Unlike at Skye's place, the paparazzi outside my house went from a hefty crowd to nil in just about a week or two. And let's just say that the residents of my building weren't happy with the commotion. It was a blessing that I wasn't asked to leave. Fortunately after Skye had threatened Rick, he also left my case alone. Due to this reason, we chose my place as the spot to leave together.

Before Skye had arrived at my place, I was bouncing with jitters. However, my nervousness was completely vanquished as soon as we were both inside his car and on our way to some place I had no idea about. He had insisted on picking me up and I was okay with it because my eyes still felt slightly droopy. It was quite early in the morning, around 6 o'clock and it had stumped me when he had messaged me last night to be ready before that. 

Where is he even taking me?

The reason I felt better right now was because Skye didn't even give me the moment to feel self conscious and soon, we dove into an easygoing conversation. That combined with Skye's familiar scent in his car eased my bunched up muscles.

"So what type of date is this? Like wearing old clothes and stuff." I gestured toward our outfits.

Skye was wearing an old cashmere sweater with some of its threads coming loose beneath a thick jacket and worn out jeans. I, on the other hand, wore my college days' long sleeved t-shirt and some regular jeans. I was surprised though that they still fit and even more so when I had found them playing hide-and-seek inside my wardrobe.

"Like I swear, it was so hard to find something old to wear. All I have is formals, pajamas and a few casual outfits. At one point, I even opted out for the pajamas," I told him dramatically.

That brought a laugh out of him and for some reason, it played a serene chord in my heart. It still never felt old to see his smiles and hear his laughs. "Don't tell me you don't have old clothes," he said with a hint of incredulity in his tone.

"Well, not really. I mean I donate them most of the time plus I don't actually have an enormous, princess walk-in closet to stock everything," I replied with an eye roll. "I was pretty glad to find this pair." I pointed to my clothes.

He nodded his head in understanding and looked ahead at the road. "I don't have much old clothes either but I do keep them since I like to work on my tree house and while carving as well. It gets all dusty and so I don't have the heart to dirty my new ones." He shrugged.

"Whoa, good that you explained because I was actually wondering if you'd bought these clothes or something," I told him with a soft chuckle and he did the same. "So where exactly are we going?" I tried to ask him sneakily.

"Nice try but I'll just answer you with the janitor's closet again." Skye smirked, not even looking at me.

I pursed my lips at his response with an intentionally loud huff and looked outside the window. Everything about this early morning was so beautiful. It was blanketed into soft, peaceful hues of orange and yellow. There was a rhythm in the swishing of the trees.

My favorite part while watching everything passing by is the speed of what was left behind and what was yet to come. Every time I'd look back, everything would be blurred but when the next instant I'd look forward, things were clear. It was as if a metaphor of life was screaming itself on my face.

I was brought out of my enchanting poetess moment when I felt Skye's big warm hand wrap around my own. Looking over at him, I saw him giving me an assuring smile.

"Don't worry, Val," he said and I was about to ask him 'why', when he continued. "We're not going to a janitor's closet."

"God." I groaned and his suppressed laugh sputtered out but I was glad that his attention was still on the road. This man beside me would be the death of me one day.

"I know but you're allowed to call me Skye." He winked and I realized that he was purposely driving at a chill pace as if he needed this moment with me just as much as I did.

"Since when did you become so cocky?" I asked him with amusement lacing my voice.

"Since you decided to come on a date with me," he answered without missing a beat.

All the playfulness left my expression as those words swirled around me comfortingly. There was a feathery feeling inside my chest and it felt good. He threw a quick smile at me before looking back at the road. Skye's insecure but I was glad that he didn't fidget nor did he backtrack from what he said. His words rang with confidence and I couldn't have been prouder. "Then I should be "cockier" than you because you asked me out."

"Then let's be cocky together." He kissed the back of my hand and those crazy butterflies fluttered their wings in my stomach.

I can consider this as normal, right? Since he did say that he likes me, I thought to myself giddily.

Shyly, I looked around to show that I was unbothered by his cute gestures. That's when my eyes fell on the sticker pasted across the dashboard with initials 'J.W.'. I was confused because the car we were in was the model of his own company so that didn't make much sense to me.

"What's J.W.?" I asked, pointing at the sticker.

Skye nodded his head. "Those are my dad's initials. Jonathan Williams," he replied with no emotions.

"You know… I used to be your dad's fan," I mumbled with uncertainty.

"Used to?" He chuckled confusedly.

I understood his silent question. "I mean after what you said…" I trailed off nervously and this time even twiddled with my fingers.

