City Love(29)

“Define.”

“You know . . . encouraging notes that make people feel better? A warm fuzzy is just a way to spread the love.”

“Oh. I thought it was more like a feeling.” Austin pushes off the side of his car and comes over to me. “You know. As in, You make me feel warm and fuzzy.”

“You have so much to learn.”

“I can’t wait for you to teach me.” Sunlight glints off his eyes. I bask in their blue glimmer. His eyes have sparkles of silver I didn’t notice before. They probably only come out in the sunlight.

I can’t believe how gorgeous he is. I can’t believe this gorgeous boy wants to be with me.

Where are we going again? Oh yeah. The party.

Austin opens the passenger door for me. He’s such a gentleman. I love how mature he is. As he’s walking around to the driver’s side, I resist the urge to check my hair in the rearview mirror. I covertly touch a few clips to make sure they’re still in place.

He gets in and starts the car. This is so weird. Austin seems like an actual grownup.

“Thanks for driving me,” I say. “Attempting to navigate the wilds of Brooklyn by myself would be an epic fail.”

“You’d do fine. But I’m more than happy to drive you. It means we can spend more time together.”

I glance in the back. “You have a lot of room.”

“Perfect for those shopping sprees at Costco.”

“Seriously?”

“No.” He laughs. “I just like having the extra space. The Rodeo’s good for getting out of town with friends and stuff.”

“What rodeo?”

“My car. It’s an Isuzu Rodeo.”

“Oh.”

“Much better than the Focus I had before.”

I give him a blank look.

“You don’t know much about cars, do you?”

“The only car names I know are Porsche and BMW. Not that I’d be able to recognize either of them.”

“Classic city girl. When’s the last time you rode in a car?”

“Um . . . like . . . two years ago?” Riding around in Austin’s car is a whole different experience than those family road trips. Door-to-door service in New York City is so luxurious. Avoiding the sweltering subway stations. Arriving at your destination without being all sweaty from trekking in the summer heat. Being able to wear heels without having to change in and out of flip-flops. This is the life.

“Sorry about the mess.” There are a few takeout bags and papers on the passenger-side floor. “I didn’t have a chance to clean up.”

“Are you kidding? This is better than a private car service. You’re making me feel like a princess.”

Austin smiles. “I’ll do my best to keep it up.”

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting anything in Brooklyn to impress me. But Trey’s rooftop garden is unreal. As a rooftop garden enthusiast growing up in the West Village, I’ve seen quite a few gorgeous ones. This one is exceptional. Flowers in all shapes, sizes, and colors are everywhere. Jelly jars with flowers are on each of the patio tables gathered in the center. An herb garden is flourishing in one corner. Another corner has tomatoes and lettuce growing. There are even some couches up here.

“How does Trey have all this?” I ask Austin.

“He doesn’t. This is his parents’ place. He lives with them.”


“I thought you graduated from high school together.”

“We did. If Trey knew what he wanted to do with his life, he’d probably have his own place by now.”

Austin goes to get us drinks while I wait by myself. Whether or not I know anyone at a party isn’t usually an issue. Meeting new people is super fun. I believe everyone has goodness in them and I like finding out what that goodness is. But sometimes the darkness creeps in. The darkness makes me forget that people are inherently good. So doing things like random acts of kindness and striking up conversations with people in line and going to parties where I don’t know anyone reminds me of what I don’t want to forget. But this party isn’t inspiring me to be social. All I want to do is sneak off to a corner of the roof with Austin. No one else is anywhere near as interesting as he is.

Austin brings our drinks. “Is it wrong that I only want to talk to you?” he says.

“I was just thinking that!”

“Then I guess it’s not.”

“If only talking to you is wrong, I don’t want to be right.”

“We already said hi to Trey. I don’t really know anyone else here. Wait, do I know that guy?” Austin squints at someone across the roof. “Nope, don’t know him. Looks like we’re forced to appropriate this crazy-comfortable-looking couch with the sick view of the river.”

“You mean the couch that’s going to be the best place to watch the sunset?”

“That’s the one.” Austin sits at the far corner of the couch. He looks up at me expectantly. Do I sit right next to him? Or should I leave some space between us? I don’t want to leave any space between us. What if I leave space between us and I never see Austin again and I regret it for the rest of my life? But it doesn’t feel like I’ll never see him again. It feels like the beginning of something real.

I sit down right next to him, one leg bent against the couch so my knee is touching his thigh. When did I get so fearless? Lacking boy confidence was one of my biggest flaws in high school. Now it’s like I’m a whole different girl.