The door to her tiny veranda was always kept open, day or night. Melanie loved the way the wind would pick up her curtains and ruffle the pure white sheets that were always just a second away from falling off of her four-poster bed completely. The soft chill of the Barcelona air while she slept was soothing, reminding her of her place for the summer. It reminded her that she was home.
The moment that the morning sunlight danced across her room and tickled the pale skin of her cheeks, Melanie Bliss was up and trying to quickly untangle her body from the covers. It wasn't in her nature to get a slow start to the day. Ever since she was eight-years-old she'd been out and running rampant in the beautiful city of Barcelona, Spain before her parents had finished their first cups of tea. That wasn't about to change just because almost nine years had gone by.
With a smile on her face she ran a hand threw her tangled brown hair as she pushed herself up onto her feet, leaped from the bed and hit the floor running. There wasn't very much room to run in her family's summer cottage, though. In fact, since they didn't quite come from money the expanse of the chalet was about the length of a single classroom back at her school; not that she really cared. Melanie loved it there.
A list of things to do for the day was already racing through her mind as she practically fell into her closet and grabbed the first thing she could find from a hanger. Everything in the closet was something that her grandmother and mother had double teamed her into buying a few months ago for the summer. Sundresses, strappy sandals, and handbags that she couldn't even think to find a use of since she didn't bother with sunglasses and most certainly didn't wear makeup.
Not even pausing to think of how un-Melanie-like she would feel in the outfit, she pulled on a bright red sundress and grabbed a pair of black flip-flops absentmindedly as she hurried out of the door to her room with the zipper still undone and a tag hanging off its side. A sunny laugh escaped her mouth as she took the stairs two at a time down towards the kitchen, passing by a mirror which reflected her wild array of dark waves back at her.
Her parents were sitting across from each other at their small table in the kitchen when she skidded across the hardwood floors and to a stop right in front of the refrigerator. It still felt weird to be back in her Muggle surroundings after being away at school for almost a year in the Wizarding World. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry definitely didn't have appliances like those found in the cottage and their permanent residence back in London.
"So it begins," Melanie's father chuckled, sharing a knowing glance with his wife as they watched their daughter pry open the refrigerator and grab the strawberry jam. "There's some bread in the cabinet above the cookie jar for that, Sweetheart."
"Thanks," Melanie replied, throwing a smile over her shoulder at him before opening said cabinet and plopping one slice of bread into the toaster. "Good morning, by the way."
"'Morning, Mel," her mother said, standing up and dropping a kiss onto her forehead -while quickly removing the price tag and zipping up the dress- as she made her way to the stove to silence the whistling teapot. "Jonathan, is honey alright? I'm going to have David run over to the market for a bag of sugar later."
"Later? As in 2 o'clock in the afternoon, when he actually decides to roll out of bed and grace the world with his presence?" Melanie asked, turning around to lean backwards against the counter and raise her eyebrows at her mother.
"Would you rather do it?" her father asked, tilting his head sideways and matching her skeptical expression perfectly. "Honey is fine, Beth," he added on a side note to his wife.
"Daddy, you know I'd love to do my share to help," Melanie began, widening her eyes innocently as she stared at him, "But, I'm afraid I've got a packed schedule today. Maybe tomorrow?"
"That's what you always say," Beth said, laughing as she handed a cup of tea over to Jonathan. "The day when you don't have a packed schedule will be the day that the sky falls."
"Speaking of which," Melanie said as the toaster popped. She grabbed a napkin and placed the toast in it. Beth absently handed her a knife just as she was about to ask for one and she quickly slathered some jam onto the toast before folding the napkin up and turning towards the door. "I'll be back tonight!"
"We've got to go to your grandmother's house for dinner tonight, Sweetheart. You're going to have to be home before four. You know how she likes to have an early meal," Jonathan said, taking a sip of his tea while trying not to cringe at the flavor of the honey while Beth was looking his way.
