Belle

Chapter 1: April

"Pinch, punch, first day of the month!!" hollered Holly, the only bright person in the office on quite a gloomy winters morning, on a Monday, it's freezing, everyone stayed up late so as a result, a very depressing air hung around the office this morning. Just another normal fun day at work.

"Oh Holly! For goodness sake! Will you ever grow up?" complained my work colleague/neighbour/life-long-friend/well-known-party-pooper, Jane. She is around my height if a bit shorter, which is about five four, lovely light brown hair, and bright hazel coloured eyes, big smile… when she wanted to smile, and a.. Well, an interesting sense of humour.

"Come off her Jane, it's eight in the morning, and the boss will be here any minute to complain about his horrible sleep and every single nightmare during the weekend." I plead giving her the best puppy eyed look I can muster.

"Fine." grows Jane, obviously not in the mood to argue, now that’s something new.

And far enough the day went on, the boss had a good night sleep for a change and dreamed of things I wish not to repeat, or have completely forgotten, the morning was full of new things. I worked hard like I always do, and after work me and Jane stopped off at our favourite Café. The French Café is a small one on the corner opposite the park, so on a hot day you can sit outside and have the best view, and on a cold day, as it was then, you would sit inside smelling all the newly baked bread come out of the oven, the owners sometimes did that just to attract customers with the smell. And it worked a charm.

After a while of lamentating on our day at work and gossiping about things which were soon forgotten, Jane stood up to leave after recieving a text messaging saying her mother had a fall.

"Oh my goodness! Is she all right? did you want me to come with you?" I cry out, standing so suddenly the chair falls over creating a huge bang, almost as loud as my shouting, almost.

"Calm down drama queen, you're making a sence. She has been doing that lately, saying thats she has had a fall only meens 'come quickly daughter and bring me coffee, before I die'" she said that with such dramatic attidude I nearly forget when I'm about to sit down that the chair is still on the ground.

"ok then you go save that mother of yours from dehydration, I feel like walking on the beach, it seems like a nice evening for it"

"fine, but if you meet your prince charming, make sure you ask him if he has a younger cousin, or brother." she calls out as she walks away, I laugh quietly to myself, pay my half of the check and start walking.

Then that’s when it all happened, it all started a year ago, this this very same month and day. April 4th, cold and windy standing on the beach admiring the setting sun, its dying light setting the clouds on fire, quite an odd day for a winters evening, but to soak up the ever changing tides the crashing sounds it made on the rock and reefs hidden under the waves was calming and refreshing.

As I turn around after I had been refreshed, and also noticing I would have to reach the car before it gets dark, about five metres behind me, in black jeans, black shoes, a brown leather jacket and a plain White T shirt, stood a fairly tall man around his late twenties, black curly hair that fell across his forehead but not reaching the eyes, those eyes that could sweep a girl right off her feet in moments. But for me, that didn't happen. I stood there shocked wondering how long he had been standing there without me noticing. But golly, he looked something delicious.

We stood facing each other for a few moments, both wondering what was to happen next, I surely didn't, and he seemed to pick up on that. So he seemed to shrug, was the first to approach.

"Hello Belle" he purrs,

"you've got some nerve to be flirting with a stranger" a state hurriedly, hoping the fading light obscures my reddening face. "I think you have me confused with someone else my name is Amy, not Belle"

"my name is Charlie, and I have never seen you here before, you're not the regular around here, most people that come on the beach, come and go like clockwork, you're messing with the flow" he speaks so calmly, and with the slightest sly smile.

"I'm so sorry to have messed with the flow of a creepy pervert." I snap back, wondering if this really is the right way to speak to a stranger, but his coolness was making me angry, technically my attidude was his fault. thats what I wanted to believe anyway.

"My thousand apologies, I didn't meen to distress you. It is getting quite dark though, the real stalkers will be coming out soon. Would you like me to walk you to your car?" He states this so calmly, but he has a point, if I were to be followed, worse, rapped, he looked like he could chase the creep away.

"Thanks, I guess that would be wise" I say cautiously, then again, whose to know he isn't a stalker himself.

He nods, noticing how I'm careful and we start walking in the same direction, but still far apart. The silence was welcomed by both of us, neither of us wanting to talk was fine. It felt like it was bringing us closer. nope the dark was  bringing us closer, as I noticed myself steering towards him, unknowingly.