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Chapter 2 - The Diner

Jesse stared happily at her arm, where Ethan had hastily scrawled out his phone number. His personal phone number! The very thought made Jesse's heart pound. He had had to leave their luncheon early, having no way of letting Parker know he was going to be late. Rather than wait for Jesse to fish her own phone from her bag or grab a piece of paper, Ethan had nicked a pen from the waiter and scribbled the numbers on the back of her forearm. 

After doing so, Ethan had bolted out of the cafe, but Jesse could have sworn she caught him blushing.

Back in her apartment, it took a while to dawn on Jesse that Ethan's phone might not have been working at all, what with the freaky blue-screen-of-death maneuver it had pulled. But after waiting a few hours, she decided to give it a shot. 

Hey Ethan- hows your phone doing? :P can u read me? lol

Immediately after sending it, Jesse had resigned herself to the reality that she'd probably never hear back from him, and that her perfect morning would stay that- just a morning.

But then her phone buzzed. 

Wait is this Jesse? lol

Jesse almost smacked herself. How could she forget her name?

Yea lmao sorry! she replied. This is Jesse. I take it ur phone is working again?

It is luckily XD I guess that was just a glitch or something

Jesse sighed with relief, before she realized she had nowhere else to take the conversation. But luckily for her, she didn't have to. 

Hey we never really got to hang out this morning- you wanna meet up this weekend?

Jesse yelped, caught off guard.

Really? thatd be awesome! 

Coolio! I'll let u know when and where tomorrow. I gotta run, but I'll c ya later, Jesse :)

Bye, Ethan :D 

Jesse threw her phone down on her couch, jumping up happily. How had this happened to her? Jesse never had good luck, and yet... she was hanging out with Ethan Nestor!

The thought occurred to Jesse that maybe, just maybe, she'd get to say she was dating Ethan Nestor soon. But she quickly shut down this train of thought.

Let's just see how this goes, she told herself, reining in her emotions. Let's take it slow.

And slow it went- the days leading up to the weekend seemed to inch by for Jesse. She read and reread the text threads she had with Ethan, waiting ever-so-patiently for Saturday afternoon, when she'd be meeting Ethan at a diner for lunch. 

It's just lunch, she told herself, smoothing out her yellow blouse in the bathroom mirror. Nothing to overthink, Jesse. 

And just a few minutes later, her patience paid off. She met Ethan just where they'd planned, and damn was he looking adorable. His blue hair poked out of a slate gray beanie, and he wore a light jacket over a graphic tee shirt. 

"Hi, Ethan!" Jesse said, trying to be casual. 

"Jesseeeeee," Ethan said, grinning. Then he winced, pausing. "That was stupid. Why did I do that to your name?" He laughed nervously, but Jesse joined in wholeheartedly.

"Don't worry about it," she said. "I... I thought it was cute."

Ethan's face turned red at this. "Aw, shucks," he said, looking down. "Well, uh, let's head in, shall we?"

The diner was a quaint little place, with classic leather booths and a long breakfast bar. The smell of homemade fries and hamburgers filled the air like music, and the gentle chatter of other diner patrons brought the restaurant to life. 

Jesse couldn't remember what she ordered, but she didn't really care. They talked easily, and Ethan launched into a story about a long-abandoned film project he'd been considering. He spoke with cheerful vivacity, waving his hands around when he couldn't find a word. 

"I've been talking for, like, ten minutes," he said, his story grinding to a halt suddenly. He covered his mouth and laughed that nervous, self-conscious laugh. "Tell me something about yourself, Jesse, before I start rambling again."

"Not much to tell," Jesse confessed. "I'm an art student, so I've got basically no future, I own my own apartment, and I'm working a lot right now to pay my way through school."

"Damn college," Ethan said sympathetically. 

"Yeah, damn education," Jesse agreed, joining in.

"Damn life experiences," Ethan grinned. 

"Damn valuable lessons," Jesse joked back. 

"Damn memories lasting a lifetime," Ethan laughed. 

Jessie laughed, too. "What is this? What are we doing?"

"I dunno!" Ethan replied, but he looked really happy about it. As they stopped giggling, he looked up over the breakfast bar. "I wonder where our-"

BANG!

A shower of blue and white sparks erupted from a light fixture over the breakfast bar. A lightbulb had exploded, showering the people below in shards of glass. 

"What just happened?" she gasped, looking over. The customers at the bar brushed sparkling bits off of their shoulders and onto the floor. One man had a red cut down one arm. 

"Oh, no," Ethan muttered, watching the waiter check on the injured patrons. 

"I think the light just exploded or something," Jesse furrowed her brow, watching a blue spark blink out on the diner floor. "That was so strange." Ethan glanced over his shoulder before turning back to Jesse, pale in the face. 

"Are you okay?" Jesse asked, leaning forward. 

"Y-yeah," Ethan said quickly. He forced a smile. "Just a bit spooked, I guess."

"Yeah..." Jesse repeated, sitting back in her seat. "Spooked."