Chương 3: Book 1; Chapter 2; Drawn together (1)

Anniet was making her way back to the town. She kept glancing at the sky from time to time. It wasn't promising anything good. It was such a lovely day, and she carelessly wandered way too far away from that little place she had been calling home since last night. Deep in the woodland, she didn't notice the change in the sky on time. Only when it suddenly became uncomfortably dark despite being just early evening did she realise that something was wrong.

The lovely and sunny day disappeared, and a strong, icy wind greeted her when she left the shelter of the trees. Large, dark clouds seemed to be too heavy for the sky to hold any longer and were floating dangerously low, threatening to unleash a deluge of rain. Distant rumbles of the thunderstorm were approaching rapidly – the storm was going to break loose any moment, and she was still a long distance away from town. She was lucky to some degree.

Despite strong winds and lightning flashing just above her head, the rain hadn't started yet, and she could already see the lights of the town in the distance. That was a relief, and she picked up speed, investing the last portion of her strength to reach it in time. But her luck ran out. Before she could get anywhere near the town, the rain started. First, it was just a few big heavy drops, but in no time, the sky erupted and water poured out from it.

Anniet tried her best to move towards the direction where she saw the town, but navigating was basically impossible. The rain was so strong that even when lightning would strike and illuminate all around, she couldn't see much further than a few meters away. Anniet wasn't even sure she was heading in the right direction anymore – all under her feet was just water, and there was no possible way to distinguish if she was still on a path or had left it long ago.

Desperately, she was trying to find some shelter, but there was none even under the trees. At the moment of desperation, she saw a little lonely light not that far away. She turned towards it, hoping it was not her imagination. Lightning struck again, and her heart lifted up – there was a little cottage close by, and the light she saw was coming from its window. Anniet wasn't the bravest person in the world, and knocking on people's houses at random wasn't something she would casually do.

But the situation was dire. If she had not got lost and still knew the way home, she would not have stopped here despite the weather. But that wasn't the case – she wasn't sure where to go anymore. She didn't know if she was still moving towards the town or away from it. So Anniet gathered her courage and knocked on that door. In no time, it was opened. A little roof above the door sheltered her from the rain. Anniet quickly brushed the water and wet hair from her face to look at the person who opened this door.

It was a young man, maybe just a few years older than her. He was dressed in black trousers and a black shirt that was tucked in at the front and loose at the back. A few top buttons of the shirt were undone, exposing part of his bare chest. Raven-black, middle-length hair was falling lightly on his shoulders, framing a very handsome face.

Two black, curious eyes were looking directly at her, and it felt like they were not just looking at her face but piercing right to her heart or even deeper – straight to her soul. She could swear that she had seen him somewhere before, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember where. They both stood there inspecting each other without saying a word. It took a strong gust of wind that splashed lots of rainwater on her back to wake Anniet up from her thoughts. That gust brought her back to reality.

"I am very sorry to bother you, but I am lost and cannot find my home. I was wondering if you could help me?" she asked quickly. The man in the doorway didn't say anything, just stepped to the side, making way for her to enter. His eyes didn't move away from her even for a second. But it didn't make Anniet feel uneasy, all she could see in them was just extreme interest. No wonder, it probably wasn't very often that he saw a soaking wet passerby walking out of the storm.

She swiftly walked in, and the door was closed, leaving all this dreadful weather behind. The cottage was very simple – one large room had all that a person might need in it. There was a table with chairs at the side dedicated to the kitchen, there was a sofa, an armchair, a bed, and a wardrobe. That's it. A large fireplace with fire burning lively added to the room an enchanted cosiness. A shaggy small dog was lying next to the fireplace.

Once she entered, dog lifted his head and watched her too, with his bright, smart eyes. After looking around, Anniet turned back to face her host, who was still looking at her with those black shiny eyes full of interest. She smiled at him, guilty, realising that water was dribbling from her wet clothes, blending into the carpet with mud she brought on her shoes.

"I am afraid I brought a lot of mess and turmoil to your house," she apologised.

"Not at all," he finally spoke, smiling at her. She thought that it was the warmest and most beautiful smile she had ever received in her life.

"The storm caught me off guard. I got lost in it and couldn't find my way home. I am not familiar with the surroundings yet, as I arrived here only yesterday." She explained again, looking around once more. It was a nice, warm and homely place. She couldn't even hear the storm outside – if not for the water on her, she would think it was a bad dream. Anniet looked at the window just to realise it wasn't a dream after all as the lightning struck to light up the cataclysm outside…

"What should I do?" It was a helpless question, but she really didn't know what to do…

"First, let's get you dry,"- the man said. He walked to the wardrobe to get a couple of large towels. After giving them to her, he pulled out of the wardrobe a white bathroom robe on one hanger and a spare set of similar clothes he was wearing on another. He looked at one, then at another, and seemingly none satisfied him.

