Our Escape in the Stars

Planning

I am on my way up the hill tonight, after a really long and tough day, eager to see Ethan again. I lay down next to him and can immediately tell that something is off. There's a slight difference in the air around him - it's not as calm as always. My palms start to sweat. Did something happen?

I wait a bit, expecting him to say something. When he doesn't, I build up the courage to finally speak up.

"Is everything okay?" I ask carefully.

"Mmm, what?" he responds as if he wasn't paying attention. "Sorry, I was zoned out - what did you say?"

Something in his voice and the way he talked was different - he seemed anxious or nervous even.

"I asked if everything was okay," I repeated. "You seem anxious."

"Oh, right," he pauses, and I wait.

I'm about to ask again when he cuts me off.

"I've actually been meaning to ask you something," he says slowly.

"Should I be worried?" I ask, already very worried.

He chuckles and says, "I mean that depends."

That did not help. My heart speeds up.

"Oh no, what is it?" I finally say.

"Well," he pauses as if trying to gather the right words to continue. And I wait nervously - expecting the worst.

"Yeah?" I push.

Next to me, I hear him take a deep breath before finally finishing:

"Would you like to go out on a date with me?"

I freeze. Did I hear that right?

"To like a cafe. During the daytime. Like a real, proper date," he clarifies.

I am shocked. I wasn't sure if he wanted what was between us to go any further than this. I had been wondering if he'd ask me this for the past few days, but I didn't want to get my hopes up. But he actually asked. And he seemed nervous about asking! My heart swells and a smile finds its way onto my face.

"Please say something," I hear him say, and I realize I haven't answered yet or said anything for that matter.

"Of course, I want to!" I exclaim.

"Oh, thank god," he says, exhaling a breath of relief that he'd been holding in and I beam up into the sky, my heart filling with joy and excitement.

We talk about the details of the date and, in the end, decided that we would meet at a small cafe in the city. Since we decided to do it on a Friday, we have to do it in the afternoon because both of us have school. Either way, I couldn't be more excited about it. My mind races with images of how it would be like, and finally seeing him in real life. Wait, I don't know what he looks like.

"How am I going to recognize you?" I ask, "I don't know what you look like and you don't know what I look like"

"Oh, that's true," he says as if just discovering this problem. "Describe yourself to me."

I laugh at his bluntness.

"Just basic characteristics and stuff that will help me recognize you," he adds.

At first, I'm not completely sure of what to say, so I visualize myself in my head. I am not necessarily bad-looking, but I'm definitely not a model or as perfect as some girls. I've got basic light brown hair that falls a bit below my shoulders. It's not completely straight and definitely not curly, so I'd say it's a bit wavy. My most defining feature is probably my eyes - they're a stormy kind of blue, the color of the ocean during a storm, as my grandma likes to say. Then, when it comes to my body, I'd say I'm pretty average, maybe a bit taller than average, but not by much. Anyways, I tell him the basics - hair color, eye color, height, and so on.

"Hmmm," he says with a smirk in his voice, and it makes my stomach flutter. "Can't wait to see your beautiful smile."

My heart somersaults. Thank the gods he can't see my burning face right now.

"Now, you have to tell me what you look like," I say after, finally gathering myself.

"I'd say I'm quite basic," he starts, and from what I know about him, I don't quite believe that. "I have blond hair, well dirty blond hair now. My hair is longer on the top than it is at the sides and it's like mid-length. My eyes are dark green. I'm 6 feet tall, almost 6,1 though."

I giggle.

"No actually," he says with a chuckle.

"Anything else?" I ask.

"I think that's about it," he answers. "Oh and I'm very good-looking."

I burst out laughing at his arrogance. He joins in. And we laugh until our stomachs hurt. I feel my heart expand at the bliss and the thought that in less than a few days, I'll see him for the first time.