Love Behind Door 8

A Fateful Encounter

"Yes?" he said in a deep voice which made me feel a poke inside of my chest.

What is happening? My mind flooded with all kinds of thoughts. Was I really about to enter a man's apartment? How could I trust this stranger? Oddly still my safety seemed to be the least of my concerns at the moment.

But it's not like I had been praying for a woman to open the door either. Both men and women who happen to be strangers can be equally terrifying and so could I be for them. I wasn't about to let this opportunity die just because he was a man. Some shelter for tonight and I would be gone by tomorrow before sunrise. 

At the same time, I was having a gut feeling like this was it and I needn't go knocking on any more doors again.

He looked amiable and couthy, not the sort of guy to keep me on my toes for potential danger. Why was I judging someone solely based on their looks having met him no longer than 10 seconds ago? Was I attracted to him?

The last guy I had a thing with, back when I was 16, told me all I needed to know about men. Was I about to give another a chance? That is if he felt the same way about me.

My life in fact did not end when I was 16. Was I to regret the fact or be ever so grateful for not committing? Was Venice going to be the turning point of my life? I tried denying and pushing away my feelings as they were making me feel overwhelmed when he interrupted my thoughts.

"Hello?" he spoke again, raising his eyebrows which hinted me to speak up.

"Can I please crash here for the night?" I said.

Before I gave him the chance to reply, in case he said I couldn't, I interrupted again in a plaintive tone.

"Please? I have come from far and I'm desperate to have a place for the night. Would you be kind en-"

"Hey, hey, you can stay! I wasn't going to say 'No'" he claimed cutting in on me with a laugh.

I knew it. I expected this response from him. He just wouldn't have disappointed me like that and I was eccentrically certain about it.

I happened to also be enchanted by his smile when he did. It spoke volumes. Had he knocked on my door so late, claiming that he needed to crash at mine, I wouldn't have hesitated a second.

He stepped aside indicating for me to enter. I walked in through the doorway as I tried not to get so carried away hastily and focus on my place of refuge for the night, for now. He definitely might have not felt the same way about me. Or did he?