Letters to Audrine

5- Chicken in Wine

The next day, I make sure to put more effort into my appearance. Now that I'm fully aware that I'll be seeing Silas again; with how nervous I was yesterday in his presence feeling as sweaty and gross as I was, I want today to be different.

I put my hair up in a sock bun to keep it all neat, and I use a little bit of hair spray and some bobby pins to keep my baby hairs from becoming flyaways. I apply my deodorant after lunch, and I keep it on the dresser so that it's ready when it's time to go meet up with Audrine and Silas tonight.

Yesterday caught me by surprise, but I'm going to be ready for it today. Although I don't have an extensive wardrobe here in my suitcase, it still takes me a long time to decide what to wear.

I'm staring at two different dresses trying to decide which one to wear, but I'm interrupted by my phone's beeping sound.

"Bonjour, butt smasher," the message reads. Silas's username is boring, just silas.daniels00. Which makes me feel even more embarrassed about my username. "Ready for dinner?"

"Oui," I respond to the message in one of the only words of French that I know and then I add, "Leaving soon."

Now knowing that I'm keeping them waiting, I have to choose quickly. In the heat of the moment, I grab the floral sundress and my denim jacket, thinking that it might cool down by the time I get home tonight.

I wish that I brought more makeup with me now too. I do enjoy doing my makeup when I'm at home, but it wasn't a priority when I was packing. I only grabbed some foundation and mascara, which I'm wearing now, but I definitely wish that I could spruce it up some more with a liquid eyeliner and subtle lipstick. Maybe once I get my bearings in this town, I'll find somewhere to buy makeup.

After sliding on my favorite dress out of my small selection, I reapply my deodorant one last time and make sure that my bun is secure. Feeling as confident as possible, I leave my hotel room and start making the walk toward the restaurant.

Silas had messaged me earlier to tell me that the side door is open and that I can just come up. The restaurant is open, so I have to pass the customers on the patio and squeeze passed a waiter to get to the side of the building. The smell of fresh baked bread fills the air and makes me even hungrier than I already am.

Up the stairs, the smell of bread starts to turn more warm and herby; my mouth is starting to water. I see Silas in the kitchen, standing at the stove, when I walk in.

"Hi," I greet him as I walk in. "It smells amazing in here."

"Hopefully it tastes as good," he says as he ladles something from the pot on the stove into two separate bowls and brings them both to the table. "What do you want to drink?"

"Just water is okay," I notice that he isn't filling another bowl with food, so I ask, "Is it just the two of us?"

"Yeah, Audrine is working the bakery downstairs tonight," Silas informs me as he fills two glasses of water and places them at the table as well. As I walk closer to the set table, the food in the bowls looks like a brothy chicken stew full of vegetables. "Is that okay?"

"Sure," I sit down at the table and place my purse on the seat beside me. Even though I say that it's okay, when I realize that it's just going to be the two of us, I start getting clammy. This feels very much like a date now, even though I know that's not the case.

"This is called coq au vin," he says as he sits across from me at the table. "Chicken in wine. And you look nice, by the way."

The compliment takes me by surprise; I wasn't expecting it, and he says it with such a calm voice, like it was just a quick note at the end of him talking about the chicken.