“Honey, why are you wearing black in this heat?” Sophie poured her friend some tea and sat down beside her.
Lauren took a sip and set her cup down on the table.
“Do you think Jean will come back to me?” she asked, averting her gaze from her friend.
“Of course he will!” Sophie stood up and hugged her friend. “He loves you, after all.”
Lauren wiped a tear with her handkerchief and looked Sophie in the eyes.
“Then why did he leave for Paris so suddenly? And I have to find out about it from a messenger…”
Sophie patted her friend on the shoulder and went inside. A minute later, she returned with a newspaper in her hands.
“Here, take a look,” she said. “Did Jean tell you about this?”
Lauren took the newspaper and read the headline.
“On July 6, 1880, the French government established Bastille Day as a national holiday to be celebrated annually on July 14.”
“Yes, he mentioned something like that,” Lauren said, placing the newspaper on the table in confusion. “But I never even imagined…”
“Jean graduated from the Sorbonne with honors,” Sophie placed her hand over her friend’s, “and I’m not surprised that he was the one summoned to Paris to draft this bill. Your fiancé, Lauren, has already made French history. Now we’ll celebrate Independence Day every year.” And you’ll be proud that your Jean was one of the authors of this historic law.
Lauren stood up and hugged her friend.
“Will we be celebrating this day for the first time this year?” she asked.
“Yes, for the first time,” Sophie replied, “and I think Jean will have time to return from Paris by then.”