Chapter 2: Him Again

Sea mist brushed my red bangs past my face and made them tickle my neck. The tiny speck of land that was enlarging every moment the boat went forward was Flower Bud Village. I smiled as another gust of ocean wind whipped around me. It made my ponytail sway and flick behind my head.

I heard footsteps behind me and I knew who it was. "What did Zack say, Cliff?"

Cliff walked next to me and leaned against the railing of the boat. "He said about one hour and we'll be there."

"Great, I can't wait to see the kids again."

He smiled, making his chocolate brown eyes sparkle. "You really love to teach, don't you?"

"Of course I do, the kids make it all worth it…" I said, smiling at the spot of an island. He chuckled at my dreamily daze.

"I can see that…" He sighed and looked out at the island along with me. "What made you want to teach?"

I smiled again. "The children, they have so much enthusiasm and such vivid imaginations. It's so fun to work with them…"

He nodded. "Alright, I'm not so good with kids."

"Why?"

He shrugged. "You know how some people seem to automatically know how to deal with kids?" I nodded. "It's like they got some sort of memo… well, I guess I never got one."

I laughed. "Oh, I'm sure you'll get it eventually."

"Yeah… but what would I do if I'm a dad one day…and I don't know how to talk to my own kid?" I saw some worry in his face and I gave him a hug.

Cliff looked down at me and the corner of his mouth turned up. I looked up and gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't… Don't worry about it at all, Cliff. You'll get it."

He looked wary. "Think so?"

I nodded and laughed. "I'm positive! Do you remember Elena and Katheryn?" He nodded. "They loved you, you know that?"

He raised an eyebrow and smirked. "T-They did?"

"Are you kidding me? Their mom called me and told me that you were all they were talking about for days!"

"R-Really?" His voice sounded happy and hopeful.

I nodded vigorously. "Yes! They absolutely adored you! Especially Elena…"

He cocked his head. "Elena?"

"Yeah." I told him, remembering. "She said you were really nice and brave for helping her sister."

He was smiling now. "W-Wow…"

I gave a soft smile. "See?" Cliff was grinning now. "Don't sell yourself short, Cliff. They positively adored you!"

"Thanks Eve." He said.

"Don't thank me, thank the memo!"

He laughed; I loved that laugh. When I first met him, it was a shy, meek laugh. I liked that laugh too, but this laugh was even better. Now, it would boom! I smiled as Cliff's laughter continued.

It died down and he grinned at me. I gave a shy smile back and then looked to see Flower Bud was now only a few hundred feet away. Cliff grabbed my wrist and we ran to the back of the boat to grab our bags. When we ran back to the front with our belongings, there were villagers smiling and waving at us from the pier; we waved back.

The boat hit the side of the dock with a soft thud. I yelled a 'thank you!' up to Zack then Cliff and I ran to the stairs leading to the wooden pier.

When we came down, the children of the Flower Bud villagers ran up to me, saying the same things. "Where were you?" "We missed you!" "Who's he?" "Are you teaching us again?"

I laughed. "Okay, okay! Just let me-"

I was cut short when all of the sudden they tackled me to the ground, showering me with hugs. Cliff laughed. "Need some help?"

I laughed, too. The kids giggled and shrieked with pleasure. "I'm fine!" I managed to yell out.

The kids finally released me and we all stood up, breathless with our laughter. I fixed my bangs that were messed up and falling in my face. "Alright… I missed you guys, too." I told the children. "Yes, hopefully I'm here to teach you again."

They all screamed with delight. Cliff watched me as I gave the kids hugs again.

Without warning, a bone-crushing hug brought sucked the air right out of me. I gave a tiny yelp as a familiar bandanna-clad friend welcomed me. "Welcome back Eve!"

I laughed. "That's… great… can I… breathe now?" I squeaked.

A brown-haired girl giggled. "Daddy! Don't hurt Miss Eve!"

Joe let me down and laughed. "Sorry, Jodi! Can't I just give my old friend a hug?"

I laughed. "Not if it involves suffocating me!"

He smirked. "I guess you forgot how to escape my death grip!"

