Smiling, I gesture toward his menu. “Order whatever you want. I’ve heard they have great desserts.”
Luca’s eyes light up as he looks over the menu. “I won’t have any room for dessert with all this food,” he says sullenly, though the smile on his face tells me he’s not really upset about it.
Still, I say, “Then let’s order dessert first.”
“Can we?” he asks, looking at me with those wide eyes I love so much.
Chuckling, I nod. “We’re adults, Luca. We can do what we want.”
He smiles, his face lighting up. “Then yes, please? Dessert first.”
When our server comes back, we order our dessert and tell him we’ll order dinner soon.
He brings it out a few minutes later and we share it, Luca smiling and blushing hard as he feeds me some brownie and ice cream over the table.
“I’ve never had ice cream this fresh,” Luca says, smiling around his spoon. “This is amazing.”
I take a bite for myself and relish seeing his happy face. “Why haven’t you gone on a date before?”
His smile drops and he sets his spoon down, biting his lower lip.
Shit, I didn’t want to upset him. I just want to get to know him and what made him the person he is. Maybe that wasn’t the right question for that.
I’ve been out of the dating game for so long that I don’t even know how to make date conversation.
Luca looks up at me, though he doesn’t look pissed that I put him on the spot. “I wasn’t very social in school. And… I don’t know, I’ve never been interested in anyone. Not until I met you.”
My insides warm as I look at him, that perpetual blush high on his cheeks. “And what makes me so special, huh?” I ask in a teasing voice that’s so unlike me it even surprises Luca.
He breathes a laugh. “I think it has a lot to do with your good looks, Professor.”
Our laughter radiates across the restaurant, making me feel light.
We order dinner, Luca grinning as he forks up some of my food from my plate. Weeks ago, he never would have reached for my food or cracked jokes or even said more than a few sentences without stumbling over his words.
I love this change in him, how out of his shell he’s become since we started this.
“What are your plans after grad school?” I ask as I watch him chew his food carefully.
“I want to be a therapist, maybe for a school or a crisis center. I really want to help people. So… psychology and social work, and I’ll see where I end up. A lot of kids aren’t lucky enough to have grandparents like mine, so…” He trails off with a small shrug.
I nod, impressed. He told me he was double majoring, which is already hard work. I’m not sure how he has time for two majors, TA duties, and hanging out with me. He must be exhausted. Maybe the second part of my date will help him.
“That’s admirable, Luca. I know you’ll do great with whatever you want to do in your future.”
“Can we not talk about school?” he asks. “We’re so far from Evergreen. I want to forget…” He looks around and drops his voice. “I want to forget that you’re a professor and I’m a student.”
“Do you not like some of the things we do at Evergreen while you’re my TA?” I ask, dropping my voice.
Luca shakes his head with a smile. “I love them.” He breathes his confession. “But let’s just be… people. Two people who want to be together, whocanbe together without anyone saying it’s wrong.”
“Anything you want.” I pause so we can eat our dinner for a few minutes. Then I ask, “Your dream vacation?”
“Oh gosh,” he says, sounding young. “Maybe a beach? Oh! I saw some pamphlets a few months back for a pretty beach in the Virgin Islands, on St. Thomas.”
“Is school the reason you haven’t gone on a vacation?”
“Oh no. I’ve been plenty of times with my grandparents growing up, but we never went to the coast. I’m… uh…” He looks a little embarrassed. “I’m afraid of sharks.”
