when the seasons change

1

HIGH pitched ringing from a bell sounded at the entrance of the homey coffee shop as a tall built man walked through the door. he carried himself with confidence as he greeted the employee manning the cashier with a smile worth hundreds. not much further from this scene was reina murphy, sipping and enjoying her freshly brewed aromatic coffee, the man who had just entered capturing her attention. she tried to keep her gaze unknown as she admired him, taking note of his dark eyes and a smirk worth hundreds. a smirk?

a chesty chuckle was heard from the man and that was when reina realized that those dark dreamy eyes had caught her in her gaze. she almost choked on her coffee. quickly placing her cup back down she turned away to look out the window, doing anything to avoid eye contact as she heard footsteps getting closer to where she sat.

"hey, is this seat taken?" a voice spoke from beside her. reina swallowed back her fear and turned to face the handsome stranger. there he stood, basically towering over her embarrassed self. "NOPE!" she nearly shouted. he smiled sweetly, biting back laughter. the stranger sat himself opposite reina, sitting back as he got comfortable. she once again tried her best to avoid looking him in the eye. he tapped on the table to capture her attention, sliding a brown paper napkin which he had presumably gotten from the counter.

  "you got something on your cheek hun," he said, pointing out where it was. if she was embarrassed before, she was drowning in said embarrassment now. she swiftly took the napkin and wiped the leftover coffee that had snuck its way onto her cheek off. he sipped on his drink, a small smile creeping onto his face. she busied herself with finishing her coffee and people watching out the window. she felt the vibration on the table when he placed his beverage down and sitting forward. she crossed her fingers for him to not attempt at a conversation.

"you new around here? i've never seen you around before, name's billy by the way. billy russo." he said as an attempt at said conversation. reina was in fact new to the city. she had recently moved into hell's kitchen a week before with her bestfriend, aria cillian, just down the street. "yeah i am actually! i'm reina, reina murphy." she replied, smiling softly at the man. he smiled back, about to speak when his phone rang. billy sighed, not wanting to end the encounter so soon. answering said call he gave an apologetic look to reina which she acknowledged. "yeah okay, i'll be there soon," he spoke into the phone followed by a sigh after hanging up.

"i gotta get going, work." he said, fixing his shirt collar and dusting off his suit, shrugging his navy blue blazer on. she smiled up, giving him a knowing look. she knew what it was like having to work a job that had to have her at its beck and call. she had worked a job like that in law before she had moved into hell's kitchen.

  her thoughts flew from her previous job to where she had gone to study law. college. her train of thought was put to a pause, halting when she heard billy say something before taking leave. "oh yeah and don't forget to check the napkin!" he yelled, halfway out the door.

  her eyes shifted from his figure that slowly merged with the rest of the city's crowd to the paper napkin he had handed her beforehand. she reached lifted the delicate napkin off the table, looking for what the man had referred to. unfolding it, she spotted digits. a row of numbers. a phone number?

  she couldn't help but smile at the smart gesture. a small note was written next to the phone number, it read in black ink, "text me" followed by a smiley face and a heart. a warm feeling washed over her and butterflies flapped their wings in her stomach. she quickly typed out his number into her contacts, she sent a quick hello before going to text her bestfriend.

meanwhile with aria,

   face in her hands, a headache took over her as she sighed. frustration was clearly evident in every bit of her expression. from the frown to her slightly crinkled forehead. she was having terrible art block. she had no idea what to paint or how to paint it. this was troublesome for the artist as she was doing art for a living. well, for now. until she gets a proper job, painting will be her side gig.

   she cursed the black easel that sat before her, mumbling to her self. "come on, aria.. think!!" she tried to encourage herself, although not very useful. the it was noon and there she sat in her shared apartment with reina.
the plan was for them to quit their boring job at their old law firm and maybe be able to carry out some of their passions. reina who much like aria was doing acting as her side gig, waiting till they found a good law firm to apply to. big city new york had always been their dream and they were trying to live it as such.

   aria took a deep breath before closing her eyes. a rumble sounded from her stomach. "okay fine fine," tidying up her painting materials, she took off. the sun was getting lower and reina was presumably on her way back from one of her auditions again. aria had dressed in a leather coat that lead down to her knees to combat against the cold wind.

  at the nearby sandwich shop, aria got an egg and mayo sandwich before stepping back onto the sidewalks of hell's kitchen. looking up at the clouds, gray tones filled the sky and a distant thundering sound was heard.

  aria smiled up at the dark skies, excited for the rain that was to come when she felt her phone vibrate in her coat's pocket. continuing on her journey home, droplets from the sky began to fall as the amount increased by time and soon aria's brunette hair was wet by the rainfall. she quietly hoped to not fall sick due to her walk in the rain.

  suddenly a loud bang was heard. not the thunder type. it was the sound of a gun. aria began to panic, her feet suddenly frozen into place. she put her hand into her coat's pocket, reaching for her phone. another gun shot. aria's hands were shaking as she try to drag herself out of her stationary stance. fast and heavy footsteps drew closer to her. that panic took over her, struggling to breathe, frantically looking for a way out when she felt big hands finding their way to hers, intertwining their fingers. soon she was dragged away into a nearby alley. the stranger let go of her hand, holding her into his side.

  looking at the chest plate she was held against, she recognised it as the punisher's symbol. it had been all over the news. the black chest plate with a white skull contrasting the dark background. she slowly looked up at him, curiosity winning over her fear. his physic was strong built, chest heaving quick as his eyes stared out to the streets, looking for something or most likely someone. his jaw was clenched, stubble gracing his sharp jawline. eyebrows in a fixed frown and amber brown eyes. he was gorgeous but aria knew it wasn't the time nor person to think that. her heart steadied as he slowly rubbed small circled into her shoulder probably as an attempt to calm her racing heart. he took a quick glance at her before placing his index finger to his lips in a shushing gesture.

  feeling her ease and calm into his side, he turned to look down at her. he grumbled a soft "you okay, lady?" in a thick new york accent and she nearly became putty. meeting his gaze she nodded, still a bite shaken up.

  "what's happening?" she questioned the man as he continued to keep a look out. he grumbled as he lead her back out the alleyway, rushing her away from the street. "unrelated to you," he simply replied. she shook her head, assuming that he's not much of a talker. "hey, you don't need to walk me home you know?" he shook his head, following her lead to her home.

  "heres me," she turned to face him. "hey, why did you help me back there?" he looks at his feet, shaking his head a little. "well thank you for that, i'm grateful for you." she smiled up at him as if he was her guardian angel, full of adoration and admiration for her savior. he felt his heart skip a beat at that single look and nodded, scratching the back of his neck nervously, grumbling a "you're welcome ma'am."

  she stumbled into her apartment building, seeing reina rush to her side as soon as she entered the lobby, worry painting her features. the punisher couldn't help but let a corner of his lip lift into a small smile before rushing back into the dead of night.