I Only Told the Moon

Time Is the Enemy

The first time he saw her enter the lounge wearing a dress, he felt the dread creeping in at the back of his mind. Slowly. Steadily.

No. No. No.

She walked with so much grace that he didn't fail to notice how a lot of men in the room turned their heads the moment they saw her. She was still beautiful, so, so, sinfully beautiful just as much as he remembered her to be. His palms clenched at his side.

He could feel old wounds opening up again.

He wanted to run away at the sight of her before she even saw him but instead, he was rooted at his spot. She always does that to him.

If anybody saw him at that time, they would've just thought he was spacing out, but he wasn't.

All his senses were on high alert. He took in the sight of her and stamped it into his mind before he could even stop himself from doing so.

He knew she wore a darker shade of her usual choice of lipstick. He knew she recently had her hair trimmed but not as short as before they went their own ways and drifted apart. He knows how much longer she had it grow out and he remembers how it used to be from her press photos and recent tv appearances. He always does.

He also knew she was wearing the meteor necklace with her outfit today. He knew she might've worn it again unconsciously. She always does.

Time seemed to matter no more as he blatantly stared at her from across the room. He felt like a fool because here he was, still smitten over the same woman he met when he was nineteen, and still, he wouldn't tell her just that.

(He inhales another puff and flicks the stick twice)

He was hoping she wouldn't notice him in the sea of people that separated them. He had to have an excuse of avoiding her.

Her eyes looked over the crowd and within a blink of an eye, she found him.

Foolish little girl.

She looked dead straight at his direction and gave a slight nod.

Even from afar he could see the change in her demeanor when she spotted him. He wanted to shout at her to stop and turn away. He couldn't.

Even with her heels on, she was walking faster than he remembers she could do, comfortably, without tripping. She seemed eager. He wasn't. He wanted to run.

His whole body went into a flight or fight mode the moment she started to go to his direction. Immediately, his brain was fumbling a plan for an escape, an excuse... anything to keep her at bay.

He saw how she tried to avoid prolonging the small talks and greetings she exchanged with the people she bumped into on her way to him. Very foolish.

She was only an arm's length away when what he was expecting happened. She tripped on her heels and almost fell face flat on the floor if not for his hand grabbing her arm on time.

"Hi! Sorry! My bad! Umm... Hi, Dylan! I- I'm sorry about that again. I didn't mean to almost spill this wine on your coat... at all. Promise!" she spoke in a hurried voice, like a child trying to escape a lecture from a parent. He tried not to smile at that so he opted for biting the inside of his cheek.

"S'okay, Yue. Just be careful." She just said something he wish she wouldn't.

An apology, Something he wanted to hear from her, a lifetime ago, and here she was saying it so offhandedly, just not in the context he wanted her to apologize for. She said it so easily and he felt a little sad about that.

"I was- I was afraid you'd be leaving if I didn't reach you sooner." she sheepishly replied.

Before he could stop himself, he reached for his nape and rubbed it, a gesture he got as a habit when he's with her and he's nervous. It took him a moment before he looked at her again. This was awkward as hell.

"Yeah? Seems like you're right about that. I was about to go outside and smoke actually." He lied.

"Oh..." her shoulders slumped. "...Okay. Catch you later when your done then?" she was cornering him. He got frustrated with that.

"Sure. I'll look for you later." he promised her.

His fist clenched inside his pocket. He knew he won't go back.