He started laughing at my expense as he parked the car inside the parking lot so I still couldn't tell where we were. "Valerie… my dad's not a bad person. He's just a traditional and an old school kinda guy. He has a thing for following rules and etiquettes. That just makes him more stringent at times but-" He smirked mischievously. "I never knew you were a fan. He does hold a special place for his fans in his heart."

"Oh, thank God." I sighed in relief. "Because he's my one true inspiration and truth be said, I worked my ass off to work in the ZAE Inc. with hopes to meet him someday. Though I was satisfied with just being a part of his company and sort of disappointed but don't take it in a wrong way. I am so glad to have met you too. In fact, very much so," I rambled like a crazy person.

His eyes sparkled with mirth and he did not in the least bit seem offended. "Good. Come on now," he said before unlocking the door and we both got out at once.

He went for my hand again and those same flutters in my stomach were back with full force. I took a deep breath in to compose myself. "So your dad gifted you this car?" I continued asking him about his car.

Skye just shrugged and turned to me for a second. "Yeah. It's one of my favorite cars so far and had been a limited edition after the production. I really wanted one too but like I said, "limited edition" and being the founder and all, my dad had one." He stopped as soon as we were on the threshold of some huge hall. "Just gimme a minute."

As soon as we were inside, I saw that the room was filled with really vibrant colors and the most dominant one was sky blue. The ceiling of the room was so high up that I had to crane my neck. Huge and various wall sized posters of the hot air balloons were stuck on the walls. It was mesmerizing and I couldn't believe we would be flying high in a hot air balloon.

Skye led us toward the reception area and a healthy woman in her early twenties stood up straighter when her sharp eyes landed on us.

"Skye Williams, I presume?" She asked in her scratchy voice. It was like she was expecting us. However, it was a given because there was no one around except for a few staff personnel and the cleaning team. Besides, people could easily recognize us from anywhere since we're the "infamous couple".

Skye and the receptionist, whose name tag read, Susan, had just finished talking when I turned my attention back to them. I hadn't listened to a single word they'd exchanged because I was filled with astonishment as I looked around happily.

"You ready, Val?" Skye grinned at me excitedly.

"You're asking me that? About a ride in a hot air balloon? I am more than ready!" I squealed lightly. I even extended my fist for a fist bump. Skye eyed my hand for a flitting second before bumping it as if I were a kid. It was so gentle and his eyes squished as if cooing. If adorable had a picture, then it would definitely be him.

"I am so relieved to hear that." He chuckled, coming closer to me. My breath hitched in my throat as he brushed his knuckles on my cheeks.

Susan cleared her throat from behind and looked at the floor before glancing up at us. "Follow me."

Without any delay, we followed closely behind her. She opened the huge double doors which were about a yard or two away from the reception desk. The moment she opened the doors, a strong gust of wind billowed past us. The cool yet fresh morning air chilled me to the bone and I started regretting wearing my old, worn out clothes.

Skye put his hand on the small of my back and urged me to move forward. My eyes, however, were glued on the enormous hot air balloon placed in the center outside. To say that I was excited and mesmerized would be an understatement.

He must have noticed me shivering slightly because the next instant, I was engulfed in his woodsy scent. He had draped his jacket over my shoulder and I passed him a wide, grateful smile.

That's when a huge, pudgy man with thinning hair in his mid forties approached us and Susan left the scene to probably take her leave. "Hello, Skye! Good to see you again, son," the man said in his boisterous voice.

"It's good to see you too, Riven." They both shook hands as if they were two old friends, which I assumed they might be.

"Hold on a sec, Skye. I need to make my men ready for this beast so that you can fly in about five minutes max," Riven excused himself, leaving Skye and I alone.

"So you wanna continue telling me from where you'd stopped talking about your car?" I wiggled my brows. To be honest, I was just trying to tone down my happiness in front of him. I couldn't remember the last time I was inside a hot air balloon but it was mostly more than a decade ago. The sight of a few men firing up the balloon drew my attention to them. It looked ethereal to me. Skye and I were a good few feet away from them for the safety precautions.

Skye's voice pulled me out of my observation. "Yeah, right. Almost forgot about that." He laughed lightly. "So, my dad had the limited edition car and he knew how much I loved it so he gifted it to me two years ago just as I had started out as the CEO. Told me, it'll be my lucky charm." There was a revered smile on his face. Even though his dad might have persuaded him to be a part of his company, he still had that veneration shining in his eyes for his dad.

"Whoa but I've never seen you using it except for when we were attending that gala event," I told him.

