Hello there!

This lovely fic comes from a tweet I found back in the summer. It comes from peebleoddle from Tumblr. I hope you like this.

Boston, Massachusetts

"Sir, we're here," the chauffeur announced.

"Thank you, Arthur," Laurie said. He quickly checked his hair on the rear-view mirror and stepped out of the car. He greeted the door attendant politely and went straight to the elevator. His apartment was the penthouse, of course, so it took a while. He checked his messages.

His art consultant was already waiting for him. Laurie had been trying to acquire new pieces for his collection, but everything felt variations of the same. The more contemporary art he saw, the more he hated it. He grew up in his grandfather's house, where it was full of antiquities and traditional art, but that was obsolete now, at least for the Bostonian high society. He didn't want to hang a Rembrandt either, but something in between would be nice

"Taylor!" He called the man waiting in his minimalist living room.

"Laurie," The other man, not older than him, walked to him, hugged him, and tapped his back twice as men do.

"Please, tell me you find something," Laurie pleaded.

"Actually, I think I did," he answered, showing Laurie pictures of the paintings he just visited. Laurie sat next to him on the sofa. He grabbed the photos and studied them. This is it. These are the paintings he had been looking for. They were perfect, just the right combination of tradition and modernity. They were full of movement, color, and… sensuality. Nevertheless, what attracted him the most was the theme. Most of the paintings represented musicians and dancers. Although there were also couples and very intimate scenes, family scenes.

"Where did you find these?"

"A gallery in South Boston. You told me to look everywhere and here it is."

"This is great."

"I agree."

"So how many of these can we buy?"

.

"He bought them all?! No way."

"Just finished talking to him. He's going to send someone to pick them up."

"I... I can't believe it. Who was it?"

"His art consultant is the one who closed the deal, but let's see… Theodore Laurence..." Sam looked at Amy who was thoughtful. "Do you know him?"

"Oh my God, yes. We went to school together. His grandfather owned this huge company..."

"That he now owns," Sam said as she looked at the computer and Amy went to see the screen too.

"Yep, that's him."

.
.

A few years ago...

" Everyone ready!?" Professor Brown hurried up the students. "Amy!"

"Everything looks good," sixteen-year-old Amy came up to his side holding a thick file. "The costumes fit, the setting is working. We're ready for the costume rehearsal."

"Great. Let's do it." With that said, Amy and the professor/director sat in the middle of the seats expecting to be pleasantly surprised. Instead, their faces reflected complete disappointment. To be fair, most of the cast was doing a pretty decent job. The problem lied in the male lead. Damn it, Amy thought.

.

Laurie finished preparing his drink while he waited for his new collection to arrive. He wanted to put one of them in his apartment.

"Thank you, gentlemen," he said to the employees bringing the oils.

"Laurie," Taylor entered behind them. "There's someone here who wants to know you, actually she says she already knows you."

"Hi, Laurie." Amy entered the apartment. Taylor made a sign and went to follow the employees, leaving the two of them alone. "I'm sorry, I practically ambushed your friend... You probably don't remember me."

"Ummm… no. Of course, I do. Amy March, St. Claire High School."

"That's right."

"What brings you here?"

"Well, seeing as you bought all of my paintings. I thought I could thank you in person."

"You… you painted that… Amelia C.M."

"That's me."

"Wow. I can't believe I didn't connect the dots before."

"It's alright."

"Come, let me offer you a drink."

.
.

"I can't believe it!" Amy rushed backstage. "Ah, Theodore Laurence. Just the man I was looking for. Seriously?" She asked, seeing as he flirted with a junior. The girl left.

"I go by Laurie."

"Whatever. What the fuck is wrong with you! You haven't memorized your lines!"

"Relax, I will get them," he dismissed her.

"When? You should know them already? The play is in a week!" he shrugged. "I mean it, Laurie!"

"Alright,"

"This might be a simple thing for you, but to a lot of us, this is important. And you're the male lead!"

"Jesus, you're so uptight,"

"Why did you audition if you weren't going to do it right?"

"I need the credits, okay! I'm a senior!" He admitted, visibly ashamed. "Director Harrison says that if I don't get them, I won't graduate next summer. My grandfather would kill me. I've already been accepted at Harvard." Amy rolled her eyes. It didn't impress her at all. Everyone knew rich boys like Laurie were always accepted, they just have to show their last names and it was done.

.
.

.

"So, you've done well… this place is fantastic."

"Thanks. I… actually have to thank you for part of it..."

"I'm sorry?"

