Part three of my prompt verse. Please visit my Tumblr blog to take part in prompting me for this verse.

sunflowerrosedaisy prompted on Tumblr with Prompt #9: There's a leaf in your hair.

Thank you for the feedback - it is very welcome!

Author's note: Just a reminder that this is set in 1967. Words that are considered "not PC" now were different then, and I'm trying to stay true to the era in which this story takes place.

Chapter 3

"So – what did you think?" Belle asked, then she took a sip of her iced tea. Belle and Gold were seated across from one another on the outdoor patio of a restaurant.

"I will admit it wasn't as bad as I presumed it would be. She made some good points," Gold confessed, and Belle smirked a bit.

"Well, I'm glad. It's not a perfect book – there are many things she doesn't address at all – I know that colored women aren't exactly fond of it, and rightly so. I guess not everything can change at one time no matter how much you think it should."

"People are slow to change. It's our nature to want things to be as they always have been."

"It's also our nature to invent, to create, and to see that sometimes – we were wrong."

"Yes – there's that as well." Gold took a sip of his drink, and a furious gust of wind rushed through the patio as he did so. The napkins that were on their table blew off, and Belle got up and chased them, retrieving all but one.

"Well, that came out of nowhere. Got to love Maine weather." Gold smirked at her, and suddenly Belle reached out toward him and brushed his hair a bit, and Gold's eyes widened with surprise. "There's a leaf in your hair. There – it's gone now." Belle looked up at him with a smirk on her face, then took another drink.

"Oh – thank you," Gold said, looking down nervously. Both were silent for a moment, until Belle finally spoke up.

"So – would you like to do another book discussion? I really love to read and not many of my friends are as enthusiastic about it as I am."

"I – I suppose that would be nice. What would you like to read?"

"Well – Dr. King's new book was just published not too long ago; I haven't read it yet. Would you be interested in reading that?"

"Actually, yes I would."

"So you – you support the civil rights movement then?"

"Of course I do."

"So do I. Hey – a friend of mine is giving a talk at the university tomorrow, would you like to go with me and hear him? His name is Merlin – he's working on his doctorate in history. He's marched with Dr. King."

"Merlin? Like the magician in the King Arthur story?" Belle giggled a bit.

"Well, apparently, his real name is Marlon Knight but his little brother used to say it 'Merlin' and it kind of stuck – at least that's the story he tells. He's a great speaker, I think you'll like him."

"Well, that – that sounds interesting. Yes, I'd love to go with you."

"You know, speaking of great speakers – you did a wonderful job in my class. They're still talking about you. Would you consider coming back?"

"I um – I don't know what else I'd have to say."

"Well, they're really interested in the nostalgia end of the thirties and forties; maybe you could talk about some of that."

"You know, I have quite a few things in my shop that I could bring to show them. Would that be alright?"

"Oh, that sounds perfect! Can you show me what you have? I mean – in your shop." Belle blushed a bit.

"We can go there right now if you like."

"Let's do that, then. We can stop at the bookstore and get copies of that book as well." Belle stood up and Gold grabbed his cane and did the same, following her out to the sidewalk.

"This is my private collection. Things I brought with me from Scotland," Gold said as he led Belle into a small back room of the shop that was filled with an array of items not for sale in the store.

"Wow. You're really quite the collector, aren't you?"

"Well, most of these things belonged to my aunties – they raised me. They were the ones who were the collectors. I just couldn't bear to sell them; all of these things meant a great deal to them." Gold moved to an old Victrola that was sitting on the shelf. "I used to sit and play this thing for hours when I was a lad. I do have some phonograph records here and it does work; I could bring this."

"It's beautiful." Belle couldn't help but notice the spinning wheel sitting in the corner. "An antique spinning wheel? Did your aunts use this?"

"Yeah – they were quite the avid spinners. Even taught me."

"You – you spin?"

"Used to. Haven't done it in years, but – I did get quite good at it."

"I bet you could pick it up again. What else do you have? I mean, I don't expect you to drag all of this along with you."

"I've got quite a few old photos we could put on display."

"Oh, look, an antique tea set! It's lovely!" Belle picked up one of the hand painted cups and looked it over. "Did this belong to your aunts?"

