Rodney pulled up in front of the dorm, his stomach doing flip-flops. Jill had carefully selected his rental car, leaning toward the higher end without crossing the line to a sports car or luxury model. His outfit had likewise been chosen to edge toward the popular styles without contrasting too much with his normal, comfortable mode of dress. Despite Jill and Watch both giving him seals of approval, he was still worried that he looked like a nerd masquerading as one of the cool kids.
You can do this. Don't puke,
he thought. After a deep breath, he opened the car door and climbed out.
Denise appeared almost immediately at the front of the dorm and headed toward him. "Is that yours?" she asked as soon as she was within earshot.
"Nah, it's a rental," he answered, drinking in the sight of her in Capri pants and a sleeveless top — her blonde hair rustling in the wind. After a second or two of staring with a silly grin on his face, he remembered to walk to the other side of the car.
"That looks really good on you," he said when she reached him and he opened the car door, as Jill had suggested.
Her grin widened when he opened the door. "Thanks." She reached out and ran her finger up his shirt. "This is new, isn't it? I like it."
"Yeah. Thanks. So, ready to go?"
"Mmm hmm. I'm starving."
She sat down and Rodney closed her door before crossing back to his.
"I love new car smell," she said, and then laughed as he climbed in.
"Yeah, it's always a bummer when it fades." He started the car and checked behind him for traffic before pulling out.
"So, when you met your friend from online, how did you do it?"
Coming out of the blue as it had, Rod wasn't quite ready for the question. "Huh? Oh. Well, he said that he was going to be in Galveston, so I suggested a Tex-Mex place we could meet up at."
Denise nodded. "I guess somewhere public is a good idea."
"I wasn't really thinking about that, but yeah, it's probably a good idea. Thinking about meeting someone from online?"
"Mmm hmm. I'm nervous, though."
"Probably different for a girl, I guess," he said, praying that this
friend
wasn't a guy.
"I'm not really worried about her being crazy or anything."
Yes!
One prayer answered.
"I'm just... I don't know. I'm worried that it will be different in person."
"Do you talk to her a lot online?"
"All the time."
"Don't worry about it then. As long as you're being honest with each other, it's only better in person."
She looked over at him and flashed a grin that made him want to melt in the seat. "Well, I know I am. Honest, that is."
"There you go."
"I need to think about it some more, but thanks. It's not quite as scary since I know you've done it and everything turned out okay."
Okay doesn't even begin to describe it,
he thought as he flipped on his turn signal. "No problem."
She moaned when they turned into the parking lot. "It's been too long since I've been here. I don't like coming here alone. It feels weird."
Rod chuckled. "I'm the same way."
"Thanks for asking me."
"Thanks for coming out with me." He found a parking space and shut off the car.
"You can get my door again, if you want," she said, still sporting a radiant smile.
"Coming right up."
****
Rodney was still chuckling from the last story Denise had related about two girls in a virtual cat-fight on Facebook when he parked in front of her dorm. The entire evening had been filled with such stories, once she sparked the back and forth with one. The only thing Rod lamented was that his best stories were ones he couldn't tell, because they arose in Jill's chat room.
Once again, he got out to open the door for her. Jill had suggested that he go with full-on chivalry, and it appeared that whatever research she had done to come to that conclusion was spot on. Denise never failed to flash him a smile every time he opened a door, pulled out a chair, or stood up when she left the table for the restroom.
Denise climbed out of the car and stood close to him — well within the personal space bubble he'd once assumed was a perfect forcefield for repelling females of the species. "I had a really good time tonight," she said, wearing her heart-stopping smile.
"Me too. I think I ate too much, though."
She giggled and nodded. "Mmm hmm. It was just
so
good, though."
With her standing so close, the newfound confidence he'd acquired since meeting Jill
almost
made him lean in for a kiss. He certainly wanted to, but second-guesses kept him from following through. In order to break what was close to becoming an uncomfortable silence, he said, "So, I guess I'll see you in class tomorrow."
Denise bit her lower lip for a moment and said, "Actually, could you take notes for me? I think I'm going to go meet someone tomorrow before I lose my nerve."
"Sure. Don't worry. I bet you'll have a blast."
"I hope so. I'd hate to break such a run of good luck."
Rodney's heart nearly jumped out of his chest when she slipped a hand behind his back and lifted up on her toes. He melted into the brief, but incredible kiss, feeling as if he was hovering several inches off the ground.
"Send me a text tomorrow when you get out of class for the day?" she asked as their lips parted.
"Sure thing."
Denise giggled again, a little color flooding her cheeks. "Okay. Bye. Don't forget."
"I won't. Bye."
She turned and walked toward the dorm, leaving Rod watching her and trying to process the reality of the kiss. She looked back over her shoulder after a few steps, smiled, and waved before continuing on. He stood rooted to the spot until she vanished inside, and then finally returned to the driver's side of the car, fighting off the urge to dance all the way.
Sitting in the car, he finally checked several text messages that had come through on his phone while they were at the restaurant. As he expected, they were all from Jill, asking how the evening was going and growing more impatient with each message.
He quickly typed a reply to the last one. "Just dropped her off. It went great."
In an example of how quickly she could text, a tone sounded from his phone with her response moments later. "Did you get a kiss?"
Cheeks burning, he typed back, "Yes."
"Oh my! Get back here. Now! Be careful, though."
"I will. On my way."
With that, he started the car and began the long drive back to the hotel.
****
"Yeah, buddy," Watch said as soon as he opened the hotel room door, and held up a fist.
Rod bumped it and chuckled as he walked in. Jill closed a window on her laptop and spun around to say, "Okay. Spill!"
Climbing into the bed next to her and accepting the beer Watch held out to him, Rodney launched into the story. Jill guided the tale by asking questions all the way through, helping him to remember a few things that he'd only noticed in passing.
"And, that's when she kissed me," he finished.
Jill shivered and moaned. "Was it a good kiss?"
"Incredible."
"Better than mine?"
Rod's mouth dropped open. He had no idea how to respond to that.
Jill broke out into laughter. "I'm just teasing. She doesn't know how lucky she is yet, but she's obviously figuring it out."
Watch jumped in with, "Told you that you just needed to loosen up. I could tell that she was into you when I saw you walking back from the movies the other night."
"And I told you she'd swoon when you started opening doors for her," Jill added.