What's wrong?

"Why is your face like that? Did you not enjoy the

party?" the voice asked. She abruptly stopped from her tracks

and turned her gaze around. She wasn't mistaken. The voice

came from the same man who nonchalantly spoke earlier at the

buffet and she can easily recognize him due to the same outfit

from earlier. As their eyes met halfway towards the stairs,

Emmie's eyes landed towards his oval shaped face. His round

eyes were partnered by thick eyebrows, pointed nose and thin

pinkish lips.

She just shrugged her shoulders in response.

"It's too early to spoil your night. Why don't you have

fun instead?" the man suggested.

A frown crept into her face, wondering what the man

wanted from her. She only looked at him from head to toe before

making her way up again. "Nowhere to go? Aside from your

room?" the man added. It looked like he won't be stopping just

like that. A sigh escaped her lips. Her mood was already spoiled

due to the events that happened earlier and now she feels

burdened by an on spot nuisance.

"Why don't you join me, scroll down on the seaside," he

suggested. Emmie glanced at the man again. She can't help

putting on a suspicious face, thinking if he's serious and

trustworthy.

"Don't worry, I promise not to do anything to you

without your permission." A smile formed into his lips,

reassuring her safety. She only looked at him for a few more

seconds. His eyes were filled with nothing but secureness and

honestly, another sigh escaped her lips.

"Alright," she responded. She didn't know what was

going on in her head, suddenly agreeing with the idea of being

accompanied by a stranger on the seaside. Upon walking side by

side towards the opposite direction of the party, Emmie found

herself mesmerized by the scenery in front of her. The tranquility

of the sky shot stars up above the sky, the calming sea brushing

past the shore and how everything looked like it came out of a

painting.

Her eyes widened, shining as she stared right through the

ocean. She could feel the cold breeze touching her bare

sleeveless skin. This was something that she had been meaning

to have; relaxation.

It probably took them ten minutes before silence was

finally broken. Her eyes wandered towards the man standing

beside her as he started the conversation.

"How long have you been here?" he asked.

"We just arrived here before lunch. How about you?"

she responded. The man's attention was still focused on the

scenario in front of them, looking like at any moment; his eyes

were shining from the light reflection.

"Two days ago," he answered. The man suddenly

stopped from his tracks and looked at her. "How long are you

going to stay here?" he added.

"Two days. After tomorrow, we're leaving."

The pouring sound of the crickets and blowing whispers

of the air engulfed the place as they stared right through each

other's eyes. A chuckle escaped his lips.

"I was planning on staying here longer but since you're

already leaving after tomorrow, might as well do the same," he

meaningfully said. Emmie's forehead creased for a moment.

"That's a silly idea; deciding when or when not to leave

upon a woman you met for the first time," she said. She closed

her eyes for a moment, feeling the cold breeze touch her skin.

She is sure that the moon staring right back at them looked so

peaceful from a far wide distance.

"Well it is," the man agreed. Emmie opened her eyes

again to look at the man who was standing right beside her. His

eyes were still fixated on her face as his lips curled into a sweet

smile. "What if I tell you, I was captivated by your beauty?" he

asked, teasingly. His teeth were like something that came out of

a TV commercial, straight and white.

She turned red for a second there. She didn't expect him

to pay her a compliment out of nowhere. She rolled her fingers

around her hair, twirling them gently into her thumb before

lowering her gaze out of embarrassment.

"By the way, I'm James Sullivan." The man held his

hand towards her.

"Emmie..." she muttered. "Emmie Valdez," she replied,

taking his hand.

"Isn't it funny?" James suddenly said. His lips curled into

a smile as laughter escaped his lips. "We've been strolling for a

few minutes now and yet here we are just about to introduce

ourselves," he pointed out.

Emmie nodded with a thin smile on her face. "Yes,

you're right."

Upon having the moment to talk to the man for several

minutes, who would have thought that she'd enjoy his company?

She even learned that he was a new professor in her current

school. That is a lot of a coincidence. As they continued to

converse more, her phone suddenly rang. She fished out her

device from the inside of her sling bag, only for her forehead to

knit at the caller's name.

A scowled expression loomed her face as she decided to

decline the call. There was a hint of anger in her system but she

decided to calm down and think carefully. She let out a deep sigh

before putting her phone back on its place.

"Why didn't you answer the call?" the man asked. She

looked at him for a moment before giving him a bitter smile on

her face.

"It's okay, I'm sure it wasn't an emergency," she

responded.

"Let's go there." James pointed to the big rock, not far

from where they're standing. "Let's go there and sit," he

suggested.

"Sure." They walked towards the area and immediately,

the man made his way to help her seat properly on top.

"Slow down," he added, guiding her properly before

sitting by her side. Upon having a seat together, her legs exposed

itself from the cold breeze blowing around them.

"Are you alright? If you feel cold, I can always take you

back," he said in a warm tone.

"No, I'm fine, " she answered. Her eyes automatically

landed towards his face to smile when she noticed him. He was

staring right through her bare leg.