If Not for the Mystery Book

006

Sasha arrived at Grace's at 12 o'clock sharp. She entered the small building, scanning the room for Anthony's familiar face. She spotted him near the middle, his whole demeanor nervous. It was positively adorable. She walked up to the table for two, sitting down in front of him.

"Hey, Anthony," she said, a smile on her face. "Have you been waiting long?" she asked, feeling bad if he had.

"N-no," he said quietly, looking at a clock on the wall. "I've only been here a f-few minutes." Before she could tell him she was glad she hadn't kept him waiting too long, he said, "So, should we go get food?" Grace's, despite the nice name, was a casual place. The food was amazing, but you would go up to a counter to order it. It was similar to the café in that way.

"Of course!" she said, following him as he got up. Now that she was there, she was rather excited. She spent time with him here and there at the café, but those weren't prearranged. She just liked spending time with him.

¤¤¤

Sasha and Anthony had been visiting for quite a while. They had had a nice conversation so far, just a question and answer type of thing. She learned that he had been a major book worm in high school, and that he had grown up in England, which explained the accent. He had moved into town to get some new surroundings but didn't know why he chose this town in specific. All he said was that something felt right about the community.

He learned a few things about her as well. She had been rather outgoing in high school, but not so much as an adult. She grew up far from the area, but had moved there for college. She ended up liking the area, so she stayed and got a job.

"So, Sasha," Anthony said after their conversation had died down a little. "What do you l-like to do? I know where you w-work and what you do... But what d-do you do for fun? In your spare time?"

Sasha looked down at the table, biting her lip nervously. Should she tell him? "Don't laugh," she said, looking back up at him.

"I promise," he said. She could see on his face that he was curious.

Taking a breath, she said, "I have an online comic." It almost sounded like she had confessed to a sin. No one knew about her comic, not that she had anyone to tell in the first place.

"Really?" he asked. She was trying to figure out his reaction by the tone of his voice, but couldn't come to a conclusion.

"Yeah," she said, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear nervously. She kept her eyes on the table in hopes he wouldn't judge her too harshly.

"That's so cool," he said warmly. Had she heard him right?

"It is?" she asked, slowly looking back up at him.

"I just f-find it impressive. You must be v-very imaginative." He must be off his rocker.

"Well, you can't say anything without seeing it," she settled with.

"I guess you'll just have t-to show me sometime."

____________________
Ooh is this an excuse for them to meet up again?
Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day!