unbreakable heaven • awsten knight

1.31 man, i didn't kiss her

houston tx
may 2009

"I can't believe you cried," Awsten says, as he and Ellie walk out of the movie theatre, hand in hand.

"Oh, shut up!" Ellie shoves him, playfully. "I saw you crying, too. Don't think I didn't," she narrows her eyes at him.

"It was sad, okay?" Awsten gives up the act. "Why do Disney films have to be so sad?"

"I know, right? They're supposed to be family-friendly and happy," Ellie agrees, with a laugh. "Where are we going now?" She asks, noticing that they're not walking towards Awsten's car.

"You hungry?" He raises an eyebrow, earning a nod. "Good. There's a nice restaurant down here," Awsten points out.

The theatre is in the middle of a row of establishments, but it's lined with various arcades, amusements, takeouts and restaurants. The one that Awsten points to is on the end of the row, tucked in the corner quietly.

Ellie sticks closely to his side as they walk in, still holding his hand securely.

"Uh, reservation for Awsten," he says to the waitress at the door.

She nods, seeing his name on the list and escorts them to a table in the corner of the restaurant.

"You made a reservation?" Ellie's eyes widen, as she speaks in a hushed tone. Awsten smiles, clearly proud of himself. "That's like...fancy. And grown-up. You didn't have to do that."

"I wanted to be prepared," he shrugs.

"You'd be kinda screwed if I wasn't hungry, though, huh?" Ellie teases, as they sit down, earning a laugh.

The two order their food and eat casually when it arrives. It feels odd that, on a first date, everything feels so normal. It's not normal, in the sense that it's new territory for the both of them— but they could definitely get used to this being the new normal.

Awsten holds Ellie's hand across the table whenever he can. He runs his thumb over her knuckles and she smiles. There's lapses of silence, spent with the two of them just looking at each other.

Once they're finished, their waitress brings the bill over, leaving them again to decipher it and Awsten pulls out his wallet without a thought.

"Hey, no," Ellie frowns. "You paid for the cinema tickets and the snacks."

"Okaay," Awsten responds, slowly dragging out the word. "And? This is our first date."

"And you paid for the first part of our first date," she retorts, beginning to pull out her purse.

Awsten gently places his hands over her's, causing her to look up at him.

"Just let me, please?" He pleads, with doe-eyes that Ellie couldn't possibly resist.

She sighs, retracting her hands and putting her purse away, causing Awsten to smile.

"Remember what I said about you being cute and how it's a negative trait?" A subtle grin begins tugging on the corner of Ellie's lips. "That statement still stands."