"I believe we haven't really gotten to know each other, have we? So why not start now?"

I looked up from my cup of ice-blended passion fruit juice to his obsidian eyes. Silence had hung in the air between us when we first took our seats, and it was extremely awkward for me. I mean, how would it not be for me? I'm sitting in front of an extremely hot guy in a small and quiet cafe with some sappy love song playing on the cafe radio while the nosey cashier kept giving me googly eyes and winking, which the hot guy in front of me thankfully did not notice.

I cleared my throat and straightened up in my seat as Aiden said, "Let's start with you."

Raising an eyebrow, I asked, "Me? What do you want to know about me?"

Tracing a finger on the rim of his cup of espresso, he replied, "Anything. Anything about you can interest me."

I bit my bottom lip and twiddled my thumbs. What exactly can I tell this intriguing stranger? It has to be something that's relevant.

"I like flowers," I blurted out, and immediately began to regret it. Seriously? Of all the things I could say first, I had to say that? I must have looked so stupid! As punishment, my teeth at the side of my mouth clamped down on the tongue. I didn't care if I was hurt.

Aiden smiled, and I clamped my teeth on my tongue down even more. If I put too much force, I could be able to draw blood.

"I thought so," he murmured. I furrow my eyebrows and looked at him quizzically.

"Your name," he said slowly, his eyes concentrated on mine. "It says a lot. Spring - the time the flowers start to bloom after the harsh, cold winter months. Just the very mention of the word 'spring' brings a smile to everyone's face, because its beauty is so great."

I widened my eyes and blinked. Wow. That was… impressive.

And so very flattering.

Just then, I saw a faint blush forming on his cheeks and he laughed nervously as he ran a hand through his already-tousled black hair. I smiled to myself, thinking about how cute and boyish he looked right now.

"You must think I'm talking mindlessly," he muttered with a small smile. "But I'm not."

I shook my head. "No, no," I protested. "I don't think you're talking mindlessly. That was beautiful, actually. And very charming."

I leaned in and rested my forearms on the table, grasping my hands tightly together. "I work at a flower shop," I said in order to continue the conversation.

"You're a florist, huh? Why does that not surprise me," he chuckled. "Which one?"

"There's only one flower shop in the entire Heatherton," I explained to him as matter-of-fact. "And it's called 'Flowers of Spring'."

"After you?" he questioned with an amused smirk.

I giggled and nodded my head. "Yes. My mother named it after me."

He then cocked an eyebrow at my response and asked me, "What's your mother's name?"

I didn't know whether to answer him at first. My mother was my own business. But then again, I told him quite a number of things that could be deemed as 'personal information'. Besides, it was just her name.

"Demi," I answered. "Demi Korey."

I wasn't so sure at first, but I could have sworn that Aiden's lips suddenly turned into a grimace at the mention of my mother's name. I was curious to know why. Did he hate the way it sounded? Or was it something else?

Before I could think any further, a plate with a toasted sandwich appeared before my eyes, and I pulled back in shock. I didn't notice it until now that I've been leaning in quite close to him.

I looked up at the intruder, and immediately frowned at the sight of Henrietta's eager eyes.

"Here you are, Spring! Your Panini sandwich," she exclaimed in a tone that was too happy for my taste. She placed the plate on the table in front of me before turning to Aiden. "Is there anything I can get you?" she asked with a wide grin.

He smiled at her politely and shook his head. "No. But thank you."

Henrietta then flashed him one more smile before flashing another one to me. While Aiden replied with a smile in return, I glared in response.

"She's quite a preppy one, isn't she?" I heard him comment amusingly while I continued to glare at the cashier. I rolled my eyes and turned to look back at him. "Preppy? Please..." I said mockingly.

He chuckled in response, and then kept silent as he watched me eat. Normally, with a Panini sandwich, I would have chomped it all in one go. But with him here, I felt the need to act classy and womanly because I wanted to make a good impression on him, so I resorted to cutting the sandwich into little pieces with a knife and fork and eat it bit by bit.

"And how about you?" I suddenly ask when I swallowed another mouthful of Panini. He raised an eyebrow in question. "What about me?" he asked.

"What are your hobbies?" I asked. "Your likes? Your dislikes?"

He scratched his head as he thought about it. "I have many hobbies," he said blankly. "I have many likes and a few dislikes."

