Ash felt a blush creep up their cheeks and turned their gaze from Luke. He thought they were cute? Like cute cute? Or silly cute? Regardless, he used the word cute. Was Ash reading too much into this, or was that a compliment? Could Luke be flirting with Ash? No… he couldn’t be. They had discussed not continuing anything further. So why would he flirt with them? Unless he still wanted to be more. Or maybe he wasn’t thinking, and it just slipped out.
Ash turned their eyes back to the red pandas and watched them eat, drink some water, and then curl up on the tree for a nap. The mama red panda tucked her tail around her body and put her face on her tail like a pillow. Ash nearly died as they whipped out their phone to take a few photos of the red pandas.
“Come on, let’s keep walking,” Ash said, putting their phone away.
Ash led Luke through the zoo, from the vultures to the arctic foxes. They stopped at the bald eagle enclosure. Luke had never seen a bald eagle before. Ash had only ever seen them in captivity. While Ash loved the Binghamton Zoo, they did feel bad for the animals because they would never know life in the wild. They didn’t have miles of land to roam or the ability to fly wherever they desired. While they were safe in the zoo, they didn’t get to live the life of a free animal. Ash had mixed feelings about zoos in general, so they donated money every year to wildlife protection agencies to ensure natural habitats were not destroyed by humans.
“Come on, I have one last surprise for you,” Ash said, pulling Luke along.
Luke looked at his watch as he followed Ash down the hill. When Ash stopped in front of the African Penguins, Luke’s eyes lit up. His lips parted slightly as he watched the penguins. There were two currently playing with what looked like big rubber balls. Luke took a step closer to the exhibit and pulled out his phone to record a video of the animals playing together.
Instead of watching the animals, Ash watched Luke. They watched a slow smile spread across his lips, a bigger smile than they had ever seen him wear. Luke took videos and pictures of the animals from various angles. A wave of relief washed over Ash as they watched the pure joy on Luke’s face. Up until now, Ash was worried Luke wasn’t having a good time, based on his silence and the way he kept looking at his watch. They were glad to have been proved wrong.
Luke watched the penguins in silence for nearly ten minutes. When Luke finally turned to Ash, he took a step closer and wrapped his arms around Ash’s shoulders. Taken aback, it took Ash a moment to wrap their arms around Luke’s waist.
“Thank you, Ash. I needed this today,” Luke said, his chest rumbling with his words.
“I’m glad I could help. Are you feeling better?” Ash asked.
Luke released Ash and stepped back. “I am. I wasn’t sure this was going to help, but I haven’t seen penguins in a long time. It’s just what I needed to remind me life isn’t all about work. Taking a breakisproductive.”
Ash looked at their watch and noticed it had been an hour since they left the lab. “Our hour is up. Do you want to go home? Or can I take you to another of my favorite places?”
Luke nodded his head. “Show me what you’ve got.”
Ash led Luke through the rest of the zoo, stopping by the wolf exhibit before they left, and made their way back down Vestal Parkway toward Ash’s favorite Barnes & Noble.
“The bookstore?” Luke asked incredulously as Ash pulled into a parking spot.
Ash jumped from the car with a smile on their face. “There’s no better place to be than between the pages of a book.”
The familiar scents of books and coffee filled Ash’s nose as they led Luke into the store. The squealing of espresso machines was music to Ash’s ears. The cool air conditioning was a comforting change from the warmth of the outside air. A sea of bookshelves filled the store straight ahead, while the café was off to the right. Ash took Luke over to the café, where the twenty metal tables were filled with a diverse group of people. Everyone from students to elderly people occupied the space, reading, talking, or studying. Coffee and sugar overpowered the scent of books as Ash approached the counter, where a cute guy wore a green apron and sported an eyebrow piercing.
"Can I get a grande pumpkin spiced latte with oat milk? And…” Ash gestured to Luke for his order.
“Oh. A black cold brew, please,” Luke said.
Ash paid for their coffees, and the pair walked to the pick-up area. “Do you put anything in your coffee?”
“A little cream, usually. I don’t like the sugar.”
Ash rolled their eyes. “I cannot drink coffee without all the sugar. The taste is disgusting.”
Luke put a hand to his chest like he’d been shot. “I can’t believe I’m associating with a coffee hater.”
Ash laughed. “I like it when it’s smothered with caramel or pumpkin spice.”
Once Ash and Luke had their drinks, they wandered through the shelves. Ash had noticed when they were at Luke’s house that he liked to read—he had a single bookshelf overflowing with novels. Since Ash had been a little distracted by Luke’s body, they hadn’t fully taken in the genres Luke enjoyed.
“What do you like to read?” Ash asked.
Luke took a sip of his coffee. “Fantasy and romance.”
Ash nearly stumbled. This man. “Me too. There’s a game I like to play with my friend Sage when we come to the bookstore. How do you feel about a game?”
“I’m intrigued,” Luke said, that smile creeping up his lips.
Ash led Luke to the romance section. Colorful paperbacks surrounded them on either side on shelves taller than Ash but still shorter than Luke.
