18

My best friend hugs this boy with charming features while I'm sure I've seen him somewhere. I approach them and when she turns around to present it to me, I already know who is standing in front of me. My boozy mind may be sluggish, but I'm sure of myself. When his eyes meet mine for the first time, I see surprise and incomprehension on his face. Apparently he too hadn't expected to see me here, or at least with Cass.

-Candice, you know Gabriel, Maxime's cousin, don't you? throws at me the pasty voice of my friend, who does not notice our confusion.

The man standing in front of me is exactly the same who was smiling warmly in the photos Big Brown Bear sent me. I now recognize her soft face full of charm which reflects a lot of kindness, her laughing brown eyes and her slender, lean body. His shy smile begins to widen and his playful side is revealed as well. I think back to all his teasing and the little flirtation we started and I admit that I suddenly feel embarrassed to be in front of him. This unexpected encounter takes me completely by surprise. How could I have imagined for a single moment that the Gabriel with whom I have been exchanging messages for several weeks now is an acquaintance of my best friend and even Maxime's cousin? But besides, since when does Maxime have a single cousin named Gabriel? Not knowing what to say or deal with this surprise, I only managed to mumble:

- What do you mean, "Maxime's cousin"?

My pasty voice and the alcohol that anesthetizes my brain do not help me to control the situation. They both start laughing at my amazement. Gabriel then speaks and I immediately recognize his tone of voice.

-Maxime is my distant cousin, in reality it is our mothers who are cousins. And you, how do you know Cass and Max?

As I'm about to answer, a small shrill cry comes from Cassiopeia's mouth. Her intoxicated brain, which until then had been idling, seems to have given her the key to the enigma she is witnessing.

-Don't-tell-me-that-the-mysterious-unknown-on-the-net-who-stole-your-concert-ticket-and-who-has-been-flitting-on-you-for-several-days -is-in-fact-Gabriel-the-cousin-of-Maxime?? she charges in one go.

I ignore his remark and hasten to answer Gabriel.

-This sassy blonde is my best friend, we've known each other since high school. I pause and then resume, still stunned by this surprising coincidence. I can't believe you know each other!

I can see that Gabriel wants to talk to me and that he is gradually approaching me, but the phenomenon to my left keeps cutting us off. It's not easy to get to know Cassiopeia next to us... Feeling that the situation isn't very comfortable, Gabriel offers to buy me a drink. So we kindly abandon my friend and head to the bar where yet another cocktail awaits me. My head is spinning and I have trouble understanding how my imprecise gestures still allow me to hold a drink. I start laughing on my own then change my mind when I see Gabriel's surprised look. After long seconds of silence, I finally decide to ask the question that has been burning my lips since I recognized him.

-What are you doing... here tonight? You... didn't tell me... you were coming?

I find it increasingly difficult to string together coherent words to form comprehensible sentences.

-Hmmm it's true but when you told me you were coming here and I understood that you were a little... pissed off, I preferred to come and make sure you were fine. And I really wanted to meet you in the flesh this time.

He takes my left hand in his then continues, a charming smirk on his lips.

-And I must admit that I am not at all disappointed by the vision that I have before my eyes...

I instantly blush when I hear his words and hasten to answer while awkwardly lifting my cleavage:

-I don't dress... not at all like that usually, it's just that... tonight we wanted to have fun... and dress ourselves up a bit.

I don't know why I feel compelled to justify myself, but I don't want him to think I'm the frivolous, flirtatious type of woman. Tonight I put on a costume to free myself from my usual shackles, that's all.

- Well, it suits you very well in any case. I can't take my eyes off you, my pretty...

I find his teasing and flirty tone and it has the merit of relaxing me. I'm not flirting with a stranger, I'm just having a good time with a... friend (?) that I already know a little bit. I notice at this moment that his hand is still holding mine and this vision makes me slightly uncomfortable. I realize that I don't feel the torrent of sensations that surged through me when my boss tortured me with his gentle caresses. No tingling, no chills, my hand is just in his, that's all. It must be the alcohol that annihilates your reactions, nothing else. I close my eyes for a second and shake my head imperceptibly to get these devastating thoughts out of my mind. I'm here to forget my sloppiness, what am I saying, my terrible mistake this week, so I I try hard to focus on Gabriel smiling at me. No matter how hard I try, I find it very difficult to feel involved in our discussion. The more the seconds pass, the more I feel disconnected.

