meraki.

Interlude - Young And Beautiful

July 2nd, 1934

Despite it being a July night, the air was chilly that night, as the two people dressed to the nines made their way up the stairs of the splendid detached house that still made every single one of their neighbors raise their eyebrows in pure amazement ill-concealed jealousy. 

But the owner didn't care. 

The owner was far too busy enjoying their majestic structured building, white marble standing out in contrast with the dark night, the moonlight reflecting on the polished stones, casting a silvery light on whomever stood in the right position while admiring the construction; the owner was far too busy marveling at the grand entrance that led straight to the saloon after walking through a tastefully decorated foyer decorated with Art Nouveau elements - the floral fabrics that adorned the walls, the magnificent wooden stairway that culminated with the wooden ceiling which echoed the wall's decors; the owner was far too busy running inside, giggling at the chilly air of the night that was attacking her skin, the fabric of their dress doing close to nothing to protect their body. 

The owner had no concerns clouding their mind that night, as she ran inside, her Oxford Spanish heels clacking on the stairway entrance, and on the wooden floors, as she giggled, escaping the summer breeze. 

The moonlight shined over her form, enlightening the white silk of her dress, and her long loose blonde hair. 

Loose and unstyled hair was not the norm at the time, but she was known for not being one to usually adibe by the traditions. 

Dalila Orsini absolutely didn't fit the classical 1930s woman stereotype. 

Starting from the fact that she wasn't afraid to show her skin in her extremely loose and extremely backless dress that left her whole backside exposed to the human eye, the fabric reappearing only an inch above her bum, passing through the fact that she didn't care about the rules of always having someone to accompany her when she felt like going out for a walk, ending on the fact that she wasn't afraid to speak her mind, whenever and however she wanted - and yes, that included also when she was surrounded by men in boring suits acting as if they owned the damned place. 

At 27, living alone in the house she had inherited from her parents who had died when she was merely an infant, she still drew in surprised and utterly shocked looks mixed with raised eyebrows and disapproving head shakes when people learnt that she hadn't married, claiming she would've only done it for love, despite all the lectures she had recieved over the years from her guardian, the woman she had been entrusted to after her parents' early death. 

Still she didn't care for marriage, she had never truly cared for it, honestly speaking. She had never truly understood why she was expected to aspire to become some ugly old rude man's possession to use both as an object in the bedroom and a slave around the house - and oh, let's not forget the role of the ornament at public events. No, Dalila couldn't possibly understand why her guardian expected her to be impatient to give herself away in marriage to the next decent-looking idiot who probably didn't even know how to please a woman in bed. 

On top of that - but this was something she had only found out in recent times - she had understood she really didn't care for any man at all. 

And when we say "for any man at all", we really mean "for any man at all". 

As she let herself fall on the soft green velvet couches, she let out a breathy laugh, opening her arms and placing them on the backs of the couch, staring at the ceiling of the living room, admiring once more how the inlaid wood leaves adorned it with such grace, making her smile. She could only agree with every single person she had met over the years who had told her that her father was a man of taste that had designed the detached house drawing inspirations from the most beautiful works of art in the Liberty style all over Europe - the same ones he had seen with his own two eyes during the many business trips he had been on with his own father.