"I am afraid these are the only clothes I have available,"- he looked a bit indecisive about what to give her. Anniet badly wanted to take the black shirt he was holding and even stretched her hand towards it, but then laughed at herself and took the white robe. He didn't say anything, just gave it to her and showed to the door that led to the large bathroom. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

"Don't rush,"- he said, - "take your time. It doesn't look like this storm is ending any time soon." Anniet took his advice. After peeling off her soaking wet clothes, she took a quick shower before getting into that white soft but slightly too big for her robe. Maybe not the best way to be dressed in a stranger's house, but her wet clothes were an even worse option. She squeezed as much water as she could out of them before leaving the bathroom.

The cottage was empty – that young handsome man could not be seen anywhere. Did he walk outside in the rain? He definitely could not be a phantom or ghost… Could he? Anniet laughed at such thoughts. She pulled a chair closer to the fireplace and hung her clothes on it. Then bent down to stroke the dog that was still lying next to the fireplace. For some reason, she was surprised to find him so small. That thought didn't make much sense as he was a small dog, but somehow she thought it ought to be much bigger.

In fact, a way much bigger. Thinking that she doesn't have any reason to think that way, she sat on a sofa to wait for her host to return. The dog walked over and lay down next to her. Anniet waited for a little while before becoming worried. What happened to him? After some time, she couldn't sit still any more. Anniet walked to the front door and pulled it open.

And here he was – standing in the middle of the storm with his hands in his trouser pockets and his face raised to the sky, allowing water to wash over it. He looked extremely relaxed and calm. His completely soaked shirt was stuck closely to his skin, revealing a perfectly shaped, muscular body. She could easily say that he was happy in the moment, enjoying himself. For her, it was difficult to understand what there was so enjoyable in that rain that not so long ago exhausted her so much while trying to escape it.

He must really love rain. She didn't know what to do – leave him to stand there or call him? Walk to him? But then she would get all wet again… She would not dare to call him – she didn't even know his name… How should she call him? Hey, you!... That didn't sound right. But she didn't want to sit cosily inside his house on her own while he was standing outside in this storm. Why did he even walk outside? Maybe he doesn't like company? It may well be the case, as he was living in a remote place, not in a town.

And she just barged in and disturbed his peace… Before she could go anywhere down this track, he turned around and walked towards the door.

"Don't be worried," – he said with a smile, showing her back to the house and following behind, - "I simply like this rain."

"……….. how strange! What to like there?" – she thought, but didn't say it aloud as it was not for her to judge what other people like. But now he was all wet, she laughed to herself. Her laugh stopped midway when she turned around just to find out that he was completely dry! And his clothes and his hair… He was just the same as at the moment when he opened the door! She stood speechless in the middle of the room, looking at him.

"You know magic!" – Finally, it dawned on her.

"A little bit,"- he admitted, - "but please sit down and make yourself comfortable."

"But then why didn't you make me dry?" – She couldn't understand.

"It wouldn't be appropriate,"- he laughed, - "we just met after all. Don't want to scare you away. Drink?" She nodded her head, thinking again that he looked very familiar.

"Have we met before?" – She asked eventually.

"I am sure I would remember it,"- he said, smiling while making drinks.

"I could swear I have seen you somewhere before," – she insisted – "it is just that no matter how hard I try, I cannot remember where." After she said it, he looked at her with lots of interest in his eyes again.

"I know it is the first time I am seeing you," He said eventually"But I am sure it is not the last one." It was said with so much confidence that she couldn't argue with it. Instead, she sat down at the table and took the cup with the hot drink offered. He didn't join her, instead, he stayed in the kitchen, pulled out some bread, salad, cheese, and some dressings, made a sandwich, and brought it to her. After doing that, he sat at the table too.

"Thank you," – she said, realising how hungry she was. – "You are not having one yourself?"

"I already had food today," – he replied. It was so strange, he was looking at her all the time. And this look… One would look like this at a long-lost good friend that finally turned up out of nowhere. She nearly asked again if they had met before, but he already said that they hadn't. So instead she just sank her teeth into the sandwich. It tasted really nice. She even opened it up to check what was inside.

"This is very tasty," – she explained herself quickly, realising that it was a silly thing to do – "it is probably the best sandwich I have tasted. What did you put in it?"

"A little bit of love," – he said mysteriously, then seeing her confused look, added – "I am a cook in this place after all, I have to make food with love."

"Oh, I didn't know," – she said.

"How would you," – he smiled again – "you came only yesterday. How did you find your way here?"

"One day I thought I had had enough of my old place and old life,". she explained.

