Chapter 2
Mila's hands felt even more unsure than usual as she gingerly guided her white Volvo sedan through the Westview University campus. She had never been the most confident driver, no doubt owing to the fact that she could become rather scatterbrained, and to her general discomfort around big machinery. She had never been able to wrap her mind around the idea that she was the one in control of this big, multi-ton piece of metal, and so, true to her meek and kindly disposition, she assuaged her fears by driving very slowly. In a town full of hormonal young adults, this style of driving was often met with exasperated honks, and with rapid lane shifts as the cars stuck behind her competed to irately merge around her.
Usually, whenever this happened, Mila would reply to the honking out loud, with a helpless 'I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Just trying not to get into a wreck!' but this evening, she didn't even care. She could sense people tailing close behind her car, in an attempt to get her to speed up, and it didn't even stress her out. Her nervous, excited energy that came from the expectation of hanging out with Adam trumped everything else.
By the time she pulled into the parking lot of Louie's, her hands were a little sweaty. Mila realized that she had been gripping the steering wheel harder than she usually did, and she had to laugh at herself a little as she turned her car off and wiped her hands on her black jeans.
'I'm not really that much of a nervous wreck,' she chuckled to herself, shaking her head, 'I'm just...I'm just excited!'
Even though she was definitely trying to explain away her rapid heartbeat, what Mila told herself was true. In times past, when she had been overwhelmed by anxiety, she had simply fled certain situations, back to the safety of her bedroom, where she could be free to dissolve into her fantasy worlds without having to deal with the unwanted realities of the real world. But right now, even though she was jittery with nerves, she wasn't even thinking about ditching on Adam.
'I'll feel better when I see him,' she thought, as she looked at the digital time in her car clock, which was still visible due to her key still being in the ignition. 6:50. She was ten minutes early.
'Maybe not quite time to go inside yet,' she thought, and she stared out her car window at the picturesque sunset that was slowly bleeding out across the sky. It hadn't rained at all that day, but a series of dark clouds had been gathering in the west for several hours, and they were now being blown in by a series of fitful and tempestuous winds that seemed to sharpen the vibrant oranges, deep reds, and creeping purples of the sunset. Mila saw the oak trees beginning to bow and wave as the winds kicked up.
'You know what?' she thought suddenly, 'I bet that breeze will feel nice on my face. Screw it, I'll go in early and get us a table. Who cares if it makes me look desperate or something...one of us has to get here before the other, right?'
She banged both hands on her steering wheel resolutely, took her key out of the ignition, and then swiftly exited the vehicle, taking care not to trip in her 2-inch heels as she got out. The wind was whipping around more than she had expected, and it nearly took her breath away, sweeping across her face with a boisterous and blustery smack.
"Whooo!" Mila exclaimed out loud, gathering her purse in the crook of her arm as she steadied herself against the driver's door she had just closed. She had been right, though -- the wind certainly felt good against her face. It seemed to blow away all the insecurities and complications that were going on inside her head, and as she looked out into the beautiful sunset, famed underneath by the swaying oak trees, she felt a renewed sense of confidence in herself. The world looked gorgeous...and something that had seemed impossible less than 24 hours before was now actually about to happen.
Mila clacked down the parking lot toward the front door of Louie's, and, upon rounding the corner, she looked up and stopped dead in her tracks. Adam was already there. He was standing by the front door, under the awning, looking out at the same sunset, with one hand in his pocket. Mila felt a sudden, hot injection of adrenaline rocket through her, as her diaphragm clenched up. He hadn't spotted her yet, and so she had a chance to take him in all at once. He was wearing a pair of stylish blue jeans, which weren't too tight, but tight enough to show off the enticing shape of his legs...a black collared polo short-sleeve shirt, untucked, with two buttons undone...his toned arms hanging by his sides, with one forearm tensing and untensing as he played with something in his pocket...god, he looked so hot...so casual...that mess of short, sandy-brown hair on his head...and that slightly droopy way he had of standing when he was just...just chilling. Mila was feeling the electricity crackle all across her body, and she certainly felt it in between her legs in particular. Even she was surprised by the intensity of her reaction.
'Keep moving,' she told herself, 'Keep moving or else he's gonna look over and see you standing here like an idiot. Get a move on!'
Mila stepped forward a single pace, and that was enough to divert Adam's attention away from the sunset. He looked straight at her, and his blue eyes lit up.
"Mila!" he exclaimed, jerking his hand out of his pocket and spreading both hands wide as he straightened up and came towards her.
"H-Hiii!" she laughed, smiling from ear to ear as she spread her arms in the same motion, increasing her pace towards him. Apparently he had sped up a little too, because they half-ran into each other as they embraced. Mila could smell his deodorant as they hugged...the same kind he had used in high school. She felt her body compressed by his strong arms, and she squeezed him tightly back. In this moment, she didn't care if she was giving herself away. She was just so happy to see him, to feel him.
"Hahaha wow!" Adam laughed, pulling out of the hug and grinning down at her, "it's been forever!"
"Oh god I knowwww, right!?" Mila returned, nodding. She had forgotten how tall Adam was -- she could've sworn he had gotten even taller. He was 5'11 at the end of high school, but now he looked to be over 6 feet. Even in her 2-inch heels, which made her a healthy 5'6, she had to crane her neck to look up into his face.
"Looks like we picked the right time, huh?" Adam chuckled, looking up at the sky. "Feels like it might start raining here soon."
"Yeah! It was...uh...it was like, all sunny before," Mila replied, turning around to look at the sunset. The storm clouds had started moving in front of it, and the water droplets in the clouds turned into millions of prisms, shooting the setting sun out across the sky in even more brilliant oranges, reds, and purples. Despite her excitement at seeing Adam, Mila's eyes lingered on the dramatic beauty of the sun and clouds. It was the most striking sunset she had ever seen.
"Geez, pretty amazing sunset, huh?" remarked Adam. He too was staring at the spectacular sight, and as Mila turned back to look at him, she caught sight of the image of his face lit up by the sunset, with the breeze from the incoming storm blowing his sandy-brown hair back from his face. He looked...sooooo hot. And then, at that moment, Adam's eyes switched down, back to hers, and caught her looking at him. But, true to his character, rather than embarrass her, he simply broke into a big open smile and started laughing.
"Hahaha look at us, gushing over a sunset!" he joked. "Are we already turning into middle-aged romantics, like our parents?"
"Oh god...I hope not!" laughed Mila. It felt comforting to her that Adam had brought up their parents, who had all been friends for years.
"Haha so..." chuckled Adam, his smile drawing everything out for a few moments as he looked at her. Mila basked under his eyes; at this point, she wasn't even trying to analyze what he was thinking about her. She was just thrilled he was looking at her.
"So, wanna go inside?" he ventured a few seconds later. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving!"
"Oh! Yeah!" exclaimed Mila. She had completely forgotten they were standing outside of an Italian restaurant. "I...haha...I'm hungry too, but, uhh...like, heh, probably not like you, since you're...you know, a big athlete and everything."
"Yeah, like my mom says, I'm still a growing boy!" laughed Adam, as they walked into the restaurant. He made eye contact with the hostess and smiled. "A table for two, please!"
Mila made an effort to contain herself as the hostess led the two of them to their table. Adam was so confident, so effortlessly assertive...the hostess probably assumed they were dating...wait! No...no, she couldn't start thinking like that...this was just a fun D&D get-together, nothing more...nothing more...
