Author's Note: FYI you should ALWAYS ALWAYS report it if you are mistreated/sexually assaulted at work or anywhere else. I am also renaming the story because the current one sounds like the title of a harlequin novel.

Thank you for reading and reviewing!

The next couple of days passed by without any further incidents. Something I was incredibly grateful for – it was once again all about the work I was doing, and the practical things I was learning as a secretary. While the cultural clash was sometimes overwhelming, like when the other secretaries started talking animatedly about celebrating the town's patron saint and the upcoming festivities in june, it was also very fascinating.

I was becoming very good at corresponding with some of the company affiliates and clients, and my use of the language was getting more and more fitted to my personality. That is, I no longer sounded like an automatic robot when I talked, my use of the language becoming more natural. I had a run-in with the landlord when he came to check on the pipes in the bathroom – having no time to explain to him that I kept a pet now before the pet in question started playing with his shoe-strings.

But other than muttering a bit about "american heroics" he left it at that.

Something else was however not quite like before.

Aro had not spoken to me at all since the incident. Even when we passed each other in the hallway with his brothers, or by himself – he wouldn't even look my way, purposfully ignoring me it seemed like. And if I saw him in the piazza around lunchtime, standing in the shade like usual, he would get up and leave if he saw me sitting down to eat there. I could not understand it.

Had I...disgraced them? Was that why he was suddenly so cold?

But that reasoning did not make sense, since they had themselves taken the blame for what happened. Not that he had really spoken to me all that much before, he was my boss after all and rather busy both day and night. It was just one of those things that you felt, like the warmth from the sun or the wind on your face. Not that it should matter to me, as long as I could keep my internship. And I could always count on Helen if I needed someone to talk to – so why did I feel so disappointed?

You're not supposed to be that close with your boss anyway. I mean, it happens but it is unusual.

One late afternoon, due to a combination of a peak in high temperatures and a siesta that never seemed to end, I was sent home from work earlier than usual. I decided to spend this extra time by calling Lana. I had promised to stay in touch, but I had only called her once or twice so far – and I knew she would only badger me and get moody if I didn't call her again soon.

As soon as I got home to the apartment, after putting on the AC as cold as it could get and making sure that all my windows and balcony doors were wide open, I plopped down on the couch and reached for my phone. I would also need to call my dad at some point. But this was enough for now.

Lana picked up after only the second ring, her voice loud and borderline obnoxious.

"Becca, finally – what the hell have you been up to over there?" she nearly screeched, and I rolled my eyes, walking out to sit on the balcony in order to cool myself off slightly. I had toed my shoes off and removed my jacket, rolling up the sleeves of my pale blue shirt. The sun was on the other side of the building now, leavig this side in the shade – not that it was that much cooler, but still.

I sat down on a pillow, my bare feet tucked to the side.

"You know already, I've told you. "

"Aha, yeah – but what about when you're not working? Seen the sighs yet?" she asked, and I nodded.

"Sort of, I've been to Florence but only once. I'm planning to go back there this weekend. But enough about me, how have you been doing?"

Lana made a noise which I knew meant that she was beyond bored.

"Ugh, its been hell – dad's put me on storage duty in the basement of his law firm. It's cold, damp and everything smells like mold. My only compensation is a free lunch and coupons for pizzahut."

"Sounds like fun."

"Yeah, it's been simply wonderful. I hope they pay you better over there though." Lana said, and I shrugged, since I wasn't actually given a salery as was the terms of an internship. But then, I thought about the apartment, the clothes...it was kind of strange when you thought about it, and it would sound stranger to someone who was given coupons.

"Oh, They give me things." I said, trying to sound as casual as possible.

"What kind of things?"Lana asked, sounding curious.

Oh nothing, just a full wardrobe, a satin dress and a necklace made out of real gold plus paying rent for an apartment worthy of royalty.

"The same as you I guess." I said. It was easier to lie than to try to explain to her how italian businesses worked. But she must have picked up on something.

"But you're having a good time right?"she asked, sounding like she was joking, but I knew her better than that. And it was a good question, especially considering what happened last week. But what I told her was the truth.

