France

A few weeks later…

 

“Here we are.” Grigori said, opening the door to the house. Charoum stepped in. “Ooo...” She murmured, looking around.

 

The house wasn’t as large as Grigori’s home, but it was nice and cozy, which was good considering it was the middle of winter.

 

They had traveled to France, as Grigori promised, for winter vacation.

 

Charoum quickly scouted out a room, and brought her things into it. He chose a room across the hall from hers. They got settled rather quickly.

 

When she had finished with her preparations, she went out into the living room. There was a large seat window on the left wall, a fireplace on the opposite side, and a few couches. She wandered to the window seat, and carefully got onto it. Outside there was a few trees and some grass. Much to her disappointment, there was no snow. At least, there wasn’t any yet.

 

Grigori wandered out after a while, and immediately went to her.

 

“It’s too late to do anything, but if you like we can decide now what to do tomorrow…”

 

“Alright…” She said, looking up at him. When she didn’t move to get up, he sat beside her.

 

“We could go on a tour…go shopping…take a walk and see the scenery…” He paused, to see if any of that interested her.

 

“I’d like to go on a tour…” She said, watching his face. He nodded slightly, almost as if expecting that answer.

 

“We’ll do that, then.” He confirmed, standing. “Good night, Charoum…” He kissed her forehead and left. She stayed on the window seat for a few moments, savoring the feeling of his lips on her forehead. Her thoughts drifted, from his lips on her forehead, to his lips on hers. Eyes drifting closed, she remembered when the kissed, replaying it in her mind. She unconsciously licked her lips.

 

She rested against the wall, finding it wasn’t all that uncomfortable. It didn’t take long for her to float asleep in front of the window, and the dark world outside.

--

“<This is the house…>” A group of three men were surveying the house. “<Yeah, that’s his car alright…>” They were speaking in Russian, oddly enough.

 

“<Why are we bothering with this? There’s no way we’re going to find any of his weaknesses. He’s just on vacation.>” The second man fussed, looking around. “<Besides, it’s as cold as f**k out here.>”

 

“<No use in complaining. The boss is actually paying us to do this.>” The first replied, studying the house.

 

“<Huh? Hey, check this out!>” The third shouted from another part of the house. The other two immediately went to their companion. He was staring at a window on one side of the house.

 

“<Ooooh. Well would you look at that? A girl.>” The first murmured. They all stared at Charoum’s sleeping form.

 

“<The boss is gonna love this.>” He continued, grinning.

 

“<She’s only got one arm. That’s really weird.>” The second noted, with a faint hint of disgust.

 

“<Eh. Just easier prey.>” The first said with a shrug.

--

Charoum awoke with a start, feeling eyes on her. She looked out the window, but only darkness greeted her. Confused, she rubbed her eyes and got up. I can’t believe I fell asleep out here…oh well.

 

She wandered sleepily to her room, and curled up on the bed, quickly falling back asleep.

--

The next day, Charoum was awoken by Grigori. She dragged herself out of bed, and opened the door. He smiled warmly at her.

 

“Good morning, Charoum…”

 

“Mornin’…”

 

“What would you like for breakfast?” he asked, watching her.

 

A sudden idea sparked in her mind. “…can we go out somewhere?”

 

“Of course…”

 

She smiled and ducked back into her room, closing the door. It didn’t take long for her to get dressed, and she poked her head out a few minutes later. Grigori was still standing there, and when she walked out, he gently took her hand and led her outside.

 

Rather than taking the car, they simply walked. It didn’t take long for them to find a suitable place to eat. They were seated swiftly, and Grigori ordered them something or other; Charoum didn’t speak French.

 

Once the waiter had left, he turned to her.

 

“So…how are you this morning?” He asked softly.

 

“I’m fine…”

 

“Good, good…”

 

Then they sat in silence while they waited for their food. It’s not really like a date… She thought, taking a sip of her drink. But it’s close enough for me…

 

The food was as prompt as everything else. Grigori had ordered crepes. They were delicious; of course, she expected nothing less. Once they had eaten and paid, he led her off.

 

“It’s a walking tour…” He said suddenly. “Is that alright?” She nodded quickly, and took his hand.

 

To make a long story short, the tour was wonderful. The landscape was beautiful, and the buildings were stunning. There was not a single thing on the tour that wasn’t amazing in some way.

 

However, Charoum was happy just to hold hands and be close to Grigori. It made things that much better. In addition, it was incredibly cold, so she had an excuse to stay as close as possible.

 

They had lunch and dinner during the tour, and as she had done with breakfast, she thought of them as dates.

 

Near the end of the tour, she was exhausted.

 

“Would you like to go on and go home?” He asked softly. She shook her head.

 

“I want to see the rest…” As she spoke, her somewhat ragged breathing made it obvious she was starting to have trouble keeping up.

 

Suddenly, he swept her up into his arms. Ohmygoodness. He cradled her gently against his chest, and she closed her eyes in pleasure. Hearing the tour guide begin talking again, she opened her eyes and took in the scenery.

 

Finally, the tour ended, and he took her back to the house. She closed her eyes, and snuggled against him, happy to simply be close to him.

 

He carried her to her room, and gently placed her onto the bed.

 

“Goodnight, Charoum…” He murmured, kissing her on the forehead. She thought about kissing him, but thought better of it, and instead snuggled under the covers. He left, closing the door as quietly as possible, and she only heard a faint click.

Reviews

[*Kantola*]

A faint click of the door closing I hope! D:
That really leads me to think about this lol. This was good :3 I would've loved to have read more, but I guess that's just something that tomorrow will bring!