The large HOLLYWOOD appeared atop a spot which overlooked an endless stretch of mountain tops and shops and houses. Xander stepped over the fence which led to the words, then helped her so that she didn't roll down the hills.

They stepped under the large D of the HOLLYWOOD. Even though she'd seen this before, Eva couldn't help but marvel at the vista being there offered.

It made them appear like gods, and she couldn't believe they'd been driving along the bustle of the sidewalks down there about an hour ago.

He pulled out their bowls of ice cream after they'd sat down, handing her one. It was accompanied by a wooden spoon. As Eva tore off the lid and took the first spoonful of the sweetness, memories she didn't want to remember fanned through her mind.

Memories which had once been so beautiful but now only filled her with pain every time she thought of them. Luckily, Xander didn't seem to notice anything.

Over their ice creams, the man regaled her with his endless amount of jokes, then they talked a bit about themselves. Their hobbies, favourite movies, books and TV shows.

Eva told him about being a writer on the side, and he practically fangirled over her because he'd read The Red Heifer. Surprising because she hadn't really pegged him for a lover of books.

She asked him some stuff about himself so that the interest wouldn't seem one-sided. He couldn't even remember the number of girls he'd dated not to even think of names, every indication that he was or had been a Playboy. When Eva told him she'd only had three relationships, he looked at her in disbelief.

"No way! You're too damn gorgeous."

"Well, I didn't know that beauty counted for the number of failed relationships a person has had." She shot back with a smile.

Thankfully, Xander didn't ask her about her previous relationship which would've required her talking about Adam. She didn't think she could do that without the good mood she was in being swept away.

"Wow, I think we should get going." Xander announced long after they'd both finished their bowls.

Eva looked at her watch and three hours had passed already. She couldn't believe it'd been that long without her notice. The man just knew how to distract her so well with his wonderful sense of humour and make her feel good about herself with his compliments without coming on too strong.

Xander collected their bowls in the polythene bags as they set off. She thought they were heading back towards the trail they'd taken until he meandered up the slope.

"Last stop. Hope you don't mind?" He said and beamed when Eva shook her head, knowing where he wanted to take her.

The climbing was even more harder than the descent and more so dangerous. Eva knew she was going to be needing a thigh massage when they finally got to the top.

Shrubs littered the place sparsely and in no particular order, and at the very edge of the cliff stood a tall tree.

Its branches reached high up into the sky and it had a climbable trunk. It was called the wisdom tree. There'd been some wild fires years ago and it was the only tree that had survived. They inched closer to it.

"The last time I came here, I came alone. That was two years ago." Xander suddenly began. His eyes looked distance like he'd just lapsed into a memory.

"My mum got involved in a nasty car accident. Doctors said her chances of surviving were very tenous. I came here to write like everyone else, a wish that my mum would stay with me much longer."

A smile curved his lips up. "She survived." Then he chuckled. "I know that maybe she could've been meant to survive that accident, but I like to think that she's still here because of my love and the wish I made."

Anyone would be able to detect how much he loved his mother from the mirthful throb in his voice as he spoke about her.

Suddenly, he asked, "You've been here before, right?"

Eva nodded, not trusting herself to speak because her throat had tightened up since they'd stepped near the tree.

How was she supposed to tell him that Adam had brought her to Boulevard, that they'd done the walk of fame before sneaking past the iron gates just like she'd done with him? That they'd made love right under the HOLLYWOOD and then came up to the wisdom tree.

That they'd both written their wishes down without telling the other and hers had been that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with Adam happy?

Her heart squeezed hard, pulling the tears right out of her eyes. Xander held her by the shoulder, eyes glimmering with concern and confusion.

"Eva, what's wrong? Did I remind you of something?"

Ignoring his question, Eva scanned the chest of the tree where the wishes were stacked. Her and Adam's wishes had been written on blue papers and so they were easy to identify among the pile of mostly white papers. Eva gingerly displaced other wishes to the side until she saw the two blue papers stacked together and brought them out.

She looked at the first one and realized it was her own, and so she unfolded the second and scanned Adam's beautiful, cursive handwriting.

Listen tree, I don't know if I believe in this, but if it really is true then I wish that this thing between I and Eva will never end. Hope that's not too much to ask for.

Eva let out a chuckle. Only Adam would write a wish that way. Her amusement faded almost immediately, causing her to choke on her laughter as more tears streamed down her cheeks.

He'd written that he wanted what they had to go on forever, so why the hell would he just walk out of her life and not bother to look back?

Anger suddenly coursed through her veins, and she tore their wishes up, throwing the pieces of paper into the air and watching the wind sweep them away. Then she wiped furiously at her eyes.

She finally looked up at Xander to find him regarding her curiously and knew he had a lot of questions running inside his head. And so she told him. Told him about Adam and how they'd dated for about a month before he'd insulted her at his father's funeral and left LA, never calling since.

By the time she was done, Xander's jaw was ticking furiously, his sharp features set in anger. "Adam Garcia is an idiot. A fucking idiot. He had the love of a woman like you and he let you go just like that? If I were in his shoes, I would've never done what he did."

Eva smiled, dabbing her damp eyes with the sleeves of her jacket. Xander smiled back before sighing. "I was about to write another wish that you fall head over heels for me but I think we better start heading back. It's late."

Eva looked towards the horizon and saw that the sun had already disappeared, giving way to twilight. The streetlights of the city beyond had began turning on to accommodate the coming dimness.

Xander wrapped his arms around her. Eva leaned into him, loving the comfort his arms offered as they took the trail back. Thankfully, they didn't get caught.

He took her to another exquisite restaurant with equally exquisite food to have dinner. He didn't seem to mind splurging at all. He was a pampered brat and he didn't bother to hide it. That was another thing Eva liked about him.

He was extremely frank and open and didn't hesitate to speak what was on his mind as long as it defined how he was feeling. So different from Adam.

By the time Xander drove her to her house while entertaining her with jokes, Eva had to admit that going on this date hadn't been a bad idea after all. Perhaps, she even had some fun.

Xander pulled up in front of her house's gate so he wouldn't go through the strain of driving in and then getting out. He went inside with her to let her mother know that he'd brought her home safely.

Eva could see how much her mother was pleased with the man's presence. Luckily, June and Vicky had left a while ago. God, they would've surely embarrassed her in front of Xander by asking for all the gist.

After Xander and her mother had talked for just a bit, Eva went to escort him to the gate.

"I hope our next date is going to be soon enough." He said with all the seriousness in the world as he regarded her expectantly.

Eva didn't know what she was feeling in that moment, and so she just nodded. "I'll see you again, Xander."

She made to head back into the house, when all of a sudden, Xander grasped her hand and pulled her to him in a flash, knocking the air out of her lungs. She'd seen the longing in his eyes whenever he looked into hers, but this time, it seemed to blaze more ferociously.

"I don't mind if you slap me, Eva. Because at this point, I'd gladly take ten slaps just to taste your lips." Then his lips was on hers.

She expected a forceful kiss considering how he'd crashed his lips to hers. Instead, his lips were soft and pleading, coaxing a reaction from hers. She found herself responding even as her mind raced to sort out her conflicted emotions.

After they broke the kiss, Xander placed his forehead against hers, breaths heavy. "You don't know how long I've been wanting to do that... I'm sorry. I just couldn't control myself."

"You lied?"

It was another voice which spoke. The familiarity of it had her gasping as she pulled her head from Xanders, eyes snapping in the direction.

Every fibre in her body went into static shock as she gazed at the only man she'd ever truly loved, the same one who'd left like she didn't even matter.

Adam.