Our shopping trip later that afternoon was a success. On our way back I was comfortably dressed in a brand new turtleneck sweater that hid the bandages perfectly. There were three more in my shopping bag next to me along with a few nice scarves. Winter was coming anyway, so I would need them whether I had third degree burns or not.

Walter even treated me to lunch in what was probably the cutest little pub in town. Its vintage aesthetic with antique decorations was a perfect contrast to the modern, minimalist design of the club I was used to. It had been at least a year since the two of us got to spend time together like this, and honestly, I had missed it more than I thought. At least, now that I was supposed to rest and recover, we had plenty of time to catch up.

The very second Walter got up and left me to pay for our food, a man approached the table, gesturing at Walter’s chair.

“Is this seat taken?” He asked. The man had the brightest green eyes, fiery red hair and pale skin adorned with freckles. His boyish charms drew me in initially, but the grey sweatpants he wore, leaving ever so little to the imagination, were what did me in.

“Not at all.” I sighed dreamily, slightly disappointed as I watched the bottom half of the stranger disappear behind the tabletop.

“I’m sorry to bother you like this, I just couldn’t help myself. You’re really beautiful, you know?”

“I, uh, that’s so sweet. Thank you.” I stammered, colour rising to my face.

“Um, it feels weird to ask… that guy that was sitting here before? Are you, like, with him?” The expression on the stranger’s face was one of awkwardness, slightly nervous, even. I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Who? Walter? No, he’s like my dad, I’m not ‘with’ with him!”

“You never know these days.” The man smiled, shrugging.

“Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point there. But for real, he’s not that kind of guy. And neither am I, for that matter. I’d rather go out with men my own age.” I lied. Quickly doing the math, I was probably closer in age to Walter than to this man sitting across from me.

The stranger gave a hearty laugh at my joke, resting his chin in the palm of his hand, the cuff of his sweater hiking up enough to show off the edges of a tattoo. I hadn’t seen much of Alexander’s tattoo the night before, but I had seen enough to know that the one gracing the new stranger’s wrist and forearm was identical to his.

A chill shot down my spine. My heartbeat started to race, and as much as I tried to hide it, my breathing picked up, too. I felt like I had run a full marathon, even though I sat there frozen in fear. The man across from me had to have noticed by now that I was freaking out, that much I was sure of. I tried not to flinch when he spoke up again. I glanced at the counter from behind my shades, hoping to see Walter on his way back, but no such luck. The man was nowhere to be found.

“By the way, my name is Alexander.”