Episode 1 - Ashley - On Rainy Days

My tears dripped down my cheeks and flushed away by the rain. The lights on the park were still on. There I was, wet and insecure. With my heart embarrassed by the hurtful truth. I was nothing to him. All this time he has been cheating on me and I was a fool not to notice. I was still standing pathetically with my head facing the ground. I still couldn't bear the truth. More and more tears just kept flowing down my cheeks. Then I saw a foot stepping right in front of mine. The rain stopped. I looked up expectantly but it wasn't him. Instead it was some stranger I've never met before holding an umbrella over my head.

"You shouldn't be here in the rain." he said.

I purposely pushed myself forward and hugged him tight before bursting into tears. I expected him to shove me off and call me a freak or something but he didn't. Instead, he just stood there and held his ground. I cried myself out over his shoulder, a total stranger whom I have never met before in my life. When the tears finally stopped, I slowly raised my head back and he let me go.

"Better?" he asked.

"I'm sorry. I. . . I don't know. . I'm sorry" I said.

"Hey. Look at me." he said. "It's alright. You're not alone now."

I just kept quiet. His kindness made me suspicious. No one would be this nice towards someone they just met. It's just unnatural.

"I'm sorry. Ah, my name. It's Zale." he said.

"Zale?" I repeated.

"Zale Serra" he nodded.

I sniffed my tears. "I'm Ashely." I said dumbly.

Then, he took something out of his pocket. It was a piece of cloth and he offered it to me. I declined softly. So, he used it himself to wipe the remains of my tears on my cheeks.

"He doesn't deserve your tears, Ashley. Because if he does, then he won't be making you cry." he said and smiled sweetly. Then, just like magic, the rain stopped.

"Oh. I guess there's no use for this now." he said and closed his umbrella. Then he looked at me again only to find my eyes looking at his.

"Thanks. For um, being here" I said embarrassed. "So um, where are you from?"

"New Jersey. I just moved here. My dad arranged everything and I just followed him." he said.

"Oh, so where do you go to school"

"My dad said something about Arizona High School. You know where that is?"

I took a sigh of relief. "We're schoolmates now". I said and smiled for the first time that night.

"Then I shall see you next week." he said. "If I'm not mistaken, the school system here is from Monday to Saturday, right?"

"Yeah but for this week, there's no school on Saturday since it's President's Day." I said knowingly.
He giggled which made him look cute. Then he offered his presence and walked me home. I thanked him again and we parted for the night.

Later I was lying on my bed, thinking. 'What just happened?'