The Phantom's Admirer By: K.C.M

Chapter 17: Dinner with Alexandre

I sat by the door and waited for Alexandre. Time had passed slowly that day, and those few minutes before he arrived were no exception. I just stared at the clock and watched the seconds go by. It was almost like a trance, one that I was snapped out of by the sound of knocking at my door. "Come in."

Alexandre opened the door and had on his usual smile. "Are you ready?" He asked. "Yes."

"Then let's go." We walked out of the building and over to his buggy. He sat in the front to steer and I sat in the back. He looked nice. Not dressed too fancy for something like dinner, but also not too casual to where he looked like he'd be handling one of his animals. Just, nice.

"Ready?" He called.

"Ready." Then he rode off. The streets and building went by and eventually disappeared. The streets were replaced by gravel and the buildings were replaced by trees. There were a few houses here and there, but besides that it was a very secluded place.

Alexandre suddenly turned and sped his horses up. The trees quickly blurred together. The wind blew my hair back and I couldn't help but laugh. He turned around for just a minute and I could see he was grinning from ear to ear. "Turn around and steer!" I said through laughter, and he did.

Soon enough, we arrived at his home. It was small, but pleasant, and you could see nothing but trees and fields behind it. There were small pins with a few chickens, pigs, and a stable for horses. He must have noticed me staring at the place, because he said, "Do you like it?"

"Yes, I like it very much, but it's a little far away from everything. Don't you think?"

"Maybe a little, but I sort of like it that way."

"Really?"

"Really." We had both lived at the opera house, which was in the center of the city, for most of our lives. It was strange that he didn't want to be around what he was familiar with. It was also strange that I would want to remain so close to something that I was far too familiar with. It was just all strange in general.

"Would you like to go inside?" He asked, pulling me out of my thoughts. "Actually, I think I would like to see the horses." Alexandre gave a charming little smile and my stomach fluttered a little again. "Come on," he said, starting to walk towards the stable. "I'll show them to you. I need to put the horses up anyway."

We walked in and I observed what was around me. It wasn't a large stable, but still had room for maybe 5 or 6 horses plus horse supplies. The smell of hay and horses was very welcoming, and I smiled. Alexandre made some clicking noises and a couple horses walked up and stuck their heads over the stall door. One was white with a brown patch on its right eye, and the other was red with a bright red mane. The ones that were pulling the buggy were both large, strong horses. The bigger one was dark brown and the other was light brown with a blonde mane. "The ones in the stalls are both mares." He said while he started putting the other two up. I went over and pet the white one. It stuck its head out to me and my hand ran down its neck. "She's sweet." I said as Alexandre finished with the horses and walked up beside me. "Yeah, she's the most calm out of the four. Her name is Clémence. The dark brown one is Apollinaire, the light brown one is Blaise, and the other mare is Aimée. They all have their own personalities you see. Apollinaire is the leader of them all. He's headstrong, powerful, and stubborn. Blaise is a gentle soul, but fast as the wind. Clémence is sweet, gentle, and patient. Aimée acts the most wild of them all. She's hard to catch, cautious of everyone around her, and very resistant to what ever you try to do, but once you do catch her and settle her down, she's actually sweet and kind." He spoke of each one with fondness. They were all special to him. "Which one's your favorite?" I asked him, watching his eyes widen and his lips draw back into a small smile. His cheeks began to turn into a light red and he quickly turned to the door so I wouldn't see. "Aimée." There was a small moment of silence before he excused himself to make dinner. "Would you like me to help?" I called after him. "No, you stay here. It's clear you like them!" He called back as he left me alone with the horses. They all looked at me with their large eyes and I was drawn to Aimée. I walked to her stall and just stood at the door for a long while. We stared at each other, until finally I stuck out my hand and she hesitantly pressed her muzzle against it. Slowly, I slid my hand down her rich, red fur and we both closed our eyes.