“You? Go to bed at a decent hour? With all the coffee you drink, I’m surprised you sleep at all.” He gave me a smirk, and my heart swelled a little.
“And with all the late night pastries you eat, I’m surprised you don’t weigh as much as a house.” I grinned at him and to my delight, he let out a laugh. A real one, deep and melodic.
“Point taken.”
There was a moment of content silence before he spoke again. “If we’re being honest, I’m always a little surprised to find you working late each night. Especially on holidays.”
My eyebrows furrowed together as we stopped briefly to look both ways before crossing an intersection. “Why’s that?”
“Because. You’re intelligent, witty, beautiful…I could go on. It just has never made sense to me that someone like you would choose to be alone.” He said softly.
It was like his words had taken on a life of their own, sneaking inside me and filling me with a pleasant warmth. I was speechless for a moment, unsure of how to respond. I let out a thoughtful hum before gathering my thoughts. “How do you know I choose to be alone? I don’t have any family, you know that. I work too much to have friends, or…or anyone really.”
“Someone like you shouldn’t be alone. You deserve to have someone. That’s all I mean.” He continued, casting me a sideways glance. “I’ve met many, many people throughout my lifetime. None quite like you though.”
We slowed to a stop at the next corner, waiting as a car idled in the intersection before it crawled past. Even after it was gone, though, my feet didn’t seem to want to move. Percival tugged on my arm, turning me to face him. There was a fascinated look in his eyes and it suddenly felt hard to breathe. At some point, snow had started to fall. Soft, gentle flakes that floated lazily to the ground, reflecting the light from the nearest lamppost. They stuck to his dark clothing, peppering his hair with bits of shimmery white