Matt hesitated sending the text message. It sounded too clingy, too annoying, the kind you get from a silly child incessantly tugging at your sleeve for attention. Then again, he was going to leave for a couple of years and probably wouldn't be seeing her again.
He sent the message on its way.
"I'm here." To his surprise, it didn't came in text but instead as a voice from behind him.
Matthew looked up, as if she was in front of him. He fiddled with his phone and pulled the earpieces off his ears, trying to occupy himself as he got up and turned round.
"Um, hey," was all Matt could say, still struggling to force the phone down his back pocket. He was hunched over and had his hands groping his rear rather awkwardly, and it made good entertainment for some onlookers.
Her included.
Matt could make out a stifled laugh from all the commotion, and he had no doubt from whom it came from. Isabella was still standing, waiting for Matt to get himself settled, her left hand concealing a giggle. Matthew wanted to quickly continue and shake off the empathy he was getting.
"Why don't we walk for a bit?" Matt suggested, still red-faced. He had been contemplating what to say, but he decides, against his better judgement, to ditch whatever makeshift script he had printed in his mind and play it by ear. Matthew wasn't one to fake things, and definitely not now.
Isabella was content to follow whatever Matthew had in mind. After receiving an invitation to the park by text, she figured he probably had something in mind that needed expressing. After all, he is leaving for London in a couple of days. She wasn't due for home for some time anyway.
The path Matt chose was, in a nutshell, a narrow trail of flat stones that led through the park, a path preferred by cyclists. Matthew knew this, and trudged along the grass as Isabella took more effortless steps on the rocks, while the occasional cycling enthusiast whizzed by, too fast to overhear their conversation, at the same time deterring other curious walkers from hanging around.
For a moment, the two walked in silence, Matthew busying himself kicking a small pebble as he walked along, while Isabella silently watched, waiting for him to tell her why she was here. Soon, Matt gave up on the pebble and cleared his throat.
"So anyway, thanks for agreeing to come. I didn't think you would, you know," Matt started.
"Let's not go there, Matt. We've been through it countless times already."
"I know. I don't wanna discuss that," Matt uttered in reply. He wasn't planning on leaving the damned place with more contrition.
"Anyway," Matthew continues, "You already know I'm gonna be leaving this place for a pretty long time, right?"
Isabella nodded slowly. Here we go, she thought to herself.
"Yeah. Anyway, I just thought I'd see you for a bit, you know?" Matt was trying as hard as possible to be honest but still cautious with his words. Any foolhardy sarcasm or irony wasn't about to help.
She didn't say anything for a while. Maybe she didn't catch the half question, maybe she just wanted to leave his sorry ass and go home, maybe she was thinking of something nice to say, maybe she nodded instead of saying something, Matt's mind was running amok.
"Isabella?" Matt urged, finally turning round and waving a hand in front of her glazed eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, I got that," she said laughingly. She broke gaze and brushed away his hand, thoroughly amused at Matt's edginess.
"So um, when do you leave for London?"
"Too soon?" Matt chuckled in reply. "I leave in a couple of weeks. Right now, I'm just trying to clean up my mess here before leaving."
"What mess are you trying to clean here?" Isabella queried.
"That's a long story, though."
Isabella strolled on and blocked off Matt's path, staring into him with her pleading brown eyes.
"Okay, okay, okay." Matt relented.
Matthew looked up, as if she was in front of him. He fiddled with his phone and pulled the earpieces off his ears, trying to occupy himself as he got up and turned round.
"Um, hey," was all Matt could say, still struggling to force the phone down his back pocket. He was hunched over and had his hands groping his rear rather awkwardly, and it made good entertainment for some onlookers.
Her included.
Matt could make out a stifled laugh from all the commotion, and he had no doubt from whom it came from. Isabella was still standing, waiting for Matt to get himself settled, her left hand concealing a giggle. Matthew wanted to quickly continue and shake off the empathy he was getting.
"Why don't we walk for a bit?" Matt suggested, still red-faced. He had been contemplating what to say, but he decides, against his better judgement, to ditch whatever makeshift script he had printed in his mind and play it by ear. Matthew wasn't one to fake things, and definitely not now.
Isabella was content to follow whatever Matthew had in mind. After receiving an invitation to the park by text, she figured he probably had something in mind that needed expressing. After all, he is leaving for London in a couple of days. She wasn't due for home for some time anyway.
The path Matt chose was, in a nutshell, a narrow trail of flat stones that led through the park, a path preferred by cyclists. Matthew knew this, and trudged along the grass as Isabella took more effortless steps on the rocks, while the occasional cycling enthusiast whizzed by, too fast to overhear their conversation, at the same time deterring other curious walkers from hanging around.
For a moment, the two walked in silence, Matthew busying himself kicking a small pebble as he walked along, while Isabella silently watched, waiting for him to tell her why she was here. Soon, Matt gave up on the pebble and cleared his throat.
"So anyway, thanks for agreeing to come. I didn't think you would, you know," Matt started.
"Let's not go there, Matt. We've been through it countless times already."
"I know. I don't wanna discuss that," Matt uttered in reply. He wasn't planning on leaving the damned place with more contrition.
"Anyway," Matthew continues, "You already know I'm gonna be leaving this place for a pretty long time, right?"
Isabella nodded slowly. Here we go, she thought to herself.
"Yeah. Anyway, I just thought I'd see you for a bit, you know?" Matt was trying as hard as possible to be honest but still cautious with his words. Any foolhardy sarcasm or irony wasn't about to help.
She didn't say anything for a while. Maybe she didn't catch the half question, maybe she just wanted to leave his sorry ass and go home, maybe she was thinking of something nice to say, maybe she nodded instead of saying something, Matt's mind was running amok.
"Isabella?" Matt urged, finally turning round and waving a hand in front of her glazed eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, I got that," she said laughingly. She broke gaze and brushed away his hand, thoroughly amused at Matt's edginess.
"So um, when do you leave for London?"
"Too soon?" Matt chuckled in reply. "I leave in a couple of weeks. Right now, I'm just trying to clean up my mess here before leaving."
"What mess are you trying to clean here?" Isabella queried.
"That's a long story, though."
Isabella strolled on and blocked off Matt's path, staring into him with her pleading brown eyes.
"Okay, okay, okay." Matt relented.
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