comme le sable dans un sablier

He could agree, out of all the people to make sense, she was the farthest from the tree. At this rate, he is likely to see her more in a month than he will his own daughter. The fact crawls the lining of his throat but he swallows it away. They were strangers with no ties to one another and no real intention to ever meet–– until his extra sense called him to her and has been doing so ever sense. 

“Agreed,” He nods, glancing in the directions of which each of them were going, “Where about were you headed? I was on my way to get dinner… If you would like to join?”

“I was going home... but I can join you, yes,” she nodded, shifting to stand beside him rather than facing him. Even if she wasn’t much for eating, she’d take eating out over any feeble attempt she made at cooking any day. Besides, who knew how they’d be pushed together again... might as well take advantage of it?

Eyes lingered just below average shoulder height and honed in ahead of where he was going. A formidable tunnel vision that he trained into himself over the years so getting from point a to point b wasn’t an emotional roller coaster ride.

No matter how hard he focused and the end location though he could not ignore how it felt that the world was drawing something to him, or him to something. Even with the most trained of stares the familiar figure stood out like centralized animation. Where in a cartoon you can tell moments in advance that the ground will give out or which book the main character will grab. He wasn’t avoiding her, but he also wasn’t looking for her all this time. Naturally the first few times he dismissed their encounters as just happenstance. Being in the same area for work or play and their usual paths crossing. Now however he doubted it, he doubted it the last four times.

He slowed to a stop when the distance was closed between them, “Well, theres no need for me to ask now. Unless we are following each other.”

So... he wasn’t a stalker. Honestly, by her standards, he wouldn’t have been a bad stalker to have. Hell, he wouldn’t even be her first. Yet, there they were, the product of “coincidence”. Yeah, right.

“You know, New York is a big city. So many people, and yet you’re the one my path crosses most. Not a coworker, not a neighbor. You,” she drawled with a raise of a brow. It was strange, to say the least. Something had to be guiding them together. She wasn’t a religious woman, hardly even spiritual, but this was undeniable. Perhaps it was just... fate.

It’s unusually warm for a winter night in New York. The breeze is soft, brushing tenderly past her as she makes her way from the theater. She’s the last to leave, unconcerned by the late hour and the dark shroud covering the city. People liked to paint the most bustling part of Manhattan as a target zone, but they’d obviously never been to the back alleys of Paris. 

However, she does feel someone. Not in the way she felt an occasional brush past her, or a lingering gaze. No, she could feel him drawing closer with every step. When the older man came into view, she was hardly surprised.

“Well. I went to Asia briefly to look into new fabric manufacturers, dye, boring fashion stuff that must mean nothing to do. I also brought you a gift from Spain I hope you might enjoy.”

@sablierternie

“Bonjour, mon petit oiseau. Been well?”