Today's Reading
He returns his attention to Stella's list. "The TimeOut Market... Castle of São Jorge... Yep, yep. What's Pavilhão Chinês?" he asks with a frown.
"It's a bar. It used to be an old grocery store, but now it's like a museum with a bunch of old toys and memorabilia that the owner collected. The waiters dress in fancy waistcoats and they play mostly eighties music." Stella's favorite. "I might go there tomorrow night." I lift a shoulder. "You're welcome to come."
"Thanks. Sounds fun." He smiles at me. "So did your friend—Stella?—not want to go interrailing with you?"
I shake my head and reach across the table for her book. "She couldn't," I murmur as I slip it back into my bag. "What about you? You didn't want to go traveling with friends?"
"That was the plan, but it didn't work out," he replies, scratching his eyebrow and averting his gaze.
I have a feeling I'm not the only one who's being cagey here.
We go to another rooftop bar after dinner that is even closer to the bridge, but the traffic noise is drowned out by loud music and the chatter of people.
When I return from the bathroom, Ash is standing with his elbows propped on the bar top, waiting to be served.
"I'll get these," I say. "You got the ones at the hostel."
"Yeah, but they were cheap as chips."
I jolt at the warm press of his fingers on my wrist as I attempt to retrieve my purse. He lets go to pull a wad of notes out of the pocket of his gray shorts.
"How much cash do you carry around?" I ask with alarm, distracted from the touch of his hand on my skin.
"I do have a bank card," he replies with a smile as he turns toward me, leaving one elbow resting on the bar top. "But it's become a bit of a challenge to see how far I can go without using it."
"So when that runs out..." I nod at his cash.
He shrugs. "I've been doing odd jobs where I can find them, sleeping on a few beaches to save money."
"What sort of jobs?" I'm intrigued at the thought of him working his way round Europe.
Part of what I like about interrailing, despite the loneliness, is that there are no airs and graces—everyone's in it together, pinching pennies, staying in youth hostels, and doing laundry in crappy launderettes. Ash is clearly at ease with this lifestyle and yet there's something about him that sets him apart from the crowd.
"Washing dishes, cleaning boats. I helped one guy fix his roof—saw him working on it as I was walking by and asked if he could use a hand. It's surprising how much work is out there if you look for it."
The bartender is ignoring us, but I don't mind. I love the gentle rise and fall of Ash's Welsh accent—I could listen to him talk for hours.
"That sounds stressful."
"It's actually been quite liberating."
I shake my head at him, smiling. I'm tall at five foot nine, but he still has a good half a foot on me. His extra height means that his eyes are downcast as they rest on mine. They seem a darker brown under the shade of his eyelashes.
The moment stretches on.
"What are you thinking right now?" I ask, surprising even myself as I let the question slip out.
He laughs and looks away before meeting my eyes again, an abashed tilt to his lips.
"You remind me of someone," he admits.
"Oh! Who?"
"She's not real," he replies. "I'm just trying to explain why I can't stop looking at you."
Butterflies burst into life inside me. "Okay, now I'm really intrigued."
His eyes dance under the glow of the festoon lights hanging above our heads. "She's a manga character."
"You think I look like a cartoon character?" I ask with faux outrage.
"Well, no." He frowns, but his lips continue to curve upward at the corners. "More like a comic-book character."
"Is there a difference?"
"Yeah. My friend Taran used to be into manga. He could have talked your ear off about it."
"Is this the same friend who likes fantasy?"
"The very same," he confirms with a nod and a small smile.
"You know you're going to have to show me this character you're talking about, don't you?"
I'm trying to sound flippant, but I'm still feeling a bit jittery about his earlier comment: he can't stop looking at me!
...
