Chapter 2 C2: Eyes Like Midnight Waters

"Hello, Simon." Gesturing him to sit beside me and he did. He's holding two ice creams in a cup with a spoon and a box of pizza.

"Where did you get those?" I asked, grinning. Just looking at it makes me hungry.

"In Glaslyn Artisan." He sat beside me and handed me the ice cream.

"Thank you." My eyes beamed at my favorite ice cream flavor, cookies n' cream. I started eating it.

Grabbing my diary again with my other hand, I opened it to where my last drawing was. Beside the woman lying under the tree, I started sketching another person holding an ice cream.

"I guess I won't be asking you who that might be," he said, smiling at me, then looking down at my sketch while munching on his slice of pizza. He gestured with his hand in front of my mouth, indicating that I should take a bite, which I did.

"Yummy," I said, enthusiastically.

Simon is my friend. I do have a lot of friends, but Simon is my closest one. He's like a brother to me, and I was glad I met him. He makes me happy in every way possible. He's my personal clown, to be exact.

I chuckled as I finished my drawing. "There."

"Nice." He said, nodding. He grabbed my diary and leafed through the pages while I snatched the pizza from his hand and ate it.

Yes, he's the only person I could trust to see what's in it. I am very comfortable with that. He's a brother to me, so why not?

Then, I saw him frown, and then the corner of his lips lifted. "You really included it here that day I nearly stumbled upon a cow's dung?"

"Why? It was memorable," I giggled, snatching back my diary from his hands.

"But not to me, you silly girl." He was grinning at me despite his stunned expression.

"Well, it's my diary, so it's on me what content I wish to write here. You should do the same."

He shrugged, picking another slice of pizza. "No need. I remember every detail of my best memories."

"You should also remember the worst one."

His gaze shifted to the water and his eyes became sullen. "Of course. You can't differentiate the best memories if there are no bad ones. But for me, the bad ones weren't important. Whether it's big or small. We only live once, so we need to focus on the good and best memories. Live your life to the fullest, as everybody says."

A small smile formed my lips. That's true but not entirely.

"What if those bad memories really had a disastrous effect on you and were holding you back to make good ones?"

He stared back at me with his frowning eyebrows. "Then leave it behind. You should learn to let go and forgive yourself for whatever happened in the past. You can't change it. Nobody can. But you still have a chance not to do it again. Move forward. Just go with the flow. I know this may sound easy, but trust me, it works."

I finished my ice cream. Then I gave him a warm smile and then leaned over to his shoulder. "Thank you, Simon."

He chortled. "For what?"

"For being my clown and best friend," I said, jabbing a finger against his rib. He twitched and then leaned his cheeks against the top of my head.

A moment of silence fell on us. The wind blew, and it made the leaves above us rustle. A dried leaf fell on my lap. Picking it up, I examined it, circling the tip of it around my two fingers.

"You've been thanking me numerous times. Aren't you tired?" He said in a soft tone of voice.

I chuckled. "Why would I? I will thank you for the rest of my life."

He hissed. "That's touching," he said, grinning.

"You deserve to be thanked, so stick with it." I blew the dry leaf from my hand.

"Because you deserve to be treated well. Everyone does."

I didn't reply. I clung to his arm and closed my eyes gently.

Simon does wonders in my life. He's the reason I kept moving forward. I thought I would never meet a person like him. Kind, protective, understanding, a true gentleman, who doesn't know the word quitting for some reason. The moment I first saw him walking through the crowd on a busy street, holding a pile of books and a bag of fruit while an old lady was clinging to his arm, I knew he was a good and kind man. I followed his gesture with my gaze until they both reached the opposite side of the street. The old lady thanked him and patted his cheek, even gave him an apple from her plastic bag.

I was grinning because it was such a touching moment, making me unaware of the bunch of people rushing along the side of the walkway, bumping into me and making me stumble forward, but strong arms wrapped around my shoulder, holding me steady. That's when I saw his face looking down on me.

"Are you okay, miss?" he worriedly asked. Supporting me to stand straight.

I moved back, so he let go of me.

"Thank you, Sir." I awkwardly mumbled. He extended his hand containing my diary, and I didn't notice that it fell on the ground.

"Simon. My name is Simon."

I glanced at him, surprised by his abrupt introduction, and then he offered his hand for a shake. I was hesitant but eventually, I accepted it.

"Fleur."

I felt his sudden movement beside me. I slowly opened my eyes.

"We should go back to the car. We need to get to London before the sun set."

He rose to his feet and offered a hand to me. I grabbed it, then he pulled me up. I dusted off some grass from my dress, then picked up my diary, sliding it into my sling bag before catching up behind him.

As we got back to the car, we drove off to our destination, the City of London. It would take us five hours and eighteen minutes to get there.

