Golden Boy

29. Esquivel

Coming upon the tiny village of Esquivel was like stepping into a storybook.

As a gentle snow fell, the seven friends walked onto the main street. The street was lined with little buildings on both sides - shops, cafés, ski rentals, all with wooden porches covered in twinkling Christmas lights. Local people walked in pairs or in family groups, all bundled up in heavy coats and hats, smiling and huddling together against the cold of the evening.

Muffled guitar and pan flute music hummed softly over the snowy road, coming from inside a small café out of which wafted the inviting smell of coffee and chocolate. Camellia smiled softly to herself, soaking in the enticing atmosphere, and she linked arms with Hermione beside her.

The new-fallen snow crunched beneath their boots as they walked, their noses and cheeks becoming numb from the cold, but no one seemed to care.
Camellia could hear Fred's laugh up at the front of the group, and her heart skipped a beat.

Over all the music, the chatter of the people around them, and the cars passing by, his voice was by far the most captivating sound. She watched him for a moment- throwing his head back with laughter, talking animatedly with his hands to his brothers, nodding hello to passerby... his confidence and energy were infectious, and they had been for as long as she'd known him.

She was lost in her own peaceful fascination, and Hermione turned to look at her as they walked, squeezing their interlocked arms.

"I love the way you look at him," she said with a soft smile. "It's the sweetest thing."

Camellia smiled shyly at her friend. "I can't help it," she said quietly. "It's like every time he laughs, I get a crush on him all over again..."

"You know he looks at you like that, too," she said, her voice as gentle as the snowfall. "All the time, when you're not looking. I remember one time, you two had been sitting on the sofa together for a while just talking while we were all over at their flat, and you'd gotten up to get something... he just sat there, waiting for you with his head back and his eyes closed, just smiling to himself."

The image was so clear in Camellia's mind, and her stomach fluttered. "Really?" she asked, her eyes trained on Fred once again.

"It was so romantic," Hermione said. "I mean, you and I have known him for so long- haven't you noticed how much more relaxed he is around you? How much happier he seems?"

Up in the front, Fred had given another booming laugh and turned around to walk backwards so he could talk to Ron, Harry and Ginny as well as George. His smile was so handsome and happy, his eyes bright with enthusiasm as he spoke, and for a moment his eyes met Camellia's.

For that single moment, time seemed to slow. She watched his eyes meet hers, and a boyish grin spread across his face at the same time. He was still telling his story, but for only a few seconds, he was looking at Camellia, and something about his gaze softened. It was like he was laying eyes on her for the first time.

He turned back to the others as he continued speaking, but even as his head moved he kept his eyes on Camellia, that soft gaze lingering for another short while, before he was fully back into his conversation.

"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say that boy was in love with you," Hermione said in a voice only Camellia would hear.

Cam giggled softly, "Oh, yeah?" she teased, and Hermione laughed along with her.

"I'm telling you, Cami... I've never seen him so happy as he's been the last few months. It's all because of you."

Hermione's words lingered in her mind, and all Camellia could think of was how very much she wanted to be the reason he was happy for as long as she possibly could.