SERENA

"Hello?" Serena was perplexed as Dawn came skipping towards her, starry-eyed and jubilant as ever. Her blue locks bounced as she literally skidded to a halt, engulfing the poor blonde into a bone-crushing hug. The honey blonde, who was unaware of the latest development that had happened behind the scenes, looked over to Ash with bewilderment. He responded by sheepishly smiling.

"I am so glad to see you; It's been long since we met, hasn't it?" The blunette gushed. She was still the positive bubble of optimism. Serena smiled sincerely. Although she wasn't aware that Dawn was supposed to be tagging along, she felt mentally relieved. It would have been awfully boring to roam through the shops alone. Maybe she just go along with the blunette. Suddenly, Dawn's eyes widened, as if she remembered something.

"Oh, Paul, there you are" Dawn grinned in relief as she spotted the one her eyes were searching for ─ a man with lilac hair and penetrating obsidian eyes. He had his hand tucked in the pocket of his jeans, a loose purple shirt on and a cold, near to emotionless face. He was quite handsome too. It was Serena's first time seeing him and she was already having goosebumps on her arms from the coldness in his demeanor. But neither Ash nor Dawn looked fazed.

"How are you, Paul?" Serena saw as the corners of Ash's lips formed a lopsided smile. She felt her heart thump and turned away, the tip of her ears turning into an unremarkable shade of pink. As she did, her eyes locked with Dawn's royal blue orbs intently observing her. But the blunette quickly replaced her keen look with one of gentle friendliness.

"I am well and you seem good too" The man named Paul replied, smiling a bit. Serena had assumed that this man wasn't capable of smiling, considering the blank expression he had worn until seconds ago. She mentally scolded herself for being prejudicial. However, she couldn't deny but justify her thinking as something natural. First impressions matters, don't they? Her conscience pricked at her when the realization that she wasn't herself good at first impressions hit her like arrow.

"─ By the way Paul, meet Serena. She is my friend and Personal Assistant" Ash introduced, gesturing towards the sapphire-eyed woman. Her heart suddenly felt cold at being referred to as a friend; she should be grateful that he was even considering her as someone who was his friend. Sweeping the turbulent feelings under the rug, Serena stepped forward, nervous under the domineering icy gaze of the man. Collecting every shred of remaining self-confidence in her, she politely greeted him.

"Hello, my name is Serena. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr., er?" The honey blonde flushed as she realized that she didn't know his full name yet. Internally facepalming at her stupidly, she stupidly waited for him to say something first.

"My name is Paul Shinji. It is a pleasure to meet you, Serena; I hope I can call you that" Paul replied kindly, his voice bordering on clumsiness. Serena looked up at him and suddenly the man didn't seem frightening anymore. He had the same expressionless face but his eyes were soft and polite, almost reminding her of Drew's emerald eyes.

"Of course!" Serena exclaimed after a beat.

"He is also my fiancé!" Dawn bubbled enthusiastically, looping an arm around his. The other people sent the pair a weird glance but the oblivious blunette was too cooped up in her own world to mind. Paul simply sent the people a glare that told them to mind their own business instead of getting embarrassed by his childish lover.

"Oh wow, I didn't know you were engaged, Dawn" Serena expressed, a warm smile gracing her features as she sincerely congratulated the two. "Belated Congratulations on the engagement"

"Thankyou, babe" Dawn winked and Paul nodded with a slight smile.

"Now, can we board the flight? They have announced it two times already" Ash deadpanned, apparently being forgotten for the past two minutes. The rest sweatdropped, hurriedly walking towards the boarding gate. Serena purposely fell behind the couple who were engaged in a conversation regarding the Hawaiin project.

"I hope you didn't find him too scary" Ash whispered in her ear huskily, sending unwilling shivers down spine as she recoiled. Her sapphire eyes locked with the auburn ones, alluring and tantalizing enough to root her to the spot. The million voices around her didn't matter; all she was focused was on the man who had bewitched every single muscle in her body.

"I-I didn't" Serena breathed, stuttering a bit before regaining her composure. "He was a little nerve-wracking before but he seems really nice. Besides, they make a good couple"

"I know right?" The auburn-eyed man grinned slightly, oblivious to the effect he had on the woman beside him. "I guess it isn't all wrong when they say that opposites attract, don't you think?"

"Yeah, I guess so" Serena replied, gazing at the backs of the couple a distance away. Even from her position, she could see how happy they actually looked. It wasn't the kind of happiness one could get from money or friends or family. It was the happiness of founding your other half, your true love. A part of her heart froze and even amongst the thousands of voices, the honey blonde had never felt so lonely before.

ASH

Ash glanced at Serena who was sitting beside him. It had been over an hour since the flight had taken off and she hadn't said a word. She kept looking out at the clouds, absentmindedly. He frowned, wondering if he made her upset unknowingly. Instead of dwelling on it, he finally decided to ask her himself.

"Serena?" He whispered. Thankfully, she heard him and turned her unwavering gaze from the clouds on him. However, his throat went dry under her stare. He knew what he wanted to say but he couldn't bring himself to find the right words. As if his mind had stopped functioning properly. He wanted to ask her but at the same time, he was afraid of her reaction. Would she think that he was being a pushover, forgetting about the line drawn everytime?

"Um, are you angry?" He asked, meekly, which was uncharacteristic of him. He was thankful that Dawn and Paul, who were sitting behind them, had fallen asleep. Serena smiled, making some of his worries disappear.

"Of course not. Why would I be angry?" She asked, patiently as if he was a child expecting reprimandation on caught eating more chocolate. He was still unsure if she was just pretending to make him feel better. So he repeated again, changing his words.

"I wondered if I did something wrong?" He trailed off, bashfully. He didn't know why he was behaving like this but it certainly amused Serena. She found his shy side adorable. He looked like a big cute pomeranian, anxious to appease her. The thought made her giggle. Wide brown eyes snapped up to her, making her heart flutter.

"Why, why are you laughing?!" He whisper-shouted, his worries turning into embarrassment. His ears turned red as he evaded her eyes. It only surged up more giggles to erupt from the honey blonde, who was feeling brighter than before. As Ash briskly leaned the seat and closed his eyes, Serena calmed herself down. She smiled to herself, dotting on the embarrassed side of the man sitting beside her.

She, too, leaned back and moments later she had fallen into deep slumber, tired from the previous night packing exhaustion. She had stayed up until late and gotten up early. It was bound to make her feel much needed for a nap to restore the energy. She fell asleep, curled up in the shape of a ball as much as possible. Ash peeked open his eyes, looking at the sleeping form of the blonde beauty, whose chest rose and fell in a rhythmic motion.

He watched her for a moment, his heart pounding at her sight before he turned away from her.

"I wonder what is wrong with me. . .?"