The Stranger in the Rain
The city streets glistened under the dim glow of streetlights, the scent of rain lingering in the air. Lila Hart adjusted her sketchbook under her arm as she walked home from the café, her mind still lost in the half-finished drawings she had spent hours working on.
It was one of those nights where everything felt… different. A strange pull in her chest, an inexplicable sensation that made her glance over her shoulder more than once.
A man stood beneath the flickering streetlamp, his posture unnaturally still, almost like he wasn’t used to standing there. His long, dark coat swayed slightly in the evening breeze, and his eyes—so pale they seemed almost luminescent—watched her with quiet intensity
Lila
frowned
*Has he been following me?*
Lila
*Mutter*
No that wasn't it
There was something… off about him. Not in a threatening way. More like he didn’t quite belong here.
She hesitated for a moment before making a snap decision.
Lila
“Are you lost?” she called out.
The man blinked, as if startled that she had spoken to him.
Then, after a long pause, he answered.
His voice was deep, but there was something strangely careful about the way he spoke, like he wasn’t used to forming words.
Lila
“Okay… so, you’re just standing here. In the middle of the street. Watching people.”
His brows furrowed slightly
Zeke
“I wasn’t watching people "
He hesitated, then admitted,
A chill ran down her spine, but not from fear. It was more like a strange, electric curiosity.
Lila
“Well, that’s not creepy at all,”
She muttered under her breath.
He tilted his head, as if genuinely confused.
Zeke
“I didn’t mean to be… unsettling.”
Lila studied him more closely. His face was beautiful—too beautiful, really, like he had stepped out of some Renaissance painting. But there was something else. Something unnatural in the way he held himself, like he wasn’t entirely sure how to exist in this space.
Lila
“You’re not from around here, are you?
Zeke
*hesitated again*
No.”
There was something about the way he said it that made her chest tighten. A quiet honesty, like he wasn’t just talking about the city.
Lila
Well… do you need help? Directions?
His lips parted slightly, as if the idea hadn’t even occurred to him.
Then, after a beat, he added,
Zeke
“But… I would like to walk with you.”
Lila
*Blinked*
“You—what?”
He looked almost unsure of himself now
Zeke
“I think… I should walk with you.”
Her first instinct was to say no. But something about him—something beyond reason—made her hesitate.
Lila
* sighed*
“Alright, mystery man. You can walk with me, but only if you tell me your name.”
Lila
*Nodded*
“Okay, Zeke. I’m Lila.”
His lips twitched slightly, as if testing the shape of her name in his mind.
She started walking again, and he fell into step beside her. It was strange. His presence should have made her nervous, but it didn’t. Instead, it felt… oddly natural.
Lila
“are you always this intense, or is tonight a special occasion?”
He turned his head toward her, his expression unreadable.
Lila
*Raised an eyebrow*
“You don’t know if you’re intense?”
A crease formed between his brows, as if he was genuinely trying to figure it out.
Zeke
“I haven’t been asked that before.”
Lila
*Bit her lip, stifling a laugh*
“You’re kind of weird, you know that?”
Zeke
“Yes. I’ve been told that before.”
Something about the way he said it made her pause. There was a quiet sincerity in his voice, an innocence that didn’t quite fit his imposing appearance.
And for reasons she couldn’t explain, she liked it.
See you guys in the next chapter
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