(ian, arden)it was dark. No, it was pitch black out. With nothing but the fireflys and stars to light up the night. He was there, alone. playing his voilin. A beautiful but sad melody flowed softly from the strings. The player was useeable. But the music was so beauitful and soothing, there was no need to know who was playing.

Arden frowned. "What the heck..." she murmured, hearing music coming from the meadow. It was strange, sure...but so was the fact that she was even out so late, by herself. She had always been paranoid about wandering aimlessly between the shadows, even in a small, non-dangerous place such as Sunshine Island. The night had brought along a chill with the darkness, so she wrapped her jacket a bit tighter around herself and crossed the bridge that led to the meadow.

The tune was alluring; it was also what directed Arden's feet in the direction they needed to go. She was compelled to walk until she ran into a dark figure, falling backwards on the soft grass. "Oof," she grunted, landing hard.

the music stopped. the man looked down at her with narrow eyes. his hair appeared to be black, butit was hard to tell in the night. then, the pricing eyes turned gentle. he said nothing, but simply started to play again. this time, more gentlier and friendly. the wind blew a cold breeze, but the player seemed unfazed by it.

Arden squinted past the cover of darkness to try and identify the musician. Finally, she gasped softly. "Ian?" she asked, getting off of the ground and brushing her jeans off. "What are you doing here?" She looked longingly at the instrument, wanting to just touch it. It was beautiful. She loved the violin ever since her next-door-neighbor, snobby Alexa Hardin, had brought home a brand-new violin and played it 24-7. "Wow, what a great instrument," Arden breathed. "Are you renting it, or did you buy it?"

Ian stopped playing. "no, it was my father's." he said. his voice was soft like velvet. "nice to see you again Miss Arden." "but this is a rather odd place to meet." he said. there was a hint of humor in his voice. "may i ask what you're doing here at this time of night?" the wind blew another cold chill of air.

Arden smiled coyly. "I could ask you the same question," she pointed out. "Some people might be disturbed by your rather loud instrument, especially at this time of night." She chuckled, and then hesitated. "May--May I play?" She had taken lessons briefly when she was fifteen, using a rented instrument. Her heart ached to play the instrument, and she had to put her best self-control into place to keep from reaching out and stroking the polished wood.

Ian was silent for a second. he smiled braodly. "alright he said. he was pretty fats. for he wa down there no later than a seocnd. she wrapped his arms around arden as he positioned her arms for the itrument. his face dangerously close to hers. "i know you might know how to play, but i just want to make sure." "this voilin, is very speical to me after all."

Arden breathed slowly. His face...is awfully close to mine... she noted, fighting a blush that threatened to creep up on her face. She nodded, and then positioned her hands the way Ian was directing them. Slowly, she began to move the bow across the strings, playing a soft melody, humming softly along with it. She closed her eyes and nodded her head along with the music, totally losing herself amongst the notes and rythms.

Ian smiled at arden. he could tell she was really getting into it. he layed back and listened. at first, when she asked, he didn't want to give his preoicus treaure up. But he was really enjoying it. until finally, he broke out into a chuckle. it was the first time he really laughed in a long time.

When the song was over, Arden sat carefully next to Ian on the ground, being careful not to jostle the instrument. "It's beautiful," she repeated, handing it back to him with a steady hand. She smiled, and then laid her head back on the soft grass. Her blonde hair curled around her pretty face as she closed her eyes and made a wish on the first star that she saw in the sky. "It doesn't get any better than this," she said out loud, reopening her eyes and looking into the sky. She crossed her hands delicately over her chest and smiled softly, turning to look at Ian. "Isn't it pretty?"

Ian wa staring at her. a puzzled look on his face. then he turned his head to the sky and smiled. "ya, it is." he said. he put is voilin in the case next to him and glanced up at the sky with her. He looked at aredn again. "you're shivering." he said hugging her close. "it is rather cold out here tonight."

Arden began to open her mouth in protest, but closed it quickly when she realized that she was enjoying his touch. She settled softly into his arms and smiled. "So, tell me more about yourself, mystery man," she said softly, pressing her cheek against his bicep.

Ian let out a chuckle. "that, my dear, is a secret." he said with some smug in his voice. he was revling his more playful side. "I might or might no reviel things about my self." "you'll just have to see." he said proudly. "how about this, we play 10 questions.' "i ask you ten, then you aks me ten." "how about that?"

Arden chuckled. "OK, mister," she said, turning on her other side and propping her head up with a fist. "I'll go first. Question One: What made you laugh the hardest in your entire life?" She smiled, easily picturing an easy-going guy like Ian laughing with his friends. But she wanted to know what really made him laugh. She personally thought that she had a good sense of humor; she was attracted to males with the same attribute.

Ian thought about this for a second. he let go of arden and leaned back on his elbows. Then, a wamr smiled crossed his face. "well, i didn't think it was funny back then, but now that i think about it, my grandfather used to get this zanny idea i was going to be a pro wrestler when i grew up." "so he's try and train me by making my climb rocks and doing redicilous tasks." ian let out a laugh.

Arden smiled. "I was pretty close to my wacky grandparents, too," she mused. Then, sitting up all the way, she said, "All right. Next question. Which celebrity would you like to become?" You could tell a lot about a person by the people they admired. If someone admired someone simply because of their looks, then it was pretty safe to assume that the person was as shallow as a swimming pool. Or, if they liked a celebrity because of the good deeds and charities that were associated with that person, you could assume that the person had a good heart. She waited patiently for his answer, rubbing her arms to stay warm.

once again, ian was silent. but not becuase he was thinking. finally he said; "my parents.' he blushed slightly as he said this. Ian wasn't sure how Arden would react. he had never relaly opend up to anyone before. But this girl seemed diffrent. She seemed to understand. so he dicided it was safe.

Arden smiled. "That's a good answer," she said, moving ever so slightly closer to him. "OK. Your turn," she said abrubtly. "I decided that, instead of doing our ten questions one at a time, we should take turns. So, go ahead. Ask away. I'm ready for anything." It was strange, her opening up to this boy, whom she had just met, sitting in the middle of a meadow, well after midnight. But she felt strangely safe, and comfortable. It was perplexing, but at the same time, incredible.