Love Beyond Time and Space

The Meet-Cute

"MDC and AA," Nathaniel called out over the hustle and bustle of the crowds.

Adrien looked up to Nathaniel at the counter, noticing he had two cups in his hands — one in his right hand and the other in his left.

Adrien's eyes caught the cups before homing in on the initials. It seemed the cups were in the wrong hands and if the awkward side step of the woman moving towards the counter was anything to go by, she was the owner of the second cup.

Why was she walking sideways?

Amusement glistened in his eyes, as he continued to watch the awkward advancement of the girl going to get her drink. He couldn't take his eyes from her.

He wasn't sure what the reason was for the crab-like walk but it was endearing all the same. So endearing it took him a couple of seconds to move himself forward and finally head towards his own drink. Perhaps he should spring like a bunny or something?

As he drew closer, he noticed how the woman had begun to stretch out her hand — to the wrong drink. She hadn't looked up and seen the names; instead, she was going to the drink closest to her, which was his!

Quickly stretching out to either stop her or get his drink first, the moment was broken by her loud screech as she grabbed his hand instead of the cup. He tried to think of something witty to say, something to hopefully calm her down, or at least make it seem as though he wasn't trying to grope her, or grab her hand.

Turning to her, the air was stolen from his lungs. Her startled blues were the most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen in his life and he suddenly found it incredibly hard to breathe again.

It was as though time froze; his heart being the only noise he could hear as it pumped blood aggressively into his ears, rebounding hard just as his heart was against his chest.

The ocean blue in front of him; a colour he wanted to have a sample of and paint every room in his apartment with, was full of wisdom and dreams; but it wasn't just the colour which had him spellbound. Set behind a pair of thick black framed glasses, her wide, sparkling eyes were lined with black eyelashes; each set sitting perfectly against her skin; including, a face which held very little makeup yet looked more beautiful than any model he'd ever worked with. Her beauty left him speechless.

The startled doe expression currently on the woman's face began to change and melt away. Her mouth widening and eyes opening in fear.

Shit!

He could tell she was panicking. Had she realised who he was? Had she recognised him?

The scramble which happened next caused him to scream out loud; a scream which was neither heroic nor manly; instead he was sure it reached a peak only dogs could hear. The drink (hers) was suddenly knocked out of Nathaniel's hand only to find a new home on his shirt; the hot, almost molten, liquid soaking through the pure white cotton and hitting his skin with a sharp, stinging sensation. That was most certainly going to leave a mark.

Double shit!

"Oh my, I'm so, so sorry!" Her voice was as angelic as her face. Unable to look away from where his skin was on fire, she pressed a wad of napkins to his chest and dabbed over the stains, tapping them over and over again in hope of relieving a little of the burning sensation. He was seconds away from peeling his shirt off his body and diving in the cafés fridge.

"It's okay," he managed to utter. What else was he meant to say? He was suing her for bodily harm? It was obvious it was a mistake. It's not like she'd gone out of her way to damage his million euro insured body.

The stinging began to ease; the harsh, lingering pain soothing into just a warmth — a warmth with a red mark, he presumed. There was no way he was coming out of this unscathed.