Worth Saving(40)

“Somewhere really special. You’ll see. But, it has a bit of a dress code, so I need you to not get too fancy. Dress down, actually. Like, comfortable clothes you can move around in, and tennis shoes.”

“What? Tennis shoes? What the hell kind of place is this?”

“You’ll see. Alright, BFF, I gotta go. I’ll see you soon. Bye.”

He hangs up before I can respond.

“Wow, you should see your face when you talk to him,” Marlene says with a wide smile on her face. “You’re too cute.”

“Oh please,” I say. “He’s just weird, and kind of funny.”

“Mm-hmm. Anyway, so you have plans for the day now.”

“Looks like it. He wants me to dress comfortable and to wear tennis shoes.”

“Interesting.”

“Yeah, I don’t know what that’s about.”

“I don’t know, but I will say this though. If this guy puts a smile on your face every time you two get together, I think you should let loose and have fun, honey. Nice guys are hard to come by, and no one ever said you had to run off and marry this guy tomorrow. Just let go, and allow yourself to feel something. It’s okay to let yourself be happy.”

“But what if he’s just like the . . .” I start, but Marlene interjects.

“But what if he’s not?” she says. “What if he’s different?”





Layla

Two hours goes by fast. After I say goodbye to Marlene, I rush back to my apartment to get ready for Austin to pick me up. I shower for the second time today and make sure my hair looks good. I have a hard time trying to figure out what I can wear that’ll fit the dress code he mentioned and still look decent, but I manage to make black leggings and a long sweater look okay. Since he also hinted at having to move around, I throw on a tank top under my sweater, just in case, and I can’t forget the tennis shoes.

After I feel ready, I head downstairs to wait for Austin. I can feel the nerves starting to creep in as I ride the elevator down. As much as I want to fight them off, the nerves are starting to become bigger and stronger like they’ve been in the gym. After my conversation with Marlene, I’m doing my best to just let them come, but there’s something in me that still wants to hold back, but I’ll also take her advice into consideration.

The truth is, she’s right. I don’t want to miss out on an opportunity with Austin because I refused to let my guard down on the chance it might hurt in the end. If I did that, I’d risk being completely wrong, and never get the chance to see just how awesome he is and how great our relationship could be. So, I’m trying. He makes it easy to try anyway, so why not just go along with it?

When I get downstairs, I step out the double doors that lead into my building, and the first thing I see is Austin leaning up against his car. He’s wearing black shorts and a black and white Jordan t-shirt to match his shoes. When he sees me, he smiles. My eyes focus in on those dimples and the nerves gain more strength.

“Uh-oh,” he begins, shaking his head. “You’re wearing a sweater. You’re gonna be hot in that. You sure you wanna go that route?”

“I have a tank top on underneath,” I reply as I approach him. “But, where the hell are you taking me that I’m gonna be hot in this?”

“You’ll see. Let’s go.” He turns around and opens the passenger door for me, then holds his hand out like a chauffeur trying to help me get in.

“Come on, just tell me,” I plead.

“That’d spoil all the fun. Just enjoy the surprise.”

I take his hand and let him guide me into the seat and close the door. I smile to myself as I marvel at his chivalry and watch him stride in front of the car to get in on his side.

We buckle up, and Austin takes off. He doesn’t get on the highway, so I know we’re not going near The Strip, but as we drive I’m still trying to figure it out. I look over at him and just stare, hoping he’ll see me and ask what I’m looking at so I can demand to know where we’re going. But he ignores me and drives in silence. I swear I can see a hint of a smile starting to form on his lips, but he fights it back the whole ride.

After a five minute drive, the Camaro finally comes to a stop. I look out the window and don’t recognize my surroundings. There’s trees on both sides of the car, but in front of us there’s a set of tennis courts, and next to that is a large basketball court. The rims are a little rusty and it looks like this place doesn’t get much use, but I’m still excited when I see it. On the other side of the large area is a big pond with ducks and geese playing in the water. It’s a beautiful place.

“So, where are we, exactly?” I ask.

“This is Granger Park.”

“Umm, and what are we doing here?” I ask again, both frowning and smiling at the same time.

Austin reaches behind my seat and grabs a basketball I didn’t know was there. “You said you liked sports, and basketball is your favorite. So, we’re here to see what you got.”

“Are you serious? You’re unbelievable,” I admit. When the words escape from my mouth, a part of me wishes I could pull them back in. He wasn’t supposed to hear that, but he did. He doesn’t say anything in response though, he just smiles at me and gets out the car.