You Got to Me

So maybe Marcus hadn't kept his word and take Ninette to some kind of hard rock concert. Either way, he thought it would be nice to go on some type of normal date.

He had heard much rumors about Crêpes Belles but Marcus had never a proper chance to visit the place. It seemed like the right place to try out, either way.

Taking a seat by the window, he ordered himself a cup of coffee as he waited for Nine to arrive.

Ninette's heals clicked on the pavement as she ran towards her destination. She was late - she had never been late for something like this before, not if she didn't want to that is.

She had spent too much time getting ready, throwing one outfit on and then claiming it to be horrendous, and putting on another.

She still wasn't sure about the one she had on at this moment. She wanted to go home and change it. She wanted to go home and hide under her covers.

She hated this, this, this feeling. Ninette did not understand it at all. She almost felt like she was...

Afriad.

Of what she did not know, and that made her even more frightened. This didn't make sense. She had vowed a long time ago, never to care... never too...

And now she couldn't even make it on a date with out tghis odd jittery feeling from within.

She took a deep breath and reached for the door handle. But something inside of her froze.

Completely froze.

Something told her that if she opened this door. If she went throught with it then-then-then...

There would be no going back. If she went in there and sat down she'd fall.

And if she fell....

Then eventually, he'd leave and she'd get hurt.

Thats what happened when you fell... even if you fell in love. She didn't understand why people didn't see that.

So, face pale, eyes wide, Ninette should where she was, mostly hidden from his sight, but her own eyes locked on Marcus's lonely form, panicking and dying inside, Dying to move forward, dying to move away.

When all the while she coudln't bring herself to do either.

The streets and shops of Palaisvue were crowded. That was what usually happened early in the summer, with everyone fresh out of school. A lot of them were still in France and took their time to shop and enjoy their country before travelling.

Crêpes Belles was no exception, Camille found out, as she entered the place and tried to find somewhere to sit. It wasn't packed, but there weren't many tables clear and, since most people were there with family, dates, friends, she felt a bit awkward being alone, which was why she was so relieved when she spotted a familiar blonde head sitting alone at a table.

"Marcus," the Prideux called out, making her way over to him with a smile on her face, "Hey! What are you doing here?" She looked at the empty chair, "Do you mind if I sit? Or are you waiting for someone?"

She was late and Marcus knew this for the fact that he had been glancing at his wrist watch every few seconds or so. The blonde boy had also been glancing outside the window, hoping to catch the familiar blonde Angelique - but to that moment, it had been met with a frown.

He had taken a sip of his coffee and although he had ordered a simple and black, Marcus had taken the liberty of adding four small packages of sugar, along with enough milk to make the coffee reach it's full capacity.

Marcus was nervous.

A nervous wreck to be exact.

This would be, after all, his first real date with the girl he fancied.

Jumping slightly at the sudden greeting, he half hoped that it was Nine but still smiled when he recognized Milly's familiar face. His face turned red, when asked what he was doing.

"I am... well, waiting for someone," he said as he glanced out the window, quite unaware the Nine had been watching him. Marcus had been avoiding the word 'was.'

She wouldn't stand me up, would she? he thought to himself with a mental frown.

Looking at the empty seat in front of him, one more glance outside the window and back to Milly, he gave her a polite smile, "I guess you could take a seat until my date arrives."

Ninette stealed herself, told herself to suck it up. She was a big girl. She could handle herself.

This wasn't so bad. Not really... the boy was bestotled with her, anyone could see that. She was still in control. She could still leave if she needed to. She could leave before he hurt her.

She nodded, and swallowed. She could do this.

She couldn't see how she couldn't, not do it.

Taking a deep breath Ninette did what she feared most.

She pulled open the door and walked in to the shop. She took a few steps, only to freeze. She had been looking around for the familar blond head she had lost in the moment of openning the door.

Only to find that he wasn't alone.

There was another head in the seat across from him. A dark haired girl... probably about his own age. She watched him smile at her with eyes tainted by pain and jealousy.

She blinked at the pair for another moment before, turning on her heals and storming out of the restuarant. Ignorant of how many people she may or may not have shoved out of her way.

Ninette had been lying to herself. There wasn't time to protect herself - to leave before she was heart.

She had let herself fall.

And she landed on the ground with painful spead, shattering what was left of her heart with it.

