I meet his gaze again, and he stares back in wonder. “You’re welcome,” I say.
We spend the rest of dinner talking about his mother. And when we leave the restaurant, we keep talking about her. We walk along the Seine. The
moon is ful and the lamps are on, and he talks until it’s as if he weighs an entire person lighter.
He stops. “I didn’t mean to do that.”
I breathe deeply, inhaling the pleasant river smel . “I’m glad you did.”
We’re at the street we’d turn on to go back to the dorm. He looks down it hesitantly, and then blurts, “Let’s see a film. I don’t want to go back yet.”
He doesn’t have to ask me twice. We find a theater showing a new release, a slacker comedy from the States, and stay for the double feature. I don’t remember the last time I laughed so hard, and beside me, St. Clair laughs even harder. It’s two in the morning before we get back to the dorm. The front
desk is empty, and Nate’s light is off.
“I think we’re the only ones in the building,” he says.
“Then no one will mind when I do this!” I jump onto the desk and parade back and forth. St. Clair belts out a song, and I shimmy to the sound of his
voice. When he finishes, I bow with a grand flourish.
“Quick!” he says.
“What?” I hop off the desk. Is Nate here? Did he see?
But St. Clair runs to the stairwel . He throws open the door and screams. The echo makes us both jump, and then together we scream again at the top
of our lungs. It’s exhilarating. St. Clair chases me to the elevator, and we ride it to the rooftop. He hangs back but laughs as I spit off the side, trying to hit a lingerie advertisement. The wind is fierce, and my aim is off, so I race back down two flights of stairs. Our staircase is wide and steady, so he’s only a few feet behind me. We reach his floor.
“Wel ,” he says. Our conversation halts for the first time in hours.
I look past him. “Um. Good night.”
“See you tomorrow? Late breakfast at the crêperie?”
“That’d be nice.”
“Unless—” he cuts himself off.
Unless what? He’s hesitant, changed his mind. The moment passes. I give him one more questioning look, but he turns away.
“Okay.” It’s hard to keep the disappointment out of my voice. “See you in the morning.” I take the steps down and glance back. He’s staring at me. I lift my hand and wave. He’s oddly statuesque. I push through the door to my floor, shaking my head. I don’t understand why things always go from perfect to
weird with us. It’s like we’re incapable of normal human interaction. Forget about it, Anna.
The stairwel door bursts open.
My heart stops.
St. Clair looks nervous. “It’s been a good day. This was the first good day I’ve had in ages.” He walks slowly toward me. “I don’t want it to end. I don’t want to be alone right now.”
“Uh.” I can’t breathe.
He stops before me, scanning my face. “Would it be okay if I stayed with you? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable—”
“No! I mean ...” My head swims. I can hardly think straight. “Yes.Yes, of course, it’s okay.”
St. Clair is stil for a moment. And then he nods.