Illicit Affairs

thirty-two. date night

Before we know it, we're standing in front of a large building, decorated with fancy signs and hanging plants. It's one that I've adored for a while, and the food is magnificent. For a second, I have to remind myself that this date will not burst into flames like our previous one did. Aria tightly squeezes my hand twice, and I know that she can suspect what it is that I'm thinking.

We take a seat at one of the stations in the corner, and a waiter immediately comes over to our table. He asks for our orders, and Aria requests a minute longer to decide.

The blonde man rushes away to another table and leaves us alone again.

"There are so many options," Aria tells me.

"Pick anything. I'm paying."

"You don't have to pay!" She exclaims right away. "Let's split it."

She knows that my budget has taken a hit ever since my parents abandoned me, but I just need to do this for her.

Or, well, not for her.

But for me.

I want this to feel normal and not like she's taking pity on me by paying for our meal.

"I asked you on the date," I remind her.

She knows that I'm not going to back down, so she simply says, "fine."

When the waiter, Jackson, makes his way back to us, he asks for our orders once again. I quickly tell him mine, and I notice Aria hesitate before she picks out one of the more expensive meals.

I make a mental list in my head of how much I'll be paying, but Aria interrupts me by asking, "what's wrong?"

"Nothing," I say calmly.

Financial stress is some of the worst stress. I hate that I have to be exposed to it now, but I have to get used to it. I just always thought that my family would be there in the background if I needed it. No need to think about that now though.

I cough awkwardly, and I grab Aria's hand from across the short table. I try to make the scene as romantic as I possibly can as I tell her that I love her.

She smiles sweetly before saying, "I love you too. Are you okay though?"

"I never felt it before now but. . . I'm just a little bit stressed. Being on a date is reminding me of how our last date went."

"There's nothing to worry about. Everything bad that could have possibly happened already happened. There's nothing else that could happen."

I try to crack a joke as I tell her, "yeah, I mean, it's not like there could suddenly be a fire."

"Exactly."

When the waiter leaves us with our food, we both thank him. I tell myself that everything is fine, and I just need to worry about how I'll finish all of the food in front of me. Aria makes a comment about how great the meal looks, and I politely agree with her.

"Are you feeling better?" She asks.

"I think so," I tell her.

We both start eating at our respective plates, and I finally feel at ease.

Well, that's until someone suddenly yells, "FIRE!"

Jackson, the guy who had just given us our food, is already long gone out of the building and people are also quick to follow. I catch a sight of blinding sparks coming from the kitchen of the restaraunt, and I practically pull Aria away with me.

Long story short, the firefighters arrive and the building is saved before it can completely burst into flames.

Most guests have already left, and we too take the chance to leave so that we can avoid getting charged for the food by the possibly greedy owners.

"What the hell was that?" Aria asks when we're at a safe distance away from the place.

"I have no idea, but I think that we have bad luck when it comes to dates."

Aria seems like she wants to call me out for saying something so pessimistic, but instead, she starts laughing.

"It's not funny!" I tell her right away.

"C'mon Celeste, it's sort of funny. It truly shows how we can survive anything."

"I wanted to do something super fancy and elegant for you," I decide to tell her. "I'm sorry that it's been ruined."

"You didn't do anything wrong," she says.

I stay silent, and she gives me a gentle kiss on the lips. She repeats, "you didn't do anything wrong."

"I guess."

"Hey, do you want to go get some food from that pizza shop? And since I asked, I'll be paying."

"We'll look like we're insane if we show up in these fancy outfits and messed up makeup."

"It's the city," Aria says with a wink. "I'm sure that they've seen worse."

We start laughing together, and I know that she's right. That's confirmed when we step into the shop and the employee doesn't even look at us. We sit at a booth in the back of the restaurant, and I know that Aria is probably saying "I told you so" in her mind.

We spend the rest of our evening together and though it isn't in the place either of us expected, it's more than enough for us.

Maybe all we really need is each other.