Thanks for reading guys!
I hope you enjoy this just as much as I did! :)

***

Splendor holds me hostage because I am caught, deep in the beauty of Paris, with no intention of breaking free. The moment we stepped on the seductive cobble streets I could not rid myself of a ridiculous smile. It was exactly what I needed and for a second I actually felt loved.

We found ourselves blanketed by a cool breeze as we boarded a shuttle to our hotel. The clouds were overcast and there was no sign of the sun streaking through, at least not today.

My mind ambled, no, skipped to the odd encounter with Alpheus. He was strikingly handsome - too handsome. That's probably his guise to reel women in. Oh, this is getting more and more like a creepy hostage film, I thought with a scowl. His question ran like a broken record in my head making me more anxious than the last minute. What's scary is that he's roaming Paris. I'm in Paris and I am so dead.

I had to admit though, traveling with friends was ideal and I wished I could have done it more often.

"Earth to Zeph," a blur of fingers moves across my face, almost hitting me in the process.

"Zeph is no longer here," I replied in monotone.

She giggles and says what I was expecting, in her small voice, "Oh, no, did your golden-eyed-alien-prince take her?" Stacey mocked a gasp and I inwardly shook my head.

"Yes, and I have come to take you too!" My hands dart forward attempting to grab her hand, but she slipped away into the hallway where other students were making their way to our first tour. Our hotel was what you would expect, small and quaint but overflowing with artistic detail.

Intricately, designs were embossed on the walls and ceiling. They weaved like soft feathers and created a perfect balance of class and elegance. Ever since I was little I have always been attracted to art and design, almost to the point that it is basically what my life revolves around.

"Hey, are you alright?" Stacy taps me on the shoulder. "You seem out of it."

"Yeah, just lost in thought. You know me, my mind doesn't ever stop running." I swept her concern to the side and disregard the weird encounter that was stuck on replay.

"Okay, I know there's something wrong. I can read you better than your mother," she retorted, reminding me of her psychology skills. My mother and I were close, but there were things she didn't know about me. Sometimes, there are facts that mothers don't need to know. For example, she need not know my curiosity with finding my father. Their non-existent relationship was the one that drove me to make that stupid wish when I was younger.

My father left when I was two years old. I had no memory of him and nothing to remember him by, not even a single picture. My mother described him having a face on angel, like a man that didn't belong in this world. She also said I had his eyes – the only trait that made me unique. My gray eyes made me stand out, so I frequently wore colored contacts.

Stacy had always been my best friend. Aside from being my neighbor, she was my partner in crime. When life was not in my favor, she was always there to bring me relief, whether it be about school, boys and family. You can't find a better friend than her, even though her opinions and her personality differs from mine.

Pushing away a stray hair, I shoved her concern once again. "Really though, I'm fine. I'm just marveling at the beauty of this place."

She smirked. "Does that beauty happen to be over six feet tall?"

"Oh, yes. Nothing beats a tall man." I laughed along with her and ran with her teasing. Inwardly, I wished it was true, but reality gave me a painful pinch. I pushed it far into my mind and inhale my current phase in life.

We made our way to the world's most famous art gallery. There was something intriguing about the Louvre and it wasn't just the artwork that took residence there. There was a buzzing aura coming from all around it tickling my ears. I'm going crazy. We took ridiculous and beautiful pictures by the shining pyramid and giggled at our model quality. It didn't do anything to help alleviate the stupid thoughts racing in my mind.

"We look hot," my best friend exclaimed as she looked at our pictures on the phone.

I smirked at her and rolled my eyes. "Maybe we should model." It's that, or we just take good angles that invert our faces and bodies to perfection and what's a filter for? "C'mon, they're migrating."

She kept my phone in her hands and gave it a very surprised look. "Hey, look at this Zeph." She nudged me on the side almost hitting my stomach, which I skillfully dodged. I've known this girl for years and I know everything about her.

"What is it?" I craned my head to look at the pictures on my phone, which had a slight glare from the direct sunlight.

She pointed at a spot on the screen just past our still heads. "Isn't that the guy on the plane?"

Heat prickled my skin and the hair on the back of the neck rose. You know that feeling you have when you just saw someone die? Yeah, I just saw my life flashing before my eyes.

I grabbed the phone out of her hands and widened my eyes in horror. "No way," I whisper softly. His face was clearly visible in the image and looking straight at out backs, almost looking into the camera itself. My stomach dropped and so did my mind.

She jumped up and squealed, kicking my mind back into reality. "He's here, Zeph. Maybe this is your chance to get his number." She wiggled her brows at me and I looked away to try to find him in the crowds.

