With the night gone and four hours left before we had to head to the airport, I decided to bring Nat for a quick breakfast at My Tea Is Rich before doing some last-minute souvenir shopping. While I felt that the atmosphere in the place was much more comforting than most other teashops that I have seen in Paris, I really wanted to thank Benoît for his insight.
Unfortunately, Benoît was nowhere to be found, but both Nat and I were tended to quite nicely by Katy, the unusually bubbly English waitress. Through a pleasant conversation, both Nat and I learned that the two started dating shortly after Benoît was forced by his father to work at My Tea Is Rich. Recalling last night, I remembered the Frenchman mentioning one particular Paul West.
"Paul West?" Katy gave the name some thought before her eyes lit in up recognition. "Oh, I haven't seen him in a long while! Yes, he's the actual owner of this English teashop. When Benoît decided to grow up after being forced to work here, Paul felt that he had matured enough to run the place."
"Ah, right." The topic out of the way, Nat and I continued chatting with Katy for a little longer until several customers came in. As the waitress went to serve them, Nat looked down at her tea as she stirred it. The way that she was looking at it, it was as though she was contemplating telling me something rather unpleasant. A few minutes passed before the redhead looked up.
"I'm an orphan."
Her words stunned me. That was why she was upset when I hesitated last night - she wanted to be loved. The next thing I knew, I was by her side, hugging her, trying to comfort her.
"Nat... I'm sorry... I did not know."
"It happened two weeks ago. They were leaving a dinner party celebrating my dad's promotion that would have him working in Riverdale. It was a case of hit-and-run while they were waiting for a taxi."
It wasn't any wonder why she teased me when we first met on the way to the Download Festival. It was her own way of getting over her grief by flirting with guys. Fortunately for the both of us, I fell in love with Nat on my own accord. "I swear, Nat," I heard myself muttering, "regardless of whatever happens between me and Betty, I will always love you." The instant the words left my mouth, I felt her caress my hair.
"Forsythe... You've already pledged that to me once last night when you gave yourself to me. There's no need to repeat it again." As I looked into her eyes, I noticed that the resolve to get on with her life was starting to burn again. "I love you, you know?"
"Why else would I want you to follow me on this trip?" At this point, Nat could not help but grin - she had indeed returned to her normal bubbly self. As we resumed a normal conversation, I could not help but thank God for making the finest things in life so simple - things like food, sleeping, and Nat's ability to look cute as she pushed a strand of hair behind her ears. Perhaps both Archie and Reggie have a point that going out with a girl can be good, but I have learnt one thing that they would never appreciate. Of course, not that I would like to brag but, if you can prove to the girl that you're in love with that you do care for her as a person, you can get very, very far.
Not that I'd be taking any pictures to prove that fact to them, unless Nat decides to teach them that lesson.
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Benoît returned to the teashop just as Nat and I were about to leave. While Katy and Nat were engaging in some last-minute girl-talk, I was busy singing my praises to the amused Frenchman. "Not a problem, my friend," Benoît kept saying, "it's my pleasure to help someone out, whether I'm serving a customer or giving a stranger some advice. That's why I take my time when doing these things - I want to give my customer the best that I can give."
In fact, that was indeed the explanation for Benoît's absence earlier. He was sourcing out the best possible fresh ingredients for whatever he might end up having to prepare throughout the day.
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"Where do we go now?"
That was a good question. According to the information that the Coopers gave me, Betty believes that Hong Kong would be a good place to find Veronica, considering that the Chinese Special Administrative Region is the West's gateway to China. The same would also apply to Singapore, which is further down south in South-East Asia - the island-state is a popular haunt for expatriates. Perhaps it would be a good idea to visit Hong Kong first before dropping by Singapore en route to Australia.
"Hong Kong sounds mighty tempting," I suggested, "don't you say so? Considering we don't have much time to look for my friend, the island's a pretty exotic place, from what I heard." As Nat was still pondering whether to head to Hong Kong or Singapore, I bent down to whisper into her ear. "There's a shopping centre called Pacific Place, and it's connected to about two or three big-name hotels, one of which we'll be staying at. There's a food court we can go to if we need to take a break from..." God, Nat looks so sexy in a cute manner when she blushes.
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During the taxi ride to the airport, Nat showed her appreciation for me by giving me a really, really thorough make-out session. Talking about her parents might have upset her, but it also helped her to accept that they were gone, and the redhead was now determined to live life for them. How she can accomplish that will really depend on how thorough a workout my tonsils can receive, how many places we can get really intimate with each other, and just how much fun we can have while she helps me search for the one other girl I truly like as more than a friend, Elizabeth Cooper.