"Yes, they enjoyed their tea. I do have some of their jewelry as well."

"Oh, I'd love to see that." Belle moved to put the teacup back on the shelf, but it slipped out of her hand, falling to the floor, and she gasped in horror. "Oh – oh, gosh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to do that!" Belle picked up the teacup and looked it over, noticing a small knick in the rim. "It – it's chipped. You can barely see it."

"It's just a cup – no matter," Gold said, taking the teacup from her and putting it back on the shelf.

"But – but it's an antique."

"Miss French, that tea set is barely worth fifty cents, if that. I keep it more for sentimental reasons than anything. As I said, it's no matter."

"Well, I – I am sorry. I won't touch anything else. I can be a bit clumsy at times."

"Yes, I do recall that. It's okay – try having a young, rambunctious son barreling through the shop for years. I promise you, Bae has broken far more valuable things in this place than a teacup."

"Well, pretty soon you'll be in the same situation with a grandchild."

"Yes – I'm afraid I will be." Gold picked up an old jewelry box and set it on the table. "None of these things are breakable, so feel free to touch them. I honestly haven't looked at these in years."

"Oh, I love old jewelry – I used to go through my mother's things all the time. See this pendant?" Belle pointed out the necklace she was wearing. "Her grandmother gave this to her on her sixteenth birthday. She gave it to me on mine, I wear it all the time."

"It's lovely," Gold commented. Belle opened the jewelry box and began to rummage through it, admiring all the trinkets inside of it. She stopped when she came across an item that clearly stood out among everything else. It was a medal, and Belle examined it closely.

"This – this is a Victoria Cross. Where did you get this?" Belle asked.

"Oh, um – that – that's mine," Gold admitted. "Forgot I put it there."

"You – you were awarded a Victoria Cross? But they're rare – they're only given for the most exceptional bravery in combat." Belle examined the medal again, then looked up at him. "You're not just a veteran – you're a war hero. This should be in a frame at your home, on display."

"I did what I had to do. I prefer not to think much about it." Gold grabbed the medal from Belle, as well as the jewelry box. "I have a business dinner to attend this evening, and I really need to go home and get ready for that."

"Oh, of course. I um – tomorrow then? How do you want to do this, you want to pick me up?"

"I suppose I could do that. What's your address?"

"Oh, I live in an apartment above the library. You know where that is, right?"

"Why do you live there?"

"Well, it's what I can afford. It's not bad – I'm hoping to move in a year or two, been saving money every month. It's kind of hard for women to find a place; most rentals want a man to sign off for you. So anyhow, the talk starts at six, so – pick me up at five-thirty then? I'll be waiting outside."

"I'll be there."

"I'm – really sorry about the cup. Goodnight, Mr. – you know, I think we've gotten to know each other well enough to not be that formal. What's your first name?"

"Carson," Gold replied.

"May I call you that?"

"I suppose that'll be fine."

"Alright. Goodnight – Carson."

"Goodnight – Belle." Belle smiled at him as she left the room, and when he heard the bell on his door jingle, indicating that she had left, he looked down at the medal he was holding. A single tear fell down his cheek as he opened the jewelry box, tossed the medal back inside it as if it was no more important than any other trinket inside, closed the lid and put the box on the shelf, hiding it behind several other items.

"Belle!" Merlin called out as he mingled through the university crowd after he had finished his talk. The crowd was populated with mostly young college students and a handful of young adults in their twenties, the majority of them black. In his perfectly tailored suit, and leaning on his cane, Gold stood out in the crowd and received a number of odd stares from many of those in attendance.

"Merlin! Hey – great speech, I'm so glad I was able to make it! Merlin, this is Carson Gold – he's a friend of mine."

"Hey, nice to meet you," Merlin said, offering Gold his hand.

"The pleasure is mine. It was a fine speech."

"Carson and I are reading Dr. King's new book – we kind of have this little private book club going," Belle said. "You know, Carson is a vet like your father – he has a Victoria Cross."

"Really? That's quite an honor, sir. My father received a purple heart. He's been my inspiration for my entire life. I wouldn't be where I am today without him."

