Chapter 3 Intrigued By You

• “I have a strange relationship with windows. I can see everything through them, but I wonder why people feel so safe on the other side of it.”
• “Physically safe?” the stranger asked, his eyes still on the aforementioned window.
• “What I mean is, people seem to think they can get away with anything as long as there is a window in front of them.”
• “There is a false sense of privacy when you are behind a window,” he hummed.
• “Yes. For example, the man fixing his hair in the reflection of the glass is pretending we don’t exist on the other side.” From the corner of her eye, she saw the stranger nod.
• “Or the child whose ass is pressed right against my face.”
• An involuntary chuckle escaped her. But she stopped. “I apologize. Windows get me into trouble so I should end the relationship here. There isn’t much to see anyway.”
• “You really think so?” the stranger questioned, his head cocked to the side.
• “People are either complete assholes or idiots. What is there to see?” she said before standing up. “Well, enjoy your coffee.”
• She stepped out of the café and dropped her sunglasses in place before joining the idiots and assholes on the street. Her pace was quick as she rushed to make her appointment with her therapist.
• “How have you been, Nadia?”
• She stopped short, almost stumbling. The stranger reached out to help her but at the last second, wisely decided to keep his hand to himself. Nadia recovered quickly.
• “Why are you following me?” she snapped.
• He chuckled softly. “I am not following you. You forgot your coffee.” Once again, he offered her a cup.
• “Oh, thanks again.” She took the cup and turned.
• “You don’t remember me, do you?” he asked behind her.
• She spun around slowly, her eyes narrowed. The stranger was dressed in running clothes.
• “Should I remember you beyond the five minutes in the coffee shop?” Her tone was rude and laced with wariness. Trust didn’t come easily to her.
• The stranger hesitated for a moment before replying. But he shook his head and smiled. “No. I suppose you shouldn’t.”
• “Good. I thought I would have to add memory loss to my mounting issues,” she commented. “Goodbye.”
• She had made it a few steps before he fell in step with her. She stopped and threw her hand up. “What the hell is your problem?”
• The stranger grinned. “I am not following you, I swear. We are headed in the same direction.” He pointed to a place behind her. “I went for my morning cup of coffee and now I am headed home.” He paused. “I was hoping you would shed some light on your grim philosophies.”
• “I don’t think I will,” Nadia snapped. She still couldn’t outpace the stranger. “Look, you are pissing me off and I am not a good person when I am angry. Get out of my way before I spill my hot cup of coffee on you.”
• The stranger took a step back. “I just wanted you to know that not everyone is an asshole or an idiot.”
• “You are definitely a proud member of the latter. Now, move.” She held the cup of coffee between them. “If you don’t think I can do it, you are wrong. Believe me, I would do much worse.”
• “It would be hilarious, considering I handed the coffee to you twice,” he commented.
• “My hero.” When she raised the cup higher and quirked an eyebrow, the stranger stepped out of her way. He was still smiling, though.
• “I am strangely and stupidly intrigued by you.”
• “I am not trying to intrigue you.”
• “And yet I find myself intrigued.”
• “Seriously, you are wasting your time and barking up the wrong tree here, not to mention the fact that you are messing with her peace. I am not interested at all,” she emphasized.
• “Oh.” He nodded. “Okay.”
• Nadia rolled her eyes and shook her head. “No, I am not a lesbian, though it would make my life abundantly easier.”
• The stranger took a slow, careful step towards her. “From what I know, that is something you are born with.”
• “That is what my therapist keeps reminding me. Court mandated therapist, by the way. Are you still willing to follow me?”
• “I wasn’t following you.” He chuckled again but sobered quickly. “Nadia… I am sorry… for whatever happened that has forced you into court-mandated therapy.”
• She waved away his unnecessary and unappreciated sentiments. “Yes, well. I am about to be late and unless I want my ass back in jail, I need to get going. And if you don’t want your ass in jail,” she snapped gravely, “you’ll stop following me.
• Strangely enough, the stranger stepped back. Nadia felt a pang of disappointment. But when he spoke again, his tone was gentle and comforting.
• “Have a good day, Nadia.”
• Without replying, Nadia turned and headed for the subway entrance.
• “Oh, by the way!” she heard him call out. “There are people who aren’t complete assholes or idiots. There are some who fall in between.”
• Much like the barista calling out her name, she displayed no reaction to his words. For a long while after she disappeared into the subway below, Theodore stared after her. People came and went, erasing her footsteps. Yet he stared.
• She didn’t remember him. Nadia Ford… no Ryan… didn’t remember him. The woman who hadn’t left his mind for a single day for the past year hadn’t had him cross her mind. How that was possible, Theo had no idea, but God, if it wasn’t so sad, it would have been comical. He had spent the past year obsessed with her… and she didn’t remember him.
• And why would she remember him? What had he done to merit being recalled by her? She had spent a night in jail and gotten court mandated orders as if she was the one who was insane. And him? He had nursed the broken nose she had left him like it was a precious memory. It was all one-sided. And he? He deserved much more than a broken nose for what she had gone through because of him.