- ̗̀ arduin, felix.

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

The Seminar | Gemma & Felix

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

fcllx:

“I do have my bike,” confirmed Felix, walking to find it. “You should visit. I am from Aberystwyth. Yes, and that town with the long name. There’s so much culture, history, nature, the arts, life, and more! It’s a nation of wonders.”  

Gemma followed along him as they rode. He seemed to know where he was going and that was enough for Gemma. “I’d love to. Maybe next year.” She mused. “Have you visited many other places in the Netherlands?”

[fcllx-blog]

"Yeah. I love to travel too! You'll find I'm quick and adventurous," he said, but rode his bicycle at a speed the other could keep up with. "In different situations. Let's focus on gettin' to Kessens now, alright?" He could be business-minded and concentrate when he wanted to.

[fcllx-blog]

It was opening night for a museum exhibit by a friend of Gemma’s. He admired the displayed art: brilliant recreations of reality achieved with innovation and experiment. “Your work’s excellent,” Felix enthused as he noticed a woman approaching. Said woman fit their mutual friend’s description, and he inferred that she was the artist. “I’m Feilx.” He held out his hand. “We have a mutual friend, Gemma Vander Laan.” He complimented the artwork’s exploration and technique.

@jo-sparks-94

[jo-sparks-94-blog]

Jo took the hand offered to her, “Thank you, and you are?” 

She took in the person standing in front of her - handsome, good style, and obviously great taste in art. Okay, so maybe this could be a person that she warmed up to. He seemed genuine. 

“So did Gemma send you down here? I told her not to send people! It only counts if patrons show up of their own accord,” she sighed, then straightened her back. “But thank you for coming! Are you fan of modern art?”

[fcllx-blog]

"Oh, no! Don't worry. She didn't send me; it was more recommendation — jus' giving info about this. Yes, I am a fan of modern art." He continued to smile, astutely displaying sincerities. "I'm Felix Arduin. I make print adverts. I came here for your creations, so I didn't bring my portfolio — but, if you're considering a commercial gig, I would love to discuss working with you in the future."

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

The Seminar | Gemma & Felix

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

fcllx:

“I can’t say I grew up on mostly fish, but I am from Wales. There’s a lot of seafood in our cuisine,” he beamed. “’We takin’ a bike or a bus?”

“I have my bike if you have yours.” She said with an easy smile. “I’ve never been to Wales but I’ve always wanted to go.” She mused. “I try to travel often, but haven’t made it there.”

[fcllx-blog]

“I do have my bike,” confirmed Felix, walking to find it. “You should visit. I am from Aberystwyth. Yes, and that town with the long name. There’s so much culture, history, nature, the arts, life, and more! It’s a nation of wonders.”  

[lovewrought]

@fcllx !

one more love out to break your heart,                set it up just to watch if fall apart.                                    — ❛ ONE MORE LOVE SONG ❜

        eli’s day begins sometime in the late morning. the sheets are crumpled at his waist and his head feels heavy. SOMETHING in the slants of sunlight through the blinds and the weight of his limbs and the shrill sound of his cell phone tells eli this: today isn’t going to be a very good one. he reaches blindly for his phone on his nightstand, answers it groggily and he isn’t surprised who’s on the other end of this call. his agent. her tinny voice from across the ocean is discordant, incessant, and it fades into earsplitting n o t h i n g s. then, a pause. she asks him if he’d been listening. he says yes. she says goodbye and eli knows that she’s as frustrated in him as he is in himself. he hangs up.              he’s pushing through a haze as he brews his coffee. in a t-shirt and a pair of boxers he settles in the patio and, powering up his laptop as his cup cools, eli realizes, bemused, that his shirt is not his.                     his laptop tells the time. it is AUGUST. it is the FIFTH. it is TWENTY-FIFTEEN.            eli checks his e-mail as he sips his coffee. it’s warm, but the taste is distant, far off. he feels distant, far off. his poetry is being published, writes apr. he’s two-hundred pages behind on his novel, writes his agent. eli thinks maybe he should work. maybe he should have a cigarette. maybe he should go inside and find felix. and he wants to see felix but, he hadn’t even noticed if he was there or with someone better or at work and besides, he thinks –            – he can’t–shouldn’t see him right now. not like this. 

