Chapter Two
846 Words
Dylan wasn’t meant to be at the Countryside but he wanted to escape the chaos of New York, his family and Catharina. He wanted to breathe from all the responsibilities he was faced with. He wanted to find peace again and had opted for a vacation.
And so, when his assistant asked him where he would like to go. He had chosen the Countryside because he wanted somewhere remote and simple, where the air was clean and somewhere quiet. But he didn't expect he'd almost hit someone with his car, or rather his driver, Fredrick.
Dylan watched as her eyes slowly fluttered open, thick long lashes concealing the brightest, bluest and tenderest eyes. They watched him carefully, assessing every part of him with an endearing stare.
He could see through the dimly lit street that her eyes looked heavy, as though she’d just been crying. When he looked deeper, he could see the red lines that had colored her sclera.
Her face was pale, and her cheeks and ears were flushed. Her brown hair complemented her olive skin, descending in thick waves that fell on her back. He wanted to reach out and touch it but decided against it because he didn't want to create a bad first impression.
Dylan extended his hand out to her, in an attempt to help her stand. Her nose wiggled with the snow. She took his hand, placing her hand in his gloved hands, pulling herself up.
He broke the silence, asking, “Were you hurt?”
“No.” She shook her head, dropping her hand from his, “I’m sorry for crossing so carelessly. I… should’ve looked properly.” She failed to look him in the eye and hung her head shyly. The tip of her ears were beet red.
He chuckled discreetly. “Are you sure you weren’t hurt?”
“N-No, I’m okay.”
“Are you alright?” Something inexplicable possessed him to ask. Perhaps it was because he had noticed the sadness that laid evident in her eyes or he was waiting for something that would make his interest seize.
She looked up at him, blue eyes staring directly in his, “I don’t know,” The stranger answered, ‘I don’t know if I can be.”
Her hands fiddled together anxiously and he noticed a slight bruise he wasn’t sure the accident caused.
“Uhm, sorry… I shouldn’t have said that.”
“You can say whatever you want to say, you don't have to apologize.” he muttered.
Her eyes strangely watered. “Really?”
He knew it was weird trying to strike a discussion with a stranger but still, he chose to give her hope. He had been in worse situations but came out well because he chose to have hope that things would get better.
“Winter will pass and spring will come again. Follow the tides of the new season and you will definitely find the answer,” he muttered. “I wonder if any of that makes sense to you.”
He watched her tired eyes widen slowly. “Of course, it makes perfect sense.”
They both chuckled.
“Are you Santa Claus?” she joked. “You just made me feel better.”
He smiled, completely unaware of it. “I might be.”
“You would need graying hair and a big belly for that.”
A loud honk distracted them and they turned, meeting Frederick, his driver who sat by the wheel and waved slightly. It was time for him to leave.
“You’re not from here, are you, Santa?” She asked.
“No.”
“Where do you come from?”
“New York,” he replied.
The blue in her eyes brightened even more. “I’ve dreamt of that city all my life, sometimes I think it calls to me. Weird, right?”
“Maybe,” he muttered.
She didn’t belong there, the chaos in the city would be too much for her. She looked too gentle.
She looked up at the barely visible sky for a moment, “It’s really dark here in this place, I want to leave but I don’t know if I can.”
“Where?” He asked.
“Here. The Countryside. I wanna explore the world. I wanna go to New York.”
He smiled as she spoke because all he saw a beautiful hungry soul yearning for a new life.
He wanted to keep talking with her because there was something about her that drew him in but he knew it would be best to walk away now. He didn't want to drag her into his messy life and messy family.
“Bye,” he muttered.
He began to walk back toward his car. He needed to rest, sleep and forget all his troubles.
“I’ll come say hello, when I come to New York,” she muttered, waving at him.
He stopped, digging his hands in his pockets, a smile on his face she couldn’t see.
“I’ll be waiting, then.”
- Writer