"Okay!" Melanie yelled back, opening the door and running across the cement pavement of their short driveway. She didn't really mind that she'd have to cut two hours off of her plans for the day. She loved going to visit her grandmother. The woman was . . . eccentric.
The family cottage was a good five miles away from the heart of the city of Barcelona. Melanie had always loved being around the hospitable Spanish culture that oozed out of the city and into everything and everyone that was blessed enough to visit it; however, it was the rural aspect of it all that had really earned a place in her heart forever.
Just a mile down the winding mountain road where she lived every summer was the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, which you could see from the veranda off of her room if you looked out over the tree tops and a mixture of other homes as well. The water was a beautiful turquoise and always felt wonderfully comforting as it lapped at her feet when she hung them over the side of the dock. What was really nice was that the dock closest to her was more secluded than other ones in the area which would always have huge barges and cruise liners parked at them for days on end. Such large commercial things just marred the classic beauty of the city.
Melanie hit the street at a sprint with a huge smile and the wind blowing her long dark hair back off of her face as she raced forward in her excitement to see everything she had missed over the year. Just because she loved going to school didn't mean that she didn't love the moments she had after it was over just as much. The fact that she had only one year left at Hogwarts was the only thing tying her to her education. She wanted so badly to finally finish and be able to establish a permanent residence of her own there in Spain. She wanted to start her own life, maybe as one of the Ministry of Magic's consuls.
The sound of her flip-flops clacking on the street was enough to make her regret her surrender to just wear what her mother had hoped she would wear. The sound was so loud that she was positive that anyone who had still been asleep would wake up, and not be too pleased about it since she was certain it was still only a quarter to nine at the latest. Just because she was a morning person didn't mean that everyone else was too.
"Off to the docks, Senorita Bliss?" an older man shouted out to her just as she turned left into the small alleyway that would take her right to the dock.
"Of course, Mr. Fernando!" Melanie laughed, not slowing down for a moment as she yelled back over her shoulder. She had almost forgotten that his bakery was on that particular corner. "Where else would I be going this early?"
"Oh, I have no doubt that you would go anywhere you wanted at any time in the day, Senorita," he responded with a wave as his son, Miguel, stepped out of the bakery wiping his hands on his green apron. Miguel waved also, a smile spreading across his tan face at the sight of her.
"I'll stop by tomorrow to see you!" Melanie shouted just as she turned down another corner of the alley.
The moment she made the turn she almost had the breath knocked out of her by the view. It was the same feeling that overwhelmed her every single summer the first time she took in the sight of the harbor and all of the magnificent sailboats and small fishing vessels that were dotted across the waters, some still joined to the dock. Sometimes she wished she had a way with words like a poet just so she would finally be able to get the right words out which did justice to the landscape.
Melanie was so captivated that she took a step forward into the main street without even thinking about it. The only thought on her mind was how it would feel to have the sea breeze on her face again after all of those months without it, as she dipped her toes into the rolling waves of the water. It was the sound of a loud screech and a woman's voice screaming that broke her out of what seemed to be a trance. Her heart was hammering against her ribcage as she spun toward the noise and barely had enough time to register the small car which was careening her way. It was as if the world slowed for a second and she was able to think clear enough to feel ironically about how the one day that she decided to leave her wand back at the house was the one day which she would need it more than ever before.
She didn't really know what happened the moment that everything sped up again. The car seemed to be a centimeter away from smashing into her when all of a sudden she felt a sharp pressure against her side and was overcome by the feeling of security as warmth washed over her, shielding her like a cocoon, and she was lifted off of the ground. The contentment was lost, however, as pain erupted in her head unexpectedly and all of the air left her lungs in shock.
There was a long pause of silence, either because she lost her hearing momentarily or because everyone who had been watching was just as surprised as she had been. It didn't last long, though, because only a few seconds passed before the street burst into a loud frenzy and a choked sound escaped her lips. Her head felt as though it had been bashed in and her arm, which was trapped underneath something, felt as if it had been torn from its socket. All Melanie could think, at first, was just how much it stunk that she was going to die before she could even lay a toe into the Mediterranean Sea again.
