Ava's senses were overloaded at every turn. The loud music and large crowd of people combined with the different smells of food at every stall was a lot to take in, but she wouldn't have it any other way.
To say that she was enjoying herself would be an understatement; she was having the time of her life. The activities were light-hearted and easy to do and even Sébastien was in an obviously good mood, elevating hers even further.
"I don't know if I can do this," Ava said, eyeing the large rollercoaster in front of them. Every time a group of people sped by she could hear their screams echoing. It had seemed fun enough before but now they were waiting in line she started to question her decision.
"We can leave if you really don't want to. But it's really fun I promise."
"I don't want to leave but... I don't know."
"It's almost our turn, so you'll have to make a decision soon."
"What if something happens?'"
"It pretty much never does."
"Pretty much?"
"Don't worry about it."
"Well, now I'm worrying."
"When I specifically asked you not to," he sighed.
They reached the end of the line and he turned to her. "Last chance to back out."
But she didn't want to look like a coward, and he'd already gotten the tickets so she knew she couldn't back out. The ride wouldn't take that long, anyways. She'd survive. And if she didn't, at least she didn't die a wuss.
"I can do this," she said more to herself than to him, but her stomach still turned when the time to get in arrived and she had to force herself to move forward.
The grip she held on the bars that held her down was stronger than steel and she refused to let go of them before the end. With wide eyes, she turned to Sébastien who smiled assumingly to her before she had to tear her eyes away to focus on the rails in front of her.
When it suddenly dropped she let out a scream and she hoped it got drowned out by the wind and other people screaming. Adrenaline shot through her veins and she couldn't help but start laughing.
If it was nervous laughter or one of joy she couldn't say.
They went up and down and left and right and she could hardly keep up with everything. The longer it went on the more she learned to enjoy the ride, making her fear she would want to do this all again.
As quickly as it had started it also ended as the car slowed down again, allowing her to catch her breath. She glanced at Sébastien beside her and saw that he was smiling as well.
There still was so much she didn't know about him. His personality was mostly guarded and you'd never even realize he didn't say anything about himself. But this showed her that he at least liked rollercoasters and she had to add that to her small list of things she did know about him.
"What'd you think?" he asked her while they waited for the bars to go back up and release them.
"I don't know," she panted while trying to gather her thoughts. "It was really fun, I think. But also scary. Let's go again," she said, causing him to laugh and shake his head. "We can go back another time if you want, there are still a few things I want to show you."
The bars holding them down suddenly went up and they climbed out, Sébastien a little more graceful than Ava as she almost stumbled out. She eyed the platform to calculate how she could reach it when he held out his hand. When she grabbed it without thinking, he pulled her toward him and onto the platform.
"Thanks," she mumbled while trying to hide her reddening cheeks. "You're welcome," he smiled back before turning to walk off.
The boulevard was getting impossibly crowded with people and she wondered what it'd be like in nicer weather. She couldn't imagine the lines getting any longer than this. When the pathway became smaller and the crowd of people slowed down she had no choice but to walk behind him for a bit. She didn't mind this; it allowed her to look at him a little closer without him noticing.
His hair was getting a little longer than she was used to, probably due to his long workdays and the lack of free time which allowed him to get a haircut. This was mostly noticeable at the nape of his neck, which showed the signs of a muscular back.
What would his back look like without a shirt, she wondered. Flawless like the rest of him, probably.
When the pathway gave enough space to walk beside him again she did, just in time for him to turn to her. "Are you hungry?" he asked her before looking around.
She wasn't that hungry, so she turned it around. "Are you?"
"Yeah, kind of. I think I'm getting a hotdog, you want one?"
"Sure," Ava replied. While she wasn't hungry she simply couldn't say no to a hotdog. It had been a while since she had one and the thought of getting one again made her mouth water. "I think I know where we can get one," he said before starting to walk again.
They walked for a while, cutting through the mass of people and trying to navigate the busy area. When a blonde figure cut Ava off she didn't even think about it, until she stopped right in front of Sébastien.
"Sébastien," she started with a blinding smile. "I thought I'd find you here."
Ava felt like she'd seen her before, but she couldn't quite place her. Her perfectly straight blonde hair complemented her smooth skin and beautiful grey eyes. She wore an unusual amount of makeup for someplace like this but Ava didn't judge her, if that's what she liked she should go for it.
"I didn't know you liked places like this," he replied stoically, but politely.
"Oh, well there's a lot you don't know about me," she said while combing one perfectly manicured hand through her hair. "Where'd you suddenly go last night? I went looking for you but you were nowhere to be found. And your bedroom door was locked."
The last part was said with a pout and Ava didn't want to imagine why she tried to go to his bedroom at all. Only then she realized what she said. She was at the party. Ava had seen the two of them together on the balcony when she went to the bathroom, so they must be close.
"I was pretty tired," was all he said. Ava could see that his non-reactions were getting on her nerves but to the woman's credit, she ignored it.
"Well, alright. Maybe you can take me out to dinner tonight, then? I got us a reservation at La Combelle," she said while biting her lip.
"That's very nice of you but I'm with Ava right now, and we already have plans."
"Ava?" she asked confusedly, a look she didn't wear too well. Only when Sébastien pointed to Ava, who had been standing next to him the whole time she seemed to realize there was another person with him.
Her piercing eyes shot over her and Ava could swear she could see a vein pop in her forehead. The woman narrowed her eyes at her but quickly turned back to Sébastien. "Can we talk in private for a moment?"
"No, we have to go. Have a nice one," he said while nudging Ava to start moving. When she did he immediately followed, leaving the confused woman behind. She half expected her to start following them, but luckily she stormed off in another direction.
"She was at the party too, right?" Ava asked after a while.
"Unfortunately."
"What do you mean?"
"I didn't invite her. And apparently, neither did Justin. She just showed up."
"You don't like her?"
"I don't think she's a bad person. But she can't seem to accept that I broke it off with her, and it's getting tiring."
"Oh."
"We should probably go back to the apartment," he said.
"Alright."
They took the same route back, with the subway and all and Ava suddenly remembered the mess that would be waiting for her back there. It would be better if she cleaned it all up immediately but she wasn't sure she was up for it.
Not that she really had a say in the matter, it was her job after all.
The subway station was only a short distance away from the apartment and the way back somehow felt shorter than it had been before.
The porter greeted him when they arrived at the lobby and Sébastien nodded his head in acknowledgment. They hadn't talked much on the way back but she could see that he was lost in his thoughts.
When they arrived at their floor he unlocked the door and held it open for her. With an awkward smile, she scooted past him and into the apartment.
She gasped.
It was spotless. Not a sign of the mess from before could be seen and even the broken vase was replaced with another one. She looked around for any signs the party had even happened at all but she couldn't find one.
"What happened?" she asked while turning back to face him, but he just shrugged.
"Had it cleaned up while we were gone," he replied nonchalantly, as if it wasn't a big deal.
"But... But I'm supposed to do that, right? That's why you had me come here."
"I asked you to come here to keep it clean because I was too busy to do it myself. It's not your responsibility to clean up after dozens of people decide to trash the place. Unless you really looked forward to cleaning up puke. In that case, I'm sorry for taking that away from you."
"No, no. I didn't. It's just surprising, that's all. But thank you."
"Don't worry about it."
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xx May