CHAPTER 3:
The morning sun shone through the blinds in the spare bedroom where Hermione lay peacefully. My eyes winced as I slowly awoke. I looked around at my surroundings. I slowly remembered where I was. I rubbed my eyes and stretched my arms. I had had a peaceful and long sleep. I was thankful and quite surprised at that. I arose from the bed and slowly got out. I glanced at the bedside table where a clock stood. It was nine o'clock. I grabbed my clothes that were on a chair near the bed and walked out of the room into the bathroom. I closed the door and pulled off Daron's shirt that I had been sleeping in. I put on my other clothes and looked in the mirror. I looked and felt much better then last night. I washed my face and ran fingers through my hair and put it in a ponytail. I glanced at the basin and saw my necklace; I smiled and walked out of the bathroom leaving it there. I found Daron in the gym area, doing weights. He was lying down and was pushing the weights above his head. The weight would have to been over 70kgs by the look of them. They were very big and I was amazed. He hadn't noticed me yet. I didn't really know what to do. Should I interrupt him or should I just leave him. Suddenly he stopped and put down the weights. He got off the bench and grabbed a near by towel. He looked very hot and sweaty and had his shirt off. He looked very attractive however. I was about to say something then he looked at me and said.
"Hey, there you are. I hope I didn't wake you up."
"Oh no I just finished getting changed." I replied smiling. Checking out his abs. He had a really good body. It was nice on the eyes.
"Cool. How did you sleep?" he asked looking into my eyes. I looked back into them and it only just occurred to me how nice his eyes were. They were piercing dark brown and really went well with his dark eyebrows and eyes lashes. His hair was a blondy brown colour. Which made his eyes stand out even more.
"Oh I slept great." I replied looking away, I didn't want him to know that I was checking him out. He smiled at me, I noticed and it made me feel uncomfortable. His smile was a happy and strong.
"So, ah...would you like some breakfast? Don't know about you but I am starved." He said putting the towel down.
"Yeah breakfast would be great. Oh and here is your shirt, thanks for letting me using it." I asked holding the shirt up slightly.
"Oh just dumb it anywhere. Doesn't matter." He replied putting on a shirt that was near where he had lifting weights. It was a white tank top, looked really good on him. He walked over to the kitchen and asked what I would like.
"Oh doesn't bother me, what are you going to have?" I asked.
"Don't know yet. How does toast sound?" he asked looking through the fridge.
"Sounds great" I replied.
"Cool. How many slices?"
"Two?"
"Great. I'll have four," he said grabbing the bread and taking out six slices. He put four into the toaster and said, "Ok the spreads are over there in that cupboard" pointing to a cupboard. I walked over and opened the cupboard "What do you want?" I asked looking at the spreads available.
"Oh get jam for me." He replied as the toast popped. I grabbed the jam and got honey out for me. I walked over and placed the spreads on the bench near where Daron was.
"Cheers" He said and placed the other two slices of bread into the toaster. He got two plates and put two pieces of toast on each one. "Here you go" he said in a cheery voice then added, "A knife is over there in that draw."
"Thanks" I replied and walked over to the draw he pointed at. I opened it and picked up a bread knife and walked over and grabbed the honey. I spread the honey on both slices of bread and wiped the knife on the crust of the bread. "Want to use this one?" I asked offering him the knife.
"Thanks" he said accepting the knife.
"So what time do you want me to drop you off?" he muttered.
"Oh what ever time suits you." I replied taking a bite of my toast. The toaster popped up and Daron took the bread out and piled it on plate. He spread the jam on the top one and took a bite. He looked at the time on the microwave and replied, "How's eleven?"
"Yeah, sure." I replied taking another bite.
"You can sit down if you want"
"Good idea" I said with a smile. I sat down in the same bar stool as I did the night before. Daron picked up the plate, jam and knife and placed them down opposite me, and leaned on the bench.
"So, do you remember the name of your hotel?" he asked before taking another bite of his jam-covered piece of toast.
"Yeah, it's the Castaway, not far from here, I think" I replied.
"Oh yeah I know where that is, yeah it isn't far from here. About ten minute drive"
I nodded. It was silent for a while; I decided to break the silence.
