The Phoenix in a Foreign Labyrinth
The Last Night
Chapter 14 – The Last Night
The remaining days passed blissfully but swiftly. All too soon, Yune received the telegram that she had been expecting. A footman brought it to her on a silver tray, and she opened it slowly and read it, knowing already exactly what it would say – that Claude would be arriving back in Paris the following afternoon.
‘Will there be a reply, mademoiselle?’ asked the footman a little impatiently. ‘The boy is still waiting.’
‘Um, no, thank you, no reply’ replied Yune, unfamiliar with telegram etiquette. The footman bowed slightly, turned and went back to the front door.
Yune waited until later to tell Alice, when they lay exhausted after another long evening of passion. ‘Alice, my beloved mistress, there is something I must tell you – I heard today that Claude will arrive back in Paris tomorrow afternoon.’ Yune paused, knowing that Alice had of course been expecting this, but still hardly daring to say it. ‘I’m really sorry, but tonight must be our last night together.’
‘It’s all right, Yune, much as though I wish we could go on like this for ever, I knew it could only be for a short time,’ said Alice, and reached over to take Yune’s hand in hers as they both stared upwards at the stuccoed ceiling.
There was a long silence.
Yune took a deep breath. ‘Before Claude left, he asked me if I would marry him,’ she said. After another pause, she continued, ‘I must tell you now that I accepted his proposal.’
‘It comes as no real surprise to me,’ Alice replied calmly, despite the pain Yune’s words had just caused. ‘I thought it inevitable that this would happen soon after you were of age, so I’ve made my own plans too – I’m going to leave France to travel the world. I’ll miss you so much, but I can’t stay here and stand in the way of what I know you believe you must do. And I’m sure you’ll be a good wife to him, so I wouldn’t want to keep being tempted to try to lead you astray either.’
‘Over these past weeks you’ve shown me such love and given me so much joy, there’s more than enough to last me for the rest of my life’, said Alice, as she turned to face Yune and saw the tears rolling down her cheeks. She leaned over and kissed away one of the tears. ‘It’s saltier than that soy sauce of yours!’ she said, trying to force a smile. They embraced, and their bodies entwined once more before sleep claimed them.
The next morning, they got up and dressed in silence, both afraid to say anything in case their resolve weakened. After breakfast, Alice escorted Yune down to where the carriage was waiting to take her back to the Gallerie, and gave her a brief peck on the cheek. Yune stared back with raised eyebrows and a half-smile, as if in anticipation of more, ‘Is that all?’ she asked, teasingly.
‘The servants are watching!’ said Alice, and smiled back as Yune climbed the steps into the carriage. Alice stayed there until it had disappeared from sight, and then went back inside the house, trying to hide her tears.
Notes:
The legal marriage age for females in France was 15, and was only recently raised to 18.