[fcllx-blog]

     the previous day never properly ends for felix. recalling his would-be boss’s words — - the notification would arrive the following day from as early as the first hour — - he slips out of bed only minutes before twelve a.m., careful to preserve the room’s restful atmosphere for eli’s sake.

     it doesn’t quite arrive when the clock strikes midnight, but it arrives. ‘ dear mr.... ’ ( legally, he uses his adoptive family’s surname.... )  ‘ congratulations.... ’ felix got in the advertising agency! he finds himself on the brink of tears in his jubilation. everyone there favourably treated him; those with executive positions had shown reluctance, however, to make him an official creative staff member: although he’s gifted, certainly, his academic record is questionable; and he has a criminal history ( aiding & abetting was the worst of it. regardless...! ).

    thrilled, he dashes out the place. he would’ve planned a restaurant reservation, but almost each of quality is closed during this month in amsterdam. he’s heading to a store instead, endeavouring to beat the sunset and crowding tourists. he buys ingredients; he INDULGES in dishes for himself; he cooks some food for eli too — - food he knows eli loves. then he falls       a s l e e p      right on the dining room table.

     felix reawakens some time after eli. he remembers that the agency wants him to travel with them outside the country for a series of projects. he would, in different circumstances, respond eagerly: YES! a portion of the work that’d convinced them to give him the job, though, was the product of felix spending more and more time away from his partner, right? doing this to eli would be cruelty, especially considering the older man’s depression. he curbs a feeling of resentment. it’s not eli’s fault. more opportunities will be available to felix. ( in spite of this, he does secretly feel a combination of resentment and concern anyway — is he letting a relationship tie him down? )

     he checks the bedroom. next, the patio. ‘ good morning,’ beams felix, leaning against the doorway. ‘ i made food for the both of us — - stuff i know you like for yours. i’m going to reheat it, ‘right? i got in the agency! they want me to come with them for some projects, travel outside the country. i turned down the offer. ’

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

fcllx:

He chuckled. “So am I. Why would you pay to see that sort of violence? But, you know, you don’t have to. You can just use the money to buy a pencil skirt for yourself and then you find a stranger to fight with.”

“I mean isn’t that what people do with like boxing? Pay to see violence? No because then I might get punched in the face. and that is not my goal here.”

[fcllx-blog]

“I wouldn’t know. I don’t like boxing,” he answered honestly. His dislike for violence came as a surprise to people, given his propensity for picking fights; but he felt aggression was a necessity. He preferred states of peace, in actuality. “What is your goal anyway?” He didn’t understand how anybody would derive enjoyment from observing violence.

[fcllx-blog]

Felix’s eyes shifted from its cover to the source of the voice. “Oh, do I have good taste in music?” He tilted his head a bit in playfulness, a teasingly narrow smile on his countenance, before candidly resuming conversation: “I like a fuck-ton of ‘manufactured pop’ too; but I love the way this band only uses real instruments. I’ve always wanted to learn how to play the piano like their lead vocalist.” He tucked aforesaid CD in a folded arm; it wasn’t something Felix would relinquish, although he’s willing to stay a little longer for the other.

[olliefontaine-blog]

“Well, at the very least, you like one good band.” He reasoned, lips twitching up into a smile.  “Although I can’t really comment on the rest of your music taste, seeing as I don’t know anything about you.  It’s funny you should mention piano, though.” He shrugged nonchalantly, inwardly wondering if he could somehow use his piano talents as a bargaining chip.  It seemed unlikely to Ollie that the other would simply give up the CD at his request, even if he did offer something in return.  No, he would have to go about this another way—he’d have to be charming as fuck.  “I took piano lessons for most of my life.  Perhaps I could teach you?  If you’re up for it, that is.”

[fcllx-blog]

Felix momentarily paused, considering. “Sure.” He took out a card, on which his contact number and home address were written. “We can meet there and discuss the fees and all that. I have a piano of my own.

“My name’s Felix Arduin. I’m charmed to make your acquaintance...?” (He trailed off, waiting for Ollie to give him a name.) Despite Felix’s manner of speaking, he did mean his words. He continued in the same composed, flirtatious voice; but, this time, there was an undertone of genuine defensive hostility. “However, you must know I won’t give this up without a fight.”

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

The Seminar | Gemma & Felix

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

fcllx:

“They don’t, unfortunately.” He followed her lead and began making his way out of the room. “But they have real tasty seafood, pâtisserie, beef, drinks, soup. The Gravadlax is among my recommendations. If you really want poffertjes, though, there’s always De Vier Pilaren.”

