Through the Crowd - Espresseleine Story

Uncomfortability

"I need to ask you something, is all." Madeleine says softly.

Don't. Please don't do it.

Sometimes I consider even associating myself with such a character, but at the end of every train of thought drags an extra cart that reminds me of the Upper City's past, and of the Paladin's way.

It's like my gaze is glued onto his beautiful, blue eyes as I wait in anticipation for him to speak again. Theres this awful feeling in my chest that I don't think I've ever had before- it's a similar feeling to crushing the air out of my lungs, but in a good way. A way that feels almost, but just barely, pleasant.

"Espresso..." He starts softly. As he opens his mouth to hesitantly speak again, something catches my eye. Something behind him. I recognize that red hair in horror. I could see it from here, or anywhere. I could always spot it in a crowd, almost instinctively, as though it's a bright warning sign to get away.

It's Grenadine.

He's standing there, staring at us as with that same crazed blank stare as though he means to crumble me in front of a crowd of cookies. This man won't leave me alone, not for the life of him. I thought I had seen the last of him when I left the house that night, but clearly I must have made a mistake by attending this idiotic ball.

My heart drops to the floor, and Madeleine turns to see what I'm looking at behind him. What am I supposed to do here? There's no where I could go in the entirety of this kingdom now that would keep me a safe distance away from him. I hold on to Madeleine's hand in a way that Grenadine could possibly see what I was doing from where he stands a little ways away. He's staring at me with a dark, smug revenge. Something that I haven't wanted to think about for a long time.

I can't help but glare back at him, annoyance mixed with fear and anger shoot across the space between us.

Now of course, I don't expect you, the reader, to know exactly what this means for me. Quite embarrassingly, and put simply, I used to be involved with Grenadine- romantically. He went off to the Dark Cacao Kingdom to join their army in the second flour war, but when he returned something was different about him. I know well enough that no cookie can come back the same from such a horrible thing, though I had no choice but to leave him with a suggestion to find help, only elsewhere. There was something wrong with his mind. Something that drove him to make me feel like I couldn't fight for myself.

That isn't all that happened. The timeline of events that occurred the night I left are a bit scarring in many ways, but that's all I care to say about it.

Madeleine moves in between us, blocking my line of sight to Grenadine and giving my hand a short, reassuring squeeze. Although I'd barely like to admit it, even to myself, I appreciate him. His gesture, I mean. "Let's go back to Latte." He whispers, to which I nod in response and begin walking alongside him.

It doesn't take long for him to spot her hat poking up among the relatively shorter crowd and start towards her silently, holding onto my hand tightly in his and glancing around every few seconds or so. I hate holding his hand, but he is walking briskly enough that I fear I might lose him in the crowd as well were it not for it. It feels awkward, in a way, or it's a possibility I could be thinking too much on it.

I can't help but glance around, too. I know that now I could easily protect myself from Grenadine, being a powerful mage and such, but even the thought of looking at him for too long makes me uncomfortable.

Finally, we reach a stop as Madeleine comes up to the side of Latte, who is also talking happily to Financier Cookie. I quickly withdraw my hand from his grasp and shift farther away from him as the two turn to us.