My Handsome Gaston

Chapter Two - Aplomb

I watch Gaston, slumped over in his large, affluent chair. He sits in wary stage, staring off into space as everyone chats around him.

"Is he feeling alright?" Someone asks, coming up from behind me.

I only shrug, I don't want to give away any personal information about Belle, so I say, "He's just a little frustrated. You know, it happens."

The person only smiles and walks away. I almost walk over to Gaston, but I fear if I do he might get angry with me. That's the worst thing that could happen.

He turns to look at me, and I feel myself shudder. The cold look in his eyes gives me tingles. He only raises his hand lowly and gestures for me to come over. I gulp and do so.

I hop up on the side of his chair, the left armrest, and put my arm around the top of the chair. I give him a pitiful smile.

"Don't look at me like that," he mutters.

"I'm sorry." I say, I really am. I know why he doesn't like pitiful smiles; he thinks it means that he is helpless and weak, and receiving condolence just isn't his type. Instead, I try to aim for a confident look. But I'm not confident. I'll never be. Because when Gaston is weak, so am I. When Gaston is strong, I know that I can be strong. As long as I'm with him.

"I'm not helpless," Gaston mumbles, and I turn to see him looking into my eyes. My heart pounds faster as I stare back into his. Weakness is interfering, and there has to be a way I can make him feel better.

"Who does she think she is?" Gaston grunts. "That girl has tangled with the wrong man!"

"Darn right," I say, bringing confidence back into his eyes.

"No one says no to Gaston! Dismissed! Rejected." Gaston cries angrily. "I'm disgraced..." he mutters, and that's when my heart skips a beat.

"Who? You? Never! Gaston, you've got to pull yourself together!" I say, still staring into his eyes that are filling with more confidence. "Gosh, it disturbs me to see you, Gaston, looking so down in the dumps. Every guy here'd love to be you, Gaston! Even when taking your lumps."

Gaston twitches a smirk away.

"There's no man in town as admired as you! You're everyone's favorite guy. Everyone's awed and inspired by you, and it's not very hard to see why."

The smirk finally reaches its way to the surface.

"No one's slick as Gaston," I say. "No one's quick as Gaston! No one's neck's as incredibly thick as Gaston's! For there's man in town half as manly! Perfect, a pure paragon! You can ask any Tom, Dick, or Stanley-"

Stanley smiles at me wildly. I shiver.

"And they'll tell you whose team they'd prefer to be on!" I cheer. "Who plays darts like Gaston? Who breaks hearts like Gaston? Who's much more than a sum of his parts like Gaston?"

"As a specimen," Gaston says with confidence bursting out of his eyes, "yes, I'm intimidating!"

"My, what a guy that Gaston!" Everyone around me cheers, and I smile at Gaston, who stands.