Mariana looked upon his waiting face and then at the bag that she had. She suddenly felt a wave of guilt wash over her subconscious as he was sitting there, watching her with a smile as he anticipated what she wanted to say.

She didn't want to ruin the moment so she decided that she'll ask him another time.

"Never mind, I forgot what I wanted to say." A small smile graced her lips.

"Oh alright then." He then stood up and towered over her. Her smile widened into a grin as she gazed into his forest green eyes that had a drop of sun in them. She combed her fingers through his beard as she loved the feel of it.

"Hey, how about you show me what you did in Zumba today?" He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"You wanna see what I did?" She repeated his question while slightly alarmed.

"Yeah." He let go of her and then got out his phone.

A few minutes later, music started playing from some speakers, and sat back down as her audience. He gave her a thumbs up and laid back, looking unintentionally handsome.

Mariana tried to move along to the music but Micah's gaze trapped her on the spot. Her body vibrated slightly as if she was trying to wiggle out from ropes of nervousness.

Eventually, she couldn't take it anymore, and a laugh of embarrassment escaped from her mouth.

"I'm sorry, I can't do this." She stumbled around as she continued to laugh.

"Is it because I'm staring at you?" He smirked.

"Yes!"

He chuckled and then got up. "Okay, I will do it with you." He took her hands within his and held her at arm's length.

She blushed a smile and then stepped from side to side, guiding him along the steps. Her feet hopped around while her hands steadily held onto his.

The way her face beamed up at the sound of the music, made Micah's heart glow in love. Seeing his lovely Mariana so happy and full of life made him happy himself. He wanted to keep that smile on her lips and hope it never returned to the melancholy state it was last year.

When Mariana was comfortable enough, he slowly let go of her hands so she could dance to her heart's content with confidence.

He then heard some footsteps shuffling near the door. He whipped his head around and his sisters Makayla and Mylah were peeking their heads through. He placed a finger to his lips for them to keep quiet. They nodded and all watched her.

He watched her with her hair swaying, and her lashes fluttering like the beautiful wings of a butterfly. Her body radiated out with the sun rays flowing out from the nearby window, and her smile was the most angelic thing he's ever seen.

She looked absolutely perfect.

"Woah Mariana, you look good!" Makayla suddenly blurted out.

She suddenly froze in her steps. She then realized that Micah was no longer holding onto her and that they've just been watching her.

She crouched onto the floor with her cheeks turning into a tint of scarlet.

Makayla and Mylah came into the room and stood over her, peering down at her inquisitively.

"You did really well Mariana," he said and stretched his hand out for her.

"Really?" She questioned and grabbed his hand. She slowly pulled herself up without making eye contact.

"Yeah, and you look so pretty!" Mylah exclaimed.

"Thanks," she brushed a strand away from her face.

"Also, Micah we came to tell you that dinner would be ready soon," Makayla said.

"Okay, thanks."

His sisters started walking out while Micah and Mariana followed them.

"Would you like to have dinner with us?" Micah suggested to her.

"Really? Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it would nice for you to stick around some more before you go."

"Okay! I'll stay for dinner," she finally decided.

"Great!"

They continued to follow the girls until they reached the dining room.

Mariana sat down between his sisters while he sat on the opposite side next to his brother. His parents, Crystal and Aidan, sat near the end.

"Sweet Mariana, how are you?" Crystal asked. Her voice was kind and warm.

"I'm fine," she replied with a smile.

"How is your writing? You're a journalist right?"

"Um yes, sort of."

"How is it so far?"

"It's really good! The editor of the website that I wrote for, liked what I had written."

"Aw, I'm glad to hear that," she flashed a smile from her glossy lips.

Soon, the cooks came with the food and laid it on the table. They were having a meaty stew with root vegetables, lots of different meat mixed in.

Mariana licked her lips at the smell and poured herself some from the big pot. She sipped a little bit and loved the taste. She then continued to eat to her heart's content.

****

When Mariana arrived at her café for work, she put on her black apron and patted it down, making it drape over her blue jeans. It was now a brand new week which hopefully meant no more weird messages.

"Hey Elena," She greeted as she approached the counter.

"Hey," She huffed out. She was busy placing some doughnuts on display.

"How was your weekend?"

"It was good! How was yours?"

"It was alright, but on Saturday, I had this milkshake that tasted like coffee rather than chocolate."

"Really?" Elena titled her head in confusion.

"Yeah... I mean I did enjoy it but it just felt a little weird."

"Ah, okay I understand," She patted Mariana on the back. "Poor you," she said with a slight giggle.

"Yeah," she chuckled.

When customers started coming in, the sun sparkled in the clear blue sky, and its rays bloomed through the windows. Mariana started working up the cash machine with her head down as she took people's orders.

When there was no one in line, she zoned out a bit but got startled by the pair of hands that slammed in front of her.

A/N: Hey I hope you enjoyed the chapter! 😘😘😘