“You can make sushi? That’s a thing normal people can do?” My mind exploded. Could you just make sushi at yourhouse?
“I’m not making anything fancy. But yeah, maybe we’ll find some nice fish at the farmer’s market and I can make some. If you don’t like raw fish, I can make something with shrimp tempura, if you want to try,” Kai offered.
“I like that idea. Let’s see what the market has,” I replied. I was more of a shrimp tempura guy, but I wanted to try her sushi.
I noticed the dragonfly tattoo on Kai’s foot.
“Are dragonflies your favorite?” I asked, remembering that first night–and the necklace Ashton got her.
“They’re my favorite insect. I like how they’re beautiful and free, and often around water.” She finished off the flatbread pizza.
“Fair, I think my favorite insect will be those little pill bugs. I loved those and used to keep them as pets in a box.” I took another wing.
“I like caterpillars. I’m not sure if they’re insects or not, but I like them. Not because they turn into butterflies, but because of how they are just on their own.” Ashton finished his beer.
“Honestly, I thought you’d say spider, which I don’t think is an insect either,” I teased. I didn’t like spiders. Ashton was the type who didn’t squish them–he set them free elsewhere.
Ashton rolled his eyes. He pushed the basket with the last wing toward us. Kai shook her head. I pushed it back to him. Nodding, he ate it.
“Did you get the tattoo for a special reason or just because you like dragonflies?” I asked.
“I got it in memory of my mom. She liked them too. There was this park we’d go to and we’d watch the turtles and dragonflies by the pond.” Kai sniffed a little.
“That seems like a nice memory.” It was great that Kai had good memories of her parents. Not sure mine even noticed I’d stopped talking to them.
“This place is so pretty.” Kai took a few pictures. “I love all of the plants.”
“Me, too,” Ashton said. “Good job, Steven.” He kissedme.
Kai beamed. “Yes, both this and the zoo were perfect.”
Pride filled me. I chose good!
We paid our bill.
“Should we walk around a little?” I offered her my arm.
We wandered down the street, looking at the little shops, then found the farmer’s market, which had everything from fruits and vegetables to flowers, to a little train that went around the market.
Kai squeezed my hand, bouncing in excitement. “This is amazing. I can’t wait to see what they have.”
We tried fancy cheese, spicy hummus, fresh fruit, and local honey.
“Do you know if anyone’s selling seafood?” Kai asked someone as she tried a fancy stuffed olive.
“I don’t think they’re here today,” the woman told us. “The steak man is here. He’s next to the goat cheese lady.”
Kai’s face fell.
“Keep looking around, maybe we’ll find them.” Ashton squeezed her hand. “If not, Steven can grill some steaks, and we’ll find a fish market another time.”
She nodded. “That sounds like a good plan.”
“Yeah, I’ll absolutely grill steaks,” I offered. Did that mean there’d be another time? I liked that idea quite a bit.
We continued walking around the market, Kai scampering off here and there, coming back with samples on toothpicks and tiny bamboo spoons of tasty things.
“Try this.” Kai fed me a piece of fruit. Sweet tart flavors exploded across my tongue.