"Thanks again for all this" I said a little uncomfortable.
"Don't mention it. Its nice to have some company anyway." He replied with a smile.
I smiled back at him. I really wanted to say that I wanted to keep it touch, but didn't know how to say it. Just then as if he was reading my mind he said,
"You know we should catch up again some place. Have coffee or something." Daron said then added quickly "only if you want to of course."
"Yeah sounds good!" I replied enthusiastically. I hoped I hadn't been too enthusiastic.
"Great. Well don't let me forget to give you my number." He said finishing of his second piece of toast.
Once we had both finished breakfast it was around ten. I was sitting on one of the couches Daron had in his living room, looking through one of his magazines I had found lying on the couch. It was a magazine on outdoor activities. There were all kind of typical muggle type activities that I had never tried. Activities such as sky diving, bungee jumping, white water rafting, and snowboarding. As I was reading an article about extreme rock climbing, Daron came down and sat next to me.
"What you reading about?" he asked in his usual friendly voice. I showed him the magazine I was reading.
"Oh are you into that kind of stuff?" he asked.
"Well I haven't really done any of this kind of stuff. Looks really fun though" I replied.
"It is fun trust me. I love that kind of thing. You could say that I am a bit of a adrenaline junkie."
"Have you done this?" I asked, pointing to a picture of a man skydiving.
"Of course I have. Five times, and I have bungee jumped three times as well."
"Wow. You must really love this stuff then."
"Yeah I love the thrill of it. How about you?" he asked getting up.
"I have always wanted to try it, but never gotten around to it" I responded. Daron nodded. All of a sudden a phone rang. I jumped.
"Crap! Where's my phone?" he exclaimed as he started looking around frantically.
"You would think I would leave it in the same place all the time, wouldn't you?" he said searching under pillows of the couch. I giggled and said, "Is that your phone there?" pointing to the kitchen bench.
"Sure is," he said running over to it.
"Hello" he said as he picked up the mobile phone.
"Yep...sure. Ok be there in half an hour" he pressed a button and put the phone in his pocket. "Hey I am really sorry, but they need me to sign a few things at the office. Is it alright if I drop you off now?"
"Yeah that's fine," I said getting up. I walked over to the door and waited for Daron as he got a few things from his room. He walked over to the cupboard where he had hung my coat and grabbed it.
"Thank you" I said as he handed it to me.
"Ok let's go" he said opening the door.
Once we were in his car memories of the previous night were staring to come back to me. I tried ignoring them but the visions just wouldn't leave my mind. I started taking deep breaths as quietly as I could. I didn't want to embarrass myself in front of Daron. I was getting choked up and it was getting hard to swallow. I prayed that Daron wouldn't say anything to me, so I wouldn't have to speak. I looked out the window so that Daron couldn't see my face. Tears started forming in my eyes. I didn't know what was coming over me; I had done so well until now so why now? I tried to get a hold of myself. I tried as hard as I could to keep the tears from streaming out. Suddenly I heard Daron's voice.
"Sorry about this" he said. I just nodded. I felt so rude. I really wanted to say that it was all right but couldn't cause that would mean him hearing that my voice would be all choked up. I saw out of the corner of my eye that Daron was looking at me. I felt uncomfortable.
"Are you ok?" he asked. He spoke with a worried tone in his voice. I nodded again feeling humiliated. "Its all right" he said gently, just as he had said the night before. I nodded again as tears started streaming from my eyes. Daron didn't say anymore which I was thankful for. After about five minutes I started to feel much better, I looked straight ahead. Daron looked at me. He could tell I was feeling better.
"You ok?" he asked again, to check.
"Yes" I replied with a small smile, and then added "sorry, don't know what came over me."
"Don't be silly, there is nothing to be sorry about." He said as the car stopped at a set of traffic lights. "Oh that reminds me I have to give you my number."
"Yes you do" I replied smiling. He looked around the car and picked up, what looked like a business card.
"There we go. Has my business and mobile numbers on there." He said handing me the card.
"Thank you." I replied politely as we turned into a driveway.
