questions.
She sat on the bench and stared up at the night’s sky, trying to calm herself. Through the leaves she could see the full moon, shining bright and beautiful. She could almost feel the glow of the moonlight on her skin and it calmed her like the warm embrace of her grandmother. Only a few tears rolled down her cheeks—not the blubbering she had expected. Twice the moon goddess, indeed. A goddess wouldn’t feel sorry for herself this much .
As she raised her head up to wipe a tear, her eyes fell upon three guys standing in the distance. She felt her cheeks begin to flush with embarrassment and then quickly looked away while trying to compose herself. When she stole a glance back in their direction, they were laughing and talking to each other. She recognized those troubling grins—Tony and his cronies—and they’d recognized her as well.
As Diana’s embarrassment began to quickly fade, replaced by a growing sense of alarm, she almost didn’t hear the sound of someone coming from the brush behind her. Startled, she quickly tore her gaze from the three to turn around.
“Well Miss Selene, I thought you had more sense than this,” said the voice of Darien Shepherd as he appeared from out of the darkness of the low-hanging trees. He walked forward casually, as if simply out for an evening stroll with a small shopping bag in hand. He wore a green and brown tweed jacket with a button-up shirt, no tie, and dark khaki pants, looking very much like a professor who had come from giving an evening lecture. “Didn’t your mother teach you that it’s dangerous for a lady to sit alone in a dark secluded area? As you learned the other night, the world is bathed in foul intentions.”
Diana turned back around to find that Tony and his friends had gone. Whatever intentions lay behind their grins, Darien’s appearance had prompted them to flee.
She was ashamed to admit that he was right—she had been stupid. Her emotions had gotten the better of her and she just wanted to escape embarrassment. She was in no state to argue with him and just sighed instead, placing her face in her hands. “You’re absolutely right—I’m an idiot, and I’ll admit it. I just needed to be alone.”
Darien sat down beside her. “You’re not an idiot Miss Selene—foolish perhaps—but not an idiot.”
“I said I wanted to be alone,” she repeated into her hands.
“Isn’t that why you are crying in the first place?” Though reserved, he actually sounded as if he cared.
Diana took her face from her tear-stained hands and turned to him, probably looking like a confused mess. He really did seem concerned and she didn’t really have a response. When she tore her eyes from him to look down again, he gently placed a hand on her shoulder. The sympathetic gesture struck Diana and she looked him in the eye with obvious bewilderment.
“It must be lonely being the only girl around who would rather look at old pieces of broken pottery than pretty shiny things.”
His words were meant as a lighthearted joke, but they cut to Diana’s heart. It was the simplest way to describe her unique loneliness. It wasn’t that she felt smarter than everyone else—far from it. She just didn’t have the same interests as most people and couldn’t relate to them enough to have a meaningful conversation. It was probably the reason she had trouble making new friends. It was a lonely existence—not being able to connect with people. With that simple statement, Darien Shepherd understood her in a way that no one else ever had—she would rather look at pieces of broken pottery than pretty shiny things. Some lady she’d turned out to be.
When Diana didn’t reply, Darien took his hand from her shoulder and wiped one of the tear streams away with his thumb. “Please be more careful. You shouldn’t deprive the world of such a rare and interesting human-being.”
At his touch, the strange warmth returned to her temples and Diana’s heart began
She sat on the bench and stared up at the night’s sky, trying to calm herself. Through the leaves she could see the full moon, shining bright and beautiful. She could almost feel the glow of the moonlight on her skin and it calmed her like the warm embrace of her grandmother. Only a few tears rolled down her cheeks—not the blubbering she had expected. Twice the moon goddess, indeed. A goddess wouldn’t feel sorry for herself this much .
As she raised her head up to wipe a tear, her eyes fell upon three guys standing in the distance. She felt her cheeks begin to flush with embarrassment and then quickly looked away while trying to compose herself. When she stole a glance back in their direction, they were laughing and talking to each other. She recognized those troubling grins—Tony and his cronies—and they’d recognized her as well.
As Diana’s embarrassment began to quickly fade, replaced by a growing sense of alarm, she almost didn’t hear the sound of someone coming from the brush behind her. Startled, she quickly tore her gaze from the three to turn around.
“Well Miss Selene, I thought you had more sense than this,” said the voice of Darien Shepherd as he appeared from out of the darkness of the low-hanging trees. He walked forward casually, as if simply out for an evening stroll with a small shopping bag in hand. He wore a green and brown tweed jacket with a button-up shirt, no tie, and dark khaki pants, looking very much like a professor who had come from giving an evening lecture. “Didn’t your mother teach you that it’s dangerous for a lady to sit alone in a dark secluded area? As you learned the other night, the world is bathed in foul intentions.”
Diana turned back around to find that Tony and his friends had gone. Whatever intentions lay behind their grins, Darien’s appearance had prompted them to flee.
She was ashamed to admit that he was right—she had been stupid. Her emotions had gotten the better of her and she just wanted to escape embarrassment. She was in no state to argue with him and just sighed instead, placing her face in her hands. “You’re absolutely right—I’m an idiot, and I’ll admit it. I just needed to be alone.”
Darien sat down beside her. “You’re not an idiot Miss Selene—foolish perhaps—but not an idiot.”
“I said I wanted to be alone,” she repeated into her hands.
“Isn’t that why you are crying in the first place?” Though reserved, he actually sounded as if he cared.
Diana took her face from her tear-stained hands and turned to him, probably looking like a confused mess. He really did seem concerned and she didn’t really have a response. When she tore her eyes from him to look down again, he gently placed a hand on her shoulder. The sympathetic gesture struck Diana and she looked him in the eye with obvious bewilderment.
“It must be lonely being the only girl around who would rather look at old pieces of broken pottery than pretty shiny things.”
His words were meant as a lighthearted joke, but they cut to Diana’s heart. It was the simplest way to describe her unique loneliness. It wasn’t that she felt smarter than everyone else—far from it. She just didn’t have the same interests as most people and couldn’t relate to them enough to have a meaningful conversation. It was probably the reason she had trouble making new friends. It was a lonely existence—not being able to connect with people. With that simple statement, Darien Shepherd understood her in a way that no one else ever had—she would rather look at pieces of broken pottery than pretty shiny things. Some lady she’d turned out to be.
When Diana didn’t reply, Darien took his hand from her shoulder and wiped one of the tear streams away with his thumb. “Please be more careful. You shouldn’t deprive the world of such a rare and interesting human-being.”
At his touch, the strange warmth returned to her temples and Diana’s heart began
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