It was about a week before Jackson asked her out again.
He still came to visit her everyday but then, on a warm and sunny afternoon he pulled Kaya aside.
She was in the middle of telling Jackson one of her childhood stories when he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him.
The shop was empty now. It was becoming a regular thing for Kaya to stay after closing time...not that she minded though.
"Kaya, I really like you! But we never ever see each other outside of this coffee shop. Please, let me take you out!" He exclaimed, still holding onto her hand.
Kaya looked into Jackson's eyes.
"Jackson..." She sighed.
"Just give me a chance Kaya! Pleeeeease!" He begged.
Ughh he's too cute!
"Fine! I'll go out with you." Kaya exclaimed, defeated.
One date can't hurt right? She thought to herself.
Jackson's face lit up like the 4th of July! He was so excited.
"Let's go now!" He exclaimed, jumping up and down.
Kaya giggled at his excitment and couldn't help but be just as happy.
"Okay just let me close up first!" Kaya grinned. As she was walking, she realized Jackson was still holding onto her hand and walking alongside her.
Surprised, she looked at Jackson, wide eyed. He just grinned at her.
"Aren't you going to close up?" He asked.
Does he know that he's still holding my hand? She thought to herself.
"Oh..!" He looked down at their hands and let go of her, blushing a little.
Kaya smiled to herself and began to close up shop while Jackson followed her like a little puppy.
As they stepped outside, Jackson turned to her.
"Let's go!" He was smiling uncontrolably, causing Kaya to smile.
Kaya and Jackson walked hand in hand around the block, enjoying the scenery and amazing weather.
"What a beautiful day!" Jackson exclaimed, looking up at the sky.
"Yeah, it's so perfect!" Kaya smiled, looking down at their intertwined hands, feeling butterflies form in her stomach.
Jackson looked at her and then back in front of him. "Hey, wanna' go to the park?" He asked, pointing ahead.
"Sure!" Kaya's face lit up with happiness. She loved going to the park and always thought it was really romantic.
Jackson sensed her happiness and bit his lip in excitement. "Then let's go!" He said, increasing his walking pace.
There were a lot of people at the park today. Some were walking their dogs, some were enjoying a family picnic and some were riding their bikes. It was such a beautiful day outside and everyone seemed to be out enjoying it.
Jackson led the way to the trail lined with tropical fruit trees and flowers. The aroma was breathtaking.
Kaya took in a deep breath, closing her eyes.
"Let's get to know each other better." Jackson suggested, swinging their arms and starting down the path.
"Okay, do you like dogs or cats better?" Kaya asked.
"Dogs!" Jackson shot out.
"Me too!" Kaya exclaimed.
"Okay okay, which do you prefer. The beach or mountains?" He asked, looking down at her.
"The beach of course!" She smiled.
"SAME! I hate the mountains." Jackson laughed.
For the next hour, Jackson and Kaya shared their interests, finding they were more alike than they anticipated.
By the time they reached the end of the trail, Kaya and Jackson were laughing at his hilarious jokes and falling over each other like the best of friends.
"Hey want to get some ice cream?" Jackson suggested, spotting an ice cream cart a few steps away.
"Yes! It's so hot!" Kaya exclaimed, fanning herself.
"Wait right here." Jackson said, before walking up to the cart.
He came back with two mint chocolate chip ice cream cones and handed one to Kaya.
She giggled. "My favorite! How'd you know?" She joked.
"Lucky guess." Jackson smirked, knowingly.
Jackson and Kaya took a seat on one of the park benches and enjoyed their ice cream. Since it was really hot, the cones were dripping a little.
"You like your ice cream?" Jackson asked, taking a bite of his and smiling.
"Yeah it's so creamy!" Kaya smiled. "Thanks Jackson." She nudged him in the side.
"No problem." He blushed a little.
After they finished their cones, they walked around a little and came across some rental bikes.
"Do you want to ride one?" Jackson asked, pointing to a two-seater.
"Yeah! It looks fun." Kaya clapped her hands excitedly.
"Okay then!" Jackson laughed, handing some money over and grabbing a pastel blue bike. He hopped on first and looked behind his shoulder for Kaya to get on.
"Ready?" He asked.
"Ready!" Kaya replied, sitting behind him.
It was wobbly at first and Kaya thought they would topple over but then they got the hang of it and were soon flying down the street.
They were laughing the whole time, hair whipping in the wind. Riding through the busy and colorful market place.
"You okay back there?" Jackson asked, making sure she was alright.
"I'm great!" Kaya exclaimed, raising her hands up in the air causing Jackson to loose some control.
He fumbled around, trying to steady the bike but it was difficult when there were two people riding
"Yo Kaya! Get your hands on the handle bars!" He exclaimed franticly.
"Oh sorry!" Kaya apologizd and began to help steer the bike.
They rode around a quiet neighborhood for a while, keeping up a conversation. When they came to a big hill Jackson suggested they ride down really fast.
Kaya was nervous at first, because it was pretty steep but Jackson talked her into it.
"Ok hold on tight now!" Jackson said as they nearly reached the edge.
Kaya gripped the handle bars so tight that her knuckled turned white and before she knew it, they were flying down that hill at lightning speed.
Jackson was screaming his head off and Kaya was laughing so hard at him that she could hardly catch her breath.
As they were reaching the bottom, Jackson told her to slowly use the breaks so they wouldn't flip when reaching the bottom.
As they safely got to level ground, Kaya and Jackson couldn't stop laughing from the thrill.
"Can you take me home Jackson?" Kaya asked, still laughing with excitement.
"Sure! Where do you live?" He asked.
Kaya directed him where to go but they took a wrong turn a few times and laughed when Jackson almost fell off, attempting to turn around.
When they finally reached Kaya's beach house, they rode up the driveway and got off.
"This was really fun Jackson! Thank you so much." Kaya grinned, brushing the hair out of her face.
Jackson pushed his hair back. "Anytime! I'm glad you had fun." He smiled his cute eye smile that made Kaya's heart skip a beat.
"Well...I'll see you later." Kaya waved, walking towards her door.
Jackson waved back, still smiling uncontrolably. He waited until Kaya entered her house before riding back. He couldn't wait to see her again!
That night as Jackson was lying in bed, he couldn't stop thinking about Kaya.
He tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
Grabbing his phone from his night stand, he texted Kaya.
Jackson: Are you alseep yet?
A few minutes later
Kaya: No, lol I can't fall asleep
Jackson: Yeah me neither...
Kaya: Can't stop thinking about today!😝
Jackson: IKR!!! I really like being with you
Kaya: ...😇
Jackson: You like being with me too right????!!!
Kaya: Of course I do!!! You're really fun to be around.
Jackson: Just checking 😏
Kaya: I'm really tired now and I have to work tomorrow...😴
Jackson: Okay I'll let you sleep now. Goodnight Kaya❤️
Kaya: Gn Jackson<3
Jackson: Wow not even gonna type it out?🙄 And give me a REAL heart!!
Kaya: Lol Goodnight Jackson!💖💖💖
Jackson: 😍😍😍 Sweet dreams
Jackson scrolled through their conversation over and over again. Squealing each time he saw the three heart emojis.
That night, Kaya appeared in his dreams and brought a small smile across his face. The dream made him so happy that he hoped it was real.
Maybe someday...it would be.