I rolled my eyes and laughed again. Cliff came next to me. "Oh, Joe, this is-"

"Cliff! Nice to see you again!" Joe said, shaking his hand.

I looked at them with surprise. "You know each other?"

Cliff shook his head and smiled at me. "I met him the last time I was here in Flower Bud."

Joe nodded. "Yeah, he came into the workshop asking for directions to the school!"

I smiled. "Oh, that's cool. I'm glad you guys already know each other!" Cliff smiled down at me and I smiled back, and then looked at the villagers. "Listen, I got to head back to my parents house and unpack. What time are we having the meeting tomorrow?"

Gwen came over to me with a cocky grin. "About 2 in the afternoon, is that good?"

I nodded. "Sounds great!"

The villagers each gave me a different greeting, welcoming me and Cliff to the town and asking when Gray would be arriving. We gave them the answers and finally… we were left alone on the dock.

Cliff beamed down at me. "That was great, everyone seemed so happy to see you back."

I smiled shyly. "I-I lived here remember?"

I felt my cheeks blush a little under Cliff's gaze. He smiled at my flustered appearance. "Still shy?"

My cheeks got hotter. "M-Maybe a little…"

He chuckled. "I still like it." I giggled and he grinned again.

"Do you think after we unpack, can I go to the library?" Cliff saw my hopeful look and sighed.

"You've been reading so much lately, why more?"

I sighed dreamily. "Books are amazing! They take me anywhere I want to!"

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess I've never been much of a reader…"

I smiled. "I've always been the bookworm… our whole group has. We'd go to the library everyday and read for hours… it was great."

He grinned at my faraway look and laughed. "Fine, fine. You can go… What am I going to do?"

I laughed. "Why not a trip to the mountains? It's really a beautiful sight up there."

"Yeah… yeah, that does sound good." He said looking up at the sky.

I smiled shyly and save him a soft kiss on the cheek. He looked sort of dazed for a moment, he put his hand on his cheek where I kissed it and a corner of his mouth turned upwards. A blush spread over his cheeks and on mine.

After another timid smile and I turned to skip away. After a few silent seconds, I heard Cliff's footsteps speeding up behind me. I waited for him to catch up and he wrapped his arm around my waist and we walked down the cobble-stone road to my parents' house.

Maria sat quietly at her desk, looking over another book as I rummaged through the rows upon rows of books. I felt like I was in heaven! I slid out a random book with a deep green covering and touched the course fabric. What words do you have for me, little book?

It said nothing, obviously, but still. I smiled, remembering my past times here in the library. They were so care-free back then… I opened the first page and was about to read when the doors to the library opened. A husky voice was heard.

"Where is she?!" My throat went dry and my heart seemed to beat harder.

Maria spoke softly. "Who are you talking about?"

"Eve! Where is she?!" Please, for the love of Goddess, don't…

"Why, she's here somewhere, looking for a book…"

Footsteps were heard going down each aisle, getting closer and closer to mine. I turned and ran, being careful not to let… him see me.

I ran out of the library as fast as I could, not giving poor Maria an explanation. Without thinking or resting, I finally stopped in front of the Sunny Lake. I breathed heavily for a few moments and then stared out at the deep blue waters. I felt a course feeling in my hand and looked down. In my petite hand was the deep green book I had grasped before running away from the library.

A voice came out from the silence. "Eve?"

I looked up and saw Cliff jogging over to me. I smiled at him. "Hello Cliff…"

"Are you alright?" He asked looking me over with a concerned looked. "What's wrong?"

"N-Nothing…" I stammered.

He seemed wary. "… Eve, you can tell me…"

"I-I'm fine, Cliff…"

Cliff's face softened. "Y-You sure?"

I nodded timidly. "Y-Yeah…"

A corner of his mouth turned up. "Okay… if you say so…"

I smiled shyly. "I'm sure… d-don't worry about me, Cliff…"

He put his hand underneath my chin. "Shall we go back to your parents' home?"

"S-Sure… Let's go." He looked wary again, but put his arm around me and we went back.

I-It was him… I know it was… w-why would he come back? Can't he just leave me alone? W-Why…?

DUN-DUN-DA-DUN!!!! Who is it? ...Nobody knows... ooooooh...