The Imitation Phantom

Chapter 7

Amour

Two months later

Felix looked up as the door to the suite opened. He was alone for the day. Father had forgone rehearsals to spend the day with Maman. Alouette had gone off somewhere with Noel as he shirked his responsibilities. Georgiana was busy with rehearsals so Felix was left to his own devices.

Gustave had decided not to come to Paris. He simply wasn't interested. Lazy and spoiled, he'd never been much for doing anything that required leaving home. The occasional visit was all Felix saw of him when they were home.
So he was on his own these days until someone returned to the suite or until Georgiana found him.

Closing his book, Felix waited to see who had come home so early. A red head poked around the corner and Georgiana grinned at him. He smiled back, feeling a now familiar skip of his heart.

"We have an hour break so I came to find you." She murmured, sashaying towards him. He smiled from where he reclined on the sofa and held a hand out. Curling his fingers around hers, he drew her down to the cushions and made room for her beside him. He swung his legs to the floor and slid to the other side.
She shifted until she was comfortable and facing him, her back resting against the armrest. "What are you reading?" She dropped her bag on the floor.

"Marlowe, Coleridge, and Keats." He gestured to the two other books sitting on the armrest beside him.

"Who?"

He smiled a little and held one book so she could see. "Poetry."

"Oh."

"Mm... How are rehearsals?"

"Great!" She launched into a description of how far along they were and how much there still was to do. Listening, Felix watched her emotions flit freely across her freckled face. He loved to listen to her. She was always so animated, talking with her hands and meeting his eyes with her own which lit up every time she caught him staring.

Over the last two months, she had tried to make time everyday to meet him. Even if it was only for a few minutes, she somehow found him wherever he was and promptly settled down close to him. She had coaxed his stutter away and endured his babbling about the buildings he encountered on his walks. Some days, if there was time, she even walked with him.

She claimed that she liked poetry as long as he was reading it and she liked architecture as long as he was describing it. In return, he confessed that he was a little more interested in music. She had taught him a country quadrille from England and spent a few days teaching him to read music.

Felix had never had a friend like her and he'd never felt the way he did now. Everyday he wondered when he would see her or if he could manage to persuade her into skipping rehearsal for a few hours.

He didn't know what love was like but the rational part of him said that he wasn't quite in love yet. He was too young and they had only been friends for two months. Still, there was something about Georgiana that made him want to stay in Paris.

Something... Who was he kidding? Everything about her made him want to stay.

True, she was talkative and sometimes he wanted a day when they could simply remain silent. She gossiped about other girls and she couldn't sit still for the life of her. But she was funny and always happy to see him. She was there for him when tension rose in the family. She never complained that he shied away from crowds and didn't want to go to any events, though he knew it annoyed her.

In return, he tried to be there for her when she was stressed about rehearsals or upset with her father. He tried to listen even when he wanted silence. And though he wasn't much for physical contact, he had learned to enjoy her hugs.