More Than What He Seems

Disappearance

 After talking over the ideas I had brought up in my blog for a while with people I did not know were fans of mine, Luis escorted me back out to the car. I did not know he was a follower of my blog. I snuck glances at him out of the corner of my eye, but could not bring myself to broach the topic. For about five minutes, it remained that way, a comfortable silence engulfing the car. Finally, one of his hands fell to his lap, and he glanced over at me before his eyes turned back to the now quiet road.

“Do you plan on updating that blog now?” Luis asked as he settled in for the drive. “You have a lot of fans.”

“You’ve been following my blog for that long?” I replied with a question, making him chuckle. “I… may update it again. Although, I will need to find the sign in information.”

“Then, you still have a follower in me. Your ideas were really eye opening.” He smirked as he glanced at me again, his eyes lingering for a few seconds. “Remember when I mentioned you were the reason that gallery got its start?”

“Yeah…” I was so out of it, being surrounded by that many people, I forgot about it. “What did you mean by that?”

“Well, after your first post, a few fans, myself included, reached out to the holders of the artwork you had mentioned in your blog to find out if we could host a gallery for those that could not travel overseas to see all the pieces.” Luis replied, not taking his eyes off the road as he spoke. “It took us two years, but we got all the information submitted and the owners allowed us to hold the gallery. Once the permissions were in place, we had to set a timeline for borrowing the art and every decade it was.”

 Oh wow. That my fans wanted to go that far for ideas I had written in my blog… I felt unbelievably touched by their actions. I placed my hand over my heart while looking at the floorboard of his car. What was I supposed to say to something so sweet? Even though I was so young when I started that blog, people took me seriously and began an effort to bring others closer together through art, and that was beyond wonderful.

“I did not know that fans of my blog went that far.” I replied softly, turning my gaze to look out the window at the city passing by us. “No idea that they would. Thank you, Luis… for taking me there tonight. It was a wonderful thing to experience.”

“I’m glad you think so.” He smiled as he pulled up to my apartment and parked the car before turning off the engine. “I had a lot of fun too.”

“The art was lovely! Seeing all of those people discussing topics I had mentioned in my blog was a really touching thing to experience. It was so beautiful.” I gushed about it before my face grew hot from my embarrassment. “Um… I… would not mind another… date with you, Luis.”

“Really?!” He asked as he opened the door, his eyes lit up as he turned to look back at me. “I wasn’t planning to ask so soon since you seem so on edge around me, but if you like…”

“Really. Tonight, was really fun, and I can’t imagine you doing anything to hurt me.” I countered with a gentle smile before looking down at my lap with rosy cheeks. “I know, at the very least, I would like to get to know you better. Isn’t that… what dating is…?”

 Luis nodded with a radiant smile before getting out to walk around to my side of the car. Being a gentleman seemed to come naturally to him, but it also made me feel extremely shy. It was like earlier, when he led me around the gallery with his hand on the small of my back. Physical touch was not something I was used to, but he made it seem so normal to escort me around like that. Another aspect of his personality, I guessed, that made me swoon.

 The more I spent time with him, the more I learned, and in doing so, the more things I realized I liked about him. This must be what dating someone is all about. Learning about them slowly, over time, until you become familiar enough to know if you would be compatible in a proper relationship with them. As we walked across the sidewalk up to my apartment door, these thoughts continued to swirl around inside my mind.

“So, are you ready for the tests we’re supposed to do in our general studies classes tomorrow?” Luis asked, glancing down at me. “I know you have to take the Math one on campus, but I’m not sure about English.” 

“Ah, yeah, I think I’m ready.” I replied as we walked up the stairs side by side. “Thanks for the reminder.”

 As we reached my door, I did not want him to go, but could think of no reason to ask him to stay. I did my best to smile when I noticed him glance down at me and pulled the key from my purse. We have tests tomorrow anyway, so it was for the best that I do not invite him in. Coming to a stop in front of the door, I turned and looked up at him with a smile.

“Well, try to get some sleep this evening, Aura.” He said, lifting his hand to rest on my cheek. “I hope to see you tomorrow.”

“Right.” I smiled and opened the door. “Goodnight, Luis.”

“Goodnight.”

 When I shut the door, I leaned against it happily with a giggle. We had just parted, and I was already looking forward to seeing him again. I know I am at least going to sleep well tonight. Lifting away from the door and making sure I locked it, I made my way to the bathroom to change. Tomorrow, I needed to finish up those tests and maybe make a plan for the next date with Luis. 

***

 The next day, I was finishing up the last bit of my tests and walked up to the proctor to turn it in. I felt fantastic about the results, so I excused myself to go to the restroom and walked into the stall. Pulling my phone from my purse, I looked to see if I had any texts from Luis. I knew he was smart, so I did not worry about him failing, but I hoped to speak with him today. A few seconds later, I heard the door to the room open and two women came in, their heels clicking on the tiles.