"Well here we are." Daron said stopping the car outside the reception. I reached into my pocket and took out a clean tissue. I took a pen I found in the glove compartment of his car and wrote the hotel name, number and the number 24. I handed him the tissue.
"I am room twenty-four." I said. Daron smiled and took the tissue. I opened the door and got out of the car. Daron got out too. He walked over to me.
"Do you want me to walk you in?" he asked.
"I'll be right." He nodded and smiled glancing at the ground.
"Thanks for everything. I don't know how to repay you." I said.
"Don't mention it." Daron replied then added shyly "I am really glad I met you."
"I am really glad I met you," I said in response. We were both staring into each others eyes for what seemed ages. Suddenly Daron broke it.
"Well um I better be off." He said rather uncomfortably.
"Yeah ok" I said replied. I didn't know what else to say. I watched him get into the car. I waved at turned around and walked in the direction of the reception. Daron turned on the engine and watched me walk in, his eyes scanning up and down my body.
"Wow" he muttered to himself. He sighed and drove off in the direction of his office place.
As I walked into my hotel room, it only just occurred how shabby the room was. Maybe it was because I was comparing it to Daron's apartment. I missed Daron already. I couldn't believe it, considering it hadn't even been two minutes since the last time I had seen him. I didn't know whether it was because he was the only friend I had in New York, or was it because I had fallen in love with him. Was it possible to fall in love with a guy you haven't even known for twenty-four hours? I didn't know. Maybe I was so desperate to find someone to love. All the guys I had dated had only liked me for one thing. I could tell Daron wasn't like the other guys I had dated in the past. I just had a feeling that he was the one. The feeling came deep inside me. I sat down on the bed and lay down. I put my hand in the pocket of my pants and took out his business card. I put it on the bedside table. I rubbed my neck and remembered the necklace. I smiled. The whole purpose of leaving the necklace there was so that I would see him again. I hoped that he would find it and call. And if I know him like I think I do then he will call, being the person that he is.
Daron opened the door to his apartment. He dropped his keys on the kitchen bench and looked at the time. Nearly eleven.
"Bloody work," he muttered. He emptied his pockets and found the tissue with Hermione's number on it. He carefully placed it on the bench also. He walked into the bathroom to face his face. He turned on the tap and took a handful of water and splashed it on his face. He wiped his face on the hand towel and looked at himself in the mirror. He glanced down at the basins reflection in the mirror. That's when he saw the necklace. He picked it up and held it in his hand. He walked out and sat down at the kitchen bench where he and Hermione had eaten dinner and breakfast together. He put his hand on the phone and tissue and dragged them over to where he was sitting. He put the necklace on the tissue. He looked at the phone, tissue and necklace and ran his hand through his hair. When should he call? Right now, tomorrow. Or should he wait until she calls asking for it? He didn't know what to do. He decided to leave it make up his mind later. He walked over to the exercise bike. He got on and started pedaling. Thoughts ran through his mind. He remembered how upset Hermione was after it happened and how upset she was this morning. It made him angry to think, that such a horrible thing could happen to such a nice person. This made him pedal faster and harder. He suddenly felt bad. What if she was upset right now, and needed someone? She would have no one to talk to. No one to keep her company. Maybe he should call and see how she is. He looked at the clock of the bike display in front of him. It was ten past eleven. He decided he would call at after lunch to see how she is and to tell her about the necklace. He realised that he missed her a lot. Was it because he finally found someone he shared a lot in common with and had really in enjoyed the company of, or was it because he had fallen in love with her? He was confused. Was it possible to fall in love with a person you had barely known for less then twenty-four hours? This question ran through his mind. He stopped pedaling and got of the bike. He lay on the couch and stared into space. Thoughts were going through his mind at a mile a minute. Hermione was like no one he had ever met before. She had a personality he could relate to. She was beautiful and had a smile that couldn't leave his mind. He couldn't stop thinking about her and missed her when he wasn't with her. Was all this possible to feel this about a person he hadn't even known for a day. It obviously was, cause he was feeling it. He knew he wouldn't be able to rest unless he called her. So that's what he decided to do.