Stronger (18+)

2. Icing on the cake

Maya looked up at Zoe and the look in her eyes was a clear signal that she understood. But then again how could she.

Maya had been so honoured.

* * *

"Tell me more," Zoe said enthusiastic and Maya's dread lessened. This had been a happy time in her life.

"After those first few meetings Monsieur Fabre had with his Japanese clients, he went back to France and my life returned to its usual routines. The meetings had according to him been successful and my father couldn't stop mentioning how well I had done. It was obvious he was proud and so was I. Beyond my father's praise, my life suddenly felt very slow and bland. On occasion, my friend Hiroko happened to hear my father speak well of my work and she couldn't wait to tell our teacher Miss Kimura even if I begged her not to. That next day came and Hiroko proudly told our teacher about my success and the pride was clear in her voice. I happened to see Miss Kimura's eyes just at that moment and noticed a certain glow that always did strange things to me; my pulse raced and I felt buoyant." Maya looked up at Zoe and even if none of them said anything, the wide look in Zoe's eyes told Maya that the girl understood what Maya now suspected.

"My teacher was on the strict side and said: "Mayako, you do know that pride is one of the deadly sins, don't you?" I did my best to mimick that steely cold edge that made me want to try harder to please her. I bowed slightly to her. "It is all due to your teaching Miss Kimura." Even if that old dragon didn't smile, I could see that she was proud of me."

* * *

"My life got much brighter every time Arnaud Fabre came to visit our town; every time he requested my company." As Maya told the story for her close friend, she lost herself in it.

With a light heart she walked one step behind the man to his meetings. By his side Maya sat discretely hissing words to him just as the other partners had their own translators. She was eager to please the man and light filled her heart as a satisfied smile spread on his face.

Maya especially remembered a tea ceremony that they attended together, well it was a party between him and his clients of course, but in the silence while the exquisite girl performanced the ceremony, Maya secretly wished to performance this to Monsieur Fabre personally.

With her whole body fluttering in a way Maya had never experienced before she wondered what was going on with her. The dream of family that her girlfriends shared hadn't come to Maya, but in this man's company she started to wonder.

She would gladly do what he wished. .

His foreign way of smiling wide or show irritation was amazing to her and she started to wonder what his country was like. Was every man as muscular and sinewy as him? Did everybody speak with their hands fluttering around like that? Did they all speak so loud and show that much emotion? It must be a land of chaos, Maya imagined.

She longed to see it.

* * *

Spring was upon them and Maya explained to Monsieur Fabre about the cherry-blossom festival that is tradition in her country. "Sakura Matsuri..." she humbly explained and couldn't help a giggle erupting as he tried to pronounce it.

He looked surprised at her and she bowed respectfully. The laughter had further added to the enticement of this intriguing little girl. He had to remind himself that she was only seventeen and definitely off limits. "You have a beautiful laughter, Mayako," he surprised her by saying.

"Arigato." She bowed with a fluttering heart but couldn't help the secretive smile from spreading.

Mere days later, Maya was walking beside this charismatic man along a pink path while cherry blossom snowed down on them. In Maya's eyes it was a great pleasure to share this experience with him and couldn't help herself but to smile now and then.

Traditional paper lanterns hung in this garden and lots of people walked around watching the beauty of the trees and enjoying themselves. Maya had packed a specially prepared bento that she carried as she walked carefully so she wouldn't embarrass him by slipping on those treacherous wooden shoes. They sat down on the ground under the trees as so many others did. Maya saw a few of her friend's families and they respectfully nodded to each other as music mixed with laughter filled the garden.

Monsieur Fabre was amazed as Maya opened the bento to serve him. "This is beautiful Mayako," he expressed and she didn't care that pride was a mortal sin. On her knees before him Maya explained in French what the different courses were and how to dip the nigiri with the rice upwards so the salt of the soysauce wouldn't take over. As he struggled with the chopsticks, she discretely helped him by feeding it to him. The look he gave her made her hands start to shake and her body was fluttering. It felt very intimate and something she had never done before.

They had a relationship Maya had never shared with anybody before and as she showed him their way of life, he explained the European way. She was enthralled.

As dusk fell, the ambiance of the park changed. People had swallowed down an impressive amount of sake, which was obvious in the boisterous laughter and conversations.

Petals of cherryblossoms fell and Arnaud picked them from Maya's hair. Everything about her made his resolution harder to hold. She deserved more than he could give her and that little fact of life helped him back off. She smiled up at him and showed him that he needed to shake his own head to get rid of the petals that rested in his own hair. He raked his hand through it and Maya carefully removed a few petals. Instantly she got breathless and he looked straight at her with those mesmerising eyes.

She had to actively work hard to break off the gaze they shared and her pulse raced.

Was she falling for this man?

As darkness fell, many girls were already attending dances for the men that sat down drinking sake. "Would you dance for me?" Arnoud asked silently. They had found a little remote place in the garden where they sat under the trees.

Maya held her breath for a moment. "Hai," she breathed out and slowly got on her feet. Her entire body tingled with goosebumps, she had performed many times before but this was something very different.

The fragile guitar played as Maya raised her arms and started to slowly perform a dance for the man in front of her.

.