“Did you see Luis in the hallway?” One asked, the sound reaching me over the stalls. “I heard he took Aura Bedisa on a date last weekend…”

“Yeah, he looks as gorgeous as always. Why would he take HER on a date? Is he just messing around with her because she’s a virgin?” The other replied, her voice slightly muffled. “To be honest, Aura would be really pretty if she wasn’t so strange. Wasn’t her mother arrested as a Cult Leader and Satanist who was performing rituals that involved human sacrifices?”

“Yeah. She IS really pretty under all those baggy clothes she wears, but she doesn’t give off much of an impression. More than likely, he is just playing with her.” The first one continued, lowering her voice. “They say her mother was a black widow who had gone insane, claiming she boned an angel, and swearing Aura supposedly the Chosen Bride for Lucifer.”

“That’s dark. Wait, wouldn’t that make her a witch too?” Said the second, as their heels clacked towards the entrance to the restroom. “If so, Luis might actually be in danger if he ever makes her mad. We should warn him…”

 I leaned my head against the door of my stall, doing my best to hold back the tears. Despite doing nothing to hurt anyone, people still distanced themselves from me. More than ever, it reminded me of exactly how much my mother screwed up my life. I clutched my bag to my chest and tried to swallow the lump that had formed in my throat. I was not a witch, just a normal girl with a messed-up history. Pushing off the stall, I left the restroom only to run straight into the last person I wanted to see.

“Aura!” It was Luis’s voice from the other side of the hall as he started walking towards me. “Hey, I was hoping I’d see you today.”

“Ah!” I recoiled, remembering the words the girls had said in the bathroom. “Sorry… I did not see you there…”

“No problem…” He replied, tilting his head as he looked at me. “Is something wrong?”

 Bringing my messenger bag up and in front of my chest, I kept my eyes on the floor between us. I shook my head no, but his feet remained in my line of sight. I could feel the eyes of everyone around us on me, and that made me even more nervous as I tried to slink back into the wall to disappear, but Luis followed.

“Luis! You may want to… oh…” It was the same two women I heard in the restroom. “Um…”

“I… uh… I got to go.” I pivoted and practically ran away, doing my best to dodge in and out of the crowd.

 Once I had made it outside the building, I turned to look back. Thankfully, no one followed me, but it also made me a little sad. Odds are, those girls will tell him more about me and he would not want to talk to me anymore. Turning my back on the college, I left the grounds and headed home. It might be for the best if I just do not talk to him anymore. After all, he is a fantastic-looking guy and I am just normal.

“I’m not really worthy of his attention.” I sighed this out loud when I walked into my apartment building. “And now I’m talking to myself.”

 I unlocked my door and walked in, locking it behind me. I sighed again as I made my way into my bedroom, where I put my messenger bag back into place on the table next to my bed. Thoughts of Luis curled through my head as I changed clothes. How am I supposed to trust him? Did I not distrust him from the start? I squeezed large clumps of my hair in my fists, out of frustration.

 I hated that my anxiety would always kick in at the worst imaginable times. Sighing again, I made my way back into my bedroom and dug my phone out of my bag. I wanted to see if he messaged me. Then again, I wanted to run away and hide. On the phone’s screen, there was a notification that I had received a call while I was changing. Unlocking the phone, my eyes immediately read off Luis’s name.

 Luis was always so sweet, but was that just a ruse like those girls said? It displayed a voicemail notification at the top of my screen. Did I really want to hear what he had to say? Was it even him that left the message? As I went back and forth, I moved to sit in front of my laptop to open it. I needed to have another conversation with my therapist. Pressing the voicemail notification, I put it on speaker and waited while lifting the lid of my computer.

“Hey, Aura. I don’t know what happened, but I’m always willing to listen.” The people talking in the halls of the college slightly drowned out his voice. “I have another test to take after this, but I WILL call you later. We should talk then.”

While listening to his voicemail, I had already pulled up the chat box with Doctor Hensley and was writing into it about what happened today. I knew she could help me refocus and maybe even give me some advice on what to do. I wanted to keep talking to Luis, but people were already spreading rumors. It was not like the first time we hung out. This time, people were saying negative things about him because of me.

Doc_Hensley: So, you broke down in the bathroom? How are you feeling right now?

Me: Yes, I did. Very stressed. All I can think about is Luis and what will happen because he associates with me.

Doc_Hensley: I see. What does he think of all of this?

Me: I don’t know. I haven’t actually talked to him about it. I don’t even understand why I feel the way I do, anyway.

Doc_Hensley: To be honest, it sounds as though you are experiencing love. You’re more concerned for him than yourself, and you really seem to care about him.