3.

Dimitri steered the car into the driveway of the apartment complex. It was still early in the evening. After a whole day had passed, he made some time to drive out and return Ayesha's bag to her. He had looked into it to find a way to identify her and was lucky enough to find her ID. Dimitri was sure it would make finding her easier.

He parked in a decent spot. He got down from the car, holding her bag at his side.

“Good evening.” He greeted the man at the desk. “I am looking for someone who lives in this building. Ayesha Hansley. Average height, shoulder-length dark hair, tanned, has an accent. I believe she shares the apartment with someone.”

He searched for the details on his computer. “Yes, she is a resident here. Are you family?”

“No. We met sometime back, but she left some personal items with me. I want to return them to her.”

“Can I see some ID, please?” Dimitri reached into his pocket to dig out his wallet. He handed over his driver's license. “Alright. I’ll call and see if she is in.”

He waited, drumming his nails against the counter while he called. No one picked up on the call, and the receptionist set the phone down.

“If you prefer, I can keep the item with me till she returns and inform her that you brought it over.”

Dimitri looked down at the bag. He hoped to check on her, but he didn’t see a point in keeping it with him just to do that. She surely needed most of the things in it.

“Can I have a pen and paper, please?”

“Of course.”

He handed him a pen. Dimitri scrawled a short message down on the paper. He carefully folded it after he was done and dropped it into her bag before handing it to the receptionist.

With nothing left to do there, he left the building. He made it to his car when he heard someone call his name. He looked around to see who it was, pleasantly surprised when he noticed Ayesha walking towards him.

He closed the door and walked over to her, shaking her hand in greeting. It was cold out, yet she wore only a sleeveless camisole and jean shorts. A different bag swung at her side, but it was the same design as the one they found in his car. She looked well.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to return your bag." He pointed over his shoulder at the entrance. "The receptionist called your apartment, but he told me you weren't in."

"Yes. I went for a walk to get to know the place better."

"Well, he didn't know when you'd be back, so I left your bag with him."

"Thanks a lot. I can't believe I left it in your car. My head was a mess that day. By the time realised it was gone, it was too late. I couldn't call you because I didn't have your number."

"Same problem here. In the end, it was a good thing I drove you home, or it would have been quite difficult to return."

"I appreciate the effort." Her smile brightened, and Dimitri couldn't help returning it.

"I also wanted to check on how you're doing. You didn't let me take you to the hospital, and I was worried you might have been hurt more than we thought."

"As you can see, I am alright. Thanks for caring. The scars are all healed. A few more days and they'll be gone."

"That's good to hear." His mind travelled back to the comment she made earlier, and he found himself asking. "You haven't lived here long?"

"What gave it away?"

He laughed. "You? You just said you went for a walk to get to know the place better."

"Right." She slapped her palm over her forehead, sending all the bangles she wore on her wrist clanging against each other. "I have lived here for almost a week and am trying to get used to life here. Hence, why I am taking walks. I am guessing you have lived here for a while."

His brow arched in amusement. "What makes you think that."

"The day you hit me. You asked where I was headed. I gave you the name of the apartment, and bam, you drove over here. You didn't use a GPS or ask me for any directions."

At that, he found himself laughing. Now that he thought about it, he still remembered the route to various places in town, even after being away so long.

"Guess you could say that, yes. I grew up here, and I dare say that it's a pretty nice place to live. How are you liking it here?"

"Everything is pretty neat." She bobbed her head, folding her arms across her chest. "One good thing I have going for me right now is that the marketplace gives me everything. It would have been a horror story trying to go around and find different places to buy different things."

"I am glad to hear that. It is a small town. It wouldn't take you long to learn your way around the place. Soon you'd be moving around without a GPS too." He grinned, glancing towards the road when a set of headlights shun in their direction.

Reflexively, he took her by the elbow and pulled her towards his parked car so the approaching vehicle could pass. They watched the car drive by then she looked back at him, pushing her hair away from her face.

 "Do you live around here?"

"Yes, not too far from here." He looked down at his watch a frowned when he noted the time.

He had a dinner to get to with an old friend, and he was slightly behind time.

"Sorry, I have to get going. It was nice seeing you again, though."

"You too," she replied, stepping away from the car. "And thanks again for the bag."

"Don't mention it. Take care of yourself." He made it to his car before turning back to her again. "Since I know your full name, I think it's only fair I introduce myself again. I am Dimitri Adams."

"It is a pleasure to meet you."

"And you too."

Ayesha sat on the sofa, the contents of her bag turned out in front of her. She didn't suspect anything was missing, but she did it all the same. Her purse was intact. She touched the passport picture on her ID. Not allowing herself to wallow in the budding feeling of nostalgia, she set it aside. Her small make-up kit still had everything in it. Everything was there.

One by one, she shoved them back into the bag one by one. When everything was clear, she noticed a folded piece of paper. At first, she thought it was the grocery list she had with her the day she lost the bag. When she opened it, the handwriting wasn't hers. And it wasn't a grocery list.

"Sorry I couldn't give this to you personally. I hope you are feeling better. Dimitri."

She tucked the note inside a pocket of her bag and took it to her room. It went up on the rack with the others she owned. The night was young, but she had nothing to do with herself. Joseph was out, and her shift at work didn't start until ten in the morning. But she didn't feel like sleeping either, so she went to stand by the window.

 When she was bored, she liked to look down from her window and watch others living their lives. She watched the busy clergyman that waited on the sidewalk for a taxi, talking into his phone. It was constantly by his ear. If she fancied, she imagined she was the woman that rode her bicycle down the street with flowers in the basket or the couple that walked their dog in the mornings.

She wondered how many of them went through their day second-guessing themselves, looking over their shoulder. When she liked something, she pondered how long she would enjoy it. She woke up most mornings with an aching weight on her chest.

When she stood in the driveway speaking to Dimitri, she found herself enjoying the moment. Then the headlights flashed, and her heart skipped for a second.

"Hey." Joseph's voice scared her, and she jolted in response. "Sorry, I knocked."

"It's fine. I was being foolish."

"Is that your bag?" he pointed to the rack. "He brought it back? When?"

She sighed, walking over to him and steering him towards the kitchen.

"I'll make you a sandwich and fill you in about it."