The Bullies' Karma (gxg)

Chapter 23

The next day was Saturday, and while Sydney was spending it with her family, I was at home freaking out about how to make the perfect picnic meal. I know, I could have just made sandwiches and snacks, but not for Syd. We weren't in high school anymore. Okay, I was, but she wasn't! She deserved a nice meal, whether it was at my house, in a restaurant or sitting on a blanket. Finding the perfect mix of taste, portability and class was proving pretty tough.

               "So, you're saying no to the steaks?" Heidi asked.

               "Nope. I like the idea, but it would be a pain to cut them. I either need it to be finger food or something that doesn't need a knife," I replied.

               "And nothing messy like BBQ ribs?" she confirmed.

               "No! I can't imagine getting BBQ sauce all over your fingers and face would be romantic." Not that helping her get cleaned up wouldn't be fun, but that wasn't on the docket for this date!

               "What about making some homemade fish fingers and shrimp in a tempura batter then fry them up? It's probably a lot less messy than fried chicken," Heidi suggested.

               I thought about the timing of that and realized it might work. I already had the rest of the meal planned out, and this would be perfect picnic finger food! "That's perfect! Thanks! Now I just need to go get shrimp and fish!" Of course, why would I have fresh fish laying around the house? Ugh! I hopped into the car, and made a quick trip to the supermarket, getting some fresh shrimp and grouper to make the dinner with. I made sure I had enough fresh fruit as well and then drove home to start getting prepared.

The afternoon was nerve wracking for me, and I wish I had more to do to keep myself busy. The only thing I could do early was bake some brownies and slice up the fruit. The rice, fish and shrimp would be done closer to when Sydney was arriving so that they'd be fresh for the picnic. Of course, my nerves just made Heidi pick on me, only to be smacked lightly by Emilia every time she did.

"Don't pick on Nai'a, babe!" Emilia chastised. "Be nice or you'll need a cold shower later!"

"Okay! Okay!" Heidi yelped, not wanting to lose any chance of doing something naughty with her girlfriend. "Nai'a, you're doing great, and you have a good plan for the day. Sydney is gonna love it."

I just ignored her, too nervous to talk. Yesterday was easy. She showed up in the middle of the night, so there had been no chance for nerves. The rest of the day had been almost like we were catching up on everything that we'd missed. And kissing. A lot of kissing. But today was planned out and hopefully more romantic. I was overthinking everything about the night, and I just prayed that she understood what I was going for. When it was about thirty minutes from our planned meeting time, I got the ride, fish and shrimp started. In a perfect world I'd have everything packed up in their thermal containers when she got here, and we'd be on our way.

I timed it close. Everything was about two minutes to completion when I heard the doorbell ring, and I ran to the front door, pulled it open and then stepped right into the arms of the woman that I... holy shit... the woman I love. Oh man, I hope the night goes well! I knew I'd been falling for her, but I hadn't realized I was in love until I saw her again. She was wearing a light pink sundress that came to her knees and a pair of comfortable pink converse to go with them. As always, she was gorgeous.

"Hey there, beautiful," I whispered into her ear. "I'm so glad to see you!"

Her hands crept up my back and to my neck, then she leaned up and gave me a soft kiss. "I think I like this hello. I might have to visit you more often!"