“Finally done!” Felicia brushed her hand together as she finished unpacking the last box in the house. It was her third day staying on the new apartment and she had to say she was happy with herself. She had done most of the settling in and the only thing left was adjusting herself to the new neighborhood.
“Okay, I think I’ve done enough for the day, now it’s time to treat myself!” She jumped in joy as she ran to her room to take a shower. Afterward, she got herself dressed in a white flowy dress with tiny floral prints and did her makeup, nothing too much, just a bit of concealer and powder, neutral eyeshadow, liner and mascara, a little bit of blush and lipstick and she was done with the face. Her wavy strawberry brown hair was let loose and she just styled it back a bit so it was not directly touching her face.
For finishing touch, Felicia sprayed a bit of white floral perfume and put on her nude shoes with matching nude bag and she was ready to conquer the world.
“Barcelona, here I go!” She walked out from her apartment in a cheery mood. Although she was tired, the fresh spring air was enough to lift up her energy. She walked on the street like she owned the street.
Anyone who saw her would think that she was crazy but she did not care. It was her first time tasting true freedom. Her dream of living and exploring the world on her own during her youth finally came true.
Twenty-two years old Felicia Vega Esperanza was born and grew up in Seville, Spain. She came from a rather conservative middle class family and her entire life she had been under her protective parents’ wing. Even during college, she stayed in her parents’ house instead of an actual dormitory because the university was only an hour away from her home.
Naturally, she grew tired of it and tried to find ways to get out of there so she could experience things she could not before. At the time the only solution she could find was to get herself a job outside of Seville.
Soon after she graduated college, she got hired in a major company located in Barcelona. When she first received the acceptance letter, she was screaming joy because she would finally move out of her parents’ house and lived her own life.
They gave her a month to prepare everything and moved to Barcelona and she quickly found an apartment near her workplace that was on her budget, moved there within a week and settled herself in.
“Now, where should I go today?” She mentally asked herself because she had no plan on where she was supposed to travel first and from close by, she saw a cinema that was playing one of the movie she wanted to see at the time. She still had plenty of time to spend for the day so she thought it would be a great idea to watch her first movie there.
Felicia booked a VIP ticket on the side near the stairs so she did not have to pass by people just to get her seat and when she first booked it, she saw that no one was seated on the same row as she was because she got one a bit one the middle and people usually preferred to watch movies a bit higher up so she thought it was great because she would have the entire row for herself.
Once she got her ticket, she bought some popcorn and headed to her seat. For the first three minutes she was alone when suddenly a man dressed in black who approached her and she thought he planned on passing by the stair to reach the seat behind her but then he walked in and took a seat right beside her.
The light was yet to be turned off so she could have a clear look of the man. He was so well put together, wearing an all-black attire consisting of turtleneck and a pair of well-tailored trousers with oxford shoes, the perfect blend of casual and formal attire. Besides that, he has quite a handsome face and well-built body underneath his attire.
“Oh my god, is this what they call beginner’s luck?” She thought to herself as she tried to steal several glances at him. She had seen handsome men before in her life, that’s for sure, but the man beside her was too handsome she could feel her own heartbeat accelerating by just sitting beside him.
“Pull yourself together, Felicia. You’re better than this.” She tried to calm herself down so he would not notice the reddening of her cheek, but of course, since they were seated beside each other, he turned to take a look at her and realized she was feeling shy around him and tried to cover it up. The stranger man seemed amused and he chuckled.
“Seems like you have something to say, do I make you feel uncomfortable?” He asked as he turned at her. Her heart skipped a beat as she swiftly faced him.
“Oh, no. I don’t have anything to tell you.” She replied as quick as she could. He tilted his head a bit and she managed to get a full view of his face up close.
Clearly, he was not buying it. Felicia wondered if she would have to go through the entire movie feeling that way because of the man. She thought of exchanging her seats with someone else, but not sure if it was appropriate. He noticed her tensing up and smirked.
“Okay, my name is Xavier, what’s yours?” He held out his hand to her and she hesitated a bit if she should introduce herself to him, but she thought it would be impolite to remain silent so she took his hand and smiled.
“I’m Felicia, nice to meet you.” She really thought their conversation would end there and did not expect anything else, but then he decided to continue the conversation.
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to take you out for dinner later.” She was surprised at what she had just heard.
Felicia did not expect the man to be so bold and straight forward. She wondered if she was dreaming but right after she nodded to agree, the lights at the cinema was turned off and the movie started.
To respect the other visitors, they decided to remain quiet and just enjoyed the movie. However, the entire time, Felicia could not remain calm because she knew sitting beside her was one of the most handsome man alive and the two of them had a dinner date after this.
Two hours passed by and the movie was over. The lights turned back on and the other visitors stood up and left the room. Felicia did not know what she was supposed to do but the stranger took an initiative and stood up first, reaching out his hand as an invitation.
“Grab my hand and let’s head out, I know a great restaurant nearby that is only five minutes by walking. I assume you would not trust me enough to ride on my car so that’s the best option I can think of right now.” She stared at his hand for two seconds before grabbing it and the two of them went outside for dinner.
As time passed by, the two of them began to talk to each other and being surrounded by other people in the restaurant helped Felicia to regain her composure and she was starting to act like her usual self again. They shared a few small information about each other and exchanged their thoughts and ideas along the way.
“So, Felicia, have you lived in Barcelona your entire life or are you from somewhere else?” He asked her as they were eating.
“No, I’m actually from Seville. I just moved here a few days ago and I’ll start working in a new company next week.”
“Ah, you must be so excited. I hope you can enjoy your time here in Barcelona. There are plenty of entertainments and the night life here is fantastic.”
“Actually, I’m more of a homebody, I don’t really like partying unless it’s a formal party like a wedding or someone’s birthday.” She explained.
“Really? I would not expect that, since you seem like a really pleasant person to be around with. I like a good balance in life, sometimes I can be a homebody but most time I like going out and explore places.”
Felicia was starting to feel relaxed being around him after a while and her core personality was starting to shine through, she was chatty, warm and pleasant. Xavier had no intention of doing more than formality with her for his own amusement but he, too was slowly starting to enjoy her company.
By the end of the dinner, the two of them ordered two glasses of wine. Felicia was no wine connoisseur and when he asked her what she wanted, she decided to go with his suggestion. Felicia did not have plenty of experience with alcohol so when she took a sip, all she could taste was how sweet and light the wine was.
“This is delicious.” She complimented as she finished her glass. He chuckled and asked her if she would like another glass and she happily handed it over to him for refill. She quickly finished it again and handed the empty glass for him to refill. He was getting a bit concerned but decided to pour it again, thinking it would be the last time.
“Don’t drink too much, I don’t know your alcohol tolerance level so keep it in moderation.” He suggested when he saw her drinking it up and her face was slowly getting a bit red.
“Don’t worry, I can handle this.” She smiled when her head suddenly felt dizzy. She could feel herself getting tipsy and her vision was getting blurry really fast.
“What’s happening?” She tried her best to sit straight up but her body was acting weird and she felt herself losing control over her own consciousness. Her body felt light and she nearly fell down on the table when he quickly grabbed her and prevented her from making an embarrassment for herself.
“You’re drunk.” He whispered. “What am I supposed to do with you?”
