He has been grumpy and distant, which in turn made her overcompensate by telling him she is glad he didn't come to the Fourth of July barbecue she hosted yesterday. When she pulls up in the parking lot of his apartment, she finds him sitting outside on his balcony. She looks up without showing her excitement to see him.
"Come down. I don't feel like going upstairs." They are headed to the Kiliani Volksfest, supposedly one of the largest fests in Bavaria. She is reluctant to go upstairs because she doesn't want to get disappointed. Last time they hung out, she asked him to greet her at the door instead of having her awkwardly wander in and find him on his couch. His answer to this was, "Maybe."
"Come upstairs, I'm not dressed."
She tries to be stubborn and mumbles that she's okay with waiting outside, but he insists. She rings the bell to his apartment and waits. To her surprise, he opens the door instead of buzzing her in. All she asked was for him to meet her in the doorway at the top of the stairs. She isn't sure how he understood that as a request to come all the way downstairs to open the door for her himself. Or perhaps he is trying to impress her. The thought makes her happy.
After he gets dressed, they head out and walk along the river to the fest. They walk silently, side by side but not touching. She glances up at him and asks the question that has been burning in her mind.
"You miss her?"
He takes a moment. "Yeah."
"That sucks," she says, feigning apathy.
They arrive at the beer tent, find a place to sit down, and order a couple of liters. It's too loud to have any meaningful conversation, but they start to get more comfortable with each other. She thanks him for opening the door today and he smiles.
They are indeed good friends. She enjoys his company better than most people's. For some reason, however, this process of building a rapport must start anew every time they hang out. It's especially awkward today because she feels insecure about him thinking about somebody else.
Both of them enjoy peoplewatching. She tries to make a comment on one of the drunk people having the time of their lives. He leans in to hear her better and she repeats herself into his ear. Without warning, he turns his cheek closer to her lips, and they almost come in contact. She nervously pulls away, refusing to cross over to that gray area just yet.
On their walk back home, she hears fireworks from the direction of the fest. It must be the fireworks promised on opening days of volksfests. He notices that she is excited and eager to see the show. He takes her up to a higher road and suggests a spot on the ledge. By now she is mesmerized by the shower of lights. Her eyes do not leave the brightly lit night sky as she saddles the ledge. He sits behind her, saddling the ledge as well, pulling her closer to him. She leans back into his chest as he wraps his arms around her and kisses her cheek.
When the fireworks are finally over, she looks back at him, pecks him in the lips, and smiles. He hugs her tighter and says, "You know I hate fireworks, right?"
No comments:
Post a Comment