Her eyes began to wander as Rebecca checked her phone only to have her breath catch in surprise a few moments later. The man she had barely noticed on their way into the café, the one seated alone in a secluded booth near the back of the shop, was the man from the airport. The white sleeves of his shirt rolled up to the elbow and the black vest fitting snugly over his chest lent him an effortless, almost careless, air of class that seemed completely natural.

Ashlin watched him turn a page in the small book he was holding, noticing how the long raven colored fringes casually draped over one side of his face, hiding one of his eyes from her view. He shook back his hair, momentarily giving her a glimpse of azure colored eyes, before he took a sip from the cup he was holding in the other hand.

There was something else though, an itching sense of recognition that flashed through her mind. It was so fleeting that Ashlin wasn’t sure of what it was, but she had the sense that she had seen this before. That she had watched this man read before, shut away from the world while immersed in another. It was odd, but she couldn’t help but feel at ease as she watched him, as though his tranquil demeanor was washing over her in gentle waves.

“Ashlin.” A snap underneath her nose brought her out of her reverie. “It’s considered rude in civilized society to stare. Though I don’t blame you…”

She blinked rapidly and looked at Rebecca, “What? I wasn’t staring…was I?”

“Like a rabid fangirl at a boy-band concert.” Rebecca smirked, causing Ashlin to flush.

“It’s just that that’s the guy from the airport, the one…”

“The one you were trading lusty gazes with.” Rebecca nodded. “Yep. I noticed him the second we walked in, I was just waiting for you to.”

“Lusty gazes...” Ashlin muttered, shaking her head. “No, it’s just that he seems really familiar…I know him from somewhere, I swear I do.”

“Maybe he’s famous.”

“I don’t think that’s it…” Ashlin glanced back only to see him looking her way, a hint of a smile turning the corner of his mouth.

And he can hear everything we’re saying… Ashlin thought in exasperation, heat rising in her cheeks as she jerked her head back around.

“You know, I always knew you had good taste.” Rebecca whispered softly while glancing over her shoulder again, making no attempt to be subtle.

“Will you stop looking at him, please?” Ashlin whispered fervently.

“Nope. You’re obviously interested or you wouldn’t be blushing, so go ahead and look, I’m sure he won’t mind. He’s already noticed anyway, what could it hurt right?” Rebecca whispered back in the loudest whisper Ashlin had ever heard. She tried to ignore the warmth spreading across her cheeks as she sighed and stared out of the window. She finally let her gaze slip towards the man in the corner.

He wasn’t looking at her anymore, but she could tell he was listening from the little smirk he still had on his face. It was a few moments before he finally turned his piercing eyes on her again. The smirk turned into full-fledged smile as he placed the book face down, put both feet on the ground and sat straighter. It was a clear, wordless invitation for her to join him.

“Um, I think he wants you to join him.” Rebecca said with a smile as she watched Ashlin’s face after glancing his way.

“No…really?”

“Obviously.”

“Should I?”

“It’d be rude not to.” Ashlin felt her pat her hand lightly. “Go on, Ash.”

Ashlin glanced at her before mustering up her courage. Without another word she stood, grabbing her cup and bagel. Rebecca gave her a broad, encouraging smile as she took deep breath and began to make her way to the booth. The man’s smile grew wider as he watched her. He folded his hands on the table in front of him after pushing the book to the side. He looked up at her when she paused before him, amusement still playing over his face. Suddenly, she didn’t know what to say, her mind went completely blank.

His face tilted slightly to the left and his smile grew as he watched her stand there frozen, as if he could see her brain malfunctioning. He gestured with a hand to the seat across from him.

“Would you care to join me?” His rich, low voice resonated throughout her, and she heard herself reply without a thought.

“Only if you don’t mind.”

His smile was dazzling as he said, “Not at all.”

She set her things down and slid into the booth opposite him. His blue eyes examined her face; they flickered from point to point before finally coming to rest to her own. They were twin sapphires; she had never seen a deeper, more brilliant blue. The intensity they held almost took her breath away.

“So, it seems you have been stalking me.” He said in a teasing tone, before taking another sip of coffee. His gaze never left her.

“I could say the same of you.” She countered lightly.

“True enough... I would rather like to think of it more as a happy coincidence.” He chuckled softly.

“Well, in the spirit of happy coincidences, can I ask what your name is?” She asked as she cupped both hands around her warm paper cup.

“I suppose, but only if I can have yours in return.” He replied easily. His confidence was infectious, Ashlin could feel herself smile as she nodded. “I’m Derek.”

“Nice to meet you Derek, My name is Ashlin McGuiness.” She took another sip of her coffee. There was no more hesitation when she spoke, his very presence making it effortless to talk to him.

