking for casual clothing, I am not particularly an expert,” she began, fluffing out her own dress unconsciously. “However, you simply cannot go out looking like that!” Feeling self-conscious, I glanced down at my current attire.
“What’s wrong with it? Il est décontracté.” With a sigh, she shook her head exasperatedly.
“Yes, it’s casual, but it isn’t date casual,” she countered, earning a puzzled look from me. “You must look like you didn’t try too hard when you really did.”
“Quel est le point de tout cela?” I demanded, growing flustered. Letting out another sigh, Colette moved to my closet, the rack embarrassingly bare.
“I’ll make do with what I have to work with, but you must be willing to cooperate,” she instructed, and, reluctantly, I nodded.
As she removed everything from my closet, I knew the next hour wouldn’t end well. Not with her dictating my appearance.
~around 9:30 am~
“Finished!” she exclaimed as she put the finishing touches on my eyes, their lids unnaturally heavy with the scarce makeup. Peering in the mirror, I narrowed my eyes, shocked by the transformation.
Since I hadn’t owned anything suited to her taste, she’d forced me to wear the dress from Russia and a pair of her heels. It was uncomfortable beyond belief, but I had agreed to it. As she admired her handiwork, a knock at the door startled us both.
“Who is it?” Colette called, still grinning.
“It’s Dante.” Paling ever so slightly, I glanced at the clock. He was almost twenty minutes early!
“NO! You must not come in!” Colette ordered. Ah, yes. Apparently it was improper etiquette to arrive so early.
“I was just going to tell Acacia to wear a swimsuit and she can bring a change of clothes in a bag. She might want to wear something casual over her swimsuit. ”
“A swimsuit?” I questioned, eyes wide. “I don’t think I have one.”
“Dante, please go away.” Colette pleaded.
“Okay...” Footsteps accompanied his voice as he returned to his room.
Turning to me, Colette shook her head.
“I have a bathing suit for you to wear, but you cannot wear a dress and heels to swim. That’s nonsense.”
“Hallelujah,” I mumbled, a small laugh escaping my lips.
“Remove your clothes. I will return momentarily. Fetch your... skinny jeans and sneakers, and keep the dress out. We will make this work.”
After three minutes, she returned, a black strapless bikini in her grasp.
“Oh, non. Je ne porte pas que,” I declined, backing away, already self-conscious.
“You do not have a choice. You wouldn’t want to disappoint him, would you?” Groaning, I obliged. “Put that on, then the dress, and tuck it into your jeans. No one will know the difference.”
How this girl didn’t even falter, I would never know.
~10:15 AM~
Still a bit flustered from his compliment, the first fifteen minutes in the car passed without any word exchange.
“Ah, where are we going?” I inquired, breaking the silence.
“I told you, Acacia, it’s a surprise!” he laughed, peering at me out of the corner of his eye. Pursing my lips, I stared out the windshield, enjoying the glow of the sun on my skin until we arrived at our destination.
“A river?” I questioned, blinking. Turning to me, his face solemn, he answered.
“Ah, I hope that’s alright,” he began, appearing remorseful, but, with a laugh, I jumped out of the car, moving toward the water.
“Vous plaisantez-moi?” I chuckled, facing him as he hurried to exit. “It’s been ages since I swam! This is fantastique.” Grinning, he quickly joined me, stripping off his shirt and tossing it carelessly behind him.
Well, d*mn. How had I never noticed how... good he looked before?
“Ah... e-excuse me for a moment,” I stammered, returning to the car and retrieving my black bag, pulling out the orange container and a bottle of water. After depositing two of the large, white pills into my hand, I whispered, “Ici va rien.” and closed my eyes.
As soon as I swallowed, I could feel the transformation taking place, and, when I opened my eyes once more, my skin had changed from its normal green to a creamy ivory, giving me the appearance of a “normal human.” If Dante could hide his wings, I could hide myself.
Hidden behind a web of lies
A faulty reality
To gain acceptance in his eyes
To experience free vitality
While I walked back to him, I managed to slip off my sneakers and socks, allowing the dirt beneath me to caress my toes. He was dipping his toes in the water, his gaze intense but distracted.
“Are we going swimming or what?” I questioned, his head snapping up to peer at me. He immediately did a double take.
“Y-your skin—” he stuttered, eyes wide.
“Oui, I have a pill,” I interrupted, enjoying his shock. “Now that we are out in the open, I figured it would be best for me to hide what I could of my... unicité.”
“I personally like your greenness,” he chuckled, meeting my eyes. “I know what you mean, though. Let’s swim, shall we?”
Smiling in response, I wriggled out of my jeans, tossing them toward the car as he slipped into the water. Quickly, I bit my lip as I lifted the dress-disguised-as-a-shirt over my head and tossed it in the same direction. Now very vulnerable, I sat along the edge of the water, licking my lips as I debated what to do.
“You coming?” he called, turning around. For a moment, his eyes widened, probably shocked at my apparel. “Wow. Uh... You look...”
“Awkward,” I finished, laughing.
“I was going to say fantastic, but you do look kind of awkward sitting on that rock,” he replied, and, should I have been able to, my cheeks would have burned. “Come on in!”
Taking a deep breath, I shoved off the rock, plunging into the chilly water and rejuvenating my entire body. As I came up for air, I laughed heartily, the sound genuine and rich.
For a few hours, we simply splashed around, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere and each other’s company. I’d expected this “date” to be maladroit, but, so far, it was quite the opposite. And the day had only just begun.
A surprising turn out
Unexpected, wonderful
To experience real happiness
In the company of an angel
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Again, sorry to kind of leave you hanging... Hopefully I'll post the rest of the date next weekend... D: oh gosh I feel horrid. Um... Yeah... Hope you enjoyed the first part of their date, though!! :3
