~But tomorrow, it may only be a souvenir.~
-McCartney Paul-

Magic has a way of sneaking through the ordinary gateways of life and pouring itself in our boundaries to make them appear vague and non-existent like paints blend in water and all we can do is absorb the hazy shades in our eyes. Nothing seems distinct. Nothing seems real.

Like those moments when I danced upon the crystal floors, forgettin' the world but above that...forgetting myself. Moments stuck somewhere in my past on a lovely morning with invading sunlight. Moments of magic.

They were dancing about me and I knew that I was standing on the verge of insanity. In a moment or two, her voice started blending into the unimportant stuff at the back of my mind and all I knew was...madness.

Swirling on the tip of my toes, I forgot that I was in the middle of my dance class amidst a group of dancers which was twirling to light music as guided by her; our dance teacher. I forgot...like always and all I registered was the ethereal feeling inside my heart as I gave in to the stardust rising behind my closed eyelids. Oh..how easily I handed myself over to 'magic' when dancing and how smoothly I floated above the air like I was carving romantic poetry all around my existence. How easily...

"Cara Evelyn!!" Her nasal voice jerked me out of my imagination and my steps faltered slightly before I slowed down to stillness. I could hear my wild heartbeat in my ears so taking a deep breath, I tried to register the reality by rubbing my eyes softly. Her silhouette solidified to a tangible frame and finally, I could see her. She was.....angry.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you need to 'listen' to me rather than dance by yourself!" A frown crossed her features and although, I was still lost somewhere in strange dreams lurking behind flashing highway signs, I tried to feign concern.

"I'm sorry." I whispered.

"The class's over for today. Meet me tomorrow before class." Holding my upper arm, she shook me slightly and turned around to leave. My eyes followed her departing frame and a smile made its way from my heart to my lips. She didn't know that nothing could confine me. Nothing but...him.

"Pssst." And just like that, as if he could hear my thoughts, I heard his call. Turning around in excitement, I peeked out of the window behind me and there he was, an epitome of drunken madness painted all over fading shades of tranquility. My heart raced impossibly and in a second, I felt like I was running out of breath as our eyes collided into a sparkling supernova.

"Hey..don't loose yourself often like that. You might miss a lot of adventures in the process." His soft voice knocked at the windows of my brain and I realised that it felt too good to look out of a ground floor window when Zayan stood outside because...he could hold my hands like he was doing right then.

"Like?" I tilted my head a little and smiled at him.

"Like you don't know that I just kissed your hands." A million hurricanes crossed his gentle eyes and I held my breath. He was right...as always.

"Both of 'em?" I whispered.

"Yeah. My mother says that we should always kiss both the hands." He nodded his head and an astray lock of dark hair graced his perfect forehead.

"Why?" Leaning forward and sliding on to the window sill, I asked lightly.

"Because kissing a single hand can make the receiver of the kiss deceptive." He leaned against the wall, still holding both of my hands in his soft hold.

"This is nonsense." I shook my head as a laughter erupted from my throat.

"I know but it's somethin' common back in our homeland. She believes in it...and somehow, I believe in it too." A tender smile played on his lips and I felt so helpless as my heart gave in to his light touch and soft words because right in that moment, I believed in them too.

"I believe you." I whispered.

"So do I." Lightly, he pressed my hands and I could swear that no one could press hands better than him. I could swear that I had fallen in love with him that day and everyday before it. Oh, I had fallen in love with him beyond eternity.

"I don't want to go...," In the lightest of voices, he murmered and a strange feeling clutched at my heart. I knew that he was referring to something greater than 'now' but I composed myself. I didn't want to think about it.

"Then I'll come with you..," I pressed his hands in a gesture of assurance and before he could tell me that I couldn't, I jumped out of the window. Looking up into the depth of his caramel eyes, I could see that he knew I had referred to something greater than 'now' as well.

"Take me with you." I clung to his arms like stairway railings and set my head on his chest. My hands were perspiring in his tender hold but neither of us let go of each other.

"Come with me." Still holding my hands, he dragged my arms backwards and enveloped his arms around my fragile frame as I dissolved like melting honey in his warm embrace. My arms were locked backwards, we were still holding hands and in the farthest part of that moment, everything felt right.

Moments later, we were sitting on the same old wooden bench in the same old park that I adored so much. Waiting for the sun to set beyond the horizon, I rested my head on his right shoulder and hummed low melodies when he tilted his head to look down at me and smile curiously.

"Sing to me, Cara Evelyn."  The words rolled off his tongue smoothly. Shyly, I bent my head down and drew in a cloud of air before letting out the first notes of 'My Heart Goes On' by Celine Dion; one of my favourite songs of all times. A few harmonious moments passed before I silenced to a saturated serenity and looked up at him. His chocolate eyes melted and wrote romantic poetry on my heart before his drugged voice rippled my senses.

"Your voice sounds like...dripping sunsets; vibrant but drowning, beautiful but heart breaking. I love it."

Reveling in the caresses of his praise, I felt my heart elevating up into the space. He had appreciated me throughout the highway of my life but lately, I had been craving for his admiration more than ever. There could be a million reasons behind my yearning but I liked to believe that it was...love and even though we were bearers of opposite horizons, I hoped to find some way of meeting him across the crimson skyline where the sun was sinking at the moment. A place where the shades were vibrant but drowning, beautiful but heart breaking. A place that he loved. Just like my voice.

"I'd love it if you adorn these crimson hues with your melodies, Zayan." Resting my head upon his shoulder, I stared at the drowning sun and wondered if I'd ever be able to get over the mere idea of a 'sunset'.

