All Bets Are Off

Chapter Eight - Ella Fordman: The Girl of Double Dates and Catastrophes

            Once again he laughed and offered his arm, and I looped mine through his, shutting the door behind me and locking it with my key. Then he led me down the drive and towards his car, which was a sparkling silver, nothing special, but modest. He opened the door and gestured for me to climb in, which I did obediently. He shut the door and I settled in, unceremoniously dumping my clutch on the carpeted ground and laying my head against the headrest.

            He hopped inside and shut the door, shoving the key in the ignition and turning it on, before snapping his seatbelt in place and shoving the gearshift into drive. And then he reversed out of my driveway and swung out onto the road, immediately hitting the metal garbage cans on the curb.

            He froze, and his face blanked, a horrified look flickering in his green eyes. “Did I just…?”

            He whipped around in his seat and stared at the upturned metal garbage cans in horror. A couple of pieces of rubbish—a catalogue, a newspaper, and a juice box—had fallen out onto the curb. When I looked at Tobey’s face, his was pale and white, and before I could open my mouth, he had undone his seatbelt and tumbled out, running back to the garbage can, and beginning to pile it in. I smiled at how adorable he was, before opening my door and getting out as well.

            “Tobey, it’s fine!” I insisted, running forward and kneeling down beside him. The more he put into the almost-full garbage can, the more seemed to spill out, and now the gutter was filled with papers and food wrappers. “Seriously.”

            When I turned to him, he was blushing deeply. I grabbed up some papers and shoved them in.

            “I am so sorry,” he said, shaking his head ruefully. “Um, I’m not good with this stuff. This has never happened to me before.”

            I laughed. “It’s fine, Tobey. Seriously.”

            I stood up and helped him grab the can, turning it back up. A few pieces of cling wrap and papers fell out, and I hurriedly retrieved them and shoved them into the garbage can, and then wiped off my palms on my pants.

            Tobey was running his hands through his strawberry-blonde hair, shutting his eyes and shaking his head. “God, I’m an idiot.”

            I rubbed his upper arm soothingly. “It’s seriously okay. Come on, let’s go.”

            He nodded, giving me a grateful smile, and then took my hand and led me back to the car. I stepped into the car, and he shut the door behind me, before repeating his earlier actions. This time, though, he didn’t hit any garbage cans, and we were safely on our way.

            “So, um, I got us a reservation at LaRougee’s,” Tobey said after clearing his throat, obviously trying to dissipate any mortification he was feeling. He was referencing the local French restaurant, and I felt a buzz at the thought of going on a date somewhere so classy. It had been great going with Hayden when we had gone to a small diner, and things had been relaxed, but it was also nice to try a different place. I looked down at my pants with a frown. I was definitely underdressed.