Your Choice (Book Three)

The Date

Emmeline Rose looks at her glammed up reflection in the mirror to make the final checks to her outfit for tonight. She is wearing a lilac summer dress which falls down to her knees with her brown sandals and her precious charm bracelet hanging from her wrist. Her eyelids are coated with a sparkly, nude eyeshadow and she has run her eyeliner on the rim of her bottom lid but also on her top lid in winged like style. She has lightly used mascara but has generously used some simple lip gloss on her lips. Feeling happy with how she looks, she grabs her small brown satchel and skips out of the room and down the stairs then into the living room. Both Tom and Benedict look up from the script they are working on a grin. "Ooh look!" Ben begins with a taunting expression. "Little Emmy Rose is wearing a dress by choice!" Tom giggles at his husband's reaction and his daughter's blush.

"You look beautiful darling." Tom praises delicately knowing how nervous Emmy gets about these sort of things.

"Thank you." She mumbles in embarrassment.

"Do you need money? Or is Maximillian paying for this date?" Ben continues to tease making Emmeline throw her hands across her mouth in horror.

"How did you know?" She questions wondering how her fathers knew it was a date.

"Elli." Ben states plainly.

"How did she know?"

"Funnily enough love, her son told her because he was completely ecstatic." Emmy sighs and starts to feel her hands become clammy; she becoming more anxious about this date by the second. It is the first one she would have been on... formally anyway.

"There is no need to feel nervous Emmy." Tom soothes and she nods as she takes a deep breath to steady her nerves. It is just Max. The same boy she has known ever since he was born. The same boy that she was practically raised with. Her best friend for life.

"Anyway, I am going to go." She announces and turns away from them ready to walk out.

"Have fun darling! And remember your mother is coming tomorrow for lunch." He reminds her as a hint for her not to come back too late.

"I will. Bye!"

\~.~.~.~.~/

When the old Odeon cinema comes into view Emmy instantly relaxes when she sees Max dressed in his skinny jeans and checked shirts. He looks nervous, the way he is rubbing his hands together like that. It almost assures the young girl. She crosses the road and approaches him when he looks up and smiles warmly at her. The nerves fly out the window. "Hey." He greets and he pulls her into a hug. When he pulls back he notices the fuchsia tint on Emmy's cheek bones. "I bought the tickets but I haven't bought refreshments because I didn't know what you would want." Emmeline knows that this isn't the case as they have been to the cinema many times and she has always bought the same thing.

"What are we seeing?" She squeaks and Max removes the two tickets out of his pocket.

"Black Butler. It is based on an anime or something like that." He shrugs his shoulders, "I thought that it would be your sort of thing." She claps her hands together excitably as she loves anime and Black Butler is one of her favourites. When she found out that they were doing a film version she was slightly concerned because she didn't want it to ruin the popularity of the anime.

"I love Black Butler!" She exclaims, "I just hope the actor they casted for Ciel is adorable and the one for Sebastian is hot." She ponders and drifts off into deep fangirl thought so Max has to poke her to bring her out of it. "Sorry."

"No it's fine." He chuckles before hooking his arm out for her to sleep hers into, "Shall we?"

"We shall." She smiles and the both enter the cinema; he leads her up to the refreshment's counter where a young woman is standing waiting to take people's order.

"Hi there, what can I get for you?" She asks with a quizzical expression as she looks at Emmeline.

"Emmy?" Max turns to his friend expectantly.

"Oh right." She states, "Could we get a large salted popcorn and a large coke please?" The woman nods a grabs a plastic drinks container and sticks it under the tap which then dispenses the dark, fizzy liquid. While it is pouring she reaches for a large cardboard container and starts to shovel popcorn into it until it is almost overflowing. She puts it on the counter and then the drink with a lid and a couple of straws.

"That will be £7.50." She instructs and Max pulls out his wallet. For once, Emmy is going to spare Max the lecture of how it is stupid how expensive cinema food and drink is because tonight is a special night. A date. "Thank you." She starts to rummage through the till for the change and passes it over to Max.

"Thank y-" He begins when he is interrupted by the cashier who starts to fire questions at Emmy.

"Are you Emmeline Hiddleston?" She asks and Emmy nods coyly; she hates these kinds of confrontation and Max knows it so he turns to his date to check that she is alright. She has paled so much she looks like a ghost so Max reaches for her hand to comfort her. "I am such a big fan of your dad and Benedict!" She almost squeals. Emmeline feels her lungs constrict but knows that this is not the right time to panic. It would ruin the night and she doesn't want to do that to Max, she loves him too much.

"Well I will pass that on to them." She plasters on a fake smile while Max grabs the popcorn and she grabs the drink. They start to back away ignoring the woman's final words.

"Are you alright?" He whispers to her and she nods with a real smile this time. They both enter the cinema hand in hand until Max has to dig out the tickets to give to the usher.

\~.~.~.~.~/

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god." Emmeline rushes when she exits the cinema with Max who just laughs at her reaction to the film. "You have to give it to Universal Studios, it has to be the first film based on anime which hasn't been messed up."

"I'm glad that you enjoyed it." Max beams.

"I did! Thank you!" She giggles, "I will have to re-watch the anime now. But there is so much of it! Oh well, I guess homework can wait." She rambles to herself, "And I am definitely cosplaying as Ciel Phantomhive at Comic Con this year."

"Anyway..." He interrupts her, "Do you want me to walk you home? It is pretty dark." He even points up at the darkening the sky to add to his point.

"No, I will be fine but thank you for such a great evening." Somehow in the short minute they have been standing outside the cinema their hands have met so that they are facing each other while gently swinging their arms.

"It is my pleasure Em." He replies. They both become lost in each other's eyes and subconsciously Max starts to lean down and Emmy raises herself on her tiptoes so that their lips meet softly. They share is gentle kiss but to Emmeline it feels like a firework has gone off inside her. Her first kiss is with the boy that she grew up with; with who it was meant to be with.

They pull back and both blush furiously. "So I'd better go, my dads will be worried." She decides and Max nods like it would be a good idea.

"Wait!" He exclaims as she turns, "What does this make us now?" To answer his question, Emmeline plants a kiss on his cheek and bats her eyelashes at him before walking away, across the road and around the corner out of sight. Max grins to himself.

As she walks she dreams of the future with a silly grin on her face. She cannot believe what just happened but she wants to and that is the most important thing.

A/n so Max and Emmeline have finally had their first date! What do you guys think? Please comment your thoughts :)

Also, as some of you will know, I have just started an original work which I would be grateful if you checked out. It is called 'The Three Js - My Schizophrenic Boyfriend (s)' and I have already uploaded the first part. If you have time, please go and read it and comment your thoughts. It would really mean a lot :)

Finally I want to say congratulations to LanaDelHiddleston on her engagement! I cannot wait to see you on Friday <3 This chapter is dedicated to her.

Ilysm ~ Mae