The sun sent its warm rays faintly over the city of Marley, ennobling the roofs, facades, streets, window reflections with its golden glow, and the blond man with the beard and distinctive round glasses smiled.
An honest smile, free of worry or sorrow. From the window of his room he could see outside into the courtyard and he saw the neighbouring children playing and frolicking with each other.
Zeke Jäger, the commander of Marley's soldiers, was pouring a fine drop of red wine into his glass when there was a soft, even timid knock on his massive ebony door.
Who could that be?
What did they want from him now?
The tall man walked deliberately slowly and calmly to the door and opened it with a flourish.
There she stood.
His muse.
And at the same time his nemesis.
The reason for his sleepless nights.
And the reason why he got up every morning anyway.
Her moss-green eyes looked up into his blue eyes and he could read them. As if from an open page in a book. She felt alone, wanting the company of another person she had grown to love.
"Good evening, Mister Jäger."
Her voice was just a soft whisper and he blinked in perplexity.
"May I come in?" she asked with a gentle smile and he nodded quickly, eyeing her. She was wearing a plain red long-sleeved night dress and her hair was tied in a ponytail, the dark red ribbon matching the colour perfectly. However, the young woman was not wearing shoes.
"I heard you're leaving on the train tomorrow night?" the blonde haired man asked and the young woman with the dark red hair just nodded, looking around his room.
"You took the pictures down?" she asked with a sly grin and he nodded, returning her smile.
"Good decision, your room doesn't seem so... gloomy now." she whispered, nodding to reinforce her statement.
It was impossible to resist her charm. As if casually, she took his glass of wine from his hand and took a sip of the noble drop, looking him firmly in the eyes.
A soft red glow appeared on his fair skin and she smiled triumphantly, mischievousness flashing in her eyes.
"Why did you come to me anyway?" he asked the young woman and she just smiled, slowly walking over to his old record player and gently stroking it. The dust stuck to her index finger and she blew it away. With a nimble hand movement she put the record on and set the needle down on it.
Tchaikovsky's first notes of the Waltz of the Flowers rang out and Zeke was caught in the moment, letting it guide her briefly. The first bars faded and she looked at him promptly. Of course he would give the escort. But suddenly she put her hand on his hip, pulling him closer to her petite body with a jerk, and for the life of him he couldn't stop himself from gasping in surprise.
His nose caught her scent; flowery and soft, like the first morning breeze after a balmy summer night. Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers metaphorically made the blossom awaken in him and the young woman in front of him also literally blossomed with every turn she made with him. Her smile widened, his movements became looser and more supple. He let himself fall under her spell and the gentle crackling and scratching of the needle on the record player added to the atmosphere that enveloped the room in restrained longing.
Yes, restrained longing.
That described the relationship with the young woman who was dominating him in the dance. His sky-blue irises literally bored into her moss-green ones and his heart suddenly beat a few beats faster. She was still his soldier, his subordinate.
"I have come to you to ask your permission, Mister Jäger." she smiled at him with delight and his face heated, a soft blush adorning his cheeks.
"What are you asking my permission for, Miss?" he asked curiously and her joyful smile now seemed shy, almost guarded. "I would like to ask for the hand of a soldier. But my sweetheart holds a higher position..." Miss Thielemann left the sentence open and it was as if he was at a loss for words. As if he suddenly didn't know what language they were using. What was it like to understand and process what someone else had heard?
Inwardly he laughed at himself,
his naivety.
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UNTOLD SECRET - Zeke Yeager FF OS Eng
FanfictionMaybe he should have said something. But maybe he should have let actions speak for themselves. Perhaps - but only perhaps - he was simply a complete idiot, blinded by love.