Slowly and very leisurely, his gentle voice ringed the first note and I gasped audibly as he circled his arm around my shoulders and I registered that he was singing in his native language. The harmony of his voice floated around my senses and embraced the insanity at the back of my mind. I closed my eyes as a tear rolled down my left cheek at the ache residing in his voice and soaked the woven fabric of his T-shirt.

If someone wanted to drink 'addiction', all he needed was to listen to him producing heavenly notes amidst the colours of a lovely sunset. Notes that pulled the cords of my heart and tangled the strings of my existence in a pretty mess; a mess I had learned to adore a long time ago.

"You'll tell me what it means, won't you?" As he silenced to a peaceful tranquility, I tilted my head and looked at him questioningly. That was all. The next hour blurred past us in a lovely haze as he translated whole of the song for me and I knew that I had never fallen in love with someone before Zayan Eilqar. I just couldn't for he was my beginning, my ending and everything in-between.

To the world, we would have been a boring duo lurking in a forgotten park who had nothing better to do in life than singing their vocals out but if someone would have asked me, I would have given all the gold in the world for time to stop right there, right then. To stop that moment from becoming a....memory.

It was that day when he had handed me over one of the most treasured souvenirs of our love. Air played with my silver locks as he leaned against the largest tree of the town and I looked up at him in silence. Times like this always made me wonder the reasons behind his fears. He possessed the ability to drive me wild and hold me down at the same time so why did he worry about me leaving him sometime in the future? Zayan Eilqar could hold me back for sure.

A musical tinkle brought me out of my reverie and I noticed that something silver was hanging down his fingers. Frowning slightly, I skipped up to him and then my eyes made out the silver objects as they hung by a silky silver ribbon and jingled sweet melodies in the evening air. Three little silver bells. Stretching out my arm, I touched the tiny magical pieces as they collided into a heavenly symphony. A slow smile made its way to our lips together and I realised that he adored melodies as much as I did.

"What are these for?" He hadn't let go of the bells and they reflected the evening hues clearly while hanging leisurely down his lean fingers.

"These are for you." A moment passed between us before he leaned closer and whispered gently.

"For me? But why...?" I could feel his cool breath span my left ear as his lips lingered longer than required after the gentle whisper.

"I saw you dance today and...I wanna see you dance everyday." Stretching his arm, he held my hand and set the tiny bells in my soft palm.

"I don't understand, Zayan." Closing my fingers around the cool metal, I tilted my head in query.

"I want you to wear these bells when you dance, Cara Evelyn. Their jingle will tell me that you're dancing and I'll skip down to see you." I felt a strange pull inside my heart that made me imagine as if I was lost in a sensual masquerade and in the process, I had come across him and all he wanted was to 'see' me, only I wore no mask around him..ever.

"I'll wear these around my ankle." I peeked at the silver objects secured in my fist and smiled at the prospect of my words.

Within the blink of an eye, his fingers stole them from my hold the next moment and brought them up to tie the silver ribbon around the span of my head. They tinkled right above my right ear and I was sure that the silver silk had blended itself against my sparkling hair. I didn't realise that I was holding my breath until he was done tying a knot behind my head and kissing the silver ribbon adorning my forehead. The depth of his molten eyes mesmerised me to such an extent that I closed my eyes to escape the trance that was sucking my sanity. It was then that I felt his warm arms work their way around my fragile frame to hold me closer. I could hear my heart beating in my ears until his drunken whisper drowned every other sound.

"You wear these around your head like a crown, Cara Evelyn."

And just like that, I stored this moment in the jar of my happy memories. I wish I had known back then that happier the memories, melancholier the tears.

On our way back to home, he asked about my violin practice and I told him that I was doing fine. At the orphanage, when they had asked me to choose an instrument, I had asked him. He had chosen violin for me. I had asked him the reason behind his choice and I could still recall his husky voice floating around me from my past.

"It'll tame your wild spirit, Cara Evelyn."

I had told him that I didn't want my wild spirit to be tamed and he had told me that it was the exact reason that it needed to be tamed; to make my chaos 'want' tranquility. So, I had chosen violin then.

Still wearing the bell crown, I was skipping right next to him when he stopped to squint at a poster pasted across the backwall of an old building near the orphanage. I lingered behind him and looked across his shoulder at the fainted paper. It was a poster about self-defense and I wondered why he had stopped to read it.

"When are you turning 18?" His voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"Next May." Confusedly, I stared at his strongly built back.

"I know what I'm gifting you on your birthday." He turned around and I could see that he was all sober.

"What?" Despite the serious look in his eyes, my heart spread its wings to take off far into the high skies at the mention of my gift.

"Before you question it, just know that I don't ever want you helpless. You are strong, Cara and I hope you remember it throughout your life." His hands rested upon my shoulders and I knew this was one of the moments when he was the architect while I was his masterpiece.

Nodding my head in comprehension, I smiled reassuringly before asking him about my gift that he had planned to give me on the 2nd of May next year. A wild tornado crossed the tranquil waters in his deep eyes before he rested his forehead against mine to shake my soul with his words.

"A pistol."
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Ofcourse.

Author's Note

I'm sorry for such a long delay but I've been stuck in studies and now I have my exams within a week. Pray for me. :')♥♡

I know this is such a boring chapter and I swear, I don't like it but it's been so long since I've touched this book. I needed a chapter to warm me up again. I hope you forgive me for experimenting on 'Cara Evelyn'. Honestly, how did you like this chapter? Any improvements? (I already know..but I need you to tell me too.) Be clear and easy. I won't mind. :')♥♡

Much Love xX
Hazel *-*