˗ˏˋ꒰ 💭 ꒱ ━ ☐ The serenpidity is the ability to make an unexpected discovery by chance. The serendipitist is the person who knows how to take advantage of unforeseen circumstances and, above all, does not allow chance to dominate them.
France, 1963...
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:; She's a, she's a lady and I am just a boy - ricky montgomery ✏️
Voltaire High courtyard, 10:36 AM
The schoolyard buzzed with the chatter and laughter of students. Lily-Rose sat on a bench, engrossed in a book.
Her serene face betrayed her total absorption in her reading, ignoring the curious looks and whispers of the other students around her.
Suddenly, a shadow loomed over her, breaking her concentration. She recognized him instantly by his brown hair and eyepatch. His mocking smile and teasing gaze were aimed squarely at her.
"Well, well, look what we have here ! The beautiful aristocrat devouring a book. Aren't you bored with all that boring literature ?" he jeered.
"I always find pleasure in reading, unlike some," she simply replied, her eyes still on her book.
"Oh, forgive me, princess ! I didn't know aristocrats still knew how to read these days. You'd better spend more time learning to be a good wife for your fiancé rather than getting lost in your books."
She ignored his comment and tried to return to her reading, but Joseph grabbed the book. Lily-Rose felt a spike of irritation rise within her as she stood up to reclaim her book.
"It's just romantic literature, something you might struggle to understand," she declared, reaching out to retrieve her property.
Joseph smirked and held the book out of her reach. He was much taller than her.
"Oh yeah ? And why is that ? Because I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth like you ?" he said, ignoring her attempts to retrieve the book. "Ah, Virginia Woolf, really ?" he continued, flipping through the pages quickly. "I bet you don't even understand half of what she's saying."
She sighed, feeling frustration mounting within her. "Give me back my book."
He met her gaze for a moment, but eventually handed her the book.
"Alright, alright, princess. But tell me, what can an aristocrat like you find interesting in these old dusty pages ?"
"You wouldn't understand anyway," she replied, calmly placing her bookmark back and standing up from the bench, ready to leave.
Then, without giving him another glance, she walked away, leaving him to watch her go, an indefinable glint in his eyes.
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𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐏𝐈𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐘
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Voltaire High library, 1:14 PM
Joseph stood alongside his friends. The two other boys looked perplexed, wondering what was driving their friend to take them to such an unfamiliar place.
"Why on earth are we here ?" Jean asked, casting an inquisitive glance around the silent room.
Charles nodded in agreement. "Yeah, seriously. We're not bookworms. We don't need to hang out in this place," he added, leaning against a wall.
Joseph flashed an enigmatic smile before heading towards a shelf. His friends followed, still puzzled about his intentions.
They watched him carefully as he sifted through the shelves, searching for something specific, before stopping in front of a book with a plain yet elegant cover.
"Virginia Woolf ?" Charles murmured, eyeing the cover and shaking his head.
"What are you doing with a book like that ?"
Joseph shrugged. "Maybe I just want to broaden my horizons," he replied evasively, keeping the mystery surrounding his sudden interest in literature.
The two friends exchanged a perplexed look, unsure of what to make of it.
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𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐏𝐈𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐘
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Voltaire High courtyard, 3:32 PM
He strolled casually across the courtyard, his gaze wandering until he spotted Lily-Rose. Cigarette in hand, he approached.
"Hey, princess," he called out, deliberately ignoring the curious glances of the other students around them.
"What do you want ?" she asked with an exasperated sigh. Joseph shrugged nonchalantly, his smile widening.
"Just wanted to spend some time with my favorite classmate," he replied, his eyes twinkling with amusement as he dropped down onto the bench beside her.
Lily-Rose rolled her eyes, knowing full well he wasn't here out of simple kindness. " I doubt you came here for conversation."
"You know me too well," he admitted, then, as if suddenly remembering something, he pulled a book out of his bag and handed it to Lily-Rose. "Here, thought you might like this."
She looked at the book in astonishment, her brows furrowing slightly. It was Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse.
Lily-Rose hesitated for a moment, then took the book from his hands. "Why did you...?" she began, but Joseph interrupted with a wave of his hand.
"Consider it a gesture of goodwill," he said simply.
She looked at him in astonishment, a glimmer of gratitude in her eyes. Perhaps he wasn't as callous as he pretended to be.
"Thank you," she murmured, her eyes meeting his for a brief moment as she held the book against her chest.
"No problem," he replied, before getting up to leave, leaving Lily-Rose with her book and a growing sense of curiosity about the rebellious boy hiding behind his facade.
Intrigued, she flipped through the pages, wondering what could have motivated this gesture and if there was a hidden message.
As she reached the first page, something fell out of the book and landed in her lap. It was a piece of paper folded in half.
She opened it and saw a crude drawing of a pair of breasts. Realizing the vulgarity of the drawing, she looked up at Joseph, who was walking away, a mischievous smile on his lips.
Her cheeks flushed with anger and indignation. How dare he pull such a stunt on her ? He got her good.
