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Chapter 5: Questions Answered |
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Disclaimer: I own all characters and story ideas. Please respect this and don’t steal my work. Thanks!
A/N: This is my first creative story and I appreciate any comments and constructive criticism. Thanks for reading!
Questions Answered
Run, run, run! Why am I running? I look around but all I can see is a long endless hallway. I trip a bit on…a white wedding dress? Where am I?
“Stop!” I turn around to look at who was yelling at me and all I could see was darkness.
I startle awake and sit up quickly followed by a rush of dizziness. As I slowly reopen my eyes I notice that I’m not at home. I take in my surroundings while I try to figure out what happened before I blacked out and where in the world I was. All I did know was that I was on someone’s couch in a dimly lit room as fire flickered on the walls from the nearby fireplace. I sit up a bit more and suddenly was taken over by pain in my stomach which brought back all the memories that I lost. Everything came back, from dealing with my first death, coming home to see my fiancé with some whore, to being mugged in the alleyway. Alleyway. That’s right someone saved me from the mugger. Wait not just someone it was Adrian. The mysterious man from the park, the one that has been spontaneously showing up at weird moments. First my engagement party and then he happens to be the one to find me, and save my life that day; the worst day of my life.
“Oh you’re awake,” came that familiar voice behind me. I turn around and see him; Adrian. All I could do was stare at him, not knowing what to really say to this stranger. The idea of thanking him for saving my life quickly left my mind as I tried to grasp my current situation. I was alone in the dark strangers home, wherever home was, whoever this man was. It was the strangest thing that has ever happened to me. Thankfully he broke the awkward silence first.
He came up to me, looking closely at my face and then he touched my forehead and I winced in pain. “Do you remember what happened to you?” he asked as he inspected the cut that I must have gotten when I passed out.
“Yes,” I say with a shaken voice as I stared up into his eyes. Those dark, mesmerizing eyes and I still noted that sense of sadness in his eyes that I discovered when I first saw him. It was almost a sense of emptiness.
I look away from them completely embarrassed that I was staring so long.
“Well it looks to me that you will be just fine, but I take it you would know that more than me,” he chanced a laugh.
How does he know so much about me and I know nothing about him. This was just too weird and was starting to make me really nervous at the thought of being alone in some unknown place, with someone that I hardly knew.
He hands me a mug of some concoction and I take it with shaky hands, not really knowing whether it would be safe to drink anything that he would give me. What am I thinking? He did just save your life today, I thought to myself as I took a sip from the warm mug of tea. It was just how I liked it, and it soothed me completely as it went down.
“I realize we have not had a proper introduction, and maybe one would help ease your nerves,” he glances at me from a nearby chair. “My name is Adrian,” he holds out one of is hands in waiting.
I take his hand and the touch of his skin sends shivers throughout my body. The feeling of the warmth in his hands helped to calm me. “My name is Gwendolyn, n-nice to meet you,” I said quietly and thinking to myself, finally. I let go of his grasp after an unnatural length of time.
“Nice to meet you, Gwen,” he said with that lovely smile of his. Gwen, it had been ages since anyone has called me that. I forgot how much I liked being called Gwen instead of my formal name of Gwendolyn.
“I bet you have tons of questions streaming through that mind of yours, so please let’s release them and quiet them with some answers. Since you are my guest this stormy evening I will let you ask till your hearts desire, as long as you let me do the same in return,” he eyed me with those dark pools of his.
“I think that’s a fair deal,” I say in response, surprised at how well he knew me, but then again I’m sure anyone would have tons of questions if they were in my situation. Where to start, well I guess I will start with one of the questions that has been eating at me ever since that night I first heard him speak. “Well I have one question, well several to be exact. How come you were at my engagement party that night?”
He smiles as if he knew that would be the first thing I would ask. “Well believe it or not, I had no clue that it was your engagement party. I was actually surprised to even see you there myself.” He pauses as he notes my confused look. “You are probably wondering why I would even attend an engagement party without knowing who the bride and groom were, am I right?” He looks at me as I nod my head in response. “I’m sort of a writer, even though I don’t really like titles. I just enjoy releasing my free expression with words and one day a publishing company read my work and boom I had a job where I was paid for my thoughts and feelings. Anyways back to the question at hand. The host I guess was a big fan of my work and my publisher said that she wanted to meet me. He then told me that she was throwing her daughter and her daughter’s fiancé an engagement party and that all the big wigs would be in attendance; and she requested that I would attend the festivities. I was not big into the idea of crashing a personal party of some unknown strangers but something changed my mind.”
