Chapter 3 Double dose of mystery

It took me a moment to realize where I was, why I was on the floor, and why my heart was racing so fast. Looking up, I squinted my eyes in an attempt to make sense of the situation, then it all came back to me.

I closed my eyes because of the sun and I didn't realize I had walked into the road. And then when I looked up... My life had just flashed before my eyes. The car was a milli second away from ending me. Suddenly a pair of trousers appeared in my line of vision and then folded as its owner squatted down to my level.

"Are you ok, Miss?" he cocked his head, staring straight at me, "You seem absent-minded, I could have hit you if I wasn't driving at a normal speed."

Absent-minded? It was more than that. I stared at my inquisitor, studying his face. By now he had already removed his shades, revealing his blue eyes. I felt shivers as his blue orbs raked up and down my body in my seated position. Right, I was still sitting on the hard road.

"Are you injured anywhere?" he asked, moving his face closer to mine.

"Ohh umm... ehem... I'm fine. I'm just... " I took a deep breath as heat flushed my face. Looking behind the slick bun he put his hair in, I noticed the cars stuck behind his weren't happy being held up. "Could you help me up? I think those people are getting impatient."

He stood up as I stretched my hands out. Grabbing them, he pulled. "Thanks," I said, dusting my skirt clean. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his right hand slip into his pocket. "I'm fine really. You don't have to worry about me."

"You say that, but your face seems a bit...red," he said back, rendering me speechless.

_Damn me and my fair skin._

"Listen, why don't I just drop you off, to be safe. I wouldn't want you to walk into the road again and actually get yourself killed."

_But you're a stranger. And worse, a really good-looking stranger. What if you're a serial killer?_ I wanted to ask, but never got the courage to.

"I promise I'm not a serial killer," Smiling, he gestured to his car. My eyes widened. Before I could realize it, my legs were already moving, and I got into the car. As much as I hated to admit it, part of me was... happy? Who knows, might as well enjoy the moment. My legs were killing me anyway.

*~**~**~**~*

"I know I shouldn't be asking," he said with a cool voice. His eyes didn't leave the road for a second. "But why were you so distracted?"

"You're right, you shouldn't be."

I wasn't about to tell him my story, it's bad enough that I was in his vehicle. "At least tell me where you're going." He smiled as he turned his head and directed his eyes at me. I had stared at a pair of blue eyes in the mirror a lot of times but they weren't as deep as his. His beard hung low on his face, just skimming his jawline, giving him a rough, mysterious look.

"You just have to turn left up the street." Distracting myself from his beautiful face.

"Alright then," he continued as he turned back. Suddenly I became aware of all my troubles.

"You can stop here," I said, pointing to the brown building about twenty feet away. I got out of the car and turned around. Smiling, I bent my head low enough to see his angled face.

"Thanks for the ride," I said.

"You can thank me by not walking into the road carelessly, Miss ..."

I smiled sarcastically. "Nice try stranger, I'm not telling you my name."

"No harm in trying right," he shrugged as he put his hands on the steering. "I guess I'll see you around blondie." He smirked. And with that, he drove off.

Putting one foot in front of the other, I headed straight to the bar. This time, I did well to open my eyes. The bar wasn't exactly bad, it just wasn't a place I would have imagined to be a few months ago. It was old-fashioned but it wasn't dirty, not usually anyway. After two months of frantic search, I started to go places my dad would never go and this bar was a perfect choice.

I was lucky enough to get hired with no experience whatsoever and for that, I'm grateful to the owner. Old Jerry treated me so well the last thing I wanted to do was scare his customers away with my amazing sense of humor. So I avoided small talk as much as possible with all customers, except him....

That man was not even human. He never did anything to me, but there was just something about him. He was so hot, too hot for comfort. And for someone so outstanding, you'd think he was a lady's man or just someone who likes to play around.

But every time he comes to the bar-which was almost every shift I take-he always looked so... so... so what exactly? He showed no emotion at all so I couldn't read his expression. The few times I managed to catch a glimpse, his eyes always looked so empty. I just couldn't stand his negative aura, so me being who I am, I gave him the best talk of his life.

Unlike his real self, he was really fun to talk to in my imagination. Not like I've ever spoken to the real him. I'm not that bold. And today was my last day here, I might never see him again, and so I wanted to make it special.

There was something about him that made me want to listen to whatever was making that beautiful face so numb and expressionless. But whenever I walk up to him, my tongue freezes and all my lips can do is quirk up a weird smile while staring into his dark eyes.

But today, I was going to talk to him and convince him that I was not a creep that walked out of a horror movie.

Opening the door, I came feet to vomit at the bar entrance. I rolled my eyes wondering why I couldn't ever get a peaceful work day. One of the girls walked toward me with a mob, wearing casual clothes.

"All yours baby girl." She handed me the mob, winked, and left the building. Sometimes I hated this job.

Releasing a breath filled with expectations, I tried filling my lungs which was a bad idea since the air wasn't exactly fresh. Not that it's a 'no breathing zone', but no one liked the smell of vomit.

For me, tonight was going to be a painfully long shift...