The Hourglass

Fourteen

When we return to the car, Adam gets my door for me. I smile up at him and say, "Thank you."

"What are you in the mood for?" He asks as he climbs in the car. 

"Do you like Mexican?" I ask. 

"I've never had much of it outside of Tacos," he admits. 

"Are you being serious right now?" I ask, waiting for him to start laughing at me and tell me this is a joke. 

He smiles at me. "I'm willing to try it." He starts the car and looks up the closest Mexican restaurant to us. There's one about halfway between here and home. 

"So what kind of food did you grow up eating then?" I ask curiously. 

"A lot of steak and seafood," he laughs. "With some traditional Italian, Greek, and French dishes." 

"Have you ever had macaroni?" I ask. 

"Of course I have." He scoffs.

"From a box," I added pointedly. "You know, processed crap?" I tease. 

"I don't think so," He says. 

"You're missing out," I try to convince him. 

"I highly doubt that," he says, laughing. "But, I'll take your word for it." 

By the time we pulled up to the restaurant, I felt like I could eat my weight in enchiladas. "Are you ready for this?" I ask before we walk in the doors. He rolls his eyes at me in response but gets the door for me. 

We're seated quickly and looking at the menus. The waitress brings us chips and salsa as we look at the menus. I begin to snack on them as I browse the menu and when I glance up I catch Adam watching me with a smile on his face. 

"What?" I ask, suddenly embarrassed. 

"I like watching you," he says, "You're cute when you're hungry." 

I blush. "I don't think anyone is cute when they're hungry."

"Just you." He responds. I go back to looking at the menu. I'm torn between eating what I want because I'm starving after skipping breakfast and going hiking and getting a salad so I don't look fat. And now that I'm aware of Adam watching me, I feel extra self-conscious. 

When the waitress came back to get our orders, Adam requests the chicken enchiladas, and I decide to get a chimichanga because the thought of my stomach growling after eating a salad would be more embarrassing than me eating a heavy lunch in front of him. I notice he hasn't touched the chips. "Do you want some?" I ask, pointing at the food in front of us. 

"I'm not a chip person," he says, smiling. "But feel free to continue eating." 

"Are you an alien?" I ask curiously, squinting my eyes at him. 

He laughs. "Decidedly, not." 

"You aren't a chip guy; you drink your coffee black and only like dark chocolate. Do you have any guilty pleasures?" I pry. 

"Everyone does," he replies, answering me without answering me. He looks into my eyes for a moment and then looks down at the table. 

I know he'd prefer I didn't ask, but I do anyway. "And yours is...?" I ask. 

He hesitates, not wanting to tell me. "I like to have a drink now and again." He says carefully. 

"Not soda, I'm sure," I responded, laughing. 

He chuckles. "Not preferably."  He watches me for a moment. "And you're not...upset?" He questions. 

"Why would I be upset?" I ask. 

"The way you talked about your exes...and you said you don't like to drink...I just didn't want to offend you." 

"You have yet to act like a drunken fool in front of me. You're safe for now," I tease. 

He smiles, but he looks pained. Our food is brought out shortly after this. I watch in anticipation for him to take the first bite. I can't wait to see his reaction. "Hmm..not...bad." He says, looking for the right words. "Just different." 

I laugh and dig into my own food happily. He smiles as he watches me, and I try not to let it bother me. "Do you have weekends off?" I ask him. 

"Sometimes. But I have to deal with problems as they arise," he explains. "I take it you give yourself weekends off?" He asks. 

"Of course. I only work weekends if a project calls for it. Or a problem arises," I say, mimicking him in a playful tone. 

"Smart." He says to me. "I'm glad you've found something that gives you a good work-life balance." He comments. 

"Me, too. Will your job allow you to have that kind of flexibility?" I ask, remembering what he said about his dad not believing in taking time off. 

"Depends on how much I want to please my dad," He says flatly. 

"That sounds like a difficult dynamic." I can't imagine having to work for someone who was also my dad, and it not be a great relationship either way. 

"It always is. But several people manage it." He's not wrong. There are plenty of companies run by fathers and sons in our country. 

We finish our meal, and Adam pays for us so we can leave. He gets my car door for me again, and my curiosity gets the best of me. "Where did you learn to do that?" I ask him as he gets into the car. 

"Do what?" He asks, looking at me confused. 

"Get my car door. You said you've never had a serious girlfriend, but yet you have the manners to get my car door for me." I explain. 

"Just because I never wanted to see a girl for more than a night before doesn't mean I treated her badly." He says. I don't know what to make of his comment, but I decide to let it go. 

"Hmm, okay." is all I say. 

"Didn't your boyfriends get your door for you?" he asks. 

"Definitely not," I say, laughing. 

"Hmm," He copies my response. 

I can't help but be curious about the direction our relationship is going. I'm thinking about it as he finishes the drive home. I'm getting confused and forgetting my purpose. My purpose, of course, is to get to know him and help him. But could it really hurt if I ended up liking him and dating him in the process? And why is he interested in me if he's never had a girlfriend before? I'm obviously not a one-night stand kind of gal. This whole situation is rather confusing. 

"What are you thinking?" He asks me as we near my apartment complex. 

I blush. "I was wondering why you're interested in more than a one-night stand with me," I admit. 

He smiles as he keeps his eyes on the road. He glances over at me for a second. "There's just something about you." He responds. We pull up to my building, and he pulls off to the side to drop me off. "I had a really nice time with you today," He tells me. "Can I see you again?" 

My heart flutters, and there are butterflies in my stomach. "Yes, I'd like that," I say. "Thank you for today. I had a wonderful time." With that, I climbed out of the car and went back inside, feeling happier than I have in a while.