The Weight of my Dreams

Chapter 5: 21 Questions

As I entered the little restaurant, I was engulfed with the smell of delicious food, making my mouth water as I really hadn't eaten today other than the popcorn I got for the movie. We were seated in a booth by a window, and there wasn't anyone around. The server came to take our order; I got a chocolate milkshake and some fries. Josh ordered a soup of some kind and a milkshake, too, smiling at me as the server walked away. "I have an idea," he laughed. I raised my eyebrow at him, interested in what he might say " we should play a game, 21 questions?" I laughed because I hadn't played that since I was in high school "sure, I guess, but you have to ask first," I giggled "okay, sounds good to me. Where are you from?" he asked. I sat back, getting myself comfortable, and responded, "well, I guess a couple of places, I was born in Boise, Idaho, but I moved to Phoenix, Arizona, when I was 11. I honestly consider both of them home." He looked at me with such intent and interest that I couldn't help but smile. "Why did you move to Arizona?" he asked " it's a long story for another day," I said, and he respected that, not pushing to get an answer. "What about you, Josh? Where are you from?" he leaned in, resting his elbows on the table. "I'm from a little town in Michigan called Frankenmuth. Pretty much no one has ever heard of it." I laughed. "I have not." he continued talking "it's a beautiful place, really. We grew up on the outskirts of town and used to go camping all the time." I grabbed my phone, looking up at the little town. " It looks like a town from a Christmas movie! That's so cute," I exclaimed. He laughed, scratching his neck " so I've heard" he couldn't help but smile at my statement. " Alright, sir, your turn for a question," I said, raising an eyebrow at him." Okay, okay," he paused. "If you could have dinner with anyone living or passed, who would it be?" I laughed because this was something I have taken time to think about "definitely Freddy Mercury or River Phoenix, they are some of my biggest inspirations" " sounds like you've thought about this before," he replied " yes, I definitely have" I blushed thinking I might have responded to quickly. "Okay, what's your dream date?" I asked, " to be completely honest, this, I like to be able to talk and just chill. I also would say something outdoorsy too, maybe going to the lake or something" I felt myself get flustered as he spoke " that sounds like a lot of fun, I haven't been able to get out much because of school and work" I finished speaking just as the server came out with our food and milkshakes.

We started eating and continued with our game, "if you could go back to any time? When would you go?" I paused, thinking of an answer. "I would say the 70s. I think that it would have been such a fun time to live in" I thought of what it would have been like, "I think I definitely would have been a hippy, well more than I am now," I laughed. He seemed enthralled with my word as if they were gold. "I think I agree. I would have loved that or the 60s for sure," he stated matter of factly, "I grew up listening to a lot of Motown, and I think that has had a huge impact on my singing." I smiled, seeing him be so passionate about such a silly question. "I better get to hear you sing eventually," I stated, leaning in and resting my arms on the table. He smirked, " oh, you will. I already told you that I'd invite you to our next show." I smiled and asked the next question. "if you could have any superpower, what would it be?" He squinted his eyes, thinking of an answer. "I would say the power to fly. I would love to see the world from above and see how the clouds move from that high up," he said, looking out the window and up at the night sky. "What about you?" I sighed because this was something that I had already thought a lot about, given that I have two little brothers who have asked me this question dozens of times. " I would like to be able to teleport, I think it would save me a lot of time and money, and I could go anywhere in the world in a matter of seconds." he nodded his head in agreement. "What are three words that you would use to describe yourself?" he asked with curiosity written all over his face. "um, I'm not sure. I think independent is one, but as for the others, I'm not sure". He shook his head, looking down at the table with a smile forming on his face, "I have a few I can think of," he stated confidently " oh yeah, what are they?" I asked with a little bit of attitude, laughing as I spoke. "Well, just to name a few beautiful, funny, smart, talented, witty, artistic, and the list goes on, I just don't you well enough yet." his words rang in my head 'Yet' as if he was planning on going out again. "Yet?" I repeated, blushing ferociously " yes 'yet' i want to know as much as I can about you, and I hope you feel the same," he said, smiling while reaching for my hand. "There is something about you that I can't figure out, but I know that I want to get to know you" I held his hand from across the table and looked down at the table as my shyness was coming back. "I want to get to know you too, Josh."

We continued asking each other pointless questions for what seemed like hours. "Okay, last one," he said, " favorite Disney movie, go!" I laughed " well, that's an impossible question because there are so many good ones." I smiled, thinking for a fit answer, "I guess it's a tie between Tangled and Beauty and the Beast," I replied, giggling. " What about you, josh," I said, questioning him with a serious tone.  "Peter Pan," he responded with a smirk "well, I guess that makes sense considering that you wish you could fly," I said, laughing. " you were paying attention," he said smiling. Our hands were still intertwined, and to be honest, I never wanted to let go." Of course I was," he blushed slightly as he could tell that I had taken an interest in him.

He had long since paid for our meal, but I thanked him again as we got up to leave. He held the door for me once again, and we made our way back to the theatre. Once we got back, I could see Vee and Jake sitting closer together, still talking like we had never left. They stopped talking when we reached the table, welcomed us back, and returned to their conversation. "Vee, we should get going. I have class in the morning" she looked at me, pouting because she didn't want to leave Jake yet. Then Josh spoke up, "I can give you a ride if she doesn't mind taking Jake home" I looked at Vee with questioning eyes hoping that she would take the offer. "Yeah, that works with me," she responded. Not skipping a beat, they resumed their conversation where it left off, and Josh and I made our way to his car. He drove an old blue-grey ford bronco that had the top off. Once we made it to the car, he opened the door and helped me in because it was lifted a bit. I gave him my address, and we were off. He had music playing quietly in the background, and he hummed, matching the tune with a sound of his own. We got to my apartments in a matter of minutes, and I was not so secretly hoping that the drive would have lasted a lot longer. I groaned when he parked "don't worry, we will be hanging out again soon," he smiled, caressing my arm. " thank you for the ride and for returning my purse," I laughed and opened the door. "I'll see you soon then, Josh?" he nodded and spoke " Definitely, ill text you, and we can plan something, okay? I smiled and nodded, then closed the door. I waved goodbye as he drove away.

I made my way to my apartment with butterflies swirling around in the pit of my stomach, smiling because of the night that I had. I texted Vee and told her to let me know what she got home to know that she was safe. I got changed into some comfy clothes and laid in bed waiting for her text. But I fell asleep shortly after thinking about the next time I would see Josh.