The downtown area was a very different place. It was the place where people like Arthur didn't go, with a very quiet atmosphere. People like him went to the 'It' parts of the city where the girls were most easy to please; get a big car, show off the money, and then get dirty.

But when she took him downtown, he realised how disgusting his mentality was; girls didn't want that, they wanted someone to slowly dance with them to their favourite song, they wanted someone to talk to while sitting in a quiet diner and drinking hot coffee, they wanted someone with whom they could stay up the whole night not by having sex, but by talking about their dreams and aspirations, they wanted someone who was the total opposite of guys like him.

"Where are you taking me?" Asked Arthur as she drove the car. The music was on, the windows were down and the chilly breeze blew right inside the car. Her hair were tied and her hands danced to the song being played; a smile would form on her face whenever the chorus would come and she would hum to it. Arthur just stared at her; her hair, as he noticed later, weren't blue anymore they were more of shades of purple, and her eyes somehow looked more green in the dawn.

"And we're here! Welcome to my home," said Evangeline as the car screeched to a halt. Arthur got out of the car and stood in his tracks; mesmerized by the low lit streets, quiet jazz music in the air and the whole atmosphere. The place was quiet yet still full of life.

"Wow," he said as she took his hand and started walked towards a small records store.

"I buy all my music from here! Okay, listen to this and tell me what you think about it," she said handing him the headphones. He put them on and waited to be amazed by the music, to be sent to heaven on listening to it, but that didn't happen.

"Don't worry, listen to it again. You'll understand it better," she said passing him a smile and  looking through the other records. Maybe he wasn't paying enough attention, or these songs were just not his type; whatever might be the reason, he wasn't going to let it go just like that. This time he put all his thoughts away, and concentrated on the lyrics; the words somehow started making sense, they didn't feel like just words anymore, they felt like his thoughts put in words. All the pain, happiness, the expectations, the loneliness; all in one song.

"That's beautiful," he said as he kept the headphones down.

"I know, it's just amazing. Oh wait," said Evangeline as she went out the door. Arthur quickly followed her out because he had no idea where he was and he surely didn't want to get lost. Just as he stepped outside, he saw the whole street lit up not only with lights but happy couples all around dancing, teenagers like him laughing and Evangeline's smile. Her smile was so beautiful, it left him speechless. She too danced and tried to call him to join her, but he denied while smiling as he sat in front of the record store.

The songs changed, the people started leaving; but she didn't budge, she kept on dancing. And all he did was sit and stare at her in awe. She was so different from the girls he knew; she was bold yet scared, she was crazy yet calm, she was different.

"You should've danced too," she said as both of them sat on the hood of the car.

"I can't really dance," he admitted.

Evangeline took a huge sip of her beer and said," and I'm a professional dancer here! Arthur, you can't just sit back and let life slip away! You have to do things in the moment, you have to live in the moment. Also, I mean, you're a jock, aren't you supposed to be wild?"

Arthur chuckled and got off the car. "I'm a different kind of a jock," he said winking at Evangeline.

They both got in the car. This time Arthur sat in the driver's seat and Evangeline sat in the passenger seat.

"You know I've been more high than this and still driven myself home?" Evangeline said chuckling.

"I don't trust you," joked Arthur.

The drive back was filled with Evangeline and her stories, Arthur's laugh and the dark
night.  

Arthur stopped at Evangeline's house. All this time she lived so close to him but he hadn't ever noticed her. She lay in her seat, deep in thought, and Arthur also lay on his seat. The silence between them wasn't odd or awkward, it was needed; it was a part of their friendship.

"You plan on going to your room and sleeping?" asked Arthur as he broke the silence. Evangeline just nodded and got out of the car. As Arthur saw her get out and go towards the house, he couldn't help but notice how quiet she was. He passed her the keys from the roof of the car, and she caught them. 

But being the gentleman he was, Arthur stood near the car until Evangeline hadn't reached the door. She stopped in the middle and turned back to face him; looking at him straight in the eye with utter disappointment.

"But I trust you. Good night," she said.

Those words haunt him till now. She trusted him, even though they barely knew each other, but she still did. He still wishes to go back in that moment and just tell her how much she meant to him, but he just stood there and did nothing. He didn't even wish her good night.

Now he just walks by her house imagining what he'd done different this time. But that's the thing about the past; you wish you could change it even if it's just wishful thinking.

A short chapter but I enjoyed writing it. I hope you guys liked it too!

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