We've been on the road for like four hours now, and we need one more hour before we reach the capital of England. All I did during our journey was joke around with Simon, tell him a story, then eat, and sketch in my diary. We never ran out of random subjects, so we never got bored.

Initially, I planned to ride a train, but Simon insisted on giving me a ride to make sure I'd get there safely, and he wanted to know if the place I'd be living in was safe. That was so sweet, so instead of arguing with him, I gave up.

From an empty road, now, a bunch of cars were trapped in traffic. Horns were roaring, angry drivers sticking out of their windows, yelling. I couldn't make out what they were saying because of the mixed and loud noises.

"Where are we now?"

"Intersection of Essex Road and Canonbury Road."

Simon also stuck out his head to see the commotion but since he couldn't see it, he got out of the car instead.

"Simon."

"Stay here."

And so I did.

While waiting for his return, I turned on the radio in search of enjoyable music but found none, so I chose to turn it off instead.

Wandering my eyes around, my attention was caught by the black car beside us.

No, not the car, exactly.

But by a man. And not just a man......a gorgeous-looking man in a coat and tie. He was sitting at the back and the window was rolled down. That's why I can see every detail of his side profile. Another thing that caught my eye, was his long hair tied back in a not-so-messy bun. A few strands of hair were clinging down his forehead. His chiseled jaw was clean shaved. His lashes were long and his lips.......

Wait!

As the realization dawned on me, I swiftly reached for my bag, rummaged for my diary and pencil, and began to sketch his face on the paper. Glancing between him and my drawing, a smile crept onto my lips as I was finishing the drawing of his enchanting eyes.

My breath hastened as I imagined his incredible dark sea-colored eyes, reminiscent of the deep ocean or a starlit night sky. It is often described as mysterious and intense, with a depth that can draw anyone in. The richness of the blue, almost navy, gives it a unique and striking appearance.

The last glance I gave him brought chills down my spine. He was now looking back at me. He looked at me in a way that made my body tense. I felt my cheeks redden, and my throat became dry and lumped.

What's wrong with me?

I couldn't look away. It's as if his cold, dark sea-colored orbs were like a magnet, pulling me to dive into it. His eyes carried a sense of mystery that made me want to unleash. Quite the gaze to get lost in. Another thing was that he reacted in a cold, casual way.

My heart skipped when, after at least ten seconds, he broke the staring contest. Now, I feel shy and stupid. He might think that I'm some kind of fan.

Why didn't you look away? The back of my mind scolded me.

Slowly, I bowed down at my diary and gazed at my drawing. Studying his looks, I felt something warm rise inside my chest.

I quickly closed my diary and tucked it into my bag as soon as I saw Simon returning to the car.

I took a swallow, then let out a sigh. My shoulders dropped in relaxation.

"Are you okay? Do you have a fever? Your face looks red," he inquired, concerned by my appearance. I panicked, especially when he raised his hand to touch my forehead.

"I-I'm okay," I said, leaning back my head, and avoiding his hand. I smiled at him reassuringly.

"Are you sure? We can drop by at a pharmacy before-"

"No need. I have meds in my suitcase."

Simon didn't look convinced, but he chose not to say further about my flushed face. "Okay."

I calmed myself and silently sighed in relief. Suddenly, I heard a small voice in the back of my mind telling me to look out my window. Funny because I obeyed, and I don't know why. I am being tormented right now by the urge to glance at the man once more.

Turning my head over my shoulder, I saw him busy talking on his phone.

"There were collisions. Car and two bikers."

Oh yes, I forgot about that. We're in the middle of traffic.

"Really?" I slightly panicked. Glancing back in front, then at Simon. He nodded, his eyebrows furrowed in response. His hands gripped the steering wheel in irritation.

"How bad was it? Did anyone get hurt or injured?"

He shook his head. "Fortunately, none. But definitely, we won't make it on time. There's no other easy and shortcut route other than this, and we can't get out of here. There are too many cars behind us. All we have to do is wait. Besides, police officers were already there, so it won't be long for us to move."

And he was right, it took us about ten more minutes before the vehicles in front of us started moving.

Giving a quick look over my shoulder to my right, I saw his window was already closed. All I could see was his silhouette behind the not-so-tinted glass. I felt a wave of sadness emerge over me....wait...what?

Wait a minute.

Sadness? What the hell are you talking about? The thought of not seeing that stranger makes you sad? Get a hold of yourself!

"Who are you looking at?" I heard Simon's curious voice, interrupting me from my sudden silence. I snapped out and acted innocently. I perked myself and pretended to be busy scrolling down my phone.

"What? What are you talking about?"

He chuckled. "You know what I was talking about. Who was that? Do you know him?"

"Who?" I blinked and pretended to be a bit confused about what he was saying.

Instead of answering me, he shook his head and then rolled his eyes. "Never mind."

Moments later, our car started moving forward, and so was the black car beside us. But when we reached the intersection, the black car drove off to the right while we were heading to the left.