SHE

SHE
 “You win.”
The two worded text immediately tells me it is from Richard, I wrack my brain to find out what that meant and how he got this new number, but I am distracted by the flash of Connor’s camera. Blinking up from the phone screen, I look up at him with a tight smile, he had been doing that all day, after we decided that my status as an actress doesn’t matter, we fell into random small talk.
 “Connor... isn’t that enough pictures?” I smile nervously, my eyes looking around, in case someone else noticed the constant flash going off and know who I was.
“Never, there’s only so much words that I could use to describe you, but not with pictures, they scream on the top of their lungs, with words of endless praises, just how beautiful you are.”
 I swoon, who wouldn’t? That was very beautiful and moving, so moving that my hands drop from my face, smiling at him, but he was staring at the pictures of me he had taken.
 “Extraordinary.” he whispered to himself, a smile of awe on his face as he swiped through.
I chuckle. willing him to look at me, but his eyes remain glued to the pictures.
 “You are so lucky, your boyfriend keeps taking pictures of you, and is actually mesmerized by you.” A girl from the neighboring booth tells me with a sigh.
 My eyes immediately fall on the table, so she didn’t recognize me,
“He is not my boyfriend.” I say with a nervous chuckle, my eyes looking up briefly to find Connor’s, the conversation was loud enough for him to hear, so he should have said something about the boyfriend comment, but he doesn’t, he keeps staring at the pictures.
 “Really? I am jealous. We should swap.”
I chuckle breezily, putting an end to the conversation, I didn’t need her to realize who I was, it would be worse than a headache.
 I take a sip from the hot chocolate I ordered earlier, it had gone warm, the strawberry cake tasted weird, so I stop after the first bite. The flash goes off again, and that was it.
 “Connor? I have to go.”
He finally looks away from the camera, blinking at me from behind his glasses, his mouth forming a perfect O.
 “You have a shoot? That can’t be helped... can I drop you off?”
I shake my head, 
“No, it’s fine. Thank you for today Connor.”
I start to get up, he gets up with me, swallowing,
“I had a fun time today, can we do it again?”
I cock my head to the side, trying to understand the man in front of me,
 “Are you asking me out to another date?”
Two red spots appears on either sides of his cheeks,
“I mean... if you want to, the pictures would have to be developed, so I can give them to you.” he bites the corner of his lips.
I couldn’t look at him in the eye and say no, so I say yes, later, over the phone I would say no, he tries to follow me again, but I ask him to leave.
 Outside the cafe, I am hit with smells that wasn’t coffee, or sickly sweet desserts, I take a deep breath, it was almost noon, I had a lot of time now, I wondered what I was going to do with all of it.
“Hey.”
I jump, clutching my chest, staring at the girl who had just scared me, she had a sheepish smile on her face.
 “Miya?”
Her eyes light up,
“You remember my name! That is more than I can say for the girls he had gone on dates with, and you are THE Rachel Greene!”
 I place my hand on my lips, indicating that she should keep it down and quiet, and she does, scanning the surroundings, Connor was just getting out of the cafe behind us, his nose buried deep in his camera, his sister cusses beside me, we watch as he expertly climbs into his car with his nose buried in his camera.
 “The only time he is not looking at that thing is when he drives.” she says this as if tired of explaining.
She takes a deep breath, before speaking,
  “I saw the entire thing, and I know you only accepted to go out with him again for show. And it’s okay, I have seen worse.” Her smile is sad, and I feel guilty now.
“He sees the world through his camera, at first our parents and I didn’t know how to handle it, but we have come to accept it and we get the best photos as a result.” she chuckles, as we walk down the road.
“He sounds really passionate.”
I don’t know what I was passionate about, I was slightly jealous of him, asides acting, there was really nothing else I had going.
 “He is, and he chased away a lot of girls with it, but this was the first time he didn’t take pictures of other people and focused on you the entire time, well focused his lens on you, his lens are his eyes, you were the only person on his radar today, and I would hate for him to ruin it.”
 She stops, takes a deep breath,
“Give him one more chance, I will make sure he learns his lesson.”
Thinking about it, this was my chance to be passionate about something, I was free to try everything, and learning how to be passionate from someone as passionate as he was seemed like a great idea, I nod. Miya did a cheer, a huge smile on her face, she thanks me numerous times before skipping away. I find myself smiling at her as she leaves, another type of siblings.
 I shake my head, shaking off the thoughts of the Kersher brothers, instead I focus on what I was going to do with the rest of my day. My eyes widen as I am hit with his scent, my eyes roam the expanse of the road, but it was full of so many people, so many people, any of them could be using the same type of perfume.
 My chest felt like it was carved out, tears stinging the corner of my eyes, I blink them away and slink into a bookstore, taking a few off the shelves, and snagging a corner for myself, I dive into a world where a student wanted to sleep with her professor, I read it eagerly, following her story and rooting for her, I am pulled into the real world when the worker tells me she had to leave, as her dog was rushed to the hospital, I quickly pay for the book I had been reading and others, wishing her dog a speedy recovery.
 As I walked to the road, I get the feeling that someone was watching me, and when I turn around, there was nobody there, only a hint of his scent lingering in the air.