She carried both the white mugs past me and walked through the open sliding doors to her balcony. I followed her out there and sat next to her on her cane lounge as she passed me one of the mugs of tea.
‘Lean in here,’ she said. She leaned in closer to me and was looking forward between the two tall buildings where I saw the waves crashing earlier. I moved my head in next to hers so that they were touching. She giggled and took a sip of her tea. Our heads were pressed together watching the bright orange and yellow rays of light that slid down in between the buildings glaring brightly but beautifully in our eyes.
‘I watch this every night,’ she said.
‘Do you prefer sunrise or sunset?’ I asked.
‘I like the sunrise. It’s a fresh new chance to do whatever we desire. It’s also the beginning of the unknown. I think sunrise is a beautiful moment to sit and revel in. Realising that we are all sitting in the unknown of what could unfold in the day that lays ahead of us.’ I liked her answer, she was like a sunrise. A shining ray of light.
‘I like a sunset,’ I said.
‘Why is that?’ She turned to look at me raising her eyebrows.
‘I like the mystery of the night. I think under the moonlight is where most people really bring out their true selves,’ I said.
‘Is this an analogy that I like the beginning and you like the endings?’ she said, smirking.
‘Maybe?’ I said. I had never thought of it that way. But she could have been right. Emma was always someone who seemed excited by possibilities and adventures before they even started. I was always trying to get to the end, get everything done. Rather than enjoying the process.
‘Hey, Emma…’ My voice cracked with nerves. Emma stared into my eyes waiting for me to finish my sentence. I paused and gulped down a large lump in my throat.
‘Can I take you to dinner?’ I asked, bowing out of the real apology I wanted to give her.
Emma smiled. ‘I am hungry, I’ll quickly get changed.’
She jumped up off the seat. The final rays of sunset were illuminating around her. She walked off into a door that was to the right of the couch. I guessed it was her bedroom. I sat on the deck, taking in the last bit of sunset, sipping on peppermint tea.
I moved inside to take a seat on her couch. Emma came out of her room wearing a short sundress. It was white with a light pink pattern. It flowed down her body and stopped slightly higher than the midway of her thigh. She matched it with a beige pair of ankle boots. She wore her hair naturally out and long. I loved the light wave in her hair.
‘You look lovely,’ I said.
She shied away from my comment and just said, ‘Thanks.’ She grabbed her purse that was sitting on the kitchen bench. ‘Are you ready?’
‘Absolutely,’ I said. Standing up off the couch.
‘Where are we going?’ she asked.
‘You’ll have to wait and see,’ I said, smiling. I had pre-booked a restaurant I hoped she would let me take her too.
‘I love surprises,’ she said as we both walked out the front door. I held her hand down the hallway. She didn’t say anything, but I saw her slight smile shine through, and she kept her head down watching her steps.
I unlocked my car and we both jumped in. Now I was slightly nervous. I wanted to take her somewhere amazing. I wanted tonight to be perfect and new. A restart. Just like we were two new people meeting for the first time. Forgetting about any pain I had caused in the past and showing up as someone that she deserved. I wanted her to have fun, I wanted to hear her laugh. I wanted to create a new memory, even if it was just for a night.
‘Just so you know, I really wanted tonight to be about just spending it with you. Nothing else.’ My voice was still filled with nerves, but I felt like I had to say it, I had to prove that I had changed, I wasn’t the person that she first met. At least, I really hoped I wasn’t.
She threw me a look from the passenger seat. ‘I can tell that.’
‘Despite my previous actions. I have always enjoyed, just being in your company,’ she said. I drove only ten minutes away from her apartment. She gazed out of the window the whole time. I’m sure she was trying to figure out where we were going. The silence in the car wasn’t awkward. I just drove, wondering what she was thinking. I pulled up on the side of the road.
‘We’re here,’ I said, taking off my seatbelt and hopping out of the car. I ran over to open the passenger side door.
‘What? We’re going to Spice. This is not what I was expecting!’ Emma’s eyes opened wider.
‘What were you expecting?’ I asked.
‘I don’t know, I guess, this is a pretty fancy place. I didn’t really see it as your kind of scene,’ she said, shocked.
‘Maybe I keep proving there are lots you don’t know about me,’ I said, smirking back at her, stoked with her reaction. I took her hand and we walked into the restaurant. We took a seat by the window overlooking the water. A waiter came down and placed a silky napkin on our laps.