“Ashlin…” He repeated. “I can say that this is a first, I’ve never met an Ashlin before. It’s good meet you, Miss McGuiness. So, were you coming home yesterday or…?”

“Visiting. I’m here to see my friend from high school.” Ashlin answered.

“From Chicago, I take it?” Derek offered.

Ashlin raised her eyebrows, taken back. “Yeah, how’d you know?”

“The way you say certain words.” Derek smiled, amused by her surprise. “I’ve got an ear for accents.”

Ashlin chuckled, “You should hear my mother. I clearly don’t have an ear for them, because I can’t place yours. Do you live here in Seattle?”

Something passed over Derek’s face as he leaned back into his original position, his expression sobering as his eyes grew distant. “I used to. I go to school in Baltimore now. I’m only back to settle my mother’s estate and to handle the…arrangements.”

“I am so sorry.” Ashlin answered, her tone hushed. “I shouldn’t have…”

“No, no, don’t worry about it.” Derek waved a hand dismissively, though his face was still troubled.

Derek laughed suddenly, a nervousness slipping through when the silence began to stretch, “Alright, well, you’ve been here about a minute and things have already turned morbid…good start, Derek, good start.” He muttered to himself with a scoff. “Sorry, Ashlin… so what do you do in Chicago?”

“Well, you started off strong, so, you got some points there.” She joked and to her surprise, he laughed, which made her own butterflies vanish. “I’m actually a sophomore at the University of Illinois.”

“Really? What’s your major” He leaned forward on his elbows with arms folded across each other. He seemed genuinely interested.

“Studio Art. What do you do in Baltimore?”

“Med school. Hence the social awkwardness.”

“Med school?” She was somehow not surprised. “Where at?”

“Johns Hopkins.”

It felt like cold brick dropped down her throat, “Johns Hopkins? That’s, um, impressive. Suddenly, my art major seems kind of…meh.”

And just like that, his league and mine are in separate universes, Ashlin thought with a deep inner sigh.

“I don’t think of it like that. I think it’s amazing that you can create something from nothing.” He said in tone that made her look up, his eyes were soft and his tone was gentle. “My mother really pushed for me to go to med school, to be like my father. I guess I should be thankful that she paid for everything. It also doesn’t hurt that I’m pretty good at it.”

“Such modesty.” Ashlin teased with a sly grin. “So you’re a rich kid.”

“No, my parents were rich. I’m completely broke.” He said with a short laugh. His classy attire contradicted him slightly. “So with your art, what do you usually work with? Charcoal? Pencil? Paint?”

“I bounce around a lot, but lately I’ve been using charcoal. I’m a terrible painter, though.” She replied.

“I doubt that.” He said with a smile. Ashlin smiled back and said he had never seen her hold a brush. He laughed and began to tell her about a street artist he had met while he was last visiting Seattle. Everything around her seemed to fade away as he spoke how this street artist had a landscape painting on his racks that he had to own. His presence created a sort of sheltering feeling around her that she was unaccustomed to. He effortlessly managed to keep her engaged while still making her feel like he was talking to her and not at her.

“What was the painting of?” She asked after he paused to take a sip of coffee.

“The night sky…just the way he painted it made me feel like I was looking up at the sky and seeing the moonlight filtering through the clouds…I could hear the wind rustling in the trees…I could feel it on my skin as I stared up at the moon cradled with the swaths of clouds…no piece of art has been able to capture something so purely as that one, at least in my opinion. My mother and father collected art…but they were the stuffy sort that I couldn’t stand. This one though…it felt like it had a soul.” His eyes had a sort of faraway look that made Ashlin wish she could see what he was seeing.

Ashlin leaned on her arm as she listened intently to his voice. She nodded knowingly when he finished, “Only the best artists can do that.”

He smiled slowly and in his eyes she could see some deep emotion at work there. “I wish I could create something like that. I couldn’t imagine the amount of just…” He seemed to be grasping for the words. “…sheer accomplishment and pride that must come from it.”

“It’s not just the pride of the finished piece…for me it’s the journey of getting there. I lose myself whenever I work on a project. Time doesn’t mean anything and everything comes down to just feeling your work. Creative instinct just takes over and everything just sort of flows out of you. You literally put yourself into it…” She gestured to him. “… like you said, an artist, an artist who truly lives for their craft, puts their soul into it. You can tell when an artist truly loves what they do. It shows in their work.”

Derek looked up at her like he was seeing her for the first time. A slow smile spread across his face and his eyes held a wistful cast, “To here you talk like that... it makes me wonder what you can create.”

Ashlin smiled and said hesitantly, “I brought some of my portfolio with me…I mean if you really wanted to see my work.”