BETWEEN LOUIS AND THE SEA - #4: GELAEL... OUSY

Down in the breakfast room I found Louis. For the first time he greeted me in his language: "Bonjour, mon amour"

"Bonjour à toi aussi, comment vas-tu?" 

"Ça va bien, merci, et toi?"

"Ça va bien aussi"

I used to study French only for the three years of middle school, but I reminded something. It's a language I always liked so much, and now I had a French-speaking boyfriend, so... how I couldn't love Flaubert's and Baudelaire's language? Or better, maybe I have to say it's also Rousseau's language, Genevan as my Louis.

At the beach we met again Lady Gilda, who had taken my mother and me in sympathy. "How's going with Louis?" she asked me with disinterested kindness; it was clear that she was supporting our love story.

"Very well, he treats me really like a princess. Wait a moment, Switzerland never had aristocracy... so he can't be a prince."

"He's the prince of your little kingdom... of your life, in conclusion!" Gilda smiled.

"That's right!" 

"Do you know that when I had your age I was in love with a Swiss youngster too? But I never got engaged to him, you know, it was another age... mixed marriages weren't as popular as now... he used to come here every summer, he belonged to a rich family, he was son of bankers... he was so handsome, he had wilted wheat-colored hair and blue eyes like the clear sky... he looked like an angel fallen from the sky. I always counted the days that were missing at the beginning of the summer, and when he was here I did nothing but watch him enchanted and fantasize about how nice it would have been to be in his arms and receive kisses and caresses from him." She shut up, and I noticed that her eyes had moistened talking about that sweet memory of her distant youth.

"Have you known anything about him anymore?"

"Imagine that I had never even talked to him. I was shy, too much shy to do it. And he was quite reserved, too. But I remember his name, that I used to hear from his parents: Julian."

"Such a beautiful name... the name of an handsome boy"

"Yes, you're right. Maybe was Julian's memory which prevented me from finding an husband. You're lucky, Vicky, you found Louis, you love the each other and you're happy. I'm cheering you!"

"Vicky, here we are!" I heard Louis' voice. 

"Thank you for the chat, now I have to go!" 

I apologized with Gilda and I headed for my boyfriend. I almost tripped on the deck chair, but Louis cavalierly held me back... "Be careful!" I looked into his eyes and we bursted together into laughs. Gustav was looking at us amused. "You are a very nice couple, do you know it?"

"Yes, Gustav, I know"

"I wish I had a girlfriend like you..." the blond from Malmö sighed.

We were about to go for a swim, when Gustav held us, beckoning us to sit next to him. He started to tell: "Yesterday evening, while you were at the funfair, I heard Sean and Norman who were talking about you"

"Why were Sean and Norman talking about Vicky and me?" Louis asked.

"Sean revealed to Norman, who is his best friend, that he likes Vicky"

I winced. "But... I'm engaged to Louis! I have nothing against Sean but he has to realize that my heart belongs to Louis"

"It won't be easy..." Gustav grimaced. "Sean is very hard-headed, and when he wants something he has to obtain it in every case"

"Two days ago, when I arrived here, I had a walk with Sean. It was clear that he liked me. While we were strolling around the village, he tried to take my hand, and while we were taking selfies our noses touched"

Louis and Gustav were astonished. I was a bit intrigued by the situation... "I've never had crushes on engaged boys" I explained.

"It's the most absurd thing who can happen" was Louis' opinion.

Gustav echoed him: "I agree. There are so many single girls in this world, why fall in love with an engaged one?" It was clear, all three were in agreement about this.

On the shore, Louis and me drew an heart with our initials inside. We spent a long time contemplating it, until the waves took it away with them.

"I swear I will always be faithful to you" Louis sweared with a deep voice.

"Wherever I will go, you will always be in my heart" I whispered to Louis' ear. I whirled around and our lips pressed to each other. Even our tongues touched, passion was growing more and more. Everything had disappeared: the beach, the sea, the umbrellas, the noise, the crowd. There was only my beloved and me. I began to tread his soft yet strong athlete's back with his hands, and he did the same on my delicate girl's back. Louis was an exceptional lover. Once I had read a sentence according to whom in Heaven lovers are Italian and in Hell they're Swiss. In my opinion that's not true at all. We were getting closer and closer, I was feeling our hearts beating together, the burning touch of our bodies... when that enchantment ended I could hardly breathe anymore... I had the strength to murmur with a faint voice: "Je t'aime, Louis"

"Je t'aime aussi, Vicky" he confirmed. And how could we not love the each other after those moments of burning passion?

Hand in hand we entered the sea, where the other drivers had already entered before us. They were looking at us with sympathy. I noticed that there was a strange smile on Sean Gelael's face, and his eyes were veiled with disappointment. He watched me while I was holding hands with Louis. Gustav was right to sell. When I met the Indonesian of Arden, he had seemed like a quiet little fellow, not a quarrel-starter. And even Louis would never have to fight with anyone.

During the afternoon nap, I heard a rustle under the door of the room. I saw a sheet of paper folded in three stuck there. I picked it up and realized that it was a letter...

"Dear Vicky, while I'm writing you this letter I'm shivering a bit. All that I want to tell you is that since the first time I've seen you you made inroads into my heart. Before meeting you I've never considered dating a girl. And now with this completely new experience it's like my train has changed his platform and it's travelling to an unknown destination... And I'm so happy of this! Well, now I have a question for you: can we go out with each other, sometimes? It can be a way to get to know us better. We can go to the cinema, or have a dinner out... or simply walking hand in hand... Love, Sean"

I had no desire to answer him with another letter. Or rather, I would not have known what to say... But certainly I could not ignore his feelings towards me and behave as if nothing had happened, I did not want to see him suffer because of me. With these thoughts in my head, I knocked on the door of Gustav and Louis's room.

"I've found this letter below the door" I explained.

Gustav and Louis read it. It was my Swiss sweetheart who spoke up: "But all the other drivers know that we have a relationship! When we are at the beach it's impossible not to see that we kiss on the lips and we walk hand in hand"

"It's more than clear that Louis is your boyfriend" Gustav pointed out.

"You gave me an idea. This evening, before dinner, I will talk to Sean, telling him simply that I have a romantic relationship with Louis"

And I decided to do so. I approached Sean and I told him, kindly: "May I tell you something?"

"Yes, you can. Have you read my letter?"

"Yes, I have, and it's exactly the thing I would like to talk about"

"Good! So, what do you think about my proposal?"

"The letter is very nice, I liked it, but I can't do what you want" 

"What are you saying?" 

"I'm saying that I'm engaged to Louis Delétraz, he is my boyfriend, so..."

"So... we can't go out together..."

"But we can be still friends, and you can always count on me"

Sean now was more relaxed, it was like he had taken a weight off his heart. He murmured me: "Best wishes and good luck to you and Louis"

"I hope you can find a girl who deserves you"

"I thought you were that girl... But this is life" Sean tried to smile, but you could see in his face that he was suffering again.

After dinner Louis and me sat on a wicker bench on the porch. The sun was almost completely gone. Louis leaned his head on my shoulder and patted my stomach.

"Je t'aime, mon amour" I whispered.

"Moi aussi" Louis answered with a very low voice.

"You are my Lindor... my sweet Swiss chocolate..." 

"And you are my Raclette..."

From behind the door-porch window, Sean was watching us. A tear slid down his nose and cheek. I was sorry to see him like that.