Solstice

Chapter 2

My iPhone was buzzing in my pocket while I was picking up the luggage. I felt so stiff after fifteen hours in the plane. I yawned hugely then saw Alice’s number on the screen.

“Hello?”

“Hi. You must be Sophia, am I right?” a voice came out from the speaker. Her voice was much different from mum’s.

“Yes.”

“I’m quite busy at this hour. So, there will be this guy, Sam will be picking you up. I’m very sorry for not picking you up.” I could hear her noticeable Australian accent. She described Sam and again apologized for not picking me up. I hung up and found my luggage waiting for me.

I hadn’t realized how huge Australians are. No wonder most rugby players come from Australia and New Zealand. I felt like I was a doll or a child there. Mum wasn’t tall either.

It was also hot. The opposite of how cold it was in the London. I wasn’t wearing my coat anymore or I would sweat a lot. I was wearing a blouse and jeans.

I waited at McDonald’s as I was supposed to. I nearly doze off waiting until ten minutes later, a guy who looks older than me entered. He had penetrating blue eyes and brownish blond cropped hair was sticking out in every direction. He wore a Polo Haus brand t-shirt and a three-quarter pants just like Alice described. His blue eyes stopped searching as he found me leaning on the glass, half asleep. He was as huge as I guessed.

“Are you Sophia?” he asked. I nodded and stood up, nearly lost my balance because I was sleepy. “Did you have anything for lunch?” I listened to his deep voice. It was familiar. Have I met him before? There was a strange strong feeling of déjà vu. He woke me from my reverie after snapping his fingers.

“No.”

He smiled and patted his pocket. “It will be my treat then.”

“Thanks.”

Sam got me a burger and Coke. He sat opposite of me and studying me eating, which made me uncomfortable. No one had ever examined me eating or he had never seen anyone eat before.

“What?” I asked when he kept staring at me for the last five minutes. I felt irritated. I put down the half-eaten burger and sipped some Coke while waiting for his answer. The Coke helped me fight my heavy lids.

“I have never seen anyone eaten a burger as fast as you.”

I snorted. “Impossible. I am not the biggest loser.” I continued eating. “How did you recognize me quickly in the restaurant?”

His hand reached over and showed me my front layer of my hair that turned white. “It runs in your family.”

I didn’t understand what he meant by that. Mum’s hair didn’t change and neither do dad’s. I jerked away and his hands automatically retreated. He stared at something on the table. I saw nothing interesting there so I took another bite on my burger. Silence occurred between us for a moment. I asked, “Are you my cousin or something?”

He suddenly burst into laughter. I looked around to see if anyone stared at us after hearing his too loud laughter. To my surprise, no one did. It must be common among them. “I work for Alice actually.”

“Oh . . .” I didn’t know what to say. Alice must be very rich to hire Sam to pick me up from the airport. “How old are you, Sam?” I asked to pull his attention away from another silence around us other than the screaming children at the playground. Sam looked like he was a little too young to work for Alice, but I had to ask to feed my curiosity.

“Nineteen. Do I look old for my age?”

“No. You look young for your age,” I corrected.

He rolled his eyes. “Okay then, how old are you? You couldn’t be that old with your hair like that.”