"Yeah, it's….good here, actually."

"Glad to hear it chica, but listen, I gotta run. But call me more often okay, or better yet, ANSWER for once when I call!"

I smirked at her slightly hysterical tone, knowing how she liked to pretend not to care but was actually the biggest softie on the inside.

"Okay, I promise. Talk to you soon."

With nothing else to really occupy my time for the moment, I was, for the first time since my arrival in Volterra, at a loss for what to do for the rest of my afternoon. I had already done most of my weekly laundry, and like I said to Lana, my trip to Florence would have to wait until the weekend.

It was too hot to go outside at the moment, which meant that i was basically stuck inside until the sun desecended from its peak. But I had never really gotten used to the idea of a siesta either – it felt strange to take a nap just like that in the middle of the day.

It was then that my eyes fell upon the book that Aro had given to me to read. The Time Machine was standing just where I left it, on the table next to the front door. It made me wonder what he saw in it that he thought that I would like – we didn't exactly know each other well, so why did he think that I would enjoy it?

Like I said before, I had tried to read it but gotten lost in the scientific terms and formal language. But with nothing else to do (except watch badly dubbed italian movies on tv) it seemed like a good idea to give it another try.

I went into the kitchen and filled up a glass with half orange juice/half water and added ice cubes from the fridge before I grabbed the book and went to sit on the floor of the balcony, my legs crossed and the book propped open on my lap.

And with that the Time Traveller began his story as I have set it forth. He sat back in his chair at first, and spoke like a weary man. At first we glanced now and again at each other. After a time we ceased to do that, and looked only at the Time Traveller's face…

I became so absorbed in the book that I was startled when I heard the church bells, ringing 6 times to announce that it was now evening. Huh, I had not expected the book to actually be that good.

Once I decided to skip ahead on the first chapter a bit, which was mostly just one long lecture about the specifics of time travel, the real story began. The time traveller (for he had no name in the book) recounted his journey into a distopian future, where he was not met by technological marvels or great geniuses like himself. Instead the world had crumbled, and the people divided and alienated from one another.

I had never read anything like it – not surprising, since I hadn't read many books.

I put it down when I heard the bells ring, and to my surprise I saw that I had finished more than half of it already. I hadn't even noticed the time passing. The land which the time traceller found himself in was extremely fascinating to me – how things had gotten so backwards.

Even though technology still existed, it was hardly used and anything organic had eaten it up. The time traveller found that humanity had evolved into two subspecies – the eloi and the morlocks. The eloi did not know how to speak, and went through life like it was a dream full of mist, while the morlocks were monstrous, frightening creatures that lived underground in caves. After many days, the time traveller discovered the awful truth – that one was food for the other.

After dinner I went out for my usual run, taking a familiar path as I took in the feeling of cooler air against my exposed skin. Remnants of the days heat still lingered, but it was a pleasant heat, one that made it easy to stay out all night without worrying about freezing. There had been many cold nights in Forks, and my nose and cheeks had always been red and my lips chapped. I heard cicadas singing in the grass as I ran, but it was a subdued kind of singing - as if the heat had been too much even for them.

Unlike Forks, when nighttime came here, the sky was well and truly black. Not a hint of blue or grey, and it wasn't orange-tinted due to pollution. Instead, there were several sharp dots of stars.

I ran past the only soccer field for miles around, which was always inhabited, be it day or night. A couple of teenagers were there now, laughing and practising by one of the goal lines. Only a nearby streetlamp lit up the field, bathing it in fluorescent yellow. I continued running, heading north even though there were almost no streetlights in this direction.

It took me a second to recognize the road, and where I was heading.

The trees are no longer green in the dark, but just as inky black as the sky. The fragrant smell of orange blossoms was the only indicator of what they were. I headed down a familiar, sloping hill. I could barely make out my own feet in the dark now, but still I kept on running. I was almost there.

