“To all your happy places. The first stop isn’t reading in the park then a movie, but it is a movie in the park. Then the wine bar around the corner has a late-night tasting. It’s close enough we can stumble home if we need to.”
He gapes at me, the hand with his tea dropping to his side as if it’s too heavy to hold up. “You did all this for me?”
“Yes. I want you to have the happiest day. You deserve it.”
“Bri . . .”
“Yes, yes, I’m amazing. Now let’s go before we have to sit all the way in the back.”
~
Movies in the park were some of my favorite events growing up. Junie, Keisha, and I caught a random pop-up in college and had the best time. Keisha also met Kellen at one. Proof that it’s a perfect placeto meet people.
We brought a blanket from the apartment and grabbed some popcorn from a vendor near the entrance. The park is packed, but we manage to squeeze into a spot big enough for the two of us. I make small talk with the parties next to us, getting Liem to talk about his work and convincing one group to indulge in some kettle corn.
Liem eyes me with appreciation. Even the smallest of friendly actions seem new to him. His smile isn’t rare, but I haven’t seen this version in a while. It’s the one he gives when he’s feeling undeserving of whatever is happening. It’s the smile he had when I offered to help him get his suitcase back from Natalie. The smile he gets when I’ve relieved him of a heavy burden he hasn’t admitted to carrying.
BoyzIIMen plays from the park speakers in the background while we wait for the sun to set and the movie to start. I fear I may be enjoying this night as much as Liem. I pull out my phone, panning across the landscape, catching families sharing picnics and couples dancing together to the song. A little bit of everyone doing a little bit of everything.
Liem sits quietly with a contented expression. “Are you having fun?” I ask.
He turns to me, and his smile widens. “Yeah. This is really cool.”
I pretend to ignore the warmth appearing in his cheeks. “So, this is something you would do on your own too? Invite friends, but chill if no one shows up.”
“Probably. It’s kind of perfect. Being around people but being alone at the same time.”
An interesting observation. There’s freedom that comes with sharing an experience with strangers you don’t have to answer to. People people-ing. Liem Liem-ing. Showing him this—that the outside world isn’t as scary or lonely as he expects it to be—is worth every penny I spent.
He’ll be okay without me when the blip of Brooklyn bliss is over. If anything, I might have a harder time being withouthim.
I catch a candid picture of him, the golden-hour lighting flattering his skin and making his hazel eyes look amber. He catches me after I get two, but he looks even more handsome in the third, brow cocked in question, smile leaning into a smirk.
“Are you taking pictures of me?”
“Yes.”
He chuckles. “Why?”
“Because you’re pretty,” I admit nonchalantly.
“If you want a picture of something pretty, it should be you.” He snatches my phone from my hand. “Get up.”
“Okay, bossy. At least get my good side.”
“Every side is your good side,” he murmurs.
I pose, twirling for no reason other than to show off my fabulous dress while hitting my best angles in one go. “Good enough for you?” I tease, joining him again on the blanket and taking my phone back. “Let’s take some together.”
I pull him close, draping his arm over my shoulder and hugging him around his waist, smiling as big as he does. Then I press a kiss to his cheek. You know, for the pictures. No other reason.
When I lean away, I catch his eyes, our faces so close our noses nearly touch. Then, unexpectedly, hekisses me.
It takes a second to register that this is really happening, but it is. Liem’s lips, plush and warm, linger against mine. I close my eyes and the rest of my body disappears, except for where I exist beneath his kiss. Our lips separate with a gentle suck. The sound returns sensation to my body like rippling waves of electricity, but we don’t move away from each other. I don’t want to.
I stare at his lips, wanting them back. There’s a breath; a moment where thoughts don’t have time to collect. Then our lips meet again.
The second kiss is as soft as the first, a gentle suck of my bottom lip, his familiar timidness melting away by the kiss’s end. The third is deeper, his hand cradling the back of my head, his lips parting mine. Our tongues only touch for a second, but it’s enough to consume the last of my sense of self. I want to be part of him, to live in this moment, this kiss, for hours.