He shoved his hands in his pockets like he didn't want to tell me but replied anyway. "Like I said, it's like a lucky charm so I mostly use it on special occasions… including today." My lips formed into an 'O' shape the moment he uttered those last two words. Just then I remembered that he had said almost the same thing before driving to the event's venue as well. "I wanted to drive this car on my date for my date." He shrugged, looking away to hide his soft smile.

If my blushing cheeks were any indication then I literally wanted to hug the life out of him for being such a cute fluffball. But before I could express my adoration, Riven yelled out at us to come over.

As we neared the now ready hot air balloon, it was hard to be heard over the noises because of the wind slapping against the gores of the gigantic balloon. The pilot was geared up in his equipment as he was reading out all the safety precautions and instructions to us.

Once we were all ready and inside the wicker basket, I had to literally keep my feet firmly rooted on the spot from dancing around insanely. The moment we were airborne, an open mouthed wide smile eased onto my lips. "Oh, my gosh, wow," I breathed.

As we were floating in the air, the harsh, winter winds slapped against us but it just made me giggle. My hair was literally swaying from left to right in synchronization.

Skye was standing behind me closely. I thought it was just that but I was stupefied when he put both his hands on the basket around me from behind. His scent played with my senses and I could feel the hair on my arms stand on end even though we were not even touching each other.

"I've read that hot air balloons help in relaxation but you seem so… tense right now?" Skye's face was right beside mine and I glanced at him for a quick second. He was smirking.

I am tense because you're practically invading all of my senses… you… you fluffball! I wanted to shout at him but all I could do was avert my eyes shyly.

He started laughing and I looked at the pilot who didn't even pay us any heed and continued to fly the balloon professionally. "I was just joking, Val. Loosen up." He came to stand next to me. "Though this recreational activity really does help to relax. I thought of this because it reminded me of how you took me for art therapy and so I wanted to do the same for you," he told me and there was this happy note in his voice.

My emotions were waltzing enthusiastically because of his words. "Aww, that's very thoughtful of you, Skye," I said as I was entranced by something behind him. "Look!" I chirped and pointed a finger at the beaming rays in the sky. "Look at the sky, Skye," I tried to make a pun and he just gave me a weird look.

He turned around to look at what I was pointing toward and indeed the morning rays were creating these asymmetrical patches on the clouds. It was a sight to behold and I quickly pulled out my phone to capture the magical scene before me.

Sneakily, I glanced at Skye who had a serene smile on his face as he continued gazing upwards. His blonde hair was glowing as if the sun rays were swirling around him. From what I could see, his eyes were twinkling without any traces of stress. I couldn't help my temptation as I took three steps back and clicked his picture. I even made sure to include the mystical background.

Once I was done, I pocketed my phone before he could notice and went to stand beside him. That was how it went. Everywhere I looked, I was awed by even the smallest of things. Just like above, the New York city below us was no less. People walking by were tiny little specks. Even from where I was standing, it still screamed "busy".

"Imagine this scene at night," I gushed to myself and for a second, it even slipped my mind that I wasn't alone.

I heard shuffling of feet and saw that Skye had heard my words. "Well it can just be an imagination then." He grinned. "Hot air balloons can't fly at night since it could be dangerous. The pilots don't have a good range because it's dark and wouldn't be able to see where they're going," he explained to me.

After a lot of cruising, it was then the balloon began descending. Soon enough, we were on the ground and all three of us exited the basket. It was a beyond thrilling experience and I felt like I hadn't had a fresh breath of air until now.

After a few minutes of Skye and I chirping about everything, Riven walked up to us.

"We had our photographer click your pictures," he began and I was puzzled by his words. He must have seen my expression because he elaborated. "As our customers ascend, we try to get their pictures for them from down here while also keeping the quality at its best. You both can have a look at them and if you like the pictures, you can even have them developed."

Skye nodded his head. "Sure," he replied but he didn't seem to care.

Riven turned around and hollered at a tall guy with a camera in his hands, "Calo!" However, he didn't turn around and continued walking ahead instead.

I narrowed my eyes because he seemed really odd in his baggy hoodie and jeans. Though anybody could tell that he's got a well built body. He hastily turned around and our eyes met for a single second. Just as my brain could register his features, he had already headed toward the double doors and went inside. Before I could think too much about it and try to put my finger on his strange behavior, Riven grunted, annoyed.

"Never mind. I'll send them to you later today. Now c'mon, let's head inside," he informed us and we both followed behind him.

For some reason, this time I held Skye's hand. I couldn't tell if I wanted comfort or if I was simply scared. Skye smiled down at our entwined hands and squeezed it once. I felt so much better because of that small gesture but I couldn't shake off the bad feeling clawing at my chest.