Luminous Nights

III. The Stranger

My heart began to beat out of my chest. Who was this man? What does he want with me? I gained the courage to speak. "H-Have you been the one who's been following me? What do you want? Cash? My credit card? I'll g-give it if that's what you want!" I managed to blurt out. Suddenly, the man began... laughing? "Ha! God I haven't laughed like that in ages! You're a pretty funny girl. I'm sorry, it's just the irony with the pepper spray and all... and your reaction? Priceless!" the man responded with a crooked smile. He had a deep, husky voice with a hint of a southern accent. Where the heck was this guy from, Looney Town? He sounds crazy right now. The man stepped a bit closer, hands in his hoodie pocket, head still tilted downward. He was thin, but I could still see quite a bit of muscle underneath the baggy hoodie he was wearing. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to scare you or anything. I was just taking a late night stroll and saw you, so I came to introduce myself. I'm a bit of a social bug, so I just wanted to stop and say hello, 'cause you seemed pretty bored standing there."

What's up with this guy? Should I trust him? He seems pretty nice, just weird. The man stepped fully under the light and raised his head to where you could see his face. "I'm Corwin by the way." He casually said with a smile. He looked to be in his mid twenties, with a  paler complexion than me, and I was already quite fair skinned. His ear length hair was parted down the middle, framing his angular face. It was quite straight, yet slightly on the messier side. It was an odd shade of charcoal gray, probably just dyed that color. His feature that stood out to me the most was his eyes: they were deeply set and a vibrant shade of amethyst, nearly looking like they were glowing, just like the gemstone itself. It sounds strange, but I began to somewhat feel mesmerized by how beautiful they were. I shook the odd feeling out of my head and began to speak. "If you were just stopping by to chat, then why did you grab my shoulder without saying anything? That kinda gives you a bad rep." I crossed my arms trying to look tough, but mainly did so to stop myself from shaking so much. Corwin frowned slightly and looked down. "Sorry, from behind I thought you were somebody else that I knew. I wouldn't have done that had I known better." So that's why he grabbed my shoulder? I guess that makes more sense now. He walked over to a nearby bench and took a seat. "You said you think that someone's been following you, if I may ask?" he looked me up and down, probably noticing how shaken up I was. "Yes...here lately it feels like I'm being watched everywhere I go. Maybe I'm just being too paranoid. I've had a lot on my plate lately, between work and school."  He shrugged, "That could be all it is, but you can never be too careful. It's best to always have an eye out. You can't trust too many people these days." We awkwardly stared at each other. A stranger telling me not to trust other strangers. That's a little contradicting, don't you think dude? He looked up at me, and I yet again felt intrigued by his eyes. "Your eyes, they're such a beautiful shade of purple." I blurted out. I snapped back to reality and my jaw dropped. Did I really just say that out loud?! What the heck is wrong with me?! Now I'm being the weirdo! "Oh my god! I'm so sorry! I-I didn't mean to blurt out something so random like that! I-I-" I bumbled nervously. "No-no, it's fine. I get that all the time. They're just colored contacts that I like to wear. I'll take the compliment though!" Corwin replied with a wave of his hand, chuckling. Well at least I'm not the first to notice his eyes. That makes me feel slightly better.

  Corwin broke the awkward moment of silence. "Oh, I never caught your name by the way?" I looked up at him after staring at my feet for a good while. "It's Violet. My name-not the color of your eyes this time..." I cleared my throat from cringing. Oh dear god, why am I like this? Just act normal for once, Violet! "That's a beautiful name." He responded with grace. "Umm, thanks I guess?" "What? I thought we were giving each other random compliments? Too much?" Corwin said with a grin, his eyebrows raised. We both began laughing. "Y'know Violet, this is the most fun I've had with someone in quite a while. I've been needing a good laugh here lately, and you've definitely helped me out with that, so thanks!" I smiled in response, feeling happy that I at least made someone else's day better.

I could finally hear the bus getting close, after running thirty minutes behind. Corwin stepped right in front of me and reached his hand out. "Well, I better be going. It's pretty late and I'm sure you've got somewhere to be." he smiled brightly. I reached for his hand and we shook goodbye. "It was really nice meeting you, Violet. Who knows, maybe we'll bump into each other again? Hopefully in a more peaceful situation." We both began laughing once again. "Yeah, it was nice meeting you too, Corwin." We said our goodbyes, and the bus had pulled up. I took my seat on and watched outside of my window, as Corwin began walking away into the night. The bus began to take off, and all that I could think about was how thankful I was for not being murdered by that guy. Thank goodness he was harmless. It was still kind of weird how he approached me to begin with, but he seemed really nice at least. I wonder if we'll ever meet again?