I should’ve felt mad when I saw her kissing another man right in front of me and yet, I felt nothing.

It was as if the sight of my girlfriend kissing someone else is something natural to look at, and that there was nothing wrong with it. It then clicked to me that perhaps, I never felt anything for her after all.

Perhaps, it was just a sudden impulse that made me go out with her.

I stared blankly at the bouquet of flowers in my hand, wondering whether I should give it to her nevertheless but I figured that it would be awkward for me to do so. I bet it would be awkward enough if I were to speak to her in front of the guy in the first place.

Shrugging off that thought, I quietly made my way back to my car. It was such a shame really, that something like this had to happen on a nice day. I was never really particular about the weather but for some reason, it just caught my attention today.

The way the sun barely peeks out behind the lump of clouds, the wind flowing naturally against my skin.

Everything just felt nice.

All of the sudden, I felt like having a walk.

My friends had always told me that I was a bit eccentric, and perhaps I really am. One should’ve been crying her hearts out after getting cheated on but here I am, having the urge to take a walk just because it was a nice day.

I glanced over to the park just next to the parking lot and decided to take a detour there instead of driving off to find some quiet place. It seemed as if the park was quiet enough since there weren’t really a lot of people in sight.

Just an old couple walking their dog, a couple having a picnic and a girl hunched over on the bench, burying her face into the book.

I hummed softly as I fiddled with the ribbon of the bouquet, striding along the pavement in the park, with nowhere in mind. Seeing that Jiang Yun is occupied with someone else, I pretty much had nothing to do for the rest of the day. I was actually planning on taking her out for a date, have dinner with her, make love to her at the end of the day but all those would have to go down the bin today.

I first met Jiang Yun when I was in high school.

We were in a class together, and it took me a long time to notice the girl sitting quietly at the corner of the class.

She always seems cold to the others, putting a barrier around her so that no one were to approach her where I on the other hand, belonged to my own clique, where almost everyone is pretty much outgoing and I’m not an exception.

I was often told that I was too loud and in fact, I used to be the loudest one in the class.

I could tell that even Jiang Yun was annoyed with me.

Funny on how fate played with us and that we ended up going out with each other.

I quite enjoyed the look on my friends when the news of me dating Jiang Yun broke out to them actually.

No one would’ve guessed that the social butterfly would be dating the introvert. But even they had to admit that Jiang Yun was attractive to the eyes.

I snapped out of my thoughts when I heard a sneeze, making my attention turn almost instantly towards the girl on the bench. Her nose was red by the time she pulled away from the book, resembling a reindeer during Christmas.

And I was partly amused for no apparent reason.

I slipped my hand into the pocket of my jacket, reaching out for a pack of tissue and without much thought I head over to her and held out the pack of tissue. “Here you go.”

I could tell that she was surprised by my sudden approach and gesture but she somehow managed to pull off a polite smile.

“Thank you,” she said, carefully taking the tissue from me and pulled off a ply, not before taking a shy glance and that was when I knew it was my cue to turn away. And so I did.

I awkwardly fiddled with the flowers that were still in my possession as I heard her sneezing into the tissue and a few seconds later, she tapped on my shoulder, as a sign that it was okay to turn around.

I quickly turned around on my heels to face her and she once again smiled at me.

“Thank you so much for this,” she said, returning the pack of tissue to me but I shook my head as a response.

“It’s fine. You can keep it. I could tell that you need it more than I do,” I smiled sheepishly and for one moment I could see a blush creeping on her cheeks, just below the frame of her glasses.

How cute, I thought.

“Sorry. I forgot to take my handkerchief with me before I go out.”

“Ah. I see,” I chuckled and I had this feeling that she was a pleasant person to be with. After much thought, I found myself asking her whether it was alright for me to take a seat next to her and surprisingly, she said yes without any hesitation.

“Does it feel nice reading out here?” I asked upon landing my eyes on the book that she was holding.

