Double Date(s)

With August eagerly waiting for graduation, four months passed by quickly. He was able to talk and have more conversations with Heilke during those four months, similar to those he did before he enlisted. Every time, August would have the gift for Heilke stored on him, but he would be too embarrassed to hand it to her at the academy.

Now that it was nearing graduation, more students went out shopping for their outfits. Although August had already prepared his way beforehand, he wanted to elevate it and look his best for Heilke to see.

On his way to the shops, August spotted turquoise green hair.

“Lady Heilke! Fancy seeing you here!”

Heilke greeted him with a respectful smile.

“Shopping for the ball?” August asked.

“Yes. You?”

“I am as well.” August looked around for other people he may recognise. “I don’t see anyone escorting you, may I?”

“Sure.”

“Have you decided on a dress yet?”

“I have a dress I could use, but I am looking for other options.”

Heilke stopped and turned to a store.

“We’re here.”

They enter the boutique, promptly welcomed by a few staff. August was directed to the plush couch out in the open, and Heilke was directed to the fitting rooms after pointing to a few dresses in the catalogue she was offered.

After a while, Heilke came out of the fitting room in a beige dress. The dress was a poofy one, with her sleeves off the shoulder. Heilke did a spin in front of the large mirror. Her back was revealed. August was trying to avoid watching. He knew he would stare too hard. He directed his attention to the exit where he could watch the people passing by. He noticed a few glancing into the store, until they decided to enter it.

August did not like the impression those people gave. They were loud, crude, and did not seem to be here for shopping.

“Dear customers, are you here to buy dresses for your partners?”

“Yeah, of course,” one of them replied without skipping a beat. “But we’re just checking out what the latest fashion trends are.”

Heilke faced where the men sat. One of them whistled.

August glared at him, about to do something. Before he did, however, Heilke spoke.

“Then I’m afraid you have come to ogle at the wrong person. I am completely out of the loop when it comes to trends. Please leave.”

She gestures to the staff to escort the men out.

“My lord, you should leave as well,” she said to August. A part of him wanted to stay behind, though it would put him in a similar position as the other men who barged in.

August stood outside to stand guard like a knight, as opposed to a marquess. Directly opposite the boutique was a café, decorated with golden ornaments. People seated in the outside tables whisper just loudly enough for August to hear.

“So he wasn’t her partner.”

“But she’s picking out her ball dress with only a guy? That is not quite proper etiquette now, is it?”

August flushed with red. He only just realised what he had been doing the past few hours. Going out as a pair with opposite genders to pick out a dress for a ball was only commonly accepted for family and less so for friends. Even less so for friends that were not partners for the said ball.

Heilke came out of the boutique.

“Marquess?”

August jolted, stiff from embarrassment.

“I’ve got what I need. We can leave now,” Heilke said.

“Yes. I’ll walk you back to the carriage,” August replied awkwardly.

“Thank you.”

Although August was fidgety, he kept thinking he would like the walk to last longer.

“Thank you for today, Marquess.”

Before he knew it, they were already in front of the carriage.

“Ah, yes,” August said. “Lady Heilke.”

“Yes?”

“I have something for you.” August pulled out an exquisitely wrapped box. “I hope you find this of good use.”

“Oh. Thank you, Marquess.”

August nodded.

“Did,” Heilke began. “Did you know it was my birthday?”

August’s eyes widened. He never knew. Their interactions before enlistment were too minimal for him to know. He just remembered they were pleasant.

“I did not! If I knew, I would’ve prepared something more fitting,” August said in panic.

“Well,” Heilke chuckled. “I guess that’s that. This is plenty, August Vin Gardner.”

“See you at the ball, Lady Heilke.”

“Right. See you, Marquess.”

August watched the carriage as it travelled down the road to the Crowell mansion.

*

“August, let’s go shopping,” Francis said before taking a sip out of his tea.

Relaxing on the sofa, August replied.

“Again? Why can’t you go by yourself?”

“I need your opinion.”

Although August put up a reluctant front, he never intended to decline his friend’s invitation.

“Fine. Let’s go.”

They start walking toward the street August had been to just a few days ago.

“This street?”

“Yeah, with the sparkly golden café. You’ve been?”

Just as they reach the intersection, they face two familiar faces. The two guys stood still, as if time had frozen for them.

”Lady Heilke…” August said, stunned.

Renée looked between the two with a smirk, and leaned her head onto Heilke’s shoulder.

“I’m here too!” she said jokingly.

“Lady Renée,” August said. “What are you doing here?”

He turned to his friend, only to find him with his mouth open and perplexed.

“Renée…?”

Only then did the fluffy haired lady notice him. The amount of frozen people increased.

Francis was the one to break the silence.

“I thought you went overseas?”

Confused, Renée responded, “I thought you were ignoring me??”

“I never knew you came back???” Francis retaliated. “How did I not see you? Were you too short for me to notice?”

Renée made a face, then the two burst out in laughter.

“Well, what are you doing?”

“We’re about to go to the cafe we met at. I want to introduce the nice cakes to Heilke.”

“You still frequent it?”

“Yeah?”

“How do I not see you? I go there often.”

August watched the two interact. They were laughing and joking, playing and punching, as if they had not just reunited.

“How short must you be for me to not notice your pink hair, even outside?”

Renée responded with a playful punch, while Francis accepted it while smiling. Although that smile did quickly turn to a face of agony as her punch was too strong and he ended up on the floor.

August made eye contact with Heilke.

“They look happy,” Heilke said.

“They do,” August said, wondering if he would ever experience something similar.

“Francis! Is this what you meant when you said to date while I still can? I thought your lover died or something!”

“Hush, August. There were other reasons as to why I said that.”

“So it was Lady Renée… I don’t understand how you two missed each other?”

“I don’t either. But we don’t share any classes, so that may have been part of the problem.”

“We don’t have any classes together either?”

Francis shrugged.

“So, what actually happened?” August asked.

“We befriended each other in high school where she was an exchange student. After the program ended she went back and never said anything about returning.”

“Did you think to visit her?”

“I would’ve gone to visit her if I could. It’s so far away that travel takes roughly a month and a lot more resources than I can afford.”

August must have made an upset face as Francis' next words were of comfort.

“There’s no problem now. She’s here,” he said. Although August seemed to not have heard him as he responded immediately.

“You’re going to propose, right?”

Francis went silent.

“Right?”

“I think you are severely misunderstanding something. It’s not like that,” Francis said.

“Oh, is it now?”

Francis made a frustrated grunt.

“I’ll do it before graduation. And if I do, you should as well.”

“That’s impossible! Heilke would not like that,” August said.

“I’m not sure about that. It looks plenty possible to me.”