Page 32 of Daydream

“You’re staring at me,” he says calmly. “Really intensely.”

“I haven’t seen you in a suit before. You look really good,” I admit.

He doesn’t respond to my blatant ogling and reaches into his inner suit pocket, pulling out a folded piece of paper. “I was going to buy you flowers but I already did that last week, so I brought you this instead.”

The last thing I’m expecting when I unfold the piece of paper is a drawing of me. I’m in my kitchen, smiling as I lean against the counter, surrounded by mixing bowls. “Henry! When did you do this?”

“I sketched it while I could see you, but I didn’t finish it properly until today.”

Henry was doing what I thought was doodling while we waited for the birthday cake to bake, but this isnota doodle. “You are so unbelievably talented. I love it. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. And you look really good, too. Ready?”

“Let’s do it.”

IFHENRY NOTICED MY RESTLESSNESSon the drive to the restaurant, he didn’t mention it. Which makes me think he didn’t notice because I definitely feel like he would mention it.

The second I saw the suit I realized we weren’t going to somewhere like Blaise’s diner, and I was right, because I can’t even pronounce the name of the restaurant we’re in. My heart stopped a little, and it took every bit of courage to quietly whisper to him while we waited to be seated that somewhere like this is probably super outside of my budget.

In true Henry fashion, he shrugged and said, “It’s a good thing the rules say you’re not allowed to pay then, isn’t it?”

I’ve been staring at the menu for far longer than is necessary, the luxurious paper a barrier between me and the man in front of me. I’ve never been short of words before, but maybe Date Halle is quiet and mysterious, or boring, depending on which way you look at it.

After another few minutes of me staring at the sea bass description, Henry clears his throat. “I’ll happily sit in silence all night, but I don’t think that’d be a good date experience for you. Are you okay?”

I lower the menu slowly and reluctantly. “I think I might be nervous.”

Henry doesn’t look nervous at all. He looks even more calm than normal, like he’s comfortable in a setting like this. I feel scared to touch anything in case I break it, but I’d bet that he’s accustomed to going to fancy restaurants from his grandma’s list. He takes a sip of his water and leans back in his chair. “Does Joy miss me?”

Easy answer. “Of course she does.”

“I asked could we get a cat. Turns out Robbie is allergic.”

“Devastating news. You can visit her anytime, she’s a big fan of yours.” I’m not even exaggerating. Ragdolls are clingy and affectionate anyway, but she has really stepped it up for Henry.

“I get that a lot.”

“I’m sure you do. Even more now that you’re captain, I’d bet.”

He shakes his head and picks up a roll from the basket. “We’re not talking about hockey. Tell me about your book. Did you finally pick a plot?”

“I did! Finally. I wrote a whopping three hundred words before I had to shower for our date.”

He looks genuinely happy. “Tell me about it.”

“Are you sure?” He nods enthusiastically. “Okay. It’s a dual timeline book where the present is a guy watching a woman walk down the aisle from the front of the church, and the past is watching them meet for the first time, and the relationship that follows. It’s a reallyup-and-down relationship, but they just keep being drawn back to each other, probably across several years. It’ll show all their best and worst moments until in the present she reaches the front of the church.”

“And what?” he asks. “The book ends with them getting married?”

We’re interrupted by the waiter taking our order, and the fact that I’m eager for him to disappear again so I can tell Henry the end of the story is how I know I’ve picked the right one to work on. “No, it doesn’t. That’s my big twist. The whole time he’s watching her walk down the aisle to get married to someone else.”

Henry is quiet for a moment, tearing off pieces of bread and looking pensive. Until he eventually talks again. “Anastasia and Lola are going to lose their shit if there isn’t a happy ending.”

Henry talked about his friends’ girlfriends and their love of rom-coms when we watched the horror movie together. I can’t help but laugh, because losing their shit is the reaction of most readers I know. “It’s only a fiction competition, so it doesn’t need a happy ending. I want to write something that has romantic elements, but I also want it to stand out. I think having a bit of a twist at the end will set it apart from other entries. I think it’s realistic that two people in love might not get their happy ending.”

“I’m surprised you think that. You give hopeless romantic energy,” he says.

“I think I always had myself down as a hopeless romantic. The things I read, the music I listen to, the movies I watch, etcetera. I guess who we think we are and who we are can be different.”

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