Okay. Not the answers that I was expecting. But I'll take it.

"You said you were here for business," I stated, remembering that little detail. "What sort of business?"

"Private business," he answered immediately, but almost sharply. It was as though he was trying to insinuate that I was getting a bit nosey. I immediately felt awkward, and almost bad. I bit the inside of my cheek as another act of punishment.

But I was then caught off guard by a ringing that was coming from my bag. My phone was ringing.

Hurriedly, I rummaged through the bag, taking out various objects and putting it on the table. When my fingers finally made contact with my phone, I pressed the 'ANSWER' button on the screen and brought it to my right ear.

"Hello?" I answered. Nobody replied. "Hello?" I asked again. But this time, whoever it was on the other end immediately cut off the call.

"Hmph. Probably a mistaken dial," I muttered under my breath as I chucked the phone back into my bag. I also kept in the other stuff back before I set the bag aside and looked at Aiden.

He was looking at something in his hands with pure concentration. I looked at it, and immediately recognised the back cover of one of my Greek myth books.

"You read Greek mythology?" he asked in a curious tone, his eyes trailing up from the book to look at me.

I nodded my head. "I like it. It's an interesting topic."

I expected him to give me back the book then. But instead, he turned the book to the front and cracked it open to a random page. I watched as his eyes focused on the words and he absorbed what he was reading, frowning in complete concentration.

"Do you read Greek myths?" I asked to break the silence. I was beyond surprised when he nodded.

"From time to time," he said. "What's your favorite myth?"

That was definitely an easy one.

"The myth of the seasons. The story of Hades and Persephone."

He then looked up at me and a big smile played on his lips. "No way," he said, completely astonished. "I like that story too."

My eyes widened in amazement. I would never have expected a guy like him to like Greek myths, let alone the story of Hades and Persephone. I felt struck by Zeus' lightning bolt in complete awe as I gazed into his excited black eyes.

"Why do you like it?" I asked him with pure, honest curiosity. I wanted to know what made him like the story, and what his own personal opinions of it were.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I just do. When I first read it, it kind of got stuck in my mind."

"And what did you think about it?"

"Please elaborate."

"What was your own personal belief? What did you think of Hades, of Persephone or of what Demeter did?"

The corner of his lips jerked up, and he asked, "Quite eager are you?"

I felt warm in the face and again, I did not notice that I had leaned in closer to him. I pulled away and ate another mouthful of Panini. When I swallowed, I sipped at my fruit juice before looking back at him. I was well-aware of the fact that his eyes stayed on me the whole time.

He looked at his entwined hands blankly while I remained mum. He then took a deep breath before he spoke.

"I feel that maybe it was abduction, honestly. But I think something good did come out of it. Sure, Hades may be the 'dreaded' Lord of the Underworld, but he's not really evil. Besides, the Underworld is cut off from the rest of his family on Mount Olympus, and maybe he does get lonely sometimes. I think when he first saw Persephone, he felt love for the first time, and he knew that he needed her in his life."

He paused to take a sip of his coffee before continuing.

"For Persephone, I have a feeling that she may have hated Hades in the beginning. You were taken away from the world you loved so suddenly. Of course you'll get mad. But I think she came to fall in love with him, and that's what made her eat the pomegranate seeds. I don't think Hades tricked her to do so. And also, I think the children, Macaria, Melinoe and Zagreus, were all Hades' children by Persephone alone. And she had them willingly."

Then, looking out the window, he continued on.

"As for Demeter, maybe she did have some reason to get upset. But she had to learn to let go someday. She had to accept the fact that Persephone is grown and married. Unfortunately, I don't think that day came. Even until now."

I cocked my head to the side. "What makes you say that?"

He shrugged again and said, "I have a feeling."

I kept quiet, absolutely stunned by his speech. He spoke of my favourite myth couple with so much depth and passion. I couldn't help but be swayed. Who knew how long he took to ponder over these questions.

"Hey, Aiden?"

He looked over to me.

With a smile, I said, "I think we'll get along just fine."

The only response I got from him was a smile.

Author's Note:

This is a filler chapter. Right now, I'm in the process of processing enough ideas for the next chapter. I think it won't be long before we get to the center plot.

But whatever it is, I hope you really enjoy it. If you are anxious to know the plot, I'm sorry, but you have to bear with the wait until it finally comes the day.

Muse of Fanfiction