“You are all welcome. Camen’ s friends are my friends too”, she said in a very strict way. I was sure she must be an English noble. Moreover, most of the people in there were coming from very expensive private schools and they were offsprings of the high society. I guessed I belonged to the minority of simple people.
Tomas rushed to accept the invitation.
“Hello, Cindy. I will gladly come”.
She bent over Camen again and after whispering something to him she left as gracefully as she came.
“Who is she?” I asked Samantha bending towards her.
“Cindy Jefferson. I happened to meet her at the house of family friends, but apparently she does not remember me. She is a little snob”, she explained.
“Well, girls, are we going to the party?” Tomas asked.
Nice! We just arrived and now we are running to parties. When are we supposed to be studying?
I could refuse but surely Camen was going. He would be with Cindy and for an undefined reason I did not like it at all.
Samantha answered first: “I like parties very much. Who doesn’t! I never say no. But I am thinking that we have a lot of studying. I doubt if I will go home for Christmas…”
She did not manage to finish her sentence.
“Oh, come on Samantha, we all have a lot of studying and all of us are in the same position as you. It is only a party!” Tomas insisted looking at her with a begging style and a trace of admiration. Perhaps he liked her. I notice that Samantha gave him a broad smile as she was convinced very easily by his unreal arguments. Her big smile could mean only one thing. She liked Tomas.
Adam was a man of few words and extremely serious, all this time he was eating while being thoughtful, but he surprised me.
“I am going, surely”, he said and continued dealing with his food.
Tomas jumped at the chance.
“You see? Adam is determined. So am I. Camen and Adriana too, since she did not raise any objections. You can not refuse. We are a group of friends now”.
This was true. Whether he wanted or not Mr. Scot had made us become friends or at least some of us, since we would spend the following three months in completing his project. Sam started saying something but before I become aware of it Camen surprised me.
“You, Adriana, what are you going to do?” he asked me when I had extended my hand to take the salt. At the same time he extended his. I inevitably touched him. A light violet shine emerged from his hand, leaving me surprised. Automatically and quickly he pulled it and he seemed more disturbed than me. I turned to the others who were dedicated to their conversation about Cindy’s party. Obviously, they had not noticed anything. I turned my eyes to him waiting for an explanation, but he was already bending over his plate continuing his lunch like nothing ever happened. The salt shaker was in front of me without me knowing how. I was lost. I was trying to understand this event.
Before I had the chance to ask him, he stood up saying he must be leaving, leaving me frozen with the question on my lips. I looked at him thoroughly as he was standing in front of us, observing that his previous agitation came back, more intense.
“I will see you in the evening, at the library”, he mumbled and went away hastily.
I was watching him as he was going to the exit, leaving me without an explanation, without a word. The shine that appeared and disappeared quickly came to his attention too. I was sure. I saw his face when it happened. Besides, although he asked me about the party he did not request an answer, and did not wait for me to give it. He left like being hunted.
In a little while, the dinning room was almost empty. Tomas and Adam got up in order to leave. Samantha and I followed them to the exit where we said goodbye. We walked together until we reached my place. Sam was living two streets further down. Clouds were gathering again giving a grey shade to the sky. The chill was quite noticeable so we speeded our steps.
Samantha surprised me with her statement, although I should not have been surprised for something so obvious.
“Camen did not take his eyes off you. I imagine you noticed it too”.
I looked at her calmly. It would have been useless to pretend. Surely, whoever was around there had understood the indiscrete way he was looking at me.
“Yes. I believe that I remind him of someone. Otherwise, there is no explanation for all this”.
Samantha made an expression of disapproval. “So, you exclude the likelihood that he simply likes you?”
Under other circumstances, I would have had the same thoughts. Yet, all this tension that overwhelmed him during the time he was with me, his agitation the minute he saw me, his strange, concerned way, his effort to achieve something which was unknown to me for the time being, had clarified that something else was happening beyond the fact that he liked me. And this was very strange in combination with the faded shine I had seen appearing, the moment our hands touched. I tried to find a logical explanation. Static cling perhaps, but I had not felt this slight hit that twitches you when it happens. Maybe it was caused by games of light, yet the sun did not come out all morning. Illusions. Maybe I had illusions, I finally concluded.
“It is too early for something like this. I just met him”, I opposed Samantha’s claims.
“And the minute he saw you he could not take his eyes off you. These things just happen, Adriana, you do not plan them, they do not warn you, they just happen”.