“I mean I suppose I can walk to the pofferjtes stand from work. So I suppose I could go for something else today.” She grinned. They made it out of the room, and Gemma heaved a sigh of relief. “I’m always down for seafood. I spent half my time as a child in Urk. I grew up on mostly fish.” She grinned.

[fcllx-blog]

“I can’t say I grew up on mostly fish, but I am from Wales. There’s a lot of seafood in our cuisine,” he beamed. “’We takin’ a bike or a bus?”

[fcllx-blog]

It was opening night for a museum exhibit by a friend of Gemma’s. He admired the displayed art: brilliant recreations of reality achieved with innovation and experiment. “Your work’s excellent,” Felix enthused as he noticed a woman approaching. Said woman fit their mutual friend’s description, and he inferred that she was the artist. “I’m Felix.” He held out his hand. “We have a mutual friend, Gemma Vander Laan.” He complimented the artwork’s exploration and technique.

@jo-sparks-94

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

fcllx:

“Maybe she is violent,” assented Felix. “You never know. I once had a Theology teacher who spoke in this teeny voice, and she wore pencil skirts every day. And I witnessed her fistfight-ing with a bony beggar.” He went silent for a moment, contemplative. “Are you a physical violence type of person?”

“Now that I would pay to see.” She was trying to imagine a woman in a pencil skirt fighting anyone. She grinned at the question. “With the right motivation.”

[fcllx-blog]

He chuckled. “So am I. Why would you pay to see that sort of violence? But, you know, you don’t have to. You can just use the money to buy a pencil skirt for yourself and then you find a stranger to fight with.”

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

The Seminar | Gemma & Felix

[gemma-vander-laan-blog]

fcllx:

“Yes, let’s!” He observed, “You grew up in this country, right? A native, but I don’t think you’re in my neighbourhood. I live in the Jordaan. I know this nice food hangout with both healthy and unhealthily delicious stuff on the menu — Kessens. Real cosy, outdoorsy. You in or d'you know some better food place?”

“I am but the Jordaan isn’t somewhere I’ve spent a lot of time. Most of my time is in the museum quarter more than anywhere else.” She agreed sliding out of her seat so they could get out of there. “Please tell me they have pofferjtes because all I want is the sweet buttery goodness.” She cocked her head to the side, “and maybe a smoothie.”

[fcllx-blog]

“They don’t, unfortunately.” He followed her lead and began making his way out of the room. “But they have real tasty seafood, pâtisserie, beef, drinks, soup. The Gravadlax is among my recommendations. If you really want poffertjes, though, there’s always De Vier Pilaren.”

[fcllx-blog]

Felix’s eyes shifted from its cover to the source of the voice. “Oh, do I have good taste in music?” He tilted his head a bit in playfulness, a teasingly narrow smile on his countenance, before candidly resuming conversation: “I like a fuck-ton of ‘manufactured pop’ too; but I love the way this band only uses real instruments. I’ve always wanted to learn how to play the piano like their lead vocalist.” He tucked aforesaid CD in a folded arm; it wasn’t something Felix would relinquish, although he’s willing to stay a little longer for the other.

[temhelps]

ASK MY MUSE A QUESTION AND I CAN ONLY RESPOND WITH A GIF OF THEM

[aseaofquotes]

William Ernest Henley, “Invictus”

Submitted by island-party.

[fcllx-blog]

“i’m the man for the job. what needs to be done?”

[fcllx-blog]

“she grew up somewhere else, apparently. that’s probably why she’s...” felix paused to check the dictionary app on his phone. “circumlocutory.” he nodded in acknowledgment. “yeah, but intelligence always helps.“ good-naturedly, he quipped, “i don’t know if i should be happy ‘bout your feedback or offended that you sound surprised i’m a competent professional.”

[fcllx-blog]

Felix’s eyelids drooped. He had been unable to follow her explanation. “I’m never gonna understand,” he declared. Tepidly, he offered, “Would you like a free catalog for your troubles?”

[fcllx-blog]

“Let me guess,” he replied, but without annoyance or malice. “You’re gonna put your tent in the flammable sunflower maze ‘cause you wanna be surrounded by nature. It’s gonna end up set on fire. And you’re probably gonna steal a few pieces. And you’ve probably already pitched your tent.”