Heal Me

Chapter 4

Why the streets were so quiet Evangeline did not know. There weren't many people on the bus either, nor at the cafes. She actually hurried, stressed as always about being punctual. So why was it so calm outside?

As she checked the delicate watch safely secured at her wrist, she quirked an eyebrow. It showed 8:20 AM, the correct time. But she checked her phone as well and was more than surprised when she saw that it read 7:20 AM. Surely, there had to be something wrong with it. It was one hour early.

She sighed and messed up her already unruly hair. While pouting in confusion, her eyes fell on a clock inside the coffee-shop near the bus station. Again... it said 7:20 AM.

"Come on!" Evangeline yelled at herself and kicked a pebble on the cold ground as she realized that the clock has been moved backwards by an hour. How could she forget that the time always changed at the end of October?

She muttered something to herself again and looked around. What was she going to do for one whole hour?

Then... he reappeared in her mind...his deep, truthful hazel eyes in special. What she could see in them spoke volumes about the pain and regret washing through him.

Evangeline only wished she knew his name...

So, with a mischievous yet contained smile on her lips, she bought two cups of scalding hot cappuccino -her favorite- and headed to the park, where she was almost completely certain she would find him.

The cups were burning her hands but she kept walking. With each step she took, Evangeline was getting more and more excited because she did not only want to get to know what was tormenting him nor him as a person, but wished to make him see her as true friend.

But she hadn't decided yet what exactly made her want that. The boy simply caught her attention with his mysterious ways; he sparked her interest just by intending not to.

Getting to know him was like treating a wounded bird... you want to help but you are not let to do so because the other is afraid of getting hurt even more. So you have to make them overcome their fears and prove that, in the end, it was all worth it. The bird would be healed; it would become forever loyal to you, and all because you took the time to care...

And Evangeline always did.

She finally got close to the park. And, just as she thought, he was there, this time sitting in a swing, his hands on each side of his body. Still careful with the cups in her both palms, she hurried and kicked the big porch with her right foot. Just as it clicked closed, though, the morning silence was disturbed by a loud creak.

Evangeline could feel his eyes burning into her back and she turned to face him. To say he was surprised was an understatement.

'What the hell is she doing here?' he wondered, wrinkling his forehead, as she brought a cup higher in the air as a wave.

 She smiled brightly, just like she did the day before. and strode towards him.

"Hey! I was sure I'd find you here." Evangeline beamed excitedly and sat in the swing beside him.

She sighed and shifted a bit only to find him already looking at her. His head was a bit tilted to the side, confusion covering his face. But she smiled sheepishly, trying to lighten up the mood, and pushed one of the plastic cups into his hands. It almost spilled but she knew she had to do it that way. If she had waited for him to accept it, she would have stood like that forever.

Just as the warmth of the cappuccino reached his hands, though, his glare softened and the little V on his forehead disappeared. He opened his mouth to say something but closed it and kept quiet.

He played carelessly for a few moments with the cup while staring at her in wonder, the same questions repeating in his mind. 'Why is she so nice? What does she want?'

"Thank you..." he whispered, taking the cup to his lips and drinking, his eyes never leaving her.

She had heard his voice before but it was only now that she could indulge in it completely, as it was quiet in the park. She stopped drinking and turned her head, their gazes boring together.

"You're welcome." Evangeline grinned again and slightly rocked back and forth in the swing. Her lips ached to say or ask something but she decided she wouldn't talk. It had to be him first...

 So they stood like that for at least ten minutes, his quiet and rather stubborn nature getting on her nerves. Evangeline did realize that there were shy, unsociable people out there but he seemed... apprehensive all the time. And, at first, that made her doubt what she was doing. But now she knew it would be a one-way road to friendship with him... but with her in the driver's seat.

"Why are you here?" he finally muttered, making her smirk mentally.

"Uhm, this may sound...stupid but I forgot that the clock had been moved backwards. So..." Evangeline shrugged and took a sip of her cappuccino.

The look on anyone else's face would have revealed amusement but he was impassive... always cold and hostile.

"No. I meant... what do you want?" he asked rudely but she didn't expect otherwise. In a way, Evangeline actually considered him a challenge of patience and calm...

"An apartment in Paris, a piano, peanut butter... you know." she burst out laughing and the sweet melodic sound filled his ears. It was colored and lively as he had never heard before but, as contagious as it might have been, he didn't even sketch a smile.

"Okay, okay... sorry. And what's with the question? I thought this was a public place." she pointed a finger at him in a childish way and finished her cappuccino, gently putting her cup on the ground, mentally reminding herself to throw it into the trash.

"You're right." he cleared his throat after a few seconds and looked away.

Why did he speak to her? He specifically told himself to ignore her; to forget how beautiful her name was... how pure it sounded in the cold air of the day before.

"What's your name?" Evangeline breathed out softly and he tensed up and sighed in exasperation.

"Why do you fucking care?" he cursed, looking ahead. He could not bear those intrusive brown eyes of hers.

"Umm..." she began but was not let to utter one more word.

" 'Umm' what?" he spat angrily, this time staring her down. "Why are you talking to me? What the hell do you want?" he got up and yelled, his harsh words hitting her through the fresh air.

Her mouth opened slightly, showing that she was not prepared for this reaction; it scared her in a way. A glare covered his eyes and she saw so much hatred and anger in them that a lump formed in her throat.

Why was he pushing her away? Why did he embrace this emptiness she was sure he felt?

"I-I'm...uh, I know that-"

"You know nothing! So why don't you get the fuck out of here and leave me alone?" he yelled once again and a hot tear ran down her cheek. Seeing it, his whole face softened and regret washed through him. No matter what he felt, he shouldn't have reacted this way. He hurt her... he was always hurting the ones who didn't deserve it.

He sighed and ran a hand through his slightly disheveled hair but, when he glanced at her, she was already picking up her bag and the used cup on the ground, getting ready to grant his wish.