Surely, as much as I was opposing the idea of love at first sight, I could not overlook the agitation Camen created on me. And it was due to one thing only: I was about to meet love. This ascertainment shocked me. But everything, all my reactions, my thoughts, my motions, demonstrated that although such a thing seemed impossible, it was a possible reality; a new reality beyond the limits of my imagination. I frowned, trying to get him out of my mind. It was impossible.
I became desperate. How was it possible for something like this to happen? I will see, I thought with a feeling of dread, how this will develop… If it is true, in a little while I will be both sure and…desperate.
“You may be right. These things just happen”, I answered more to myself rather than to her comments about Camen’s behaviour.
We were already in front of the boarding house when Samantha asked me:
“Shall I come by to pick you up for dinner? And then we can go to the library together”.
“I will be waiting”.
I smiled at her, and entered the house.
Christine was already inside, lying in bed, holding a book. As soon as she saw me she placed it next to her and her style became impatient.
“Hi, Christine. How are you?” I asked her while I was taking my boots off.
“Fine. And you? How was your first day?”
I walked to the desk to sit on the chair.
“Good enough, I think. I already have a project to do… The creation of Humans.”
“I see the professors did not waste any time”, she said smiling. “I saw you at the dining hall with Camen Ariel. All the girls are talking about him. Is he in your group?”
Everybody knew him; at least all the girls in Oxford. And those who did not, they would soon trace him.
“We are in the same study group. This is why we were eating together”.
I believed that this answer would satisfy her.
“That is luck! He is so handsome that he takes your breath away when you look at him”.
Yes. I felt it too, deeply. But I did not say anything to her.
“I have noticed something like that”, I said smiling.
“Ha! It is very funny”, she answered with a sneer.
“How was your day?” I quickly changed the subject.
“Not as good as your, but for a first day it was rather interesting”, she answered with a bit of playful mood that appeared on her mysterious smile.
“What are you reading?”
My attention was drawn to the book next to her.
“Literature. It relaxes me and clears my mind. Th
is afternoon I would have to study, so I need to relax”.
“I am thinking of doing the same, but in a different way”, I responded smiling as I was getting under my bed covers. This was a good way to avoid Christine, not because I did not like her but, to calm down and think about a few things in peace. My thoughts were continuously focused on the shine I had seen. It was impossible to forget it. No matter how brief it was, it was clearly registered to my memory. The minute I touched his hand it jumped like a flame, small and violet without burning… I tried to think of something relevant but nothing came to my mind.
I turned towards Christine who continued reading her book. Perhaps she had an idea.
“Christine, do you know anything about humans that emit light, some kind of glow?” I asked.
“What exactly do you mean?”
She turned around and looked at me curiously.
“If you touch someone and you see a shine on a part of his body”, I explained my question better.
“I think this is true only for Saints. And that is illustrated on their iconography. I do not know if it happens in reality. The aura of a human is also very intense like in the case of Jesus that, as they say, he had a golden colour. But then again all that is somehow... metaphysical. I would not say that there are humans who emit light. But, why are you asking?”
She looked at me wondering.
I avoided telling her the truth.
“I was thinking of something related to my project. If the First humans had a kind of shine as God had. It is just a thought”, I replied falsely and turned to the other side.
Christine’s words were turning into my mind. A saint who came to study philosophy was not satisfying enough. The explanation about the human aura was more acceptable. But, as Christine so rightfully had said, that is metaphysical. Who knows? Maybe he is an alien. Besides, his face was beyond the earthly standards. So very much handsome, was my last thought as my eyes closed.
“Hey, sleepyhead! Get up, it is tea time”, I heard Christine and I felt a nudge on my shoulder. I must have overslept.
Tea…My God, I thought, I drink tea only when I am sick.
“What time is it?” I asked while I was getting up from bed.
“Four in the afternoon. Will you get ready for dinner?”
“Yes, sure. And then, I have to go to the library”.
I got up and tried, feeling week because of the sleep, to arrange my hair that was falling untidy at my face. Christine was sitting at the desk having a light blue metal box in front of her. She took out two small envelopes and threw them in two cups which contained hot water. The room was filled with the strong odour of orange and cinnamon. Aromatic tea, I thought. What else a French woman could be drinking?
I think there are no other people in the whole world, besides the French, who have such an obsession with aromas. It is the country of aromas. Although I had read somewhere that the first aroma was invented in Cologne, Germany, where Eau de Cologne came from. Reputations are not always deserved!
I sat next to Christine and took the cup she offered me, bringing it under my nose. It smelled fantastic. A try would not harm and I did not want to be impolite. The fist sip was more than tasty. I could never imagine that tea could be so delicious. This was art, a really imaginative and creative art.
