Stepping off the plane, Robert was feeling unusually hazy. He took this flight all the time and never had he felt this bizarre.
The air was crisper, the sunlight was brighter, and the sounds were sigificantly louder.
He walked thorugh the airport to the baggage terminal and from where he was standing he could see the man from the plane who'd known about his father's death. He made eye contact, and nodded his way, out of ettiquette.
It wasn't until Robert turned his head back around that he saw the girl. She was one of the most beautiful girls he'd ever seen.
She was simple: her hair was brown, matte and plain, but Robert, even from here could see the hidden golden streaks, all natural, and delicate.
Her features were soft, rounded,so sweet. Except for her chin.
Her chin was pointed, perfectly downward, framing her sharply puckered lips.
Robert's heart started to flutter, and he took a deep breath in.
His bag made its way to him, before the beautiful girl had gotten hers. He quickly picked it up and strode eagerly toward her.
He stopped a few feet away and left his bag. Stepping closer to her, he said, " What a flight, eh?"
The girl turned abruptly. " Yes, I guess it was." She smiled at the man standing infront of her.
Robert asped, and was taken aback by her beauty upclose.
Her eyes weren't just brown, they were melted gold with flecks of green and slivers of light infused in them.
"You live here?" Robert choked on the words as they made their way out of his mouth.
"Yeah, I was studying in Paris, but I'm home for the summer." She nodded and gave this young man a once over.
He was wearing a dapper looking suit, his tie and dress-shirt accenting eachother perfectly.
When she examined his face, she was in awe instantly.
His eyes were liquid light; the bluest she'd ever seen. His cheek bones were imaculate and everything about him, head to toe, lured the girl in.
"Robert Fisher, Jr." Robert extended his hand to the girl.
"Ariadne Jones." She shook his hand. "Wow, strong grip." She smield, attempting to flirt, although, she needn't try to hard. She could see that Robert was very attracted to her, and she could feel the sexual tension building.
"What are your plans right now, Ariadne Jones?"
"I was gonna go grab some coffee..." Ariadne left the end of her sentence hanging, an open invitation.
"D'you mind if I accompanied you?"
"Not at all."
Conveniently, Ariadne's bags appeared around the conveyor belt again and she grabbed them this time, and the young pair made their way to the nearest Starbucks.
They ordered and when Ariadne tried to pay, Robert laid his hand gently on hers, pushing it away.
"It's on me. I can't let the pretty young lady pay."
Though his flattery was cheesey, Ariadne felt herself blush.
Ariadne had just spent a ridiculous amount of time in a dream with this man, and he didn't know it.
Her and the team had just influenced his most recent decision to overtake his late father's buisness empire.
Robert recognized her face from the first class section on the plane, though he'd been too tired to notice her before.
He led her to an empty seat and chivalrously pulled out the chair behind her.
"Thank you, Robert."
"So Paris, eh? Studying what, you never said." He sat opposite her and sipped his latte as he listened intently to every word, and watched her every movement.
"Architecture." She smiled proudly.
"Wow." Robert's eyes widened. "So, you're good then?"
"I'd like to think so. I mean, I was accepted from a selection of International Students. We have to be specially gfted. So I guess I am... Here, let me show you." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small sketch pad and a felt pen. "I'll draw you a maze in one minute, that will take you two minutes to solve." She smiled slyly, and dropped her pen to the paper.
Robert watched as her fluid movements made swift, yet precise lines on the paper.
Surely enough, when she'd finished, it had taken Robert 2 full minutes to finish the maze.
"Amazing," he muttered. "Do you have any sketches with you? I'd love to see." He asked hopefully.
Ariadne studied him for a moment; he seemed genuinely interested.
He wasn't asking his questions to seem interested then get her into bed with him later, he actually cared about her intrests.
Though they'd only just met, he showed promise.
Enthralled, Ariadne dug into her carry-on and pulled out her sketch pad: leather bound and beautifully engraved on the cover.
"This one, is my latest." Ariadne opened the book to a page decorated with a beautiful bridge. It's lines of suspension were symetrical and correctly positioned, and behind it, there was the skyline; littered with buildings. The detail, though minimal, was perfect. Robert's awe was expressed as he reached for the book.
"May I?"
"Of course." Ariadne handed it to him and watched his eyes light up as they scrutinized the drawing.
"And you know this bridge well?"
"I cross it every morning on my way to school. One day, I had nothing to do for the afternoon, so I walked to the park atop the hill and started to draw the landscape before me. It was beautiful."
"It is beautiful, Ariadne. This is amazing." His fingers grazed down the page.
"This one," Ariadne leaned forward, her hair falling from behind her ear, and flipped the pages of her sketch book." , is my favourite." She sat back down, sending a breeze of her scent Robert's way. He breathed in and smelled her for the first time.
She smelt of cherries, and vanilla. He'd never been very fond of cherries (in fact, he hated them), his scent was the most delectable thing he'd ever smelt.
He knew immediately that he needed her in his life, not just for a fling or a couple nights.
After his lapse, Robert looked down at the picture she'd turned to.
It was a finished portait of the Louvre. The detail of the surrounding courtyard, and the pyramid itself was stunning.
Her perception of depth and dimension was unfathomable; it looked more like a black and white photograph then it did a drawn picture.
"Wow." Robert's jaw had dropped, and his eyes flitted around the picture, not knowing what to look at first.
"It was an assignment." Ariadne sipped her Vanilla Bean and watched him take in her artwork.
In the last 10 hours, she'd seen him slee, cry, be angry, feel betrayed, and smile, but seeing him now, up close and personal, made her start to fall in love with him.
At this though she frowned slighty. Already? She though. This fast? That never happens.
"You're amazing, Ariadne." Robert closed the book and handed it back to her. She met his eyes and saw that they were intentionally smouldering her.
Robert was trying not to show Ariadne how quickly he was falling for her, but he sensed that she felt the same, and his passion couldn't contain itself.
"Where are you staying tonight?" Robert asked before Ariadne could thank him for the compliment.
"I'm not sure, I was just going to hit up a motel, I guess."
Robert gasped, appauled. "A motel? No, no, no."
"Well where else am I suposed to go?" Ariadne sipped her coffee again and laughed at his disapproval.
"You'll come with me, and stay at the Hilton... Well, you won't be with me, I'll get you your own room... I just meant..." He tripped over himself.
"I know. I understand. and thank you, so much. That's very kind of you." She reached across the table as she said this and layed her soft hand across the top of his.
He looked down at their hands and riskyly closed his hand, squeazing her fingers, essentially holding her hand.
Oh no, maybe I'll scare her off! First I buy her coffee and the I insist that I buy her a hotel room. She is going to think I'm a crazy person.
As he paniced mentally, waiting for her response, Ariadne gently, though noticably, squeazed his hand back.
Robert stopped mid-panic attack and his eyes darted to hers.
They both smiled and conclusively knew that this was going to work out.