Grabbing her arm, we followed everyone else as they entered the gallery. With others around us, a kidnapper would be foolish to take me. I needed to stay with the group, no matter how hot I thought this guy was.

I mentally pushed everything to a deep corner in my mind. These thoughts are the last thing I need on a tour in Europe. I've never been so excited and giddy for century old pictures and never been so excited to walk away from a sexy Abercrombie clone. I surveyed the area and the individuals as Professor Dellany gives his commencement remarks. That old fool didn't even know his own students. I kept looking down at the ground, silently hoping that I wouldn't be seen or recognized.

We walked slowly through the museum admiring each piece and studied intently. Maybe he can't find me in here. I was floating, letting my legs move. Somewhere along the way, I lost my mind, Stacy and everyone else and I knew that I was going to be in trouble.

"Crap," I muttered under my breath. I spent too long gawking at renaissance paintings and managed to lose sight of our group. I found myself surrounded by strangers and back-to-back dead ends.

I searched for my phone, patting every pocket and checked in my purse twice, quickly realizing that Stacy had her hands curled around it last. I groaned inwardly and kicked myself for my stupidity.

Confused, I buried my nose deep in the map contemplating on possible routes. I closed my eyes and guessed with a point of a shaking finger. "Here goes nothing," I mumbled.

Folding the pamphlet, I sauntered through the maze of a gallery trying to keep my cool. This is the last thing I wanted - to be lost in an unfamiliar place with a potential stalker roaming the area.

I made a mistake of frequent glances behind me in hopes of spotting Stacy or a familiar face but that quickly ended with a collision. I lost my balance and gasped, "ah," automatically while trying to brace myself for a hard impact with the floor.

A hand shot out and grabbed my arm to support my weight. I was brought back to my feet and I tried to put myself together again.

"I am so sorry, I wasn't looking," I apologized embarrassingly to the human I clumsily bumped into.

"That's alright, no need to apologize, I wasn't looking either." His voice hinted of mischief and it sounded spookily familiar.

A wave of shock rocked through my body. Please, don't be him. I looked up with a nervous expression to examine his face but was quickly washed over with peace. I exhaled the breath I was holding and mentally slapped my face to make sure I kept myself together.

His hand was still awkwardly on my arm. "Are you alright?" His eyebrows crunched over beautiful green orbs, overflowing with concern.

I nodded once, slight tugging on my arm from his warm grip. "Yes. I'm fine, thank you." My words were sharp and low in pitched and that earned a release from him.

Regardless of my obvious disinterest, his eyes twinkled. "Let me buy you a drink, I'll make it up to you?"

I raised a brow, not sure how to take his offer. He was beautiful. The way his messy and sandy blonde hair fell over his eyes gave him a bad boy look. His jaw looked as if it was etched by an artist and his body was so lean and fit, I had to make sure I wasn't staring at a model. I squinted my eyes and was suddenly brought back from a trance. Once again, he was too handsome, I thought in my mind.

A bubbling feeling built up in my stomach, and I gave him a bleak smile. "Thank you, for your offer, but I really need to go," I said a little too fast, turning him down.

What is it with these guys finding me in the most awkward situations? I knew Paris was full of people but I didn't know I was going to bump into tall angelic men. I watched as his lips curved into a ridiculous smirk. "C'mon, just one drink," he insisted coming closer to me.

I bit my lip, changing the weight of one leg to the other. You better not be a serial killer or some crazy maniac, I rehearsed in my mind. "I'm sorry. Really, thank you-" I tilted my head to try to get his name.

"Felix," he grinned, his perfect teeth glinting in the light, "and you?"

I extended my hand to shake his, "I'm flattered. Thanks, Felix, I'll see you around," I replied, not giving him my name and my final declination.

He gave me another smirk and a wink. "Oh, you definitely will," he implied and I rolled my eyes to insinuate my disapproval.

"I beg to differ." I twisted on the balls of my feet and escaped in the opposite direction.

He chuckled, a little too playfully for my taste, behind me. "See yah, Zeph," he called.

I furrowed my brows and stopped mid-stride. Wait, what? Did he just - I turn around to accuse him but he was nowhere in sight. I searched around me, earning confused looks from others. I cursed under my breath and attempt to screw my head back onto my anxious body.

"Oh, boy," I whispered to myself.

*** 

I have no idea where this story is going. Lol. 

I intended to be Chicklit but... it may have a bit of fantasy. Idk, but we'll see. :)