This man exudes a lot of sweetness, as much by his expressions, by his smile as by his gestures. He looks kindly at me and at no time has he eyed me up and down as if the only thing he was interested in was putting me in his bed. The arrival of the bartender with our glasses allows me to recover my hand without offending him and I relax while sipping my cocktail. I struggle to follow the conversation Gabriel tries to carry on, the words that come out of his mouth dance around us but don't reach my brain. Yet they seem pleasant, enchanting, understanding and even considerate, but they glide over me like water, without managing to really touch me. Alcohol clouds my brain more and more and I am less and less receptive. I do I don't want to talk anymore, I came here to have fun and have a good time and I find myself in the middle of a serious discussion with my self-proclaimed flirt. As he continues his sentence, not taking his eyes off me, I abruptly cut him off and launch:

-I've had it up to here ! I want to dance !

My words clap in the air and I rush off towards the dance floor, which holds out its arms to me. I don't care at all about my interlocutor who was talking to me and I only listen to my desires. I who usually always act according to others, tonight I only want to think about myself. This is the first time that I don't care about other people's eyes, and damn it feels good! I immediately find my state of bliss which invades me each time I let the music infiltrate me and take control of my body. I don't want to think anymore, I just want to feel. The bass that resonates on the walls of this club, the rhythm that swarms under my feet, the tempo that guides my swaying, the drunkenness that makes my head sway deliciously, the hands that I feel land on my hips and grip a little too hard for my liking, the... wait, what? I jerk my eyes open and turn around just in time to find a glassy-eyed stranger standing behind my back trying to run his fingers unpleasantly over my stomach. I frown and I don't have time to ask him to let go of me before I see him being pushed around. Gabriel pushes him away firmly and glares at me to make sure I'm okay. Once freed from this unexpected intrusion, I give him a thankful smile and turn around to plunge back into my bubble. This time Gabriel doesn't go away, he stays behind me and I can tell he's uncomfortable. My behavior must have confused him and now he doesn't know what to do. Not wishing to upset him further, I gently take his hands and gently place them between my hips and waist. I don't want him to misinterpret my intentions but I just want to enjoy this moment with him since he's there and I don't want to scare him away.

His hands first tense gently relax to the rhythm of my gentle undulations. He follows my movement but does not stick to me. I understand then that he lets me decide our pace without rushing me. I immediately appreciate his attitude and it helps me completely relax around him. This charming man is really filled with benevolence towards me and he makes me want to continue to know him. His thumbs are now beginning a peaceful caress over the fabric of my dress, making light comforting circles. I let him cuddle me like this, this gesture may not mean much to the other girls in this club but I completely understand its significance. It expresses patience, kindness and attraction to me. If previously his words flew away in the mist of this room, his gestures anchor themselves in me. I then close my eyes and let my head fall back against his shoulder. Our torsos are now glued and our breaths synchronize immediately. We continue our slow dance, completely cut off from the world around us. If I had clear ideas, I would realize that we are ridiculous dancing slowly and tenderly to the sound of catchy music on which all the clubers sway their hips energetically. But tonight, I don't care about anything except my desires. And there, I just want to enjoy this soothing moment. A funny feeling begins to take hold of me, it's as if I was floating on a soft cloud, lulled by soft music. I don't feel any excitement or desire, just a deep well-being and a lot of tenderness. And it's a confusing feeling because I hardly know Gabriel.

We stay like that for a long time, enjoying each other without having to talk to each other. When I open my eyes, I see my best friend in the distance looking at us with a smile on her face. The other girls, who were scattered all over the club and well accompanied, are now reunited with Cassiopée and discuss among themselves. The evening is coming to an end and they are about to go home. I then gently pull away from our embrace and make a sign to Gabriel that I will join my friends for a few moments.

When I come up to them, they give me lustful smiles and winks that don't really make me feel comfortable. Wishing to prevent me from closing in on myself, Cass then calls out to me to inform me that it's late and that they want to go home. At these words, Gabriel leans into my ear and whispers to me that he would like to accompany me. I hesitate a little but I end up accepting because I know that he will not exceed the limits. He is not the type to insist and I hope he will be satisfied with these few minutes of isolation in his car. I tell my friends that I'm going home without them and I go to pick up my things. I realize little by little that the exhilarating effects of alcohol are disappearing to give way to great fatigue.

Gabriel asks me for my address before opening the passenger door for me. I sit comfortably on its leather seats and it doesn't take long for me to doze off. Slipping slowly into sleep, I realize that this man surrounds me with a lot of tenderness, gentleness and benevolence. My body and my head are not unleashed, I am enveloped in a creamy bubble and as sweet as a candy that one tastes with pleasure.

But my heart tells me that I'm not vibrating. Maybe that will come with time?