For Tina

[ladyliberty]

Amelia liked Starbucks. The smell, the taste, the sights-- she could almost always walk into a given Starbucks and, within half an hour, find a cute boy to buy her a frappucino. And the type of boy tended to be much less skeezy than the ones you'd find at bars that she couldn't get into anyway.

Today she sat nibbling on a biscotti, wings tucked carefully behind her back, glancing up whenever she beat her level of Candy Crush to scope out the prospectives.

Comments

[inthefrenchstyle]

Francis decidedly doesn't like Starbucks- the entire idea of a chain was rather abhorrent to begin with. It has nothing of the soul and life of a small personally owned café, and Francis had already located as many of those as he could.

But Starbucks is cheap and close, and he's spent the better half of the day picking out new brushes. He is picky about his paint brushes, and now he's ready for a quick cup of coffee before heading back to campus.

He sees her from behind first, the wings hard to miss. Instantly, his curiosity is piqued, and as he approaches he admires the curve to her ear, the color of her hair, the shape of her jaw. An angel in a coffee shop- somehow he finds this strangely appropriate. Thoughts of coffee abandoned for the moment at least, he approaches her, and he gives her his best dashing smile. His fingers just barely brush her shoulders as he leans down to speak to her.

"Care for company, mon ange?" he asks, voice low and putting careful emphasis on his words to sound French. Ladies love a French man, after all.

[ladyliberty]

"Oh!" A shiver runs down Amelia's spine at the man's voice and her wings fluff up. That accent. He isn't too bad to look at, either. Her eyes flick over him for appraisal. His hair is gorgeous-- she was almost jealous. The bit of stubble on his chin makes him look older and mysterious in a European sort of way, and his cheekbones... Score.

She smiles coyly up at him, resting her arm against the table and leaning towards him in a purposely cleavage-emphasizing manner. "How did you know? I've been sitting here all by my lonesome."

[inthefrenchstyle]

Francis seems pleased that her initial reaction is so welcoming, and he takes her hand to kiss her knuckles. He matches her smile with a flirtatious grin of his own, eyes immediately drawn down to her cleavage as she displays it so readily.

"Well, let me order a drink and I'll be at your side again," he answers. "Would the angel like anything?" Even though he realizes she's probably heard that sort of line many times before, he doubts it ever comes from anyone as dashing or as perfect as him.

[ladyliberty]

Yes, she gets that one a lot. She never complains, though.

"Aren't you the gentleman," she coos. "I'll have a mocha chocolate crumble frap with whipped cream and a chocolate drizzle. See voo play."

[inthefrenchstyle]

"A mocha chocolate..." What? He runs through it in his head again, humming to himself. It doesn't throw him off as badly as her interesting usage of 'French' though at least. "As you wish, ma princesse."

He puts his bag from the art supply store down onto the chair next to her, claiming his spot, and then he turns to walk toward the counter. As always, he's sure to strut.

[ladyliberty]

While he's in line, Amelia takes the liberty of poking through his bags. So, art student, huh? She should have guessed. Not bad, not bad at all.

[inthefrenchstyle]

Francis returns and hands her the unnecessarily complicated drink. After, he slides into the seat next to her, sure that when he was settled next to her that their knees touched beneath the table.

"Now," Francis says softly. "Care to grace me with your lovely name?"

[ladyliberty]

Amelia rubs her leg against his, rearranging her wings as she scoots over and accidentally-on-purpose brushing across his arm with her wingtip.

"Amelia," she says. "And yours?"

[inthefrenchstyle]

At all the casual touches, the brush of her wing, he can't help but arch a brow. She knows how to play the game, and that makes it more fun for him.

"Amélie~" he says, winking. "Beautiful name for a beautiful girl. I'm Francis." In greeting, he leans forward and kisses her cheek. His eyes go back to her wings after a moment, clearly curious.

[ladyliberty]

"Ooh la la~" Amelia coos. He's damn right she knows how to play this game. "Do you do that with every girl?"

[inthefrenchstyle]

"Only the angels," he says back instantly, fingers moving toward the feathers but stopping short of touching just yet. "What's your major, Amélie?" He hasn't yet realized how young she is.

[ladyliberty]

"Oh, I'm undecided," she says quickly-- it's true enough, and a good evasion when she doesn't want to mention that she's still (unfortunately) in high school. Then she grins. "But trust me, I'm no angel."

[inthefrenchstyle]

"Ah, I see. I'm an art major," Francis explains, fingers just barely brushing down along the feathers. "And I hate to hear that, though. I wanted to paint an angel and you're the loveliest I've found so far."

He says it with a hint of teasing, just in case she found that a strange request.

[ladyliberty]

She shivers a bit at the teasingly light contact. "I kind of figured that." She smiles, nodding toward his bag of supplies. "And I guess I could do a pretty good impression of one, if that's what you're into."

[inthefrenchstyle]

He follows her gaze to the bag of art supplies and hums. "Oh yes of course," he says, as though just remembering himself it was there. He turns his eyes back toward her and takes her hand. "'What I'm into?'" he repeats. "Oh you make it sound so base. It's really not! I simply have a great appreciation for beauty. So will you sit for me? To be painted?"

[ladyliberty]

"I'd love to!" Amelia squeaks, all genuine and giddy. Becoming a real live work of art? It was almost better than meeting a dreamy French guy.

She had no doubts that he was an excellent artist-- he just had the air of it. "You'd really do that?"

[inthefrenchstyle]

At first, he's taken aback by her excitement but then he gives an genuine amused laugh. "Yes, it would be my honor to paint you, mon ange. It would be a source a pride." He reaches over and tucks her hair behind her ear. "Would you happen to have an appropriate white dress?"

Though he does have a certain amount of women's clothing and costuming in his apartment, he doesn't have anything catered to a woman with wings.

[ladyliberty]

"Well, it's like I said, I'm not really a white dress kinda gal." Although even if she had one, she was hardly going to take a mature and worldly college boy back to her mom's house to pick it up. She lowers her eyelids and flutters her lashes at him. "I guess you'll just have to use your imagination."

[inthefrenchstyle]

He arches a brow at her attitude- the fluttering and the flirtatious words. After a moment, he raises his hand to her face. He tilts her head back and moves to murmur against his ear, "You're an angel of temptation, aren't you~?"

As he pulls back again he scrunches his face a bit in concentration, looking her over and humming gently. "In which case a nice red would be better suited for you."

[ladyliberty]

"Mmmm, maybe!" Amelia giggles, delighting at the attention and his touch. "I guess we'll find out, won't we?"

[inthefrenchstyle]

"I'd love to find out a great many things as a matter a fact," he tells her, leaning back now and sipping his drink. "Are you free today then, Miss Amélie?"

[ladyliberty]

"I think I can find some time in my busy schedule to squeeze in a little inspiring this afternoon."

[inthefrenchstyle]

He offers her his hand. "So you don't mind following me home then?"

[ladyliberty]

She takes it, sipping coyly on her frappuccino as she does. "Lead the way."

[inthefrenchstyle]

Francis gives her a dashing smile and stands, helping her to her feet. He offers his elbow to her, intent upon escorting her. "It's about fifteen minutes from here. Do you live near campus as well?"