Adorable

Chapter 24 | It Better Be

Eventually, we both pulled away- neither wanting to, but knowing we couldn't stand here forever. We locked eyes for a long time before she murmured something so soft I barely caught it.

"So is that an invitation?"

I smirked at her. "Maybe."

She glared. "It had better be."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Is that an invitation?"

She falters. "Uh..."

"Kidding. Atlantis. Tomorrow night."

She frowned. "Where in Atlantis?"

"It's a surprise." The truth was that I had no idea. I hadn't planned that far ahead yet.

"Sophie? Dinner is ready!" Edaline's voice called from the house.

She grinned at me. "Want to stay?"

I grinned back. "Would I survive it?"

"I'd give it a ninety percent chance."

"I like those odds." We laughed, and she pulled away and intertwined her fingers in mine. We walked that way into her house, stopping at the door of the kitchen.

"Mom, is it okay if Keefe stays for dinner?"

"Of course, honey. I'll get an extra plate." Edaline gave us a sappy smile that sent Foster blushing and me grinning.

"You do work up an appetite in the Healing Center. Who knew Elwin had such horrible taste in snacks?" We laughed and cracked more jokes about Elwin as we sat around the table. Grady walked in, and eyed me immediately. He glared slightly but said nothing.

We sat down to eat, and the mood turned awkward with Grady watching me like I was about to murder Sophie. I tried to keep things light, carrying the conversation and cracking jokes about Bo and Ro, who were staring daggers at each other- and me- from across the room.

Finally, dinner was over. Not a great start, but at least by the end of the meal Grady didn't look like he wanted to mesmerize me into leaving and never coming back.

We stood up, and Sophie walked me to the door. Grady looked like he wanted to follow, but Edaline distracted him not-so-subtly.

We paused at the door, and turned towards each other.

"Bye, Keefe." Sophie said softly, reaching up to run her fingers through my hair. The touch sent burning tingles down my body.

"Bye, Foster." Her other hand moved to my face, and she pulled me down into a kiss.

A loud noise startled us just as our lips met. We sprang apart, turning towards Grady clearing his throat. "Goodbye, Keefe."

I probably turned red. I couldn't help it. He's terrifying! "Um... bye." I turned to Sophie, giving her a quick kiss before slipping out the door. I listened for a second to make sure he wasn't mad, but I didn't hear anything. It was probably fine.

*****

I was starting to panic. I had visited nearly every clothes shop in Atlantis, trying desperately to find something that even vaguely resembled a human suit. I figured Sophie would get a kick out of me wearing human clothes to our first real date.

I had finally decided where to take her- a kind of over the top fancy place called the Gilded Rose Café that would probably be super awkward. But I wanted to do something nice for her. She deserved it.

Speaking of, it turns out I'm terrible at picking out jewelry. I had wanted to get her something, maybe a necklace or a bracelet, but I didn't see anything that she would really like. Maybe I would make something.

Finally, I found this dinky little shop that sold ripoff humanish clothes. They weren't perfect, but I found an outfit my size that looked pretty good. It was midnight black with a white shirt and tie. I had no idea if it was accurate, but it sure didn't look bad on me.

So I bought it for a ridiculous price (thank you dad for leaving your birth fund cube out in the open) and took it home in a bag. I also bought a bag of plain round beads and some light blue string. The color was Ro's idea. Apparently it looks like my eyes.

I was just settling down with my art supplies and the beads when a knock sounded at my door. I scrambled to cover my desk, then realized it was my dad.

"What can I do for you?" I asked sarcastically.

He took a look at my desk. "I want you to work on your homework. Your grades have been suffering due to your antics lately."

"Suffering? The only suffering going on is between me and those books." I retort, going back to wetting my brushes and laying out my paints. After a minute I looked up. "You're still here."

"Indeed I am. Can't I watch my son? You are very talented."

I couldn't speak. I just gaped at him.

"Okay Daddio, obviously you're up to something shady. I know enough about both of you to know that you have never said anything even remotely tolerant about Lord Hunkyhair's art." Once again, Ro saved me.

"Yeah. What in the Point of Purity is that supposed to mean? Talented? Last time you mentioned my art was to scream in my face and rip up a drawing I had worked on for weeks. So get out and shut up."

Maybe I was a little harsh. And I felt kind of bad about that. But that drawing was supposed to be a present for Sophie. I tried again, but I never did get it right. It ended up crumpled in my trash can.

He looked like he wanted to say something else, then closed his mouth, turned around, and closed the door behind him as he left.

Ro turned to me and whistled. "Wow, Lord Hunkyhair. That was impressive." She held up her hand for a high five. I ignored her and turned to my beads.

I had no idea what to draw. I had already given her one with her face, a Panakes blossom... what else? So I just started playing around, sketching tiny scenes. They were mostly closeups of her face, in all sorts of expressions. Joyful, like she'd been when I woke up. Embarrassed, like she'd been- well, pretty much all the time. Angry at me, like she'd been after Ravagog.

Some of them were tiny scenes, like our first meeting or our first kiss. And a few were of me. One was Grady and Edaline. One was of her human parents and Amy. There were a couple more, but those were the main ones. When I was done, I had about twenty beads. I threaded them into a loose bracelet, then looked at it. It looked a little messy. Something was missing.

Ro walked over and looked at it, then handed me something. It was a round ice blue bead, about twice as big as the others. "Bought this earlier. Figured you'd need it."

I looked at it, then shook my head. "No. That's pretentious. This is about her."

"Nah, she wants something to remind everyone that you're together. Trust me. Remember that teal heart from Pretty Boy she used to wear?"

"Yeah, and they broke up."

"You make a good point. But I think you should do it."

I sighed. She hadn't been wrong yet. "Fine." I slipped half the beads off the thread, slipped on the blue one, and put them back. It... actually looked much better. Then I glanced at my watch and sprang up. "Holy verminion! I only have an hour to get ready!"

Ro laughed. "Better hurry, Lover Boy. Wouldn't want to show up to your date in that." She gestured to the wrinkled outfit I'd both slept and shopped in.

I flushed. That would be horrible. I quickly changed into the suit and styled my hair. I will admit that the second action took about three times as long as the first. Finally, I had it perfect. I smirked in the mirror, then tucked the bracelet into my pocket. Off to my first date.

A/N I *love* Ro! Also, who's looking forward to the date?