When I arrived at the cliff, I stopped. Catching my breath, I sat down on the spot, my legs dangling off the side. Just like last time, there was nobody else here but me. I could hear the faint sound of cicadas in the distance, and the wind through the trees, but other than that it was completely silent. The quarry below was still the same, and I fought the urge to throw rocks into it, just to hear an echo. I sighed and stood up, my eyes not really fixated on anything around me. Why had I come here? There was nothing but dirt, dust and pieces of old metal. The nature was savage, and even though it was beautiful it also made me sad.

There was still blood on the rocks below from the cat I had rescued. I looked up.

On the other side of the quarry there were no roads, no streetlights and no sign of civilisation. Just a thick, vast forest. I continued to stare at it as I moved backwards, as if I was gearing up to jump across to the other side. Something strange was going on in my brain that I couldn't explain even if I wanted to.

That's when I felt it. Knew that I was no longer alone here.

"Rebecca."

I waited for a second before I turned around. Aro was standing a few paces behind me, the trees partly shrouding his appearance. But the difference was that the trees swayed in the wind, and he didn't move at all. For all intents and purposes, he looked like a statue that had been left here centuries ago. Then he walked up to me, cautiously, like he was afraid I'd run. I had no idea what he was doing all the way out here. He held out a hand towards me, the movement slow and almost theatrical.

His skin looked almost grey in the dark, and it almost looked like he was sick.

"I was on my way back, and I saw you standing here." he said, and I fought the urge to ask "Back from where?". I brushed dirt off my shorts, painfully aware that this was the first time he had seen me in unprofessional clothing. I crossed my arms over my chest as I approached him.

"I was just out on a run." I said, and he tilted his head, scrutinizing me.

"So late at night?" he asked, sounding almost mocking in tone.

"It helps clear my head, sometimes."

Aro nodded slowly, and he was standing close enough now that I could see him more clearly. His face was open to me now, and the cool disdain was gone. Instead there was something else, something much warmer.

"I understand."

And the strange thing was, I think he did. We began to walk back towards town, in silence at first, which was broken when he stopped abruptly on the deserted road to stare at me. His physical language was so odd, that I could never predict what he would say or do.

"I feel that I must apologize for my behavior this past week." he blurted out, and I frowned at him in confusion.

"Your behavior?" I asked as he looked away, fretting with his hands.

"I know that I haven't been...honest towards you about Nathaniel."

Just the sound of his name gave me shivers, and not the good kind. I continued walking, and so did he. It was quiet again for awhile.

"You don't have to explain anything." I said, but he just shook his head at me.

"But I do. You see, it grieves me deeply when a woman is mistreated - even more so when that woman in question think that it is their fault." Now it was my turn to stop, staring at him as a wide range of emotions hit me - anger being one of them. He stopped and looked back at me, not sorry at all.

"I know that it is what you think." he said, and after a long moment I continued walking beside him, but I no longer tried to keep the same pace. Instead my stride was getting more and more similar to the way I ran, so that it would be impossible for him to keep up. But somehow, he did anyway, without looking slighted at all.

"You wished that I had reported him." I said, looking straight ahead, knowing that I would not like his answer.

"I was sure you would, in fact."

I looked at him, knowing that I was making no attempt to remain professional about this. It was too personal anyway.

"And now you are what, disappointed?" I asked, daring him to look into my eyes. But he looked straight ahead, like he knew what I was thinking.

"I was at first, yes." he said easily, and by now I realized that it was impossible to shake him off. I stopped abruptly, my eyes boring into his. They were not my eyes, but that of the creature I left behind in Forks, who fought and clawed at people without sense or reason. I was closer to that creature now more than ever.

"Really. What changed your mind?" I asked, my voice hollow. Still, he did not get it. His mouth opened as if to answer, but he stopped when he saw my expression, his head tilting to the side like a curious dog.

"You sound angry." he said, his voice strangely filled with wonder. I rolled my eyes and continued on ahead without him down the road.

"Well, maybe that's because I am." I muttered, and I heard him sigh - though if it was with regret or not I don't know. I continued walking, not really caring if he followed me back or not. It was better that I was alone anyway, lest he see anything more.

But it had grown so quiet.

I turned around to look, and saw nothing but the dark, empty road behind me.