Always, Paradise, Time...

Unlocking the Past

As the two young adults get closer, Luna is still having the queer feeling that she had met Stella before. And that feeling still bothered her. She wanted to ask Luna again but feeling hesitant she decided to find the right time to ask.

After their class, Luna decided to approach Stella.

Hey Stella, uhm, I wanted to invite you over for dinner. Are you free tonight? --Luna.

Yeah, sure, but uhm, is it OK if we have dinner at my place? I'm not comfortable having dinner around the city or anywhere near the university area. --Stella.

OK, that will be fine. So, is there anything you prefer to eat tonight? --Luna.

Nothing really but we can cook at my place, let us go to the grocery store and buy the things that we might need. – Stella.

Sounds great, I’ll call you to the meeting place. I just need to run some errands before we leave. –Luna.

OK, I will wait. Catch you later. –Stella.

Later that afternoon…

“Ring Ring!!” Stella’s phone rang, it was Luna.

Hello, I will meet you at the lobby of your building. –Luna.

Hey, hmmm, okay. I’ll see you there in 10 minutes. –Stella.

Okay, I’m on my way to your place, see you! –Luna.

Stella, in so much excitement she couldn’t contain her smile. She went to the car park and drove one of her cars. She drove around and parked in front of the lobby of her building. There she saw Luna arrive. She rolled down her window and called her out.

Hey, Lu! Over here. Hop in. –Stella.

Oh, hi. –Luna.

So, what do you have in mind for dinner? –Stella.

I was thinking maybe we could have grilled pork and salad with miso soup. –Luna.

That is one of my favorites, yum. –Stella.

Luna smiled, and she was astonished that Stella suddenly became vocal about her feelings and thoughts.

And they arrived at the store. Stella grabs the cart, and they moved around to see what ingredients they need to buy.

Stella was just grabbing stuff and edibles that she thought tasted good. And Luna was checking out the frozen goods. She plans on taking one of each marinated pork. She also grabbed salad dressing, three kinds of dressing.

When Luna returned to Stella, she noticed that Stella had put a lot of stuff in the cart.

Uhm, Stell? Are we going to buy all those foods? Do we need those? –Luna.

Yes, I don’t have much food at home because I never have guests at my place. I order foods through online delivery, or I ask the hotel chef to cook and bring in my food. –Stella.

Is that so? Don’t you feel lonely? –Luna.

Sometimes, it does feel lonely, but I try to look at the good points of such a situation. –Stella.

They then left the store and headed back to Stella’s place. As they were arranging the groceries, Luna asked Stella about her pantry.

Stell, do you have a pantry? –Luna.

I don’t have a pantry, but there’s this slender cupboard at the end of the countertop. –Stella.

To Luna’s surprise, the cupboard was empty.

You really are telling the truth, you don’t keep edibles here. Well, except for that bread and cereals. –Luna.

Stella just smiled at Luna. It was a fun night, full of surprises and they both got the chance to get to know each other. And this is something others call “meeting a new friend”. All through the night they kept on laughing that they forgot to track the time. It was already dawn when they decided to part ways. But Stella insisted that Luna stay in for the night to sleep and rest. Luna agrees, and she stays in a room adjacent to Stella’s.

The next day, Stella gets out of bed and goes to the kitchen. She will prepare French toast with caramelized strawberry and eggs benedict and bacon. She still remembers that Luna loved a sweet and savory breakfast. While she was setting the table for both, Luna walked down, and she saw that Stella was preparing their breakfast. She offered help, but Stella refused and asked her to just get ready as she was almost done preparing their food.

Let’s take a seat. –Stella.

Hmmm, everything looks so nice. I did not know that you could cook this well. –Luna.

Stella just smiled at Luna. While having their breakfast, Luna couldn’t help but ask Stella as to what happened to her.

Stell, can I ask you something? –Luna.

Feel free to do so. –Stella.

How come you are acting differently ever since we partnered up? –Luna.

I feel comfortable with you, it felt like I am safe when I’m with you. –Stella.

Is that why you are very vocal about what and how you feel? Are you like this to others? –Luna.

Well, to you, I can just be myself, but to others I just can’t. I don’t want to get hurt nor be abused by others. Now it is my turn to ask why I asked those questions? –Stella.

Well, first, when I met you, it felt like I had seen you before. Second, I’m curious about you and lastly, you’re making me smile because it feels so warm. –Luna.

I think I might have an explanation as to why you feel like you’ve seen me before. –Stella.

Well, let’s hear it, shall we? –Luna.

We went to the same boarding school. We did not have this kind of conversation because we both have personal guards that hound us wherever we go. But yours is different. Our schoolmate feared your guard because he did not let anyone come near you. I did try to get near you back then because we had a school project. It was a group project, but I was the only one who could come near you. I tried to be a friend to you, but your bodyguard never leaves your sight, and he stands so close that I’m scared to be playful with you. And then when I saw you at the university, I thought maybe this time we could be friends, but you already have a circle of friends, and I am too shy to approach you. –Stella.

Wait, I think I could remember a few details about that. Were you the girl with the wolf cut who was sleeping on a tree? And I remember that situation because your book fell onto my head. I was going to throw the book at you, but you were asleep and, besides

I got curious about the book. --Luna.

Wait, I thought I lost that book. Do you still have it? –Stella.

I kept it. I was going to look for you but at that time I wasn’t sure who you were, and I did not find you on that same tree. Do you want it back? –Luna.

Yes, please. –Stella.

I’ll take it tomorrow. Oh, look, it’s getting late, I had better head out. I’ll see you tomorrow at the café across the street. –Luna.

Mmmkay, let me walk you down and I’ll call a service car for you. –Stella.

And so, they went down the lobby. Luna expresses her gratitude to Stella and vice versa.

Both girls had a great time together. While Luna was on her way home, her phone rang, it was her friends, Ava, Aria and Scarlett. Because of their research paper, Luna forgot to check in with her friends. Although they still sit together during breaks, she never tells them what has been happening between her and Stella.

Phone rings….

Hey girls, what’s up with you? We have been calling, sending you messages, we even called your home to see if you were there, but you are nowhere to be found. –Ava.

I’m sorry ladies, tell you what I will make it up to you later this afternoon. Let’s meet up at the clubhouse this afternoon. Does half past two sound a good time for you? –Luna.

We will take your word for that, and you must let us know where you have been going and who you are with. See you later. –Ava.