Chapter 99

Olivia

The night of the date finally arrived and I was a whirlwind of nerves.

I picked a stunning emerald green dress that accentuated my curves and made my eyes pop. Checking myself in the mirror, I tried to swallow the knot of anticipation in my throat.

Movement caught my eye. I looked up to catch Nathan’s gaze in my mirror. He seemed surprised, like he had been caught in the act.

“You ready?” he asked.

It seemed that, now that he knew that he had been caught checking me out, Nathan's initial reaction was to pretend not to notice.

He had this whole casual act going, leaning against my door frame, his eyes casually scanning the room. But I saw his gaze linger on me, the flicker of something in his eyes before he quickly looked away. A smirk played at my lips.

“Like what you see, Nathan?” I cooed.

His cheeks reddened slightly but he quickly regained his composure. “You look nice,” he said nonchalantly, but I caught the appreciative tone in his voice. “Don’t let that get to your head.”

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever,” I said, turning to face him. He was already headed down the hallway, a bit too quickly for my liking. I shook my head as I followed him down the stairs, keeping my thoughts to myself for the time being.

Our destination was a charming bistro, right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the town. We walked there from the villa; the air was warm for a spring night, and quite comfortable. It was a nice walk.

As we sat across from each other, our knees brushed. Nathan looked down, quickly pulling his leg away, an apologetic smile on his face.

“I know you haven’t been here in ages, but…” He paused, thumbing through the menu. I chuckled and shook my head without even bothering to look at the menu.

“I know what I’m having,” I chimed in. “Fettucini alfredo. It was always my favorite.”

Nathan smiled. This little bistro had been open since before we were even born; it was a staple of our town. It was expensive, though, and my dad rarely took me here. It was typically only reserved for birthdays or other special events.

As a kid, I was annoyed that he wouldn’t take me here more often because I really did love the fettucini alfredo dish that they served; but now, as an adult, I understood why.

My dad really did have to work hard just to afford a single meal here, and now it made sense why we always—without fail—ate sparingly for the week after coming here every year.

However, as adults, it seemed that we could afford it now. Or rather, Nathan could afford it.

“Get whatever you want,” he said after ordering his first glass of red wine. “It’s on me.”

Our dinner was a delightful blur of amazing food, laughter, and reminiscing. Soon, the tension from earlier seemed to slip away. Maybe it was the glass after glass of wine that Nathan ordered for himself, or maybe it was the creamy, delicious pasta warming my belly. Either way, I quickly forgot why we were even so upset with each other.

“Hey,” I said, struggling to keep my laughter at bay. We were halfway through our meal, and our conversation had flowed easily since our food arrived. “Do you remember the time we tried to climb old Mrs. Hatter's apple tree?”

Nathan chuckled, shaking his head. “Of course I remember; you, in all of your beauty and grace, fell right into the compost pile. I've never seen you move so fast. I still remember what you said: ‘Eww! Daaad! There’s compost in my socks!’”

I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Yeah, like you got off any better,” I teased, smirking. “You fell shortly after me. If I recall correctly, you practically threw a temper tantrum because you got a banana peel up your pant leg. And Mrs. Hatter came outside, shaking her cane. And—”

I had to stop myself then, because I almost mentioned Alvin.

Alvin, the final part to our trio. The unspoken missing piece to our puzzle. The object, for some reason, of Nathan’s anger. The town ‘monster’. I stopped myself before I mentioned his name, if only because this night seemed to be going well and I didn’t want to ruin our dinner.

Our laughter filled the intimate space between us, dissolving any residual tension from our bet. I wiped the tears of laughter out of my eyes, and we ordered dessert, which we shared.

Our forks bumped together as we dived into the slice of chocolate cake that sat before us, and Nathan smirked as he slapped my hand out of the way. I grinned and yanked the plate away from him so that I could have the first bite. Our laughter rose in volume.

The deal was forgotten, a foolish wager born out of anger and pride. By the end of our meal, we seemed to have an unspoken agreement that the whole challenge was petty and ridiculous, but neither of us said it out loud.

We finished our meal, Nathan paid, and we headed home.

Nathan started leaning a little too close, his sentences becoming a bit slurred. I realized he was drunk. He was leaning towards me, his hand brushing against mine as we walked home.

“You...you are a really good friend, Olivia,” he slurred, looking at me with a seriousness that made my heart flutter. “I’m… I’m sorry that I can be such an ass sometimes.”

Despite his drunken state, I couldn't help but feel a strange warmth spread through me. The night had taken a turn I hadn't expected. We'd shared a wonderful evening together, not as rivals trying to prove a point, but as two friends reconnecting after a long separation.

“Sometimes?” I teased, stopping and turning to look at him. The sidewalk was dark, lit only by the amber glow of the street lamps. There were no monsters anywhere to be found.

“Alright, alright.” Nathan passed a hand through his mop of tawny dirty-blond hair and smirked. “Maybe all of the time.”

I laughed. A silence hung between us; Nathan was standing close to me, so close that I could smell the wine on his breath. All I would have to do was stand on my tiptoes, tilt my head back a little, and our lips would be touching.

It would be just like it was that day in the kitchen, the last time we kissed. Only now, I think that I had a better idea as to what would happen after that kiss.

And yet, there was a lingering question in my mind. I knew we had dismissed the wager, but had it truly been baseless? As I looked at Nathan, his eyes a little too focused on my lips, I couldn't help but wonder.

My body urged me to lift myself up on my toes. And I almost did. I came so close.

But then, the clouds over our heads opened up, and it began to rain.

Not a metaphorical rain, not a symbol of our emotions pouring out.

Real, cold, windy rain. Hard and heavy, and soaking through our clothes.