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He was feeling better, his nausea ceased to oppress him all the time, and he could afford to walk on the deck, trying to sooth his bad leg. Humidity was really a raw thing when someone has a physical injury. And traveling by water was one of the first thing better to avoid.
He wondered how his son was managing on the great dreams’s Country. He left him 3 years ago and wrote to him just the essential stuffs he needed to know: he ate, he got where to sleep and he worked. Not a word of affection, not some sweet news such as girlfriends, friends or babies coming. True was they didn’t part as best friends. Quite the contrary, Bae left after a huge fight with him and he didn’t bother to say goodbye.
Nicholas Gold was mulling over that dark, painful part of his past he couldn’t forget when some kids snapped him from further speculations: what if his son didn’t want to see him? What if they resume fighting? What if he was involved in some dirty affairs? What ifs…?
The kids were happily shouting one toward each other, running, doing slalom between couples and gentlemen, earning some spanking-threats and blasphemies.
Gold was torn between being grumpy or hiding a smile, remembering his boy when he was young and loved him. And trusted him.
Melancholy set again in the pit of his stomach. Until a loud shouting broke once more his mood.
It was coming from the lower deck, the one meant for the third class. He leaned forward and saw her, walking away from an extremely tall and large guy. She was clearly angry at him. And he was dumb enough (and drunk) to stumble trying to catch her by the arm. “Com’on, Belle! It was just a joke!” he slurred. She turned around, facing him. Hands on her hips. Ready to kick his ass, apparently.
Gold smirked.
“No it was NOT! You can’t just prattle about how man you are and then involve me in your stupid and dirty bets! Making me look like a whore! A whore!” She was making a point, Gold thought.
“But it was just a kiss!” he tried to explain, evidently for the hundredth time. His tone clearly exasperated even in the middle of his daze.
“Don’t you dare to change the subject! You bet for that kiss to happen! You’d have been paid if it actually had happened! More of all, you forced me to do something I didn’t want to do!” her voice cracked and Gold was quite sure she was going to cry soon. Unexpectedly he didn’t like the idea.
“But I didn’t do anything wrong! You’re my betrothed! Isn’t it right wanting to kiss my fiancée?” the hulking man was reaching out for her arm, once again. In that moment Gold decided it was time to do someting. But what…?
“Not when your fiancée tell you not to! I’m not a toy! I’m not someone you can toss around and trash away when finished. I felt used and…” she didn’t have time to finish because that stupid troll was shaking her like a leaf.
He sputtered venom in her face, “You’re talking nonsense! You’re my soon-to-be-wife and you ought obedience to your husband! You hear me?”
She didn’t have the chance to answer because a rather disgusting thing fell on his dark hair and his forehead.
He stopped, trying to understand what had just happened.
He touched that thing, realising with some sort of perplexity that someone from the upper deck spitted on him. Spitted on him!
He roared an animal sound then, looking up. When nobody was seen he simply took off, running, heading toward the stairs. Probably searching someone to butcher.
She stayed there. Motionless. Baffled and amused by how the event sorted out.
After some time she looked up. There was that man, again. Looking at her, smugness written all over his face. She bit her lips, something inside her broke and she burst out a heartful laugh.
He saw her shiny eyes, again; she made a funny, amused face and he was blessed by her bright laugh. His heart skipped a beat at that sight. To give those children a silver coin for putting up the little show had been truly worth it.
He didn’t even notice that his limp was less pronounced when he got away. A really self-satisfied man, indeed.
And Belle. Her name was Belle.