"Well, I'm sure he's quite proud of you as well," Gold commented.

"I wouldn't know. He – he was stationed in Pearl Harbor in 1941."

"Oh. Well, I'm very sorry. I'm sure he was a wonderful man."

"Well, I've – I've got some good memories of him before he left us. I'm pretty sure he'd be quite happy with what I've accomplished. I'm the first one in my family to go to college."

"Well, it looks like you've done well for yourself. I look forward to reading your book someday."

"He definitely has a book in him, if not more than one," Belle agreed.

"Well, I'm going to bring the car around – it was very nice meeting you, Mr. Knight." Gold turned and left, and Merlin gave Belle a curious look.

"Book club?" he asked. "Really, Belle? Who is this guy?"

"He – he's a friend. I think." Merlin just stared at her. "He's the father of one of my former TA's, I met him at his son's wedding. I was looking for some presenters for my summer sessions and I remembered that his son told me about his father serving in the British Army during the war so I asked if he'd be willing to come and talk to them, and – well, we just struck up conversation from there."

"Is that all you struck up?"

"Merlin!" Belle smacked him lightly on the shoulder. "It's not like that."

"I hope not. The guy's old enough to be your father. And he dresses like a Republican."

"Not all Republicans are bad; my father's a Republican."

"And when was the last time you talked to him again?"

"Carson was willing to come to your talk, shouldn't that say enough about him?"

"You like him," Merlin said, a big grin coming across his face.

"Maybe I do. He's – interesting. And very nice. I thought you were more open minded than that."

"Hey, I'm not judging. Whatever makes you happy. We're still on for next month though, right? You're not gonna ditch me just because you got a new boyfriend, are you?"

"He's not my boyfriend. And no, I'm not ditching you, I've been working very hard on our project. I'll call you next week, we can set up a time to meet and work everything out. I'd better go, Carson is probably waiting with the car by now."

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Belle stuck her tongue out at him, then turned and left.

"Well – here we are," Gold said as he pulled up in front of the library.

"Yes – here we are. Thank you for going with me tonight, Carson. I hope you enjoyed Merlin's talk."

"It was quite enlightening. Thank you for inviting me." Gold got out of the car and moved to the passenger door, opening it for Belle.

"You didn't have to do that," Belle said.

"I understand you're a 'liberated woman' and all but there's nothing wrong with good manners."

"I suppose you're right," Belle agreed. Gold glanced up at the window on the second floor of the library. It had several large pieces of tape across it.

"Is that your apartment window?" he asked.

"Yes, it is."

"It's cracked. You should call your landlord, get that fixed."

"You think I haven't? The wind blew hard at it two months ago, I've been on my building manager about it ever since. Leroy said he's been pestering the landlord for the okay to replace the window, but so far nothing, so the best he can do is patch it till then. It's not that bad for summer, but if it's not fixed before winter comes I'll be freezing up there. To be honest, I've only ever dealt with the building manager. I've never even met the landlord, it's some corporation. CG Properties – I guess they own lots of buildings, I'm probably not even on their radar. I was promised an air conditioner in my window when I moved in – that never happened either. I gave up on that fight some time ago. You know, if I ever met 'CG' or whoever the jerk is that owns that company, I'd certainly give them a piece of my mind. They're barely one notch above a slumlord if you ask me. Honestly, I'd have moved long ago if I could afford it, but – as I told you – I can't right now. Well, I should be going – I have a class first thing in the morning. Thank you for coming with me tonight; I'll see you Wednesday then at my class?"

"Yeah – see you then." Belle lingered a bit, wondering if Gold was going to give her a kiss or a hug or anything, but there was no move on his part.

"Well – goodnight, Carson."

"Goodnight, Belle." Belle turned and walked toward her door, and she stood in the doorway and watched as Gold got back into his car and drove away.

Back at his home, Gold entered his study and opened a file cabinet drawer. He rifled through the files until he found the one he was looking for. Gold took the file and moved to his desk chair, then he sat down and opened it up. He paged through the paperwork inside of it until he found what he was looking for. It was a lease for the apartment above the library, signed by Belle French.