To be honest, I was expecting her to be reading those fluffy romance novels but what she had in her hand instead is a book titled ‘The Last Victim’ – the cover had blood splattered on it.

Definitely a complete contrast to what she looked like.

She once again reminded me that one should never judge from just the looks itself.

She looked rather pale and fragile, as if she were to break any time soon and oddly, it gave me a sense of wanting to protect her.

It scared me quite a bit actually, on how it had only been several minutes since I met her and yet, I was already having such thoughts.

“Yes. It feels nice to do so. And I’m guessing that you’re not much of a book person,” she chuckled, sparing me a glance.

“You could tell?” I grinned and scratched my nape. “Anyways, I still haven’t got to know your name.”

“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours,” she replied, a playful smile playing across her lips and it didn’t take much for me to do as she said actually.

“It’s Xu Zixuan.”

“Should I call you Xu Zixuan or...?” she quirked a brow, edging me to tell more about myself in which I gladly did.

“Luoluo. You can call me Luoluo, that’s what my friends call me.”

“Luoluo? That’s cute,” she said and tapped her chin, as if thinking for a few moments. “Luoluo. It has a nice ring to it.”

“You?”

“Just call me Tako,” she nodded.

“Tako,” I called out to her and quite liked the way the name just rolls naturally with my tongue. “Not telling me your full name? I did tell mine earlier,” I cleared my throat and took a quick glance at her.

“And what are you planning on doing with that piece of information Luoluo?” Tako finally closed the book in her hands and placed it on her lap and her response made me shut my mouth for a bit, somewhat afraid that I had offended her in a way.

“I-Uh—“

The worry in my face washed away however, upon hearing her next response.

 “I’ll tell you after coffee then. What do you say?”

I was a bit surprised actually, to be hearing that this wonderful girl who sat next to me, asking me out.

She even stared at me with a smile as if there was nothing wrong with what she had just said – which to be fair, is true.

“Sure,” I immediately replied, gladly accepting her invitation and dusted off my jeans as I get off the bench. I tried my best to mask the little bit of excitement in my expression, though Tako must've caught it from the way she slipped out a small chuckle not long after I shuffled back to my feet. “Should we go now?”

“Do you want to deliver that flower first though?” Tako asked carefully, pointing towards the almost forgotten bouquet.

I was about to say no actually, when a sudden thought crossed my mind.

“I could just deliver it later. There’s no rush.”

 

-

 

And so, I ended up driving her to a café a distance away, just so I could get to spend more time with her and I was pleased to see that she was enjoying her time with me as much as I did with her.

We spent hours chatting, opening up to each other about our personal life. What she currently does for a living, what she enjoys doing in her past time, the trips that she went to and all the while, I found myself admiring her features when it was my turn to listen to her talk.

The more I spent my time with her, the more beautiful I found she was.

Physically and personally, of course.

“You don’t mind telling me where you live?” I raised my eyebrows questioningly.

“Well, you were offering me a ride home and I could save a few dollars from riding a taxi,” Tako joked dryly. “Besides, it’s not as if you’re a serial killer or a .”

“What if I am though?”

“Then I’m just going to pray that you were going to bury me in a nice place instead of leaving me to rot,” Tako laughed in which I laughed along with her as well. 

“You’re really weird, you know.”

“Right back at you.”

I was almost disappointed actually, by the time I arrived at her place. Spending time with her was like a breeze that I didn’t realize it was already ten in the evening. 

I swiftly parked my car at the side of the road, in front of her house and rushed to get the door for her.

“It was nice spending time with you today Tako.”

“Yeah. I’m almost sorry that it was so short,” Tako replied as she stepped out of the car, muttering a quick thank you to me as well but both of us knew that it wasn’t as short as she mentioned. The two of us just enjoyed each other’s company that our meeting felt short.

It was silence for a moment before I spoke up once again as I walked her to the front gate of her house. “Will I be able to see you again?”

“Depends.”

“Depends on what?”