Camille frowned, "Are you sure? I mean, I really don't want to bother." And really, she didn't. Nonetheless, she took a seat, a bit uneasy. "As soon as your date arrives, you tell me and I'll leave," she told him, but a smile was slowly spreading on her face.

"So, who's your date?" the Prideux asked excitedly, very curious to know who she was. Or he. Could be a he. . .

"You're fine," he replied with a shurg and half a smile. "I'm sure she won't mind but if it'll make you feel any better, I'll tell you." Then he glanced out the window, a small frown appearing for a split second before he turned back to Milly with a smile.

Marcus was clearly unaware of Nine as she had walked in and then had stormed off. He was focused on Milly, who had decided on taking the seat in front of him. She had blocked his view from the door.

"My date is Nine," Marcus answered with a small, happy smile. "So, what about you? You here on a date as well?"

Camille was a bit shocked, but still gave the boy a smile. "Ninette Fontaine?" she asked, a bit incredulous, "Must say, I'm a bit surprised. Didn't think she was the dating type, doesn't seem like it." Only then she realized her comment could be taken as harmful. "I mean, nothing against you or her or anything," she hurried, not having had the intention of offending neither the boy or the girl, "She just didn't seem like it. But that's great, seriously! I'm happy for you!"

She shook her head and gave a small laugh, "I don't date."

He nodded, affirming that it was the Ninette Fontaine. He shrugged at the comment but agreed silently. "It's okay, I didn't think she was the type either. I really thought she was going to say no to me," he admitted shyly, his cheeks heating up a bit. "I guess... well, I'm not really sure why she agreed but I'm glad she did."

But once Marcus glanced at his watch one more time, he realized she was twenty minutes late. He glanced out the window, his fidgeting a little in his seat as he began to freak out a little.

"And you don't date because?" He raised an eyebrow, curious about it. "I mean, you're really pretty and all, I don't understand why you wouldn't."

"You're really nice, Marcus, and you're cute," Camille smiled at the blushing boy and laughed a little, "Plus, you've got swag, dude! Add that all up and how could Ninette resist?"

She saw him glance at his watch and sighed, scanning the faces in the place for the girl as well. He was getting nervous, she could tell. "She's probably on her way," the Prideux reassured him, "You know how girls take ages to get ready." Still, she bit her lips and hoped she wouldn't ditch.

"Well, first of all, thanks for the compliment," she said with a smile. "I just- I don't really like it," she shrugged, "I've had one or two boyfriends in the past, been in a couple of dates but those things never really go anywhere." Camille explained, "I don't really believe in love. For some people, yeah, sure, but not for me."

"Thanks," the boy laughed a little, quite embarrassed by her compliments. "I guess I never really thought about it. But uhm, forgive my ignorance but... what is swag?"

He didn't feel the slightest relieved when Milly tried to reassure him, even though he should've, as him lips turned into a frown, "I guess but she's almost half an hour late." He looked out the window once more, hoping that he'd see her.

But there was no sign of any type of familiar blonde.

"Y-you don't think she would ditch me, right?" He asked in a whisper, "I mean, well, I really don't know what to think. I mean, she could've easily said no from the beginning."

Marcus shrugged, replying that he meant what he said with a light chuckle, "I don't like Milly so no problem." He tilted his head curiously at her explanation. "You know, just because a few boyfriends and bad dates have happened in the past, doesn't mean that you should give up," he encouraged her. "A lot of people have to go to terrible things until you finally get it right."

Camille chuckled and opened her mouth to explain, but quickly closed it and frowned. "How do I explain what is swag. . . ?" she muttered and shrugged, looking up at the boy, "Well, it's the way you present yourself, your whole attitude. It's what makes a person cool, I guess. What a crappy definition, but it's roughly it."

She didn't know how to answer his question, she really didn't. "Maybe something happened. . .?" she tried, not having the heart to tell him that the possibilities of Ninette ditching someone didn't seem to be low.

Camille shrugged and looked down, "I don't know, I just feel it's not for me. And there was, usually, nothing wrong with the boyfriends or dates, it was pretty much only me. I'm the whole problem. I just don't feel like the sort of person that falls in love, I can't see myself getting married and having kids." And I kind of don't want to end up in some crappy on and off relationship like my parents, she thought.

"Oh," was all Marcus could say as he laughed. "That sounds like an interesting concept of the word. Quite a weird concept but interesting." Shaking his head he asked her if it was a new word that had been recently been invented. "What's that other word I've heard before... or phrase? You only live once, I think it is," he mused a little. I'm sure that one is a little bit older but still there.

