Walking in step with her, I wait for her to lift her gaze.
She tilts her eyes to me.
“He never leaves me walk alone,” she says, amused. “Ed would fire him if he did that.”
“Your future husband is afraid of losing you?”
“Who wouldn’t be, right?” she jokes.
A few moments pass as we stroll down the street, still connected.
Still wearing a smile.
“I’m really happy for you,” I murmur. “Look how nice things have turned out.”
“They have,” she says, lost in thought. “Life does that sometimes, surprising you when you least expect it.”
A few more seconds pass as we cross the street and head to a small pizza shop with striped awnings.
“Do you mind eating outside?” she asks, peeling off her beanie. “I’m hot,” she adds.
“No, not at all.”
The temperature is mild, and the air is crisp, but the sun warms us as we walk.
The hostess greets us and shows us to the terrace while a waitress wearing black pants and a white button down shirt inches closer to the table.
“What can I get you?” she asks, pulling the chairs out for us.
“Deep dish pizza for me,” Thea says, not perusing the menu. “I’m craving stuff,” she says to me before adding, “We can share.”
“Sure. We’ll do that.”
“Anything to drink?” the woman asks, sliding the server notepad into her pocket.
“Soda for me,” Thea says.
“And you?”
The woman looks at me.
“I’ll get a soda too.”
“And two sides of garlic bread,” my cousin adds.
“Sure,” the waitress says, smiling. “I’ll be right back.”
The garlic bread arrives quickly, to Thea’s delight.
We’re alone again when she pops a piece of garlic bread into her mouth and chews on it, satisfied with the taste.
“Now watch me not being able to get into my wedding dress.”
She flashes a smile, poking fun at herself, and I wish I could be like her sometimes––take things lightly.
Terry told me I was too intense last night.
I was at her place, dying my hair and struggling to pick the right color.