When I’m still staring at him a minute later, his face heats.
“Fake it till you make it?” I ask.
He nods, shrugging.
“I was really asking if you thought she was pretty this time, though I guess I didn’t ask that clearly.”
“Oh,” Torin mutters. “Uh… yeah. She was pretty. In a fake kind of way.”
I laugh. Our conversation pauses as Susie comes back. “Ready for dessert?”
“Definitely. And some boxes, please,” I tell her.
“Of course, Mr. Bladen.”
“You’re supposed to call me Hugo,” I remind her as she smiles and walks away.
Susie is in her late forties, I think. She’s super nice and we’ve talked about her family a lot since I started coming here. She has three kids—all in their teens—and her husband installs security systems for big establishments, so she’s often alone as he travels.
“She’s not going to call me Hugo,” I say to Torin. “She never does.”
He smiles.
“Oh, that one!” I nod in the direction of the window as a gorgeous woman with long black hair walks by. “She’s super pretty, isn’t she?”
Torin nods again, but I think he doesn’t agree with me.
“Still not your type?”
Pink cheeks turn to deep red as he shrugs again. “I don’t like girls,” he admits, voice quiet.
“Mmm,” I answer as I watch more people walk by the big glass windows. “Oh, oh! You like boys!”
Torin sinks a little on the bench beside me as he nods. I wince. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to say that so loudly. I didn’t know it was a secret.”
He laughs a little. The kind of laugh that isn’t quite funny, but trying to find humor in the situation. I feel really bad.
“It’s not. I just… people can be jerks and I already don’t like to be looked at, so…” Torin shrugs again.
I wrap my arm around his shoulders and give him a sidewayshug. “I don’t care that you like boys. Three of my besties are gay.” I think about it for a minute. “Or bisexual. I didn’t mean to announce it, though. I’m sorry.”
Torin sighs. “It’s okay. I didn’t think you’d care. I guess I didn’t realize you didn’t know that.”
“As far as I know, no one does. You’re so quiet.”
He smiles, bowing his head. “I have social anxiety. I’ve had it since I was a kid, and it’s only gotten worse as I get older, so I’ve never made any friends. It’s made me a very… well, quiet person, I suppose. I spend a lot of time alone.”
I squeeze him tightly. “I’m your friend, Torin.”
His eyes meet mine. I’ve noted before that they’re dark, and I’d always assumed they were brown. But this close, I think that maybe they’re brown and charcoal. So unique. So beautiful.
“Thanks,” Torin says. He leans into me, resting his head on my shoulder.
We remain silent as we continue to watch the people through the big glass window until Susie brings us our dessert with some boxes. She sets our panna cottas in front of us, then starts scooping our plates into different take-out containers.
I moan indecently as I eat my dessert, but it’s definitely moan-worthy. I’m no longer interested in the people outside as I enjoy my panna cotta. No one makes it like Antonio’s.
Unfortunately, it never lasts as long as I’d like it to and I’m paying our check within a few minutes. “I usually run here and home,” I admit as I lean back. “I eat far too much when I come here.”
