Chapter 207: university gymnasium II

Chapter 207: Chapter 207: university gymnasium II

Christopher had arrived later than usual.

Practice had already begun, but he hadn’t yet changed into his fencing gear.

He crossed the other side of the multipurpose hall with his equipment bag over one shoulder, intending to head toward the changing rooms.

Then he saw her.

He was halfway across the hall when he noticed her.

Lady Beaumont.

He slowed.

For a moment, he simply looked.

She was sitting alone along one of the benches, watching the fencing practice.

She looked different from the last time he’d seen her.

Perhaps it was the setting.

The morning light filtering through the high windows caught in her golden-blonde hair, which fell in soft waves over her shoulders. She wore a simple white dress that suited her remarkably well, its clean lines making her porcelain complexion seem even more luminous.

She was beautiful.

That wasn’t particularly surprising.

Christopher had noticed that before.

But something about seeing her here, surrounded by the ordinary noise of the gymnasium, made her stand out even more.

His gaze lingered for a moment before he caught himself.

Then he noticed what she was doing.

She wasn’t watching the fencing.

Not really.

Her attention kept drifting toward the entrance on the opposite side of the hall.

Someone walked in.

She looked up.

Not him.

Her expression fell for the briefest moment before she looked away.

Christopher’s eyebrows lifted slightly.

A few minutes later, another student entered.

Again, her head turned.

Again, disappointment flickered across her face.

Christopher stopped walking.

Interesting.

He watched her for another minute.

A third person came through the entrance.

Vivienne looked up almost immediately.

Not him.

There it was again.

That tiny, unmistakable look of disappointment.

Christopher’s mouth twitched.

Was she looking for someone?

He considered it.

He knew Lady Beaumont knew he was a member of the fencing club.

She asked him before.

And this wasn’t the first time she’d somehow appeared near one of his activities.

The unexpected encounter outside his club.

And now this.

It would be rather presumptuous to assume she had come here because of him.

But...

Christopher was not oblivious.

He looked toward the entrance she’d been watching.

Then back at her.

Perhaps she was simply waiting for her friend.

Perhaps she was waiting for someone else.

He didn’t know.

He wasn’t going to assume.

Still, curiosity got the better of him.

He adjusted the strap of his equipment bag and changed direction.

Vivienne remained completely unaware.

She was looking toward the entrance again.

Christopher stopped a few steps away.

"Hi."

Vivienne turned.

Her eyes widened.

And for one ridiculous second, she forgot how to breathe.

Christopher stood before her, tall and effortlessly composed.

He hadn’t changed into his fencing gear yet. His clothes were simple enough for practice, but somehow they only emphasized how naturally polished he looked.

His platinum-blond hair caught the light from the high windows, almost silver against his lightly fair skin. His gray eyes were striking beneath sharply defined brows, while the clean lines of his face—the strong jaw, straight nose, and sculpted features—gave him the kind of appearance that seemed more suited to the pages of an expensive men’s magazine than a university gymnasium.

Even dressed casually, he looked unmistakably like someone born into privilege.

Which, of course, he was.

Vivienne stared.

Oh.

He was even more handsome up close.

And then the more horrifying realization arrived.

He saw me.

She had been looking toward that entrance every few minutes.

He had probably seen her.

Her face grew hot.

Christopher watched the color rise across her cheeks.

Her embarrassment was almost endearing.

He didn’t call her out on it.

Instead, a faintly amused smile touched his lips.

"Good morning, Lady Beaumont."

Vivienne seemed to remember that she was supposed to respond.

"S-Senior Archibald."

Her voice came out breathless.

She immediately looked away.

Christopher’s smile deepened.

He had been right.

At least, he was fairly certain now.

But there was no reason to embarrass her further.

"What are you doing here?"

Vivienne looked back at him.

"I..."

She paused.

Then, thankfully, remembered the perfectly legitimate reason for her presence.

"I’m accompanying a friend."

Christopher glanced toward the fencing pistes.

He hadn’t noticed anyone with her when he entered.

"A friend?"

"Yes."

She nodded quickly.

"She’s practicing."

Christopher followed her gaze.

And only then did he notice Eleanor Hayes among the fencers.

"Freshman Hayes?"

Vivienne nodded.

"Eleanor."

"Ah."

Christopher watched Eleanor for a moment.

"She’s good."

Vivienne looked toward the piste.