"Well, remember when you helped me with the play. You really made me think a lot about my life choices… It took me a while to realize that you were right. I was a low-life and a..."

.
.

.

"Man-whore?!" Laurie exclaimed.

"You heard me," sophomore Amy stuck to her words.

"Wait, does everyone describe me like that?"

"Uhh… some would be nicer, and there are some girls really upset with you, but overall… that's the main idea. You've built quite the reputation."

"Huh," Laurie said. He expected to be called a flirt, lady's man, womanizer, but man-whore! That was harsh, even for him.

"Look, whatever you do with your free time and your… body, is your business. I mean seducing women, drinking, and wasting money wouldn't be my first choice, but… it's your life."

"Uh, excuse me? I might not belong to your class, but some from mine do talk about you."

"It's not the same and you know it. I have dates, real relationships."

"Why do you care so much?"

"Because you have everything! Laurie, you have more money than I could ever think of, you are such a talented pianist. Honestly, if you're doing this for credits, I think it's a shame the orchestra wasn't enough. And...and that face. We could have used that for the drawing class," they both blushed. "My point is you have everything right in front of you, from the moment you were born. The least you could do is take advantage of it. Not everyone is as fortunate as you are."

"Please, doesn't St. Claire cost a lot? Your family is able to pay for that, you can't be that poor."

"I have a scholarship and an aunt. She likes me and she's willing to pay my tuition."

"Shouldn't your sister, one of them, be in my grade?"

"Jo. She's in public school. She likes it better and she hates Aunt March. Meg is already planning her wedding and Beth prefers being homeschooled. We all are where we want to be."

"Sounds good. You think I'm a talented pianist?"

"Please, you know you are. Not the best, but you hold second place firmly."

"The first place being..."

"My sister Beth. She's a genius." She said proudly. "I have to go," she announced after a message arrived on her phone. "Listen, the story is great. I'm sure if you give it a try, you'll find it charming and the lines shouldn't be that hard. You still have a week, make the best out of it. Professor Brown won't give you the credits if he thinks you didn't work hard enough. He's already regretting casting you. It's up to you to change his mind."

.
.

"I'm sorry."

"It's fine, you were right."

"I know." There was a silence for a couple of seconds, only them looking at each other. "So, what became of your life after high school."

"Harvard. International business, internships. Finally, my grandfather trusted me enough to retire and left me the company to run. You?"

"I went to study art in Florence, I came back and started painting. I was able to afford my own gallery a year ago. And you just help me get the milestone of selling all my paintings. So… thank you for that."

"My pleasure."

"If I may ask, what made you do this? I mean… I know you're rich but… what made you think you wanted all?"

"I just saw exactly what I've been looking for. You have no idea, I send Taylor to look everywhere. I don't fancy myself as an art expert, but I'm tired of seeing splashes of paint on a canvas. There's something very special about your paintings. I love music, you remember that. And they just feel warm. This place could use that. And they have soul."

"Would you like to make my marketing campaign?" she joked, although it wasn't a bad idea. They shared a laugh.

"So umm… I don't remember you playing music, you have a lot of it in your pieces."

"My sister Beth died a few years ago while I was in Europe and I… I think she would like them. It helps me feel like I have her close to me." She didn't know why she was being so open to him, but it felt good.

"The best pianist!" He remembered. She smiled and nodded. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright."

"You don't sign as Amy March."

"This might sound a bit strange, but I'm trying to make a name for myself. My family name is known in Concord and now that Jo is a best seller… I just don't want everyone to see my painting and say 'oh that's Jo March's sister'. She's in New York but her books are semi-biographical so..."

"I understand. Ever since I step in as CEO, I feel like everyone is comparing me to my grandfather."

"I love my sister!"

"Yeah so do I, my grandfather I mean."

"I just don't want to live under her shadow."

"Right." Laurie felt the need to move the conversation. He didn't know what this was, but he liked it. Amy was gorgeous, she definitely aged well. She was already beautiful when they met in high school, but now she carried much maturity and that smile... And if she could create such captivating paintings, then she was more talented than he ever imagined. Back in school, she was always in the art class. He remembered her bossing the props team for the theater class. She had good taste, everything looked good. "I want to put one in the living room. Maybe you can help me decide."

"Sure." She followed him. Whatever this was, she definitely didn't want it to end.

Notes:

I loved writing this. If anyone has another idea for a quick fic, I would love to hear it and maybe write something with it. I'm justanavengersfan on Tumblr.

Happy Holidays! I hope you and your families are all well and healthy.
Take care and be responsible, please.