“Like, on a date,” he said before I could continue. He smiled a boyish, sweet smile that forced me to smile back.
“Yeah, Jason, sure.” His eyes lit up, a child on Christmas, and honestly, it was endearing. I couldn’t remember when a guy genuinely wanted to go out with me. “When do you want to go?”
“What about tonight?” he asked, excited. “I could take you out for dinner or something.”
I was tired, slightly grumpy, and had a shit ton of homework to do, but I knew I’d feel bad if I turned him down now, so I nodded and shrugged a little. It couldn’t hurt, right? I needed this. I needed the distraction.
“Sounds good. Pick me up around seven?”
“I’ll be here.”
I stood on the porch and watched Jason walk away, back towards campus. He turned once and waved back at me, and I smiled before turning around and going into the house.
“Oooh, who was that?” Jami asked as soon as I closed the front door behind me. She lounged on the living-room couch with a textbook propped up on one leg and a glass of wine in one hand. From where she was sitting, I knew she saw Jason and me on the front porch through the window.
“He’s just a friend,” I said quickly, kicking off my shoes. “I met him in Microbiology yesterday.”
“Um, okay. But does he know that he’s just a friend?”
I sighed and crossed the floor, plopping on the couch beside her. Jami handed me her glass of wine, and I took a sip, relishing the crisp flavor of blackberries and spice. Count on Jami to always have a fine wine ready for whatever crisis comes our way.
“He asked me out on a date.”
“Really?” Jami’s eyes went wide. She was thrilled, probably more so than I was. “Did you say yes?”
I sighed. “Yes, I said yes.”
“But do you like him?”
“Would I have said yes if I didn’t like him?” I asked her, and Jami giggled.
“Probably. You have a soft heart, Renee. Anyway, when are you going?”
“Tonight, I guess.”
Jami nodded thoughtfully, her eyes scoping me out. “What are you going to wear?”
“What’s wrong with this?”
“Oh, please.” Jami got to her feet, taking my free hand in hers to pull me up. “Come upstairs. We’ll figure this out.”
“There’s nothing to figure out,” I yelled after her. “It’s just a date.”
* * *
Hey, OMW – Jason
I stared at the text on my phone, trying to settle my nerves, then locked the screen and tossed it aside. I wanted to cancel on him and make up some petty excuse as to why I couldn’t go on this date tonight.
Homework.
Exhaustion.
Menstrual cramps. That one has always worked the best.
“Don’t look so nervous,” Jami said, clucking over me like a mother hen. “First dates are supposed to be fun.” She straightened my silk scarf for what felt like the millionth time and smiled, her eyes scanning me from top to bottom. I felt so out of place and stiff in these date clothes, tight jeans that Carly once said accentuated my ass, and a low-hanging shirt that I kept unconsciously pulling up. The makeup is a little heavy, Jami’s doing, but I was trying to be grateful instead of annoyed. After all, I’ve never been on anactualdate before, and Jason is on his way to pick me up. That isn’t to say I’ve never had sex before, because I have, but I was never precisely wooed off my feet beforehand.
“Take a deep breath,” Jami said as I sat on the edge of my bed, knees trembling. She was going through my closet still, looking for anything else she could to make this outfit even worse. “Jason is a nice guy, isn’t he? I am sure you’ll have a great time.”
