Don't be afraid

Earlier, Esma had looked at him like all the women around her, but now, she looked at him like a sister. Her gaze was full of understanding and wisdom. And you could tell by that look that she wouldn't leave him in trouble, ever. Abruptly grabbing his face with both hands, she whispered softly, "Adelard, I will not leave you. If you need anything, maybe support, advice, you can come to me anytime. Here's my address." Putting a small paper in his pocket, she lightly kissed his face. "Well, now go back to your people. They're waiting for you. And remember my words."

The dancing, along with the loud music, like a sea wave, took Adelard with it. Without noticing it, he was already dancing with some girl who was glowing with happiness. There was a lot of noise around; the inhabitants of the whole town were having fun and behind their happy laughter there was something incomprehensible, something dark. And this darkness slowly moved behind Adelard, who continued to dance.

Feeling his hand on her back, the girl forcefully took his hand and placed it a little lower. "Why don't you hold me properly? Monsieur, don't be so shy."

She was much smaller next to him, but her ego was clearly bigger. Her desires were written on her red cheeks and her cheerful silver eyes looked lower, where Adelard kept his secret, which he had first shared with Celeste.

"You are so handsome. You're just the perfect man," the girl said, moving her hands down his back, wanting to study every inch of his body through the expensive material of his jacket.

"You're very beautiful too," he said sincerely, unaware that these words could backfire on him very quickly.

"Really? You're so cute!" the girl shouted, now just hugging him.

"I'm sorry." Adelard quickly stepped away from her and immediately he felt sorry that he might have offended this girl. Without saying anything else, he quickly walked away. But his steps stopped the moment Jean caught him.

"You are so nice to everyone. Do you realize what you have done? Now you have to spend the night with every one of these people."

"Stop joking around."

"What's wrong with you? You've been so weird lately. Maybe you need help."

"Help?"

"Yes. You need a drink. You don't drink that much, do you?"

"I need to change," Adelard said, falling wearily into the chair that was behind the curtains. The warm night with dark blue clouds was as magical as ever. And the magic of this night was that the wind was slowly walking everywhere, and the sound of the sea waves carried with it some long forgotten dreams. The sky, the greenery all around, the sand and stones that shaped the paths, the lonely benches near the lonely carriages, the tired horses, and the sound of distant thunder, everything was perfect. But behind it all, there was too much that Adelard did not understand.

"Still thinking about her? About your fiancée?" Jean asked, massaging his tense shoulders.

"No. I don't think about anything."

"I think I need to confess about something to you."

"And what is that?"

"You know I have feelings for you, don't you?" Jean suddenly asked, leaning toward Adelard's ear. His voice made Adelard flinch but then he laughed. "You're not laughing, are you? Why are you laughing?"

"That's enough. I'm not in the mood for jokes right now."

"And you don't mean that. Adelard, I know you know how I feel. I can feel it, after all."

"What am I supposed to do now? Jean, I have a headache, I really miss Celeste, I want to be with her now, so I really don't want to play with you. I'm sorry, but I'm really tired."

"I can take away your tiredness," Jean whispered, touching his neck with his lips.

"What are you doing?" This time, Adelard's voice sounded loud and a little nervous. "I'm tired, I'm going home."

"Stop!" And those words, like a spell, worked in such a way that Adelard suddenly felt weak in his legs. He simply collapsed, without the slightest chance of rising to his feet. The night took off its mask, but Adelard could not see who was hiding in the darkness.

Red was everywhere. That was the first thing Adelard realized when he opened his eyes. The second thing he realized was his weakness. He had no strength to move. And for a moment he thought he was dead, and now he was just looking at his body. But no, his heart was beating very fast, so fast that it hurt. Lifting his head to see where he was, he suddenly saw Celeste. But no sooner had he looked into her face than she immediately covered him with a kiss.

"Honey, it's me. It's okay," she said, kissing his forehead.

"Where am I?" Adelard was glad to see her, but his dizziness and choking prevented him from asking anything. And the next thing he felt was pleasure. Celeste, with her soft, snow-white skin, was quite frank in front of him. Her body moved slowly, causing Adelard to clench his hands into fists.

"What's going on?" he managed to ask, feeling all his desire gathered in one place, wanting to get out sooner.

"My darling, I love you," Celeste said and kissed him. Everything in front of his eyes was foggy and only red surrounded him. But he had only to breathe heavily in time with Celeste's movements. It felt good, but the pain in his head was unbearable. "Stop! Stop!" he managed to shout before Celeste hugged him tightly and lied down beside him. Only now did he realize that he wasn't wearing any clothes. As she continued to kiss him, Celeste whispered something, but he could not understand the words.

He whispered back, "I love you too. I love you so much."

"You're fine. You just fainted. But now, I'm with you. And I'll do anything to make you happy," she said, gently placing her head in his heart area. Suddenly, feeling something underneath, Adelard was able to lift his head high enough to see what was going on there. The question in his head sounded too loud, thunderclaps followed by a shout, "Jean!" But it was too late. Jean swallowed his soul, squeezing and smiling.

"Stop," Adelard whispered softly, unable to do anything. The strange laughter was suddenly the only thing that was clear and real. That laughter was quiet and it was followed by other voices. It was dark around him, only the red that surrounded him was different from everything else. As if in his heart, it radiated life, while in the darkness, someone was laughing.

"Stop," he repeated, but Celeste hugged him gently, drawing patterns with her finger on his body. "Close your eyes. It's only a dream," she whispered.

"Celeste, Celeste."

"Yes. I'm here and I'll always be here. Don't be afraid."