"So yesterday morning I packed my things and left home for a different future. I walked for some time and then arrived at the large gates. The nice old lady greeted me and explained that this is a School for those who want to learn some new things."

"And what is it that you want to learn?" – he asked.

"I don't know what I want to learn – I never thought about it, I am not that good at learning anyway. I wasn't looking for a School of any kind, I just happened to walk into one. The lady headmaster said that there is no coincidence, that if I am here, that's where I have to be. She gave me a room to stay in and said I should find here what I am looking for."

"And what are you looking for?"

"I have no idea," – she admitted openly. After a short pause, she laughed at herself.

"It's not going to be an easy task to find something that I have no idea about."

"Not necessarily," – he said – "it might be way easier than to find what you are looking for, as you will be less picky." She thought it might make sense, so she didn't argue about it.

"And you?" – she asked – "how did you get in here?"

"I followed my friend," – he said.

"I never asked what your name is," – she remembered suddenly – "how rude of me!" There was a little silence after this question before he answered.

"Anthony. You can call me Anthony," – he said. Then, after some consideration, he added.

"It is not my real name. There have been some changes in circumstances that made me change it. So, for the time being, my name is Anthony. You said you left home to build a different future. Do you have any plans? How different from the past do you want it to be?"

"I don't have any plans," – she admitted again.

"I just thought that there must be something more to life than I have experienced so far. So I thought I would try." He looked at her for a while before saying,"That is a very brave thing to do." At first she thought he was making fun of her, but his voice was serious, and there were no traces of mockery on his face.

"I guess you must be right," – she admitted – "but I never thought of it that way. It was more like running away." He didn't say anything about it. Anniet finished her sandwich and drink.

"Aren't you going to ask what I was running away from?" – She smiled. Isn't that what people want to know most?

"It must be not very pleasant if you choose to leave it," – he said with a smile.

"I don't know many people who would run away from happiness. It wouldn't be very kind of me to bring it up for you just to satisfy my pointless curiosity."" That is a very unusual way of thinking," – she thought. But it was logical and might have a lot of truth in it.

"You must be right," – she said aloud – "Until now I grew up and lived in the same place where people think in a bit different way than you do. Now, when I left my old place, I will have to learn new ways and open up to accept that there are many different ways to think and understand."

"To widen your horizons," – he said to it –"it is a very good plan. If you ever think I can be of any use, feel free to involve me at any time." He truly spoke and behaved in a way differently from anyone she knew. But she would hardly be brave enough to bother him ever again unless some new catastrophe would make it essential…

"I wouldn't dare to," – she said, smiling more to herself than to him.

"That is too bad," – he replied to it –"if you don't dare to meet new people and speak to them, it will not only be very difficult for you to learn new things, but also, you would deny others' possibility of pleasure and delight they might have from meeting you and talking to you. No matter how many times before someone has chased you away for any reason, the issue for doing so lies with them, not with you. Not everyone is the same.

By placing old experiences over newly met people, you would take away the possibility for a new outcome both for yourself, and for them." Seeing that she wasn't convinced at all by what was said, he continued.

"Let's take this evening as an example. You keep apologising to me for the disturbance, but that is just your way of thinking. My reality is that if you had not come, I would be sitting here all alone, bored to death. This interference is a treat and delight to me. In fact, to the degree that you would not be able even to understand. If you were to walk past this cottage, pushing yourself through the rain, wouldn't you punish not only yourself but me too?

To see how others would react, you have at least to give them a chance to show and express themselves. Otherwise, it is just your thinking and knowing for others. No?" When he said it this way… She sneaked a peek at him again just to meet his eyes that were looking at her straight and open as if he would have nothing to hide – like an open book inviting everyone to come and read what is inside. Anniet looked at these eyes for a few seconds, but that was too much, and she moved her gaze away."

He must be very confident in himself to be like this," – she thought. To be so confident, one must be very strong and powerful too. She looked back at his face. He looked so young – couldn't be that much over twenty. She turned twenty a couple of weeks ago, so she was nearly the same age as he was. Then how come that when he spoke, it seemed he knew much more than she did? He probably travelled a lot and was very educated, but even then, she never knew anyone so confident as he.

"You must be right. Again!" – She laughed"I am not used to such a way of thinking, and it never even occurred to me to think that way. But what you are saying is absolutely right, it is just that it requires a lot of courage to be like this. But I will try," – she said bravely. She looked at the window just to see that the storm wasn't coming down or fading away. It was so strange – here, inside, it was so peaceful and calm, she couldn't hear any of that cataclysm that was going on outside.

Not even the rain falling on the roof. And only a view through the window allowed a glimpse of that other world that seemed not related to here at all.