A Surprise ⇢ Callum Ilott

TWO

"Where are you heading to?" Callum asked when the wedding was over. He and Catherine were leaving at the same time.

Catherine stopped walking. "I'm sorry," she muttered and grabbed Callum's arm for support. She took off her heels and almost let out a relieved sigh. "Anyway, I'm heading to the town nearby. This bus is departing in five minutes, so..." A thin-lipped smile was pressed on her lips. It seemed like her family left without any notice, but Catherine didn't care about it.

"Public transport, clever one," Callum nodded.

"You?"

Callum looked at his watching, holding it into the light of the lamp post. "My plan was to grab a taxi, but I think I will stay the night at a B&B. Do you happen to know anything in the neighbourhood?"

"Er..." Catherine blew up her cheeks and let out the air. "I'm trying to think of something, but my brains don't work when I had a few drinks." They walked towards the bus stop. "There's one in the centre, actually. One stop after mine."

He nodded. "Okay, thank you." Callum looked around; he only could stare at the darkness. "Enjoyed the wedding?"

"Yes," Catherine blurted. "Masha and Vince are wonderful people, and it was the perfect ceremony: not too short and not too long, just perfect. And the food was good. Not forget to mention the venue was beautiful." It wasn't like Catherine drank too much alcohol, just four glasses of wine and two glasses of champagne, but Catherine was a bit tipsy.

"It was one of the nicest weddings I've been to," Callum admitted. "Romantic and sweet, exactly how Masha and Vince are."

Catherine nodded and looked down at her feet; walking on barefoot on the road isn't comfortable, but much better than walking on heels as the moment. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and held her heels between her fingers. "Yeah, very nice," she mumbled.

"What are you from Masha? Friend...colleague?"

"I'm Masha's cousin," she answered his question. "What about you?"

"My parents are the neighbours of Vince his parents, I grew up with Vince's younger brothers," he told. "I reckon your family was at the wedding as well. Why didn't you sit with them?"

Catherine softly chuckled. "I don't know. When the boss says I have to sit at the back, I will do that." They arrived at the bus stop. "There must be a reason for it to give me a seat by the friends and colleagues. But you were alone, where were your parents?"

"Couldn't make it, work duties. I was the only one who could go."

"Hmm-hmm."

The eyes of Callum were focussed on Catherine, something was charming about her, something that caught his eyes. He couldn't put his finger on it what made her interesting. A shiver rolled down Catherine's spine, and goosebumps spread over her arms. Callum took off his jacket and held it in front of her. "Take it."

"No, no, no. It's my fault I didn't bring a jacket. It's cold. You cannot catch a cold or flu." Catherine refused to take the jacket.

"Catherine, look at you. You are wearing a dress, bare arms, almost freezing... And like you said, it's cold. You need this jacket more than I do," Callum said and raised his eyebrow. "I insist."

A smile curved on her lips. "Thank you," she softly said and let Callum help her putting on the jacket. The navy blue jacket slightly felt oversized, but she didn't drown in it. Perhaps it was one size bigger than her own size. "You sure this is fine by you?"

"Yes," he smiled. "It looks good on you," he winked.

The bus arrived, and they entered the vehicle. Catherine and Callum sat down near the exit, so it wouldn't be a whole obstacle to leave the bus at the destination. There weren't many people on the bus; just a few teenagers. Catherine looked outside, well, at her own reflection in the window, and let the happening process.