"She is?"

"Yes."

Then she gave him a slightly embarrassed smile.

"I’m afraid I wouldn’t know."

Christopher looked at her.

"You don’t fence?"

"No."

She glanced at the fencers.

"I don’t even understand what’s happening."

He laughed softly.

"I see."

"They keep running toward each other."

"They’re not running."

"They’re moving quickly toward each other."

"That is considerably closer."

Vivienne smiled.

"And then they hit each other’s swords."

"Sometimes."

"And then someone blows a whistle."

"Also sometimes."

She sighed.

"So you admit it’s confusing."

"For someone who’s never watched it before."

"I’ve seen it on television."

"Have you?"

"Briefly."

Christopher smiled.

"So you came here to learn?"

Vivienne hesitated.

That wasn’t exactly the reason.

But she couldn’t very well tell him she’d spent the last ten minutes scanning every entrance hoping he’d appear.

"Yes," she said eventually. "I thought I’d learn a little."

He studied her for a moment.

Then glanced toward the empty space beside her.

"Would you like me to explain?"

Vivienne blinked.

"Now?"

"I have a few minutes before I need to change."

"Oh, I don’t want to take up your time."

"You won’t."

He set his equipment bag down.

Then sat beside her.

Not too close.

There was a comfortable space between them.

But close enough that Vivienne became acutely aware that this was the first time they’d simply sat together.

No formal gathering.

No carefully engineered coincidence.

Just the two of them on a bench in the university gymnasium.

Christopher nodded toward the pistes.

"The first thing you should know is that there are three weapons."

"Foil, épée, and sabre."

Vivienne nodded.

She was listening.

Or at least, she was trying to.

Christopher began explaining the differences between them, his voice calm and measured as he pointed toward the fencers.

His voice was lower than she’d remembered.

A warm, low tenor that carried easily through the noise of the gymnasium.

Vivienne’s eyes drifted toward him.

He was looking toward the piste as he spoke, one hand resting casually against his knee while the other occasionally gestured toward the fencers.

"Foil is primarily a thrusting weapon. The valid target area is the torso, and there are rules governing which attack has priority..."

Vivienne nodded again.

Right.

Foil.

Torso.

Priority.

She understood absolutely nothing.

Her gaze dropped to his mouth.

That was a mistake.

His lips moved as he continued explaining, forming words she was supposed to be following.

Instead, Vivienne found herself watching the shape of each word.

The slight movement of his mouth.

The way his voice deepened whenever he emphasized a point.

Oh.

She blinked.

Oh, this is bad.

Christopher continued.

"With épée, the entire body is considered a valid target, so there’s no right-of-way in the same sense..."

Vivienne stared.

Nothing registered.

Not a single word.

She had come here because she wanted to see him.

She had known she found him attractive.

Obviously.

She wasn’t blind.

But sitting beside him like this was different.

His voice.

His profile.

His hands moving as he explained something he clearly enjoyed.

And somehow that made him even more attractive.

Vivienne swallowed.

I’m supposed to be learning fencing.

Christopher glanced toward her.

"Does that make sense?"

Vivienne’s brain went completely blank.

"Yes."

He waited.

She smiled.

"Mostly."

"Mostly?"

"Yes."

"What part didn’t you understand?"

She stared at him.

Everything.

Absolutely everything.

Especially the part where he was sitting beside her looking like that.

"The... weapons," she said finally.

Christopher smiled.

"That’s what I was explaining."

"I know."

He laughed softly.

Vivienne looked away before he could see the heat spreading across her cheeks.

Oh my God.

She had genuinely forgotten what he was talking about.

She pressed her lips together.

This was ridiculous.

She was twenty-nine years old.

She was not supposed to be sitting beside a handsome man listening to his voice and forgetting how fencing worked.

Then again...

She had come here specifically hoping to see him.

Maybe she was allowed a little foolishness.

Vivienne glanced at him again.

Christopher was still explaining, completely unaware—or perhaps simply pretending not to notice—how thoroughly he’d lost her attention.

And Vivienne had to admit something to herself.

She was very, very attracted to him.

More than she had expected.

Much more.

She looked back toward the piste.

Right.

Fencing.

She was here to learn about fencing.

She nodded solemnly.

Christopher glanced at her.

"You understand?"

Vivienne smiled.

"Of course."

She understood absolutely nothing.

--

Tbc