“Orange, right?” I asked.
“With cinnamon and vanilla”, Christine mentioned the ingredients.
“Do you also have lavender?” I thought about its strong scent in the morning. Perhaps it was from Christine’s box.
“No, I do not like it; but it is easy to find it if you want”.
I imagine this would be the easy part. The hard one would be to explain the origin of the scent.
Christine pulled a book from the bookcase and placed it on the desk in front of her, ready to study. This was the part I hated but I could not avoid. I took out the notes I had taken in the morning and searched for the corresponding books. Perhaps a little reading would do me good. It could help me take him out of my mind where he had settled and was tormenting me. I succeeded it for a while, until I came across a Niche’s writing.
“Many suns are turning around the infinite space and speak with their light to whatever is dark, except me. And yet, without mercy they continue their orbits. This is the great hostility of light to whatever can give light[3]”.
Talking about someone who can give light, self luminous and merciful towards anything that is not self luminous, like the sun towards the stars. But what kind of man has such skills, I asked myself once again bringing his superb eyes into my mind. I forgot about Niche, philosophy, Christine studying next to me, everything. I remained for a long time gazing outside the window, in a condition of complete abstention from reality. The knock on the door scared me and I jumped up my seat. It must be Samantha and I was not ready yet. I ran to the door.
“Come on in Sam”, I said as I was opening the door.
She looked at me with a questioning style apparently because of my appearance.
“I see you are not ready”.
I looked at her apologetically.
“I lost track on time, studying. I am sorry. Take a seat for a minute, I am coming”.
I pointed at the desk. Christine had already turned toward us.
“Christine, let me introduce you to Samantha”.
Samantha moved towards her extending her hand. I let them get to know each other and rushed into the bathroom. I combed my hair thoroughly and put two hair pins on either side making an effort to control their volume. I had nervousness and despite all the water I threw at my face, it did not go away. I came out and Samantha stood up when she saw me. I had to rush more.
“Only my boots and we are leaving”, I said.
Outside a thin rain had started and the fog was blurring the whole landscape. We speeded our steps and I noticed that other walkers did the same. After all, nobody likes rain, I thought.
When we arrived at the dining room I searched the place for less than a second in order to locate him. Unsuccessfully! He was not there. Immediately, I questioned myself why I did this and for what reason I felt disappointed that I did not see him. Tomas and Adam waved at us and we went to sit with them. Sam smiled broadly at Tomas for the second time. So, it was more than certain that she liked him. But why I felt my mouth rigid, unable to smile even out of politeness? I was much more depressed than the rain’s influence on a person’s mood would justify. Besides, I liked the rain in every way. This was not the reason. I was turning my fork in my plate having a bad mood. I was not hungry at all, even though I did not eat well at noon. I looked at Adam who was again serious, bending over the table. Tomas and Sam were talking while eating, like most of the people in the room. When they finally finished, we got up to go to the library. I was hoping that Camen would be waiting there, although it should not concern me where he was. Nevertheless, I was anxious.
The library building was of the same style as the rest of the college buildings. Majestic! I stopped for a moment to admire it.
“The architect must have had a divine inspiration when he designed it”, I said loudly.
“Surely it can compete in beauty with the buildings in Florence”, Adam added and took me by surprise.
I had heard him talk only two or three times. He was especially serious and a man of few words. These traits matched his appearance; tall, slim, with chestnut straight hair and eyes, surely different from his compatriots. They had a honey colour with golden rays around the crown jewels, so special that they impressed even behind the brown frame of his glasses. If we were at school, he would have been the typical nerd.
“Yes”, I agreed thinking about Piazza de la Signoria and Uffizi.
“I like Rome more. And the Vatican has a special beauty”, Sam’s sweet voice was head near me.
I remembered my dream at once. Perhaps, I would stay at the library a little longer to study the Michael Angelo’s works of art.
The interior of the library was as im
pressive as its outside; having a high ceiling and being majestic. All the vertical surfaces were accommodating books which where on dark, wooden shelves. The floor was covered in thick carpets, an amount of necessary luxury that absolutely suited the area, adding warmth. Like being at home, I thought. I searched around to see him but he was nowhere. Normally, I should feel relieved by his absence. At least, I would save myself from his insistent look penetrating me and making me shiver. But, why I did not feel this way?
We sat at a table between two tall bookcases that provided isolation and peace and we opened the list of our books. I looked at the entrance once again, waiting for him to enter any minute apologizing for his delay and I felt even more nervous, not knowing if this was due to his absence or his expected arrival.
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