Alexa Demara met Artino Arid when she stayed for a week in Amsterdam.

She met h
im when she went a coffee shop that was highly frequented by tourists.
He was cowering in a corner, hiding behind a book. In the faint light, she coul
d only make out his gelled, black hair peeking over a book that displayed an aut
hor's name that she had never heard of. A green backpack labelled Ectac sat in
front of him, and across from him was the only empty chair in the shop. She man
euvered over to it and plopped down, exhausted from her flight in.
Her eyebrows raised when they caught each other's glance. He stared at her brow
n curly hair, which was a bit disheveled from her flight in. Even though she wa
s in a completely different country, he had a familiar look about him.
He muttered to himself as he shuffled around to see what time it was on his watc
h.
She looked over to the left, and a bird perched on the window sill as she overhe
ard two women engaged in a conversation.
"Ah, there he is! That's the cute, smart one," one of them said to the other.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" said the other.
"The bird," the first woman replied.
She took in the surroundings around her, knowing this was so much different than
where she had grown up in Germany. Suddenly, Alexa felt a hand on her shoulder
, making her jump slightly.
"Oh, sorry," one of the baristas said. "I believe you had the Rooibos tea, corr
ect?"
"Yes, yes, that is correct," she swiftly grabbed the cup as the barista quickly
went back to work. The waiting line had extended out the door.
After one long minute, the male behind the book decided to break the silence.
"Hello," he said somewhat awkwardly. For the first time, Alexa noticed his eyes
, which were a beautiful shade of grey-blue.
"Hi." Alexa said briefly. "What are you here for?"
"I come here all the time. I'm working a song for a friend of mine. She's a mu
sician."
"Ah, that's nice. What is her name?" Alexa questioned him.
"Trina Aling," he quickly retorted. "Have you heard of her?"
"Actually, no, I'm not from here," she said, testing the temperature of her tea.
It was far too hot to drink without losing taste buds.
"I'm Artino, by the way," the man with grey-blue eyes said, reaching over and ex
tending his hand out to her. "Artino Arid. And you are?"
"Alexa Demara," she replied. Was it smart of her to use her last name?
"Where are you from, then?" he asked, beginning to get more prying. Alexa got u
ncomfortable whenever people tried to pry her for personal information.

"Germany. More specifically, about an hour south of Berlin." she said.

"That's nice. What are you here for?" inquired Artino.
"Just visiting a friend," Alexa said. Her eyes darted across the room, feeling
a slight paranoia. She knew she probably had no reason to be worried there, but
she still wanted to take a few precautions.
"Be careful when you go there," Ranite Marlowe had warned her before she left.
"Rumor has it they do witchcraft there."
The truth was that Alexa Demara was there to track someone down, but she wasn't
about to let this attractive acquaintance know that. For all she knew, he had h
is own hidden agenda. Besides, it took a lot for her to drop her facade, and sh
e wasn't going to risk it all now.