Lilly's chronicle - 2 -

Part reality, part fiction - Lilly's love life...

Mid December

So Lilly today is trying to find the best song to fit her profile. She's getting mixed messages and having mixed emotions about her new found friend on the net. But she just can't bring herself to putting a Céline Dion song on... Céline's got the right message, but Lilly can't stand her singing... When you're from Québec, you can't say that: T.V. made her a DIVA and people think you're jealous of her if you say otherwise. So she settles for a French singer. And logs out.

Tonight, she's leaving for a friend's - get together -... It's going to be a - vin et fromage - Her dear friend is the hostess and originally from Chile. She is a delightful person. She's cultivated and has many rituals to keep her guests on the edge of their seats. Manuela, that's her name, insisted that Lilly wear red tonight - you know that beautiful red dress of yours? ... - she had told Lilly earlier this week. But she was vague about who was going to be there.

So Lilly left her jeans on the bed... and puts on her nice dress. She matches the dress with some lipstick and hides her little tattoo on her leg with a bit of makeup. - I got to do something about this little sun - she thinks to herself.

- Oh well, let's see what this night brings to me - "La soirée est jeune"...

She gets to the Plateau apartment in Montréal, not too late. She doesn't like to arrive fashionably late and make an entrance like some of her more outgoing friends.
It's eight - ten. As she enters the apartment. Surprise. She's actually the last one to arrive. Manuela greets her with a funny look on her face, - I did that on purpose, ma chérie- she whispers to her ear. -Take a bow girl, she adds.-

Lilly blushes, everyone is looking at her and even the men that seem to be in a couple are staring at her. Manuela's husband even lets out a whistle, just to tease her... Lilly looks at her invitation again, the 7 o'clock was crossed on purpose...

So the evening is well on its way. It's a lovely night. There are about 12 guests sitting around the table. Lilly knows a few of them but doesn't exactly know who's single. The 4 seasons solarium where the table was set gives a nice view to the small but intimate and charming backyard. Light snow is falling. It's actually very warm inside. The wine is wonderful. Manuela chose each bottle carefully. Making sure it matched every cheese selection she made. There's a Cuban CD playing in the background. All the guests are happy and charming. Especially the tall and handsome man sitting next to Lilly.

His deep voice and smile in his eyes make it hard not to stare. He speaks about wine, relationships, trips to Europe he's made... And Lilly finds him quite interesting. He has noticed Lilly's furtive interest and lets her know with many little gestures that he likes it. His name is Mario. He's probably of Italian origin, but sings along once in a while to the Spanish songs playing in the back. So who knows. She'll ask soon. Lilly is more of an observer at first.

As he pores the next wine to be tasted in Lilly's glass, he asks her with a soft voice and not too loud so that nobody else hears him - So I hear you have a wonderful voice yourself - Do you still sing? - Lilly is surprised, not everybody in her entourage knows she used to sing in a band. She looks in Manuela's direction. Her friend has a smirk on her face and gets up to avoid questioning. Lilly looks back at Mario with a smile on her face. By now she understands that her friend has purposely invited both of them tonight so that they meet. If he knows about her singing, what else does he know... Lilly likes that thought... He smiles back at her ... and her heart skips a beat...

With the wine, the warm ambiance... and her red dress. She knows that everything is matching her cheeks right now. For Lilly is blushing with delight. Manuela sure knows how to pick them...

To be continued...

Author's Note

I am more French so forgive the grammar... Feel free to correct me...

Reviews

[TamerQtaish]

I wont dare to correct you, English isn't my first language either, it aint even my 3rd!
Anyway you have a good start here, I will need to go through it again to be able to give more artistic point of view on this, but on a total, you did a great job, you should be really proud of it...

All the best,
Tamer Qtaish

[Nicole (Carpe Diem)]

ooo i want to know more ... this is a fantastic story - i am hooked :)

[George Love]

Nicely done and well told

[Lorraine Pearson]

This is very sweet...I am enjoying the storyline, and wishing very much I had a friend like Manuela! So far, a very inviting read...I know there is more, so I'm about to read on. :)
~Lorraiyne

(*a little spelling error..."As he pores the next wine to be tasted in Lilly's glass" it would be "pour" not pore.)

[Siddartha Beth Pierce]

I am more interested with every installement - looking forward to what comes of this although I see cyberspace has fallen from the table which is fine...
Light,
Siddartha

[Jacqueline]

I smiled at the Celine Dion reference :) What is a French Canadian girl to do?

Lilly seems to blossom more and more and this chance encounter with a mysterious internet friend is so romantic-a far cry from most encounters folks have with meeting their 'net buddies! I could almost see how beautiful Lilly looks in her dress; imagine her blushing at Mario...this story cruises along so smooth! And like I mentioned before: your French is charming! No more apologies! ;)

[lori c]

i do wonder why lilly feels the need to cover her tattoo. and mario is definately charming. i have no real issue with lilly being in an online romance and feeling out for one in real time. (a computer can't give a warm good night hug !). you have set the scene well here. and lilly's emotions running high, perhaps out of frustration with a long distance electronic lover , heightening her vulnerability -- it makes sense. this story is taking an interesting direction and i am on to the next installment. again, nicely done.

[Brie]

I like where you're going with this! Really sweet! I love the French, keep going!
-Brie

[R J Askew]

Firstly, this is my first read of the day and I turned to it for pleasure, remembering the first part. I was surprised that the story veers into the real word and away from the online fantasy, but that did not deter me. The sentences are short and I soon became curious. I was taken with the red dress and the tattoo drew my attention. What was going down? Your grammar at no point got in the way and I would not have guessed that English is not your first language. My only hitch was ... funny look on her face -- as I don't think you need 'on her face'. I enjoyed being a fly on the wall at the gathering in far off Canada and -- being in London -- was amused to imagine the people chattering about Europe. As the host's game plan began to emerge I felt a derivative annoyance at the host staging a set up and a burning curiosity to see if it will work!