The Reclamation

16

Mia assured me that she had her license. This, however, didn't mean she was a good driver.

My right hand grasps the interior of the car door with white knuckles as Mia weaves through traffic in the crowded North Bay streets. Mia's demeanor is calm and collected, her left leg bent in toward her chest, one hand laying passively on the steering wheel, seemingly unaware of the minivan she barely avoided while changing lanes. My left hand flies up and grasps for the center console while I brace for impact, but instead finds Mia's hand resting there. Nevertheless, I latch on.

Mia chuckles softly. "Chill out," she starts, "I have Autosteer on. I couldn't crash even if I tried." She squeezes my hand soothingly. My muscles relax a bit, but my blood pressure is still through the roof.

"I'm sure you'll find a way," I rib.

"So the museum doesn't open until ten. I say we kill some time and grab breakfast. We can even get it to go and eat it in the park," says Mia with a sparkle in her eye.

"Yeah I'm in," I reply, not missing a beat. Leaving town together, or even Mia's house for that matter, is new to us. Not to mention getting breakfast in Milwaukee. I'm excited for these new experiences with her. The two of us haven't even gone out for food yet... "so, like a date?"

"Oh, um, I mean, I wasn't really going to call it that- unless you want- well, I would- do you want that? To call it a date?" Mia stumbles hard over what she's trying to say. It's adorable.

"Yes," I say with a big smile on my face. "I would like to call this a date." Mia exhales.

"Cool."

"Cool."

"Okay, um, look up 'Toast'," Mia jumps back into the conversation she had originally started.

"Mia, I think just about any breakfast place we go to will have toast-"

"No, it's the name of a restaurant, stupid. They should have a pick up option. They have the best breakfast food ever. Get whatever you want, but for sure we're splitting an order of the mini donuts. Non-negotiable," she says in a very serious tone. "Other than that I'll have the avocado toast and an orange juice please."

"Yes ma'am," I say, scrolling through the restaurant's adorable website and adding her breakfast to the cart. I order myself the 'lemon berry croissant French toast' and an orange juice as well. My mouth was watering just from looking at the picture. "And... placed." I tap the last button to submit our order. "Ready in twenty minutes."

"Awesome. That's about when we'll be there anyway."

My eyes are drawn to Lake Michigan as we drive through Milwaukee. The late morning sun glistens off the water in a mesmerizing way, and I feel myself relax into Mia's hand that is still softly grasping mine. I crack the window a few inches just to feel the cool air, and I am pleasantly surprised by the refreshing smell of the lake.

I've become more accustomed to Mia's aggressive driving style now, realizing that if I restrict my gaze to my window, I won't see us almost rear-end the car in front of us.

Those twenty minutes quickly pass while we move away from the lake, and soon we are down the street from Toast. "Check this out," Mia says as she slows down in front of the building. She taps a button on the Tesla's display and the car pulls itself into the empty spot against the curb. "Isn't that sick?"

"I'm not going to lie to you, your driving still scares the shit out of me."

I get out of the car and take in the restaurant as I wait for Mia to walk around the car to the sidewalk. The building itself is small, but the restaurant has taken advantage of the alley next door, turning it into an outdoor seating area. The colors are bright and the people are lively, especially for 8:30 in the morning. This place is adorable.