Unexpected

Unexpected Part Two

Janelle nodded. "I completely understand," she said. "I lost my grandmother almost two years ago...she was like my best friend too."

"I'm very sorry to hear that," Zeke told her, placing his hand over the one on his arm to give it a squeeze.

Janelle smiled softly as butterflies erupted again at the feeling of his hand on hers before they both looked up at the sudden sound of a male voice through the speakers.

"Attention all visitors, the Lakeview Planetarium will be closing in half an hour. We hope you've enjoyed the show, and may you all have a wonderful rest of your night."

Zeke cleared his throat and let go of her hand as Janelle turned her head to grab her purse.

"Well," he said. "Looks like our night's coming to an end, Miss Janelle."

A slight frown formed on Janelle's lips at the thought of having to say goodbye. Although she'd had her doubts in the beginning, she had truly enjoyed the time spent with Zeke, and had slowly found herself wanting to learn more about him.

"Hey," she suddenly said. "Do you like frozen yogurt?"

Zeke raised an eyebrow. "Frozen yogurt?" he asked and nodded. "I do, actually...Why? You know a place that's opened this late?"

Janelle nodded. "Not too far from here, actually," she said. "Would you um...like to go get some?"

A playful look was in Zeke's eyes as he smiled and said, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were asking me to further this date."

Janelle tilted her head with a smile. "I guess you don't then."

Zeke's smile deepened as he stood up to his feet and held his hand out. Bashfully, Janelle placed her hand in his and allowed him to lead them out of the building.

He'd never met anyone like her. Being in her presence felt like the blanket of comfort he had been searching for all his life wrapping around his body, and with every second he further spent with her, he knew he wouldn't want to let go.

Growing up, it wasn't often that Zeke would find other kids that looked like him and shared the same interests as him...because apparently, to the other Black kids that were around, being interested in space wasn't a cool thing to do. The kids who were willing to be his friend, only wanted to do so because of his grandfather's background. Janelle, however, was the first person he'd met to not only show genuine interest in space...but to show genuine interest in him as well.

From the moment he'd first laid eyes on her at the bar, Zeke knew that there was something about Janelle that made her different from the rest. And as they walked through the park, the moonlight glistening on the perfect spot to show off her beautiful brown skin as she laughed at a joke he'd made, Zeke knew exactly what that special thing was.

"Gosh, it's so pretty out here at night," Janelle said while looking around the area. "I've only been out here a few times with my nieces and nephew, but I always loved going to the park as a little girl."

Zeke smiled as they walked over to sit down on an empty bench. "Didn't really take you for the outdoorsy type."

Janelle furrowed her brows. "What?' she asked with a laugh. "How could you possibly think that? We've only known each other for a few hours."

"We've known each other long enough for me to know that you like to sing incredibly off-key in the car when your favorite song's on," he said with a smirk.

Janelle's eyes widened as her cheeks burned in embarrassment. On their way over to the frozen yogurt shop, Hey Ya had come on the radio, and Janelle had wasted no time in turning up the volume and singing her heart out while also forcing an amused Zeke to sing along with her.