Tangled With My Roommate

Chapter-19: Unplanned Date

"Why not?" I asked curiously.

"She had her issues. But I have the copies, and I'm the only one who has read them."

"Really? Why didn't you get them published?" I asked, and his eyes dimmed a little.

"I can't."

"Oh." There was a heaviness to his voice, so I decided to say something else, "Hey, if you have the copies, then I'd like to read them."

We stopped at a red signal, and Theo looked at me. "Why would you want to read them?"

I smiled. "Because I can tell that you love her books, so I'm sure they are really great."

"But you don't read books," he stated.

"I do."

"Please, you don't own a single book outside of school textbooks."

I pouted. "Why do you have to know me so well?" He must have seen my empty bookshelf.

"Because you're easy to figure out, idiot." He flicked my forehead lightly, and I winced dramatically. "But on a serious note, why do you want to read them?"

I grinned at him and said, "So that we can gush over it together."

"Huh?" He gaped at me.

I leaned forward towards him and explained, "You want someone with whom you can talk about the books, right? So if I read them, then you can talk to me about it. We can fangirl together."

He turned away his gaze and started driving once again at the green light. "You're crazy," he said, but there was a big smile on his face—the rare genuine one. And it made me grin even harder.

I just loved it when he smiled genuinely like that.

As we chatted for the rest of the way, I had completely forgotten we were tailing Wyatt and Coral until Theo pointed out that we were headed to the outskirts of the city.

"Shit, he must be taking Coral to go hiking. She loves that exhausting crap!" I exclaimed in horror. "Take a U-turn! Quick!"

"No way. I love hiking too," Theo responded.

I slumped back in my seat, knowing he would insist on going all the more since I hate hiking. "You're gonna have to carry me if I get tired."

"I'm more worried about the food. We didn't bring anything for lunch, did we?"

"Yep. I brought a full picnic set," I sulked.

"Good job being useful, partner." He grinned and ruffled my hair, but I pouted. "Don't worry. We won't climb the mountain if you don't want to."

My eyes sparkled. "Really?"

He nodded. "There's a lake a few kilometers ahead. Wanna go there?"

I was about to respond yes but then I remembered something else. "What about our mission?"

"Our mission is to have fun and not get bored," he stated.

"You're right." I grinned gleefully and cheered, "Yes, let's go to the lake!"

We left behind Wyatt's car in front of the hiking area and went ahead. After ten or minutes, Theo halted at a secluded place. We took out our picnic basket and blanket, heading inside.

"Wow, it's beautiful." I was in awe to see the small serene lake, coated by red fall leaves. The red leaves covered most of the green grass.

"It's the perfect season to come here," Theo said and started to spread the picnic blanket.

"Yeah, Winter will be starting soon." I laid down flat on the blanket as soon as it was done, reeling in the calm atmosphere. There was no one but us around here.

Theo laid down beside me.

"This feels good," I mumbled, stretching my limbs. The sun was bright, so I reached my hand up, and so did Theo.

He chuckled suddenly. "Your hands are so tiny."

I pouted. "No, they are not."

He pressed his palm flat on mine, making a weird sensation form in my stomach. "See? My fingers are at least a few inches longer than yours."

I didn't know what came over me, but I curled my fingers, entwining them with his. He didn't utter a word and silently returned the gesture.

And I swear, I had never felt anything fit so well. Like a key and a lock. Our hands fitted so perfectly, as if they were made for each other, and I wanted to keep them that way.

It made heat rush to my cheeks. I pulled my hand apart and bolted up. "Let's play twenty questions."

"Yeah, let's do that."

We ended up playing rapid-fire, truth and dare, cards, and soccer. Oh, we even did karaoke, learning we were both horrible singers, but we still sang, scaring away all the birds in the forest.

Overall, it was really fun. The best time I had spent in a long time. All thanks to Theo.

I even realized that we had way more similarities with each other than we thought we did.

It was around evening when we got home. Wyatt wasn't home yet, so we assumed they were still hiking or went somewhere else.

Clover ran to Theo as soon as she spotted him. He started crooning her in his arms, heading towards his room when I cleared my throat.

"Um, thanks for today."

"You're welcome," he said curtly and went into his room.

I released a sigh. Just now, did I feel nervous around him?

I shook my head. I was still high from the fun we had, that's why my mind must be in haywire.

I went back to my room and freshened up. When I came out, I found my phone ringing, so I picked it to find Coral. She started spilling all the beans instantly.

Wyatt just dropped her home, and she started telling the juicy gossip on how Wyatt took her hiking and made her favorite dishes, although they didn't taste all that extraordinary, she was touched by his gesture. They even went to the arcade, and she loved spending time with him.

"... I think I might be starting to like him."

As soon as Coral said that, I jumped on top of my bed in excitement and squealed.

"But what about my commitment issues?" she asked hesitantly.

"Don't worry about it. Just talk to Wyatt openly about it. He will understand," I assured her.

"Alright."

Then, I also shared with her about my day, changing the detail of tailing them into something else.

"Oh, my gosh, you guys totally went on a date," Coral exclaimed.

"No, we didn't," I protested in disbelief.

"Whatever, girl. It was a date. A perfect one," she gushed.

"How?"

"C'mon, it had everything. He took you to a romantic place, you guys held hands, had a fun time and lunch together," she explained simply, and the realization sank in.

Oh, my God.

I really went on a date with Theo!

★★★