“Depends on whom you’re going to deliver those flowers to,” Tako gave me one of her sheepish smile and right then I knew what she meant by her words.

“Oh yes, please wait a second!” I said, rushing to get the bouquet of flowers that was intended for Jiang Yun and Tako widened her eyes the moment she saw me walking back to her with what I had in hand. “This is for you,” I smiled sheepishly as I handed her the flowers that was still wrapped nicely, the ribbon still intact.

“Uhm, this wasn’t what I meant…”

“I know.”

“Then why…?” Tako asked, her voice trailing off as she waited for me to explain myself.

“If you must know, the flowers were initially for someone else but I changed my mind and decided to give it to you.”

“Won’t that person mind it though?”

“My ex-girlfriend won’t mind. She already has someone else to give her all the flowers in the world,” I replied nonchalantly and I could see Tako almost feeling sorry for me, when she flashed me an apologetic smile.

“I see. Well thank you for the flowers then.”

“You’re wel-“

And for the second time of the day, she surprised me by giving me a quick peck on the cheek, staring at me for a few seconds afterwards before pushing the front gate open, letting herself in as she left me glued to my spot.

“Welcome…” my voice trailed off on its own to finish what I had intended to say in the first place. 

What a nice day it had been, I thought to myself with a smile as I touched my left cheek, her kiss still lingering on the spot.

A sudden realization struck me when I returned to my car.

I still haven’t gotten her number yet.

But oh what the hell, I could just ask her the next time I meet her.

And there is definitely a next time, judging from the way things are.

 

-

 

“What are the chances of you meeting a beautiful single woman sitting alone in a park?”

“I know right? It’s even lesser than the chance of you meeting a -loving girl as your soul mate,” I said, reaching out for the bowl of popcorn only to get my hand swatted away from my so-called best friend.

“I will meet one. You’ll see,” Li Yitong huffed, shoving a handful of popcorn into and until now, I was still amazed with the way she was able to have open like an alligator.

“Sure,” I replied in sarcasm and sipped on my can of coke. “Where’s Liu Zengyan anyways?”

“She’s out to meet someone.”

“Who?”

“Her tutor.”

“Oh,” I nodded, not really showing any interest in whom that might be until Li Yitong started talking about the person.

“She’s a really pretty tutor I heard. Lots of followers on Instagram. If I’m not mistaken, she said something about her name being Tako…” she mumbled to herself but the name 'Tako' immediately catched my attention. 

“Tako?”

“Yeah.”

“Tako,” I said, repeating the name with my mouth.

“Yes. Tako,” Li Yitong curiously peered at me. “Do you know her?”

“I’m not sure if it’s the same person…” I whispered.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Li Yitong shrugged and a few seconds after - as if a light bulb had just been lit up in her head, she looked at me wide-eyed. “Does this have something to do with the hot stranger you met last week? The one you haven’t called back?”

“For your information she is beautiful, not hot. And I don’t have her number yet mind you.”

“You can just go back to her house if you’re really serious about her. Didn’t you say you drove her home? It’s time to forget about Jiang Yun anyways,” she patted my head with her greased filled hand.

“I’m planning on doing so tomorrow. I’m just afraid that she would be busy with something on her weekdays,” I said, defending myself after swatting her hand away from my head. “Besides, I would look desperate if I were to go to her house the day after we met.”

“You have to be desperate if you want to get certain things my dear.”

“You’re the one to talk,” I rolled my eyes and scoffed.

“Whatever,” Li Yitong smiled, the exact smile she uses whenever she wanted to annoy the heck out of me.

Just when I was about to retort to her, I could hear the door being unlocked and a few moments later, stepped in Liu Zengyan with her company, someone whom I expected to see tomorrow instead of today. From the looks of it, Tako was as shocked as I was to see her but she was quick to flash me a smile.

Of course, that smile was also intended for Li Yitong.

“Oh, you guys are home.”