"You're alright," a voice said from directly above her as her arm was released from its prison. It was weird how a warm breeze seemed to flit across her forehead just as the words were spoken.
"I'm dead," she heard her own voice whisper in return without really thinking about it. "And I didn't even get to put my toes in."
"You're not dead," the same voice from before said, causing her to feel the breeze again. She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination or not, but she felt for sure that the mystery voice was slightly amused. "And you can put your toes in whatever the hell you'd like once you get up."
"Don't say that," Melanie said with a sigh, finally finding the confidence to lift her eyelids and blink into the sun. She almost had a heart attack when her eyes adjusted to the bright morning stream of sunlight again and allowed her to see clearly into another set of eyes. Instead of brown like hers, though, they were a brilliant shade of blue. Almost like the sky just after a huge rainstorm when all the clouds recede.
"That you can put your toes wherever?" the blue-eyed stranger asked with furrowed eyebrows.
"No," she said, shaking her head slightly before figuring out that that was a bad idea when another round of pain shot through her skull. "The H-word."
"Here, let me help you up," the stranger said –now, definitely amused- right before a weight was lifted off of her body and she was pulled up off of the ground by a strong hand on her own. The other hand seemed to engulf hers in its large hold and Melanie was extremely thankful that he was lifting her up by her good arm.
Standing up on her own two feet had never felt so awkward before. In fact, she couldn't remember ever feeling quite as uncomfortable as she was in that moment. After all, Melanie Bliss was normally very comfortable being in whatever surroundings that she was thrown into. She fit in with whatever crowd she met and generally was content in life. Right then, however, everything felt so off. The instant that the stranger's hand left her alone, Melanie fell forward unsteadily and seemed about ready to hit the ground again when two arms made their way around her waist and pulled her upright once again.
"Oops," she said with a breathless laugh, her hands sliding over those on her stomach as she put her feet in their proper place and made another effort to stand. This time, thankfully, it worked.
"There you go," her miraculous savior said, his voice deep and husky and very pleasant to listen to, Melanie decided.
She blinked up at him, her brown eyes bright due to the excitement of it all. She didn't really know what to say as her heart gradually began to slow in its furious rhythm and her breathing didn't seem just as shallow as it had been. She pushed her hair back off of her face as she looked up at him. He was really quite tall compared to her. His hair was dark blonde and was long enough to fall to his chin, yet it framed his face perfectly. This savior man was really quite handsome. Not at all Spanish, though.
"Thank you," she said finally, figuring that it was best to start with gratitude.
"No problem," he said quietly in return, his eyes looking her over carefully. "It's not in my nature to let someone get hit by a car."
"Good for you," she responded enthusiastically, before realizing how dumb she sounded and looking down at the ground. Her flip-flops were now covered in dirt and her ankle had a cut on it which was bleeding. What had happened to her piece of toast?
"I guess so," he said, his eyebrows furrowed like he was trying to piece together just what was so good about it. He was looking at her as if he'd never quite seen someone like her before.
"I'm Melanie Bliss, by the way," Melanie said, fidgeting from foot to foot as he just continued to stare at her like one would a puzzle. He seemed relaxed, though. So relaxed and indifferent that for a second she wondered how it was in his nature to care about anything at all.
"Tristan Knight," he responded after a few moments of awkward silence.
If only she'd known then how things would change.
AN: So, this has been in my head for a while now, but I held off on it since I've never done an OC/OC before. It's going to be somewhat of a side project, but I love the way it's going in my head right now so eventually it will be a main story. I'm sorry I've been off of the map for so long lately. I'm hoping to have a new update of BYS for everyone this week. Stay tuned and please remember to review! :D Thanks in advance.