"Bye Bye Blackbird" by Miles Davis
Malia opened the door to greet Klaus.
"Sorry I'm late, love. I had to speak with some colleagues of mine. And I had to get these," Klaus pulls a bouquet of wildflowers from behind his back.
"Oh wow," Malia accepts the flowers and lowers her face toward them to take in their sweet scent. "Thank you. These are beautiful."
"And you are exquisite," Klaus compliments.
Malia looks at his sharp, tailored suit and smirks.
"You aren't too bad, yourself."
She quickly walks back inside to put a bit of water in a vase and set the flowers inside. Then she walks to the doorway, where Klaus was waiting patiently.
"Shall we?" he offers his arm to her, which she gladly accepts.
Together, they walk to a gallery in the heart of the Quarter where Klaus was hosting his art exhibition. A man took her long, brown coat at the front for her, allowing her to show off the outfit she had meticulously picked for herself.
It was a long, emerald dress in a shimmery satin. She had a couple of pearl drop earrings and a matching necklace, which had belonged to her mother.
"You are absolutely radiant," Klaus's eyes scan her before he leans in to give her a gentle kiss on the cheek.
"Thank you," Malia is thankful for the makeup that hides most of her blush.
"Oh my god, Malia?" A voice calls toward her from behind. She turns her head to the side.
"Ellie, hey!" Malia hugs her new friend. "What are you doing here?"
"You caught me," Ellie admits. "I'm a bit of an art nerd. What about you?"
"Ah, um," Malia smiles towards Klaus as he steps into her and rests his hand on her waist. "I'm here with Klaus."
Ellie looks between them for a second, her jaw tightening slightly. She casts a smile toward them but it doesn't quite reach her eyes.
"The artist, himself," her eyes lock on Klaus. "How charming."
Malia isn't quite sure how to respond, but Ellie decides to continue.
"Well, it was great to run into you," she goes to hug Malia again, which Malia happily accepts. "I'm going to peruse."
"A friend of yours?" Klaus asks once she's walked away.
"Yeah, I met her through Nelle."
The two walk through the gallery, the room filled with warm natural light. Malia asks questions about some of the works to try to understand Klaus a bit more.
"These are really stunning, Klaus," Malia tells him between paintings. "Thank you for bringing me here."
"I'm grateful that you're here with me. I wanted to share this with you."
"I had no idea you were such a talented artist," Malia says as they pause in front of a beautiful yet dark landscape. "These feel so . . . full of emotion."
"It's one of the few ways I find solace," Klaus's hand is on her lower back. "Much like your music."
"Yeah," Malia admits.
She admires the painting for a bit longer before they begin moving on. Klaus spots someone from across the room and starts guiding her there.
"Sorry, love. There's someone I need to talk to."
Malia lets him guide her with his hand on her back. They approach a brown-haired man who is staring at one of the smaller paintings.
"I went to speak with our friends this morning," Klaus tells him. "They were entirely unhelpful."
The man turns around at the sound of his voice. He opens his mouth to speak before his eyes lock onto Malia's and he finds himself unable.
Malia's eyes widen.
"Elijah?"