EPISODE SIX

In her distressed state, she started her long trek. But little did she know that someone had been watching her from the other end of the street all along. She had only been walking for about a minute when the young man on a bike stopped by her side.

"Hello, pretty," the young man said to her. He had seen her in distress and figured that he could be of help to her.

She took a quick glance at him and continued on her way. She cursed herself for attracting handsome men, as all they brought her was trouble, starting with Don Nick. Actually, Emily could see from the stature of the man that Don Nick was nothing compared to him, but Emily did not give a damn about it. She was done admiring any man.

"Hold on a minute, will you?" he appealed.

She stopped and replied kindly. "Good morning, sir. Can I help you in any way?"

Looking at the way the young man appeared on his very expensive bike, Emily feared that he might be security personnel in this rich estate and was out to get her for wandering in such a high-class area. Her heart continued to race as she continued talking to him.

"I have been watching you," he said, smiling at the pretty lady before him. She does not appear sophisticated, but he could tell that with a little brush up, no lady would be able to stand her. However, when he noticed her uneasy countenance, he added. "Not as if I want to, but I cannot help it."

"Oh..." Emily murmured. He seemed too polite for a security man who intends to harass her, and this realization calmed her nerves a bit.

"Where are you going?" he asked, and immediately added. "Sorry, I am A. X."

Emily did not quite get his name, so she asked. "Alex?"

"No, A. X. initials," he corrected. “But Alex is still okay, it is up to you” he added.

"Oh... I would be more comfortable with Alex..." she said nervously. To her, A. X. as initials sounded more like Alex, and she saw no reason why she must stick with the first.

He giggled. "Sure, I’ve got no problem with that. So, where are you headed?" he inquired once again.

"Home..." she replied and continued on her way. She doesn’t have all day, and if she wants to be home soon, then she mustn't spend a second extra talking to a random stranger.

"Hey, wait, you have not even told me your name," he demanded, driving his bike slowly after her.

"Emily," she replied without stopping.

"So where are... sorry, where do you live?" he inquired.

At this point, Emily stopped. It’s unlike her to be rude to people, so she might as well stop and give him the answers he needed so that he can let her be. "Pacific Slides," she replied.

She felt completely out of place after she mentioned her locality. Pacific Slides and William Fox Courts are like two sides of the same coin, and as a resident of Pacific Slides, she has no business here unless, of course, as a domestic worker.

"Pacific Slides!" he almost exclaimed.

This time, Emily left him and continued on her way. He soon caught up with her and said "But then, you are on the wrong track. If you are going to Pacific Slides, it should be the other way. This path leads you out of the Court and into the ocean; I mean the side of the beach," he explained.

Emily stopped and looked back at where she had come from. She struggled to hold back the tears that were forcing their way out. She could not believe that she had wasted all these walks under the hostile sun for nothing.

"Oh... that..." she could only mumble in distress.

The stranger hesitated for a while before he spoke. "See, I can get you home if you don’t mind. If you intend to trek back, it might take an eternity," he offered. "But if you insist on taking a cab, then I must warn you that the traffic ahead has built up so dangerously that you might spend a couple of hours in it," he warned.

"I can manage," Emily mumbled, even though she has no idea where to go from there.

"I insist, Emily," A. X. said to the pretty lady in front of him.

Calculating her odds, which for some reason unknown to Emily had not been in her favour for the past twelve hours, Emily finally decided what to do, and without another word to the man in front of her, she hopped on the bike.