Ash set their drink down on the bar. “It’s like drinking fall.”
Luke let out a low chuckle. “I take it you like it?”
“I do.” Ash nodded. “There’s nothing better than the fall. The leaves changing, temperatures cooling, pumpkin-flavored things, apple cider donuts.”
“Have you gone to the cider house in town?” Luke asked.
Ash cocked their head to the left. “No. Where is it?”
“Down in Endicott—there’s a cider house with the best apple cider donuts. They are only open from August to November.”
Ash whipped out their phone. “I’m going to forget everything you just said; what is this place called?”
“I think it’s the Cider Mill,” Luke said. “You can’t miss it. It’s a huge red barn on the side of the road. If you drive past it and don’t find it, I’d be impressed.”
Ash let out a breathy laugh. “Thank you for the recommendation.”
“Seeing as you don’t know the Cider Mill, you must not be local. Let me give you the list of all the best places in town you can’t miss.”
Luke rattled off restaurants, shops, and hiking trails, half of which Ash had never heard of. Some were iconic staples, like Garage Taco Bar and Lost Dog, that they had been to. But there were a few restaurants—like Spice of India and Big Dipper Barbecue—that they had never even heard of. Luke told Ash about a metaphysical shop downtown they somehow had never noticed, despite their love of a good tarot reading. He spoke highly of two hiking trails, both within twenty minutes of the university, but Ash wasn’t the outdoorsy type. When they weren’t in the lab, Ash was usually playing games with their friends or sleeping—nothing beat a good four PM nap. But Ash politely wrote the hiking trails down, just in case. Maybe they would meet someone who needed a good place to hike.
“Have you ever been to Jupiter Games?” Ash asked Luke as they slid their phone back into the front pocket of their jeans.
Luke furrowed their brow. “I don’t think so—what and where is that?”
“Do you know Piccolo’s diner?”
“Of course,” Luke scoffed.
“If you turn left out of there, about five minutes down the road, there is a board game shop, Jupiter. Their top floor is a shop—they have eclectic board games, Dungeons and Dragons books, and Magic: The Gathering cards. In the basement, there’s a whole bunch of tables where you can play the games they have. Sometimes, they have events there, but most of the time, it’s just people playing board games.” Ash and their friends spent many late nights playing games at Jupiter while their peers were dancing at the clubs.
Luke nodded slowly. “Magic: The Gathering? Is that, like, magician shit?”
Ash couldn’t contain the laugh that burst from their chest. “Sorry,” they said between giggles. “No. It’s a card game. I like to describe it as a game of logic, resources, and math, all wrapped in fantasy.” Ash briefly explained the different types of cards to Luke.
“It sounds like Pokémon.”
Ash sighed. “I don’t want to agree with you, but that’s a fair comparison.”
Luke smiled down at Ash. “I never played Pokémon.” Luke called the bartender over. “Can I get a whiskey sour? And…” Luke gestured to Ash.
Ash picked up their whiskey cider—they had barely drank half of it. “I’ll do one of the vodka pink lemonades.”
“Do you do shots?” Luke asked.
“Are you trying to get me drunk?” Ash asked with a laugh. “Yes, I do shots. Tequila?”
Luke scrunched his nose and pulled in his lips. “Must I?”
Ash laughed. “Dealer’s choice, then.”
“Two shots of tequila, but not the cheap shit. Give us Patrón.”
“Oh, you don’t have to do that. I’m fine with the cheap shit,” Ash said as the bartender disappeared to make their drinks.
“If I’m drinking tequila, it has to be worth it. I don’t normally splurge, but…when I’m talking to an attractive person, I can’t help myself.”
A slow smile spread across Ash’s lips. It wasn’t every day a cute guy in a bar used gender-neutral language without prompting. Every time Ash was referred to properly by a stranger, it made their heart skip.