“Is this your new tutor?” Li Yitong rubbed her hands schemingly, only to have me jab her side afterwards. Knowing her for so long had given me the ability to read what she had on her mind. She’s probably going to interrogate Tako subtly, and I wasn’t about to let that happen.

“Yes. Meet Tako,” Liu Zengyan turned to face Tako. “And over there is Li Yitong and Xu Zixuan.”

“It’s very nice to meet you,” Tako bowed a little, clearing a little the moment she realized that I was staring at her for a bit too long. Who could blame me for doing so though?

“Spare the formalities my dear. I’ve got a feeling that we’re going to be really close~” Li Yitong cooed as she made her way to Tako, having her hand on the latter’s shoulder.

“She’s my age you hag. A year younger than you,” Liu Zengyan sighed as she shook her head.

“Oh? I thought that you’re the same age as I am from the way Luoluo was describing you as a hot bookworm-“ Li Yitong found herself on the floor from the impact of having the pillow that I previously had in my hand thrown to her and I certainly do hope that Tako did not manage to catch the last bit of her words. 

“Please excuse me for their antics. Something’s wrong with their heads almost ninety percent of the time. Should we go to my room now?”

 

-

 

“I’m sorry for my friend back there,” I smiled shyly as I gave her the glass of chocolate milk, the two of us sitting together in the living room.

I had to bribe Li Yitong and Liu Zengyan to leave us alone, and at first Liu Zengyan was of course befuddled with my request but she didn’t ask much when I told her that I would be treating her a week’s worth of chicken.

“Li Yitong?” she laughed, bringing the glass to her lips. “It’s fine. She’s funny.”

“I’ll make sure to tell her that,” I grinned before clearing up my throat. “So uhm…” I was about to say something to her but she had beaten me to it.

“Did you lose your interest in me? I was waiting for you to come over to my place actually.”

“Really, you did?” I widened my eyes and I must’ve looked silly then because I managed to make her laugh.

“Yes, I did.”

“I-I’m sorry! I just thought that you would be busy and all and that I shouldn’t disturb you on the weekdays but I really did thought of going over to your-“

My rambling however, stopped when Tako placed a finger on my lips to hush me and she shook her head with a smile.

“It’s fine. There’s no need to be nervous about it. I was just saying.”

“O-Oh,” I was shy once again under her gaze, unable to say anything and it was her who broke the silence that fell between us.

“So, would you like to know my number?”

“You would give it to me?”

“Of course silly,” she chuckled, holding out her hand. “Give me your phone.”

I hurriedly complied with her and it didn’t take her long to tap in her number and save it on my phone. “Here you go.”

“Thanks,” I said, smiling ear to ear.

“You’re welcome,” Tako removed the glasses that she wore and took a glimpse around the apartment before averting her attention back to me, a playful glint in her eyes as she tucked strands of her hair behind her ear. “Say, how long did you kept your friends in their room?”

“I-I’m sorry?”

“You bribed your friends not to disturb us, didn’t you? If you didn’t, your friend Li Yitong would’ve been here with us, asking me questions,” Tako chuckled softly. It’s almost scary on how her deductions would be so accurate.

But perhaps, that’s just even more reason for me to be drawn to her.

“Well. I told them not to come out until I told them to,” I slowly admitted and hung my head in embarrassment.

“Good.”

Everything just happens so quickly. I didn’t even realize that I was pushed down onto the couch, straddled by Tako and my breath was caught up on my throat at the sight of her hair hanging flawlessly from her, as she stared down at me.

“I’ve been thinking about you.”

“R-Really?”

“Yes. Why am I always making the first move though?” Tako smiled teasingly as she traced her finger on the outline of my jaw, making me shudder a little. “Are you the submissive type?”

“E-Excuse me?”

“Never mind,” Tako said and with that, she pressed her lips against mine, slowly but firmly and soon enough, I found myself under her trance.

As if I weren’t already.

 

 

Author's Note - Another revised / rewritten fic from me from another fandom, enjoy kiddos