"I guess," his replied as he felt as his heart plop down to his acidic stomach as he looked down at the empty table, where crepes should have been for the first time by now. "I'll give her another ten minutes, yeah?"

Marcus listened to her talk, nodding at the appropriate parts. His head titled to the side, his eyes furrowed a little, "I think you're over thinking the whole thing over." Marcus said carefully, unsure how to word his following words, "Don't always over think it, just go with the flow. Don't think about love or about marriage or children. Just think about having fun."

Camille shook her head, "It's an old one. People used it a lot a few decades ago, 2011 and such. You only live once, I've heard that one. Didn't people shorten it to. . . YOLO or something like that? It was also very popular back in the days." She grinned, "I told you I wasn't much of a History fan, and it's true, but I really like stuff from that time. It's pretty much the only History I like."

"Ten minutes, yeah," she agreed with a nod and bit her lips, also starting to get anxious for the boy. Where was she?

Think about having fun. . . she could do that. Merlin, she was always doing that. "I guess," she said, a bit uneasy, "I mean, I know I'm way too young to be thinking about that kind of stuff, it's just that I've never really been interested in dating, to be honest. I'm more of a one-night kind of girl. And marriage, love. . . that's what people are searching for when they date, isn't it? You date someone who could, potentially, be your husband or wife, someone you can really love. And love. . . it's just really messed up and complicated. It's not for everybody."

"Oh right," he nodded along, not sure if he liked that phrase or not. He had heard his father use it once in a while and his mom told him that when they had started dating, he would tend to use that phrase a whole lot. Eventually, her band and she had an intervention with his dad and he began to use it less and less. He laughed at the memory as he had told Milly about. "It was quite funny to hear it and sometimes, when dad says it more than twice within a span of three days, mom always yells him off," Marcus chuckled, shaking his head.

Frowning, he had given up. He wasn't going to wait anymore for her. Marcus had decided that Nine and ditched him. Placing a forced half-smile onto his lips, the blonde shrugged and asked the waitress to come over so he could order something. Looking at Milly, he asked her if she wanted something.

"Don't worry, I'll pay for you," he smiled, encouraging to her order something.

"Well true," he said as agreed with her statement about future spouses. "But it all reality, you can't expect to find the love of your life in just glancing them at once or on their first date. If it helps, don't call it a date," Marcus shrugged with a smile. "Call it... hanging out."

Camille laughed as Marcus told the story and shook her head, a smile on her face. His family seemed really fun. "What are your parents like?"she asked, and hoped he wouldn't think it was too personal. She was just always pretty curious about other people's families.

She shook her head when he asked her if she wanted anything, but bit her lips after a while and decided to take him up on that offer. It seemed Ninette wasn't coming, and that was what the Prideux had come for int he first place, right? To eat. "Alright. . . but you choose."

"But hanging out is for friends," she pointed out, "If we call it that, wouldn't it basically make it. . . I don't know, friends with benefits? 'Cause it's still a date, no matter what you call it."

"My parents are an eclectic you can say," Marcus grinned as he thought about his parent's relationship. "Mum's a bit wild sometimes but can lay down the law when she has to and involves her kids. Dad likes to be in the know of it all, must be his journalist nature, which sucks most of the time because my sister and I can't really hide stuff from them. Together, they're like any other couple, I suppose. They like to finish each other sentences, which I find beyond creepy."

"Uh, okay," he said as he went over the menu once more; after a few seconds, Marcus looked up to the waiter and smiled politely. "It'll be two orders of your infamous crepes that I've heard so much about and two cups of coffee, please."

With that, the waiter had jotted down the order and walked off to place the order.

"Yeah, friends with benefits would be considered another term," Marcus mused a little as he thought of other ways to think about it. Unable to conceive others Marcus gave up with a smile and laugh, "Just give it a chance, alright? You never know, maybe the next boy you fully date will the the one that makes you change your mind."

Camille smiled and listened as he talked about his family, laughing at the appropriate parts and raising her eyes with interest when he mentioned his sister. "I didn't know you had a sister," she told him, "Is it only the two of you, or do you have any more siblings?"

"Their crepes are really good," the girl commented after the waiter walked off. "Seriously, one of the best I've ever eaten."

She shrugged, but nodded, "Maybe. . . " Too bad the only boy she had ever had real interest in gave a shit about her.