guess what? its me Z-A-K updating this...yes, my laptop suddenly recognised my network! let's hope this continues. Thanks to Susan who selflessly updated my writing all this time.

and Thanks a bunch to all those who read or review Matchmaking! I love you!

Chapter 13

Is 13 unlucky?

He looked at the source of the voice with a scowl. There stood a young woman with untidy darkest brown hair and a tired face. She was wearing a long, green overcoat cum jacket, navy blue jeans and black 'n' green converse shoes. Her hair was...well it was differently arranged. It looked like she had got out of bed and just put a rubber band around it to make some sort of ponytail, which was most probably what had happened.

As soon as Kai looked at her she smiled brightly and said, "You see I remembered just now that I haven't eaten a single thing from dinner last night. And the thought made me frightfully hungry."

She sat down still giving that huge smile, absent mindedly. Kai opened his mouth but then deciding to ignore her completely, he went back to pretend-read the newspaper. The woman addressed the waiter, "I want orange juice and let me see (scanning the menu) 2 chocolate muffins. That's all for now. What are you going to order?"

Kai gave a grunt as he realised the last part was directed at him, "Scotch."

As the waiter went away SILENCE reigned. "Stop staring at me," Kai said in a dangerous voice. "Oh. I am not staring at you. Why should I? I am reading about Real Madrid's win. Ahhhh, Ronaldo is so amazing," replied the woman.

Kai looked taken aback. He turned the newspaper and checked what she said. "My name is Diana Greene. Yours?" Diana asked. Kai wanted to say buzz off but somewhere the dam of his thoughts which had taken quite a beating today, broke. He wanted to empty his heart and let go for once. Kai wanted to be anything but himself just now. He wanted to not let people judge him of his name. "Allen Carter," he lied.

"I see," said Diana smiling. "I am a mythology researcher. An assistant professor. I find teaching boring so I took the writing job at Copper University. I travel to different places and write about the various myths prevalent there. As soon as my preparatory course gets over I can go to Russia. We were given options but I chose Russia because its so mysterious, situated at one corner of the map."

Kai found himself smiling at her blabber. He found himself answering to her questions, though not very truthfully. He was a bank owner to her, for instance. He couldn't tell her his real credentials because he was afraid of producing a reaction that people usually gave him.

"So, what is the problem?" asked Diana suddenly. Kai knew that all the conversation had been for this question. "Nothing," he said disinterestedly. "I won't tell anyone but I think it's something to do with your job?" she changed her tone to questionary (is that even a word?) at the end.

Kai smiled, "You are very nosey." But a lump in his throat stopped him from continuing. He looked into Diana's bright understanding eyes and out came his story. All he had to do was keep in his mind to substitute real names for fake ones and keep reminding himself that he was a bank owner. In turn he got to know about Diana. She was crazy, everyting she did was crazy. She had weird habits like absent mindedly carrying a pen in hand, seeing anime, and forgetting nearly everything. She was so outspoken and frank and at the same time she was highly sensitive too. She was childish and whatever she said was exactly what she thought. She found history the most exciting subject in the world. "Stop," Diana motioned. Kai stopped his glass of scotch midway. "Why? What happened?"

"You shouldn't drink alcoholic drinks," said Diana disapprovingly.

"Are you kidding me? Which century do you live in?" Kai asked.

"Never you mind that. Here, try my chocolate muffin its far better," Diana implored. Kai had never particularly liked chocolate because he never tried it. At the Abbey you were given healthy stamina building food. "Try it with orange juice," Diana suggested. Kai did. It tasted heavenly.

Diana got up exclaiming, "I totally forgot the time. I am very late. Gotta go."

"Didn't you say you didn't have anything from last night? You just had a muffin. Aren't you hungry?" Kai asked.

Diana replied, "Not anymore and remember to apologise to your friends. Nicely."

"Why are you so worried about me?"

"Because,"Diana smiled, "I can't bear to see people helpless and you never know which good deed may guarantee a berth in heaven."

"You believe in these things," Kai enquired making a face. "Course. Try praying at night. It helps." With that and a wave she was gone. Kai got up some time later and exited. A waiter came running after him. "Sir, you left your pen."

"No. It isn't mine," Kai replied resuming his sour attitude. "Then it must be your wife's, " the waiter stammered giving Kai the pen and a paper wedged in its cap.

Kai gave him a death glare under which the waiter withered, apologising.

Kai walked away and opened the paper, recognising the pen as Diana's. It was just a sentence.

Don't lose hope, Hiwatari. -Greene :)

Nope that's not a typing mistake or something in the last line! and I hope you guys don't start disliking Diana because there should be no reason for it...

anyway, DO REVIEW!