You Are My Wildest Dream

People Pleaser

With a rush of adrenaline, I quickly get ready so that I can meet Hannah for breakfast before her meeting. Channeling my inner academia aesthetic, I pop on some light wash jeans, a tucked faded black t-shirt, and some white socks with loafers. To intrigue her just a bit, I also put on my glasses that I rarely ever wear (and YES, they ARE prescription!).

I grab my phone, keys, and wallet, I shut the door behind me. As I enter the stairwell to head down to the cafe, I glance at my phone for the first time since early yesterday. "Damn, wait, what?!" I mumble out loud to myself and stop in my tracks. I see 10 missed calls from my mom, 20 texts, and even a missed call from my sister who lives in Seattle now. "Fuck fuck fuck." I start running down the stairs so I can get to the cafe quicker to find Hannah. I bolt out of the doorway when I reach the lobby and spot her at a table with a seat saved for me. I jolt over, and before I even get to the table she stands up and grabs my arms, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, okay, what happened, Rowan?" While trying to catch my breath I respond, "I.. I didn't call my mom yesterday..." I pause to breathe, "... and now look!" I hold up the phone screen directly in front of Hannah's face. She looks at the notifications, then laughs a bit, and gently takes it from me. While holding my hands, she guides me to sit down with her at the table. "I... I-" I start to trail and she catches me, "Rowan, oh my gosh. You're fine! Just call your mom back! It's really all going to be okay, I promise." She hides her laugh over my reaction with a small smile on her face. I space out as I'm trying to take her words in, "Oh, yeah. Yeah, you're right." I start to calm down a bit. "Why is it funny though? You don't get my mom and how she is—" Hannah interrupts me, "Rowan, I'm not directly laughing at you, I'm kinda just amused to be honest; you're such a people pleaser. Plus, I never really see you this riled up, so it's refreshing." She pauses, then puffs out, "Plus, I'm kinda into it." "Oh..." I sink into the chair and cover my embarrassed face with my hands. "Right," I say, muffled behind my fingers. We sit in silence for a moment, as Hannah watches me decompress and enter reality again. I speak up, "No, for real, you're right. Thank you." She laughs again, "You don't have to thank people for caring about you. I'm happy to be a decent human being to you." She giggles and holds my hand at the table. I smile, but still feel kinda vulnerable, because she's right. I am a people pleaser, and I also take people doing the bare-minimum as some huge thing, although I should know that I deserve the best, always. I can't seem to remember that though.

"So, did you order for yourself yet?" I ask her. "I did. And I also ordered something for you. I figured if you don't like it, it's one step closer to knowing you better. But, I think I did good." She replies with a confident smirk on her face. "You better have. I'm a tough critic when it comes to food, just so you know." I tease her. "Oh, trust me I know. And my statement still stands. I know I did good." Gosh, I love when she's cocky.. It's so hot.

The waiter breaks my thoughts as he stops at our table to bring us our breakfast. He turns to me first, "For you, we have an acai smoothie to drink. To fuel your morning, we have belgian waffles topped with organic fruit, hemp seeds, chia seeds, and agave. Plus, on the side, an order of fried banana bites." I whisper to Hannah as to not interrupt his wonderful presentation, "I can't believe you. How are you so good?" She taps my nose and smiles. Our waiter continues, "And, for you, a mimosa with french toast and whipped cream, and a side of strawberries and grapes." He places all of the plates down and says, "Enjoy your morning," with a genuine smile. It becomes quiet quick, as Hannah and I immediately dig in.