Warmer in the Winter

Dinner and A...?

               Yang checked her pockets. The day had gone by so fast it was hard for her to remember anything since she had left the jewelry store, as if it hadn't even happened. The rings were deep in her jacket pocket and her checklist was safely secured in her back pocket. She pulled it out one last time – everything had been checked off except the bottom two, still. She glanced up and noticed there was a woman staring at her with short, black hair, two cat ears atop her head, and a beautiful smile.

               "Oh! Blake! Sorry, I didn't see you walking up." Yang stuffed the paper back in her pocket and stood.

               Blake laughed. "It's fine, I've only been here for what, five minutes watching you read that paper?"

               "Wait, really?" Yang asked, "Was it that long?" Blake gave her a playful punch on the arm.

               "No, I just got here. I promised you I'd be here after all."

               "Oh, right, well, shall we be off?" Yang asked, sweeping the way to the door with her arms.

               "After you," Blake said. Yang turned and opened the door, and as she steadied herself on the ice, Blake noticed the paper had fallen out of her back pocket and onto the bench she had been sitting on. She picked it up and stored it safely inside her jacket before following the blonde inside.

               Blake had never even heard of the restaurant Yang had chosen for them – it was somewhere between a suit-and-tie reservation-based restaurant and a roadside diner. The inside looked like any diner you would find off a highway, but much more expensive, with spotless chrome lining every table and chair, reflecting her purple jacket as they walked past. They were led to a booth near the corner that held a sign that read "Yang and Blake Xiao Long."

               "Yang and Blake Xiao Long, huh?" Blake asked, picking up the sign, "Some typo to have."

               Yang's eyes shot wide open and she grabbed the sign from Blake's hands. "Wait, really? That's just great, I must have forgotten to put your last name in there." Yang let out a nervous laugh, but inside her mind, she was punching herself for getting ahead of the game and purposely giving Blake her own last name. They'd talked about it several times prior as jokes, but now that the day had finally come, she wasn't sure this joke was well timed.

               "Well at least you input the right one, better than Yang Belladonna. Just doesn't roll off the tongue well enough with the G and the B." Blake said.

               Inside of Yang's mind, the bomb that had nearly gone off had been defused as the miniature Blake cut the correct wire, which was oddly enough a twirl of gold and purple. "A-Anyways," She said, "Let's sit down."

               A waiter appeared to give them the specials and the menus, but Yang already had this rehearsed. "I'll have a Highway Delight and a glass of water, and for Blake, the Luck of the Sea Special. Anything you want to drink, Blake?"

               "Just... water. Please." Blake shot Yang a quizzical look. The waiter bowed and walked away before Blake continued, "Have you been here before?"

               Yang laughed, "Well, no, but I heard about some of the dishes from a friend who's actually a chef here and he gave me some recommendations."

               "I'll put this dinner in your hands then, babe." Blake said. She held a doubtful expression for all of three seconds before the two broke down into laughter. The two chatted for a while about their day while waiting for their food, Blake explaining how exhausting her cousins were. Aged four and nine, they held the power to tire everyone in Blake's immediate family out, even her mother – which was near unheard of to Yang. Yang explained how she had done some last-minute Christmas shopping in preparation for the party the next day, and before Blake could comment, their food had arrived.

               On Yang's plate was a seared steak with a pineapple glaze with some various steamed vegetables, which all looked simplistic next to Blake's. Yang had this all planned ahead of time with her friend – the "Luck of the Sea Special" never existed, it was a code for her friend to make all of Blake's favorite stuff.

               "Yang, is this-" Blake began to speak, but couldn't find her words. Before her was a feast of various seafood, with crab bruschetta and broiled whitefish in the center. "This is amazing!"

               "Well you haven't tried it yet, so here's hoping!" Yang said, "Dig in!"

               The rest of the dinner went perfectly. The food was exactly how Blake liked it, her own food wasn't half bad either, and the two were drawn into a conversation about the party the following day. Yang kept teasing about a secret plan she had and needed Blake's help for, but she wouldn't tell Blake exactly what, which would have left her angry if it weren't for how tasty the crab was.

               The sun had since gone down, leaving the window beside them alight with Christmas lights and a gentle sprinkle of snow falling from the rooftops. Yang looked at her phone to check the time – still five minutes before the plaza would be lit up, perfect timing.

               "I'll be back, I need to use the bathroom," Yang said, "I'll pay the check when I get back."

               "Yang, we can split it, you know." Blake said.

               "Nope, my treat, my wallet. No buts." Yang said, rushing off before Blake could argue in response.

               Blake watched Yang walk away, and her mind wandered back to the paper that had fallen out of her pocket. She pulled it out of her jacket and uncrumpled it to see a mess of colored sharpie and green checkmarks. She squinted and mouthed some lines out loud.

               "Make up code word? Give guy $20 to not blow snow out of the plaza? What is... the big thing?" Blake noticed Yang had come out of the bathroom and stuffed the paper back in her pocket. The last item stayed in her mind – what was the "big thing?" Why hadn't it been checked off? Yang took the check and the two left, Yang's hand grasping Blake's firmly.

               "Would you be down for a walk? Get some exercise after that meal?" Yang asked, "I know just the place to end this beautiful date night."

               "I was thinking the plaza," Blake said, remembering the note, "You?"

               "You took the words right out of my mouth." Yang said.