I look at him completely captivated by his story.
“Actually you changed my mind when you talked to me earlier that day.”
I try and hold my shock at what he just revealed to me. How could I change his mind when we had hardly said one word to each other? I thought to myself.
“The way you just started talking to me, not caring that you didn’t know me, not caring that I wasn’t even talking to you back. I had a feeling, like something was drawing me to that gathering, and seeing you that day inspired me to go to that party, your party, that evening and try something new. To be daring is not my strong suit, so you basically helped me jump out of a box that I didn’t know I was trapped in. Before meeting you that day, that day when you first said hello to me, well I was in this dark place. I didn’t want to associate with anyone. All I wanted was to be alone, I felt like it was better that way. But you intrigued me. I don’t know what it was about you, but it changed me slightly inside. Like I could be friends with someone and it wouldn’t hurt me or them. For someone to put themselves out on a limb to just talk to some stranger was amazing to me. So I went to the party not expecting to see you, but there you were alone on that balcony, far away from everything.”
I was amazed that I had done that, that I had helped him out that much. It made me feel good inside. I noticed that I was staring at him again and I quickly look away and clear my throat a bit.
“I hope that helps to clear some of your questions up, and now you know a bit about me. You can say we are less like strangers now,” he says with that warming smile of his. “Oh and I never got the chance to congratulate you on your engagement. He must be a lucky guy.”
I start to tear up at the remark about Drake being a lucky guy, and Adrian noticed.
“Did I say something wrong?” he looked at me with curiosity and a bit of worry.
I quickly wipe away the tears that surfaced in my eyes, “oh no, it’s nothing for you to worry about. Your words just reminded me of something, that’s all,” I said with a smile to mask my sorrow. He just looked at me sensing that it was something that I didn’t want to talk about, yet knowing that there was something. “So everything was just by chance, you being at my party, and seeming like you knew me?” I asked with curiosity.
“Just a chance meeting I guess. I kind of figured out you were a doctor or you at least worked at a hospital since when you showed up in the park you were wearing your scrubs.” He laughed a bit. So all this time I thought that he deep down knew me from somewhere, but really we are just two strangers who happened to meet on an occasion. It’s funny how life leads you into strange situations, helping you discover new places and new people.
“So are you feeling any better?” he asked.
“Yes. Oh and thank you for earlier. You saving my life and all,” I smile.
“Your welcome. Its just so funny how we keep meeting under such strange circumstances. Maybe we should actually meet on purpose next time instead of by accident. I think I can take another chance and try this whole thing called friendship for awhile, if you’re willing, since life seems to be throwing us both into each other anyways.” He laughed.
“That would be nice. I don’t really have any friends or anyone to talk to for that matter. Work tends to keep me pretty busy.”
“That’s ok. If you still frequent that park during your breaks, I’m sure we are bound to see each other again. Its one of my favorite spots to think.” He smiled.
“Really? It’s my favorite spot too.” I said with excitement at the thought about gaining a friend and having someone to finally talk to you, about anything and everything. Maybe this is why we met. Maybe we both just needed a friend and needed the extra push to find it; friendship. This could be the best accident that I ever had. I smile to myself.
“Well, if you are feeling better, would you like me to take you home, wherever that may be? I’m sure someone is worrying about you.”
I highly doubt anyone is worrying about me, I think to myself not daring to say it out loud in fear of the questions it may spark from Adrian. Questions that I was not ready to answer, questions that I may not even have the answers for.
“Yes I think I have intruded on your generous hospitality long enough. There is some place that I would like you to take me.”
“Sure.” He stands up and comes over and helps me to stand and put my coat on. The pain was still there but was slightly dulled by the time we were leaving. I tell him where to go and I get out of his car at my destination. I wave to him goodbye and that I would definitely catch him around the apple trees sometime soon as we both smiled at each other and our newly discovered friendship. I thought about more questions that I had for him as I approached the house in front of me. I wondered why he was so hesitant about meeting people and why he wanted to be alone. He definitely hid something, something painful from his past maybe? All I knew was that I couldn’t ask him those questions, at least not yet, but I was looking forward to future talks with him. I have a friend, I thought happily until I got to the door. The feeling quickly turned into dread as I stood on my mother’s doorstep. Not knowing what my choice of coming here would bring. I slowly lift my hand and pause. I take a deep breath and push the doorbell. In a matter of a few minutes the door opened, revealing my mother. My mother and her look of disappointment looming at me from the doorway.
 eimichan · Sat Dec 02, 2006 @ 02:50pm · 0 Comments |
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