8

As the car was parked in the parking lot, a small screechy sound arose from the tyres, signalling that we had arrived at our destination, the mall. I was thinking about this morning, about my talk with her, with nyx, the entire car ride from our house to the mall. It's a lovely name. I swear I would have begun shivering when she asked my name if it hadn't been Landon who calmed me down and advised me what to say next. I was overjoyed that I was able to make her laugh.

This was the first time I'd heard her laugh, and believe me when I say it was lovely. I was confused as to why she referred to me as a "angel." I felt myself giggling foolishly at the thought of her. I was pulled back to reality by a tap on the shoulder. "Hey, bud, are you...there?" Dominique questioned, a puzzled expression on his face. "Ye-yea. I'm right here!" I returned the smile. I stood there watching as the automatic doors opened to let us in. Theo was the first to enter. Valentino was next, followed by myself, Landon, and Dominique.

I wasn't in the mood to shop just now; I simply wanted to go around and get my mind off of things.

"Um...I'm going to that shop, and you guys can go wherever you want; we'll meet in about an hour at this tiny caffe?" Theo made a suggestion. "That's cool!"Landon responded. I opted to stay with Landon because I didn't have any other plans.

"Have you got anything good?" As he approached our meeting location, Theo inquired. As the rest of the lads talked about what they got, I shook my head and walked away.

"Let's get going; I'm starving!" I rose up and stuffed my hands into the pockets of my jeans. We were all just strolling along the sidewalk when Josh abruptly came to a halt. I heard a young girl's voice instead of his, and as I turned to look at her, I noticed Theo had collided with a girl.

"Oh, my goodness! I'm so-so "She began to apologise, but Theo abruptly cut her off. "Whoa! Ms., please! Keep an eye on your surroundings! You're just—wait! Aren't you the one who poured coffee on me - on both of us?" He spoke it in a harsh tone. I said something to him in hushed tones about how awful that was of him, but he seemed to disregard me.

That's her, then. As I tried to take in her features, I wondered. She appeared to be around our age. Her face was framed by light brownish layers of hair, which were adorned with the most exquisite shade of brown pupils, which were beautifully placed in her eyes. The guys made some comments, nothing unpleasant or hurtful, just some humorous pick-up lines, which made me laugh as well, but she appeared to be deep in thought.

Her gaze returned to us, or should I say, to Valentino, as he said, between fists of laughing,Yes, yes, Definitely a loner! She's just walking around the shops by herself, staring at things!"

I noticed how she stared at him, tears welling up in her eyes and cries escaping her pastel pink lips. I had to stop laughing because it was evident that we weren't trying to make her upset, given that Valentino had spoken some bad lines to her.

The minute i saw her tear-stained cheek, I tapped the rest of the lads to stop them from laughing. She pushed by us and the crowd and dashed into the washroom, as far as I could tell. "Guys! That wasn't a good idea! We managed to make her cry..." Landon expressed his worries.

"But those were only a few of witty pick-up lines..." Valentino gave Theo a thumbs up, which Theo defended. "It wasn't the pick-up lines, I guess. I think it was the part about being a loner that Valentino mentioned last." I came to a conclusion. "Well, I'm sorry if I made her upset," Valentino admitted truthfully, and Theo agreed. "Forget about it. Let's leave as if we're ever going to see her again." Dominique shrugged his shoulders and spoke matter-of-factly.

••••••••

I took my phone off the side table and answered it right away. "Hello?" I shook my head in disbelief, knowing she was crying once more. It bothered me that I didn't understand why she could be happy one moment and sad the next. "I'm waiting right here... Talk to me about it whenever you want, ok nyxis?" I said it in a calm tone. "Di-Di-Did you call me nyxis?" She questioned.

"Yes, I believe I did. What's the big deal about that? I'm not going to do it anymore. Nyx, please accept my apologies." I apologised despite the fact that I had no idea what had gone wrong. "Please do not do so. Make no apologies. It just...reminds me of someone I've lost touch with." She said, finally putting an end to her sobs. Lost? Who could it possibly be? There was still so much I needed to learn about her. "May I ask as to what happened, love?" I was curious enough to find out.

"There was no action. Some people appreciate rubbing it in my face that I am alone..." She became irritated and drifted off. "Alone? Who was it who said that? Huh? They haven't met me yet, it seems! Nyx, you have me; I'm here for you!" I stated that from the bottom of my heart. It felt as if I had known her for a long time, even though we had only spoken a few weeks before.

She laughed.

"Could you...please...sing for me?" She asked, a little cautiously. "Sure love" With a tinge of enthusiasm in my voice, I replied. I pondered for a moment, unsure of what to sing, then one of the songs I wrote came to mind, and I began to sing it without hesitation.

Dress.

"I keep staring at that little white number

You left here in the summer

Hanging in my wardrobe

Do you still want it?

Do you still want it?

I know that I did you the service

Of calling 'cause I'm nervous

I know that we don't talk

I know that it's on purpose

Do you still want it?

But I'm holding on

Maybe it's time to put your dress away

Or leave it out

Maybe it's time that I give you space

I just wanna see it

Back on your body

Watch you dance around and

Tell you I'm sorry

Maybe it's time to put your dress away

Even if I don't want to, babe"

I ended because I could hear her breathing on the other end, which indicated she was sleeping. I hung up the phone, smiling foolishly. When I turned around, Valentino stared at me as if I didn't belong on this planet. "You....were singing a song..? Dress...to be specific...? To who?.." He questioned, his gaze fixed on my every motion. "Yeah, I was singing... dress?" It sounded more like a query. "She asked me to okay?" It's not a big deal!" I continued to argue my case. The boys were well aware of how important 'dress' was to me. That song had been saved for the special girl.

We were at a bonfire once, and we were all discussing the song we'd sing to our special girl, and mine was dress. I'm not sure why... It's simply that I wrote it and it meant a lot to me, as if it were speaking directly to me. Then it dawned on me. I sang her a song that I had saved for my special girl... is she special? "Okay, then...dinner is on the table." He abruptly changed the subject.

The thought of this afternoon came to me while Dominique and I reclined on the couch after dinner. I was furious because Nyx was weeping and mentioned something about someone calling her a loner, but on the other side, we made someone cry today by calling them a loner. I felt it necessary to apologise.