She switches to some frantic, upset-sounding French as she keeps talking to Nicolas with a tone that is definitely not very festive, but he doesn’t flinch. I give a look to Emi, but she just shrugs. Solange only ever switches to French when she doesn’t want to include us in the discussion, and sometimes I can’t tell if it’s a good or a bad thing…
“We’ll go check in now,” Nicolas eventually says, with impeccable calm. “We will be back in time for dinner.”
“Well, since I’m on my own, I’m going to the bar,” his mother shrugs, still looking accusatory. “I could use aflûte de champagneafter all this stress!”
She dramatically spins on her high heels and walks toward what I assume to be the bar. Next to me, Emi lets out a heavy sigh.
“Well, it doesn’t look like she’s expecting me, so I’m going to pop into the bathroom,” she says. “You guys, please take aaaaall your time checking in. I’ll wait for you back here.”
She walks off in the opposite direction Solange took, and I turn to Nicolas.
“…We’re in trouble, aren’t we?” I grimace.
“We’re not,” he replies. “Mamanis being unreasonable. We still have… well, seventeen minutes before dinner,” he adds after checking his watch. “That’s plenty of time. Don’t worry.”
I nod, but I let him talk to the receptionist and do our check-in while I finally take a minute to observe the hotel, and it’s trulybeautiful.
I couldn’t get a good look because it was already nighttime, and we rushed inside, but theChâteau Frontenacis a beautiful European-style castle overlooking the St. Lawrence River. I read online that it’s over a hundred years old, has hosted many celebrities, and is even one of the most prestigious hotels in the world, on top of being a historical landmark!
Even if I didn’t know all that, I would be absolutely amazed by the beauty of this place. It’s even more beautiful than what I saw online, and I did look it up plenty! It’s all marble floors, fancy carpets, high wooden walls, gorgeous chandeliers, and gold accents! I feel like I’m standing in one of the rooms of Versailles, or, well, what Iimaginea very fancy European château to be like. And the Christmas trees areeverywhere! I was expecting some low-key, very coordinated Christmas decor that would blend seamlessly in the hotel… Well, I was wrong. The Christmas trees scattered around the lobby are loud, colorful, and different, nothing basic. When Nicolas guides me to our room, I can’t help but smile at the fairy lights and vivid green pine branches adorning the beautiful staircase.
I spin around, and finally, I spot it.Themailbox.
It’s a giant brass mailbox that fits seamlessly in the decor and looks quite majestic in the lobby. While researching this hotel, I read about the beautiful story of this mailbox. Well, the mailbox itself isn’t extraordinary, but it became famous a few years ago, when a mysterious postcard was found. A postcard that had been lost since the Second World War! It was a beautiful one, too, from a soldier asking his lover to wait for him while hewas at war… but they never found the sender or the intended recipient. I’ve tried looking up more information, but all I found was that part of this story was featured in some very famous K-drama Rosie loves, which I guess explains the influx of Korean tourists taking selfies around it…
But ever since I’ve read about it, I’ve been eager to send a letter from this mailbox too. I already wrote it, and I even bought the stamp. So, when Nicolas gets our room key card, I quietly wait between two sets of tourists taking selfies, and I gingerly put my letter in it.
“Who did you write to, in the end?” he asks me in the elevator. “To Santa?”
“It would be a bit late for Santa,” I chuckle. “No, I wrote to someone who I think might need it, but it’s a secret for now.”
He smiles and nods.
“I see. That’s a great thing to do on Christmas Eve. …Ah, this is our floor.”
He leads me, and I’m a bit grateful that he doesn’t expect the recipient to be him or push me for answers. Maybe it’s a small thing, but he always makes me feel like I’m the center of his world, without ever making me feel pressured to put him at the center of mine. Though he is, of course.
“Here we are,” Nicolas says, opening our room’s door for me like the gentleman he is.
“Thank you!”
Our room is gorgeous, and as fancy as one would expect, but I’m aware we don’t have much time before Solange really runs out of patience, so I dart into our ensuite bathroom.
Thankfully, the hotel offers a great bathroom kit, so I get to take a lightning-fast shower, brush my teeth, and manage to comb my hair with my fingers and put it up in twin buns, all in under ten minutes. I’m also grateful that I always carry my tinted cherry lip balm in my purse; I get to make my lips abit plumper and use a fingertip of it on my cheeks for a make-do blush! I take stock of my attire. It’s no pretty velvet green dress, but plenty of people in the lobby were wearing coats and comfortable clothes. And my sweater dressisChristmas-themed, and no one will care about my Ugg boots once they’re under the table… hopefully!
“Ready?” Nicolas asks, smiling at me.
I’m about to say I am, but I suddenly notice his attire. He’s not wearing the suit I know he was supposed to wear, the black slacks with the white bow tie and the velvet green jacket my dress would have matched. Instead, Nicolas is wearing a Christmas jumper over his snowman shirt, and I frown, a bit confused.
“…What about your suit?” I ask.
“You wanted us to match,” he replies. “We match better this way.”
…Did I already mention how much I absolutely love this man?
I feel the tears coming, while this amazing, wonderful man still stares right back at me, with those earnest big blue eyes of his, looking incredibly calm when I’m a frazzled mess. So, I do the only right thing: I open my arms and, when he reciprocates, I dive right into his embrace.
Nicolas and I love hugs.
