The afternoon air smelt sweet with the fragrance of roses as it rustled the bushes in the garden. A lady, dignified and gracefully despite the server wounds that she had sustained walked slowly admiring the vast display of exquisite flowers. Finding a bench hidden in the bushes, she sat down concealed in the beauty.

Time passed and she sat there blissfully unaware of the world around her.

Silence.

After the ugly noise and shouts of condemnation that the world had drowned her in, she didn't mind this. It felt amazing in fact. Not to think, to just do nothing, it was liberating.

The rustling of the bush had her awaking from the trance that she had fallen into and she looked up when she saw a shadow fall over her. A man. Ivan was his name if she did recall it right.

She was grateful to him for the fact that he had taken care of her the entire time while Beau was busy. It wasn't that she was angry with Beau. She understood that he too was going through his own stuff, but she missed the time when they both were all that they had.

"May I sit?"

The deep but gentle voice interrupted the musing that she had fallen again into. She gave him a small nod after hesitating, her heart fluttering a bit when he smiled back and that was what disturbed her.

That small fluttering, she knew could turn into something big some day and that was what had brought her in this predicament. She knew that she was in not any condition what so ever to even like a person. But what to do when the person in question sits next to you?

"What are you doing all alone here?" Ivan interrupted Martha's thoughts and she looked at his handsome visage and a slight rosy tinge of blush spread across her cheeks.

"Resting, admiring." She replied as she tilted her face to gesture the surroundings.

They lapsed back into the silence that didn't seem as awkward as it had left before. Soon it was dark and he held out his hand to her. She looked at it with suspicion but accepted it either way. Ivan led her back to her room without a word only uttering good night before he turned to leave.

Martha fell into her bed mindful of the injuries as she wallowed in the thoughts of romance that should have been. A quiet knock sounded through the room and the head of Beauty appeared.

"Can I come in?" He asked her with a guilty wide look on his face. Those soulful eyes, who could resist them? Oh and was that dinner in his hands?

Giving a sigh she said- "Come on in."

"Martha... I am so sorry I couldn't be here today-"

Martha cut him off with a soft smile.

"It's fine. Come sit." She said as she took the tray from his hand.

"I got what you usually like. Sorry." he apologized again with his head hanging in shame.

And he had indeed got he all the things that she loved. Pancakes drowned in honey, watermelon slices and fresh strawberries decorated the plate with chocolate scrones that she usually used to hide and eat with Beau. A delightful breakfast but it would do for dinner too. Looking at my raised eyebrows he gave out a small cough.

"That is all that I could make." He blushed in shame.

In reply I stuffed my face with all the pig instincts I had and demolished the plate in less than fifteen minutes. He looked at me with his mouth hanging open.

"Did they feed you today?" He slowly asked her as his hands inched forward to take the plate away.

"They did... But I was slightly hungry." She replied with a straight face while laughing her ass off in her mind. Getting serious she stopped Beau and made him sit next to her again.

"What type of person is Ivan?" She asked a startled Beau. Having spent only a few days with him she needed to know if he was trust worthy or not.

"He is a really good person? He saved me twice." He replied whole he tilted his head to the side in thought while looking at her curiously.

"Why?" He asked her.

"It doesn't matter." She replied quickly and asked another question to distract Beau.

The ticking of the clock filled the space of the room and she looked down to see Beau sprawled all over her bed. A quiet giggle escaped her lips. Ah... How this brought back memories.

Sleep deluded her as her eyes stayed wide open at the depts of the night as she comprehend what she was feeling after ages.

Nervousness.

Happiness.

Curiosity.

All of them when put together gave her a picture that she bought to be terrified by but her heart made elated jumps of joy.

Like, beginning of love, whatever you would call this emotions, stirred her insides creating a painful mess and she realised that for the first time in a long time she was looking forward to what the next day would bring.