Page 53 of One More Weekend

I’d spent the last few hours playing out each scenario, how I would hide my own feelings when Jenna came home. It had been months since she’d interviewed for something, not since the winter when she got the SDO gig.

She could have bombed it, it wouldn’t be a shock despite her impressive interview skills. We’d run through potential questions dozens of times since our Flea Market trip.

And here I was rehearsing responses.

My heart was beating out of my chest when I heard steps climbing up the stairs just outside our door. No one else lived up here.

It had to be her.

Turning toward the door, I felt my lungs struggle to pull in air. More than anything, I knew how badly she needed – and deserved – this.

So when she pushed open the door and her face was in a slight pout, I felt my stomach fall through my body and out of my ass.Shit.

But once the door closer, the corners of her mouth lifted as she met my gaze,

“How did it go?” My own smile followed hers as she crossed the room.

Basically skipping, Jenna shrieked. “I fucking killed it!”

“YES!” I shouted, jumping into the air and wrapping my arms around her. “I knew you could do it, baby.”

I hadn’t meant to let a pet name slip, but it took all my effort to keep those things to myself, and at a moment like this, I had nothing left to hide.

“I can’t believe it, they were so excited.” Jenna bit her finger, eager but still nervous. “There’s still a chance they pick someone else. There were so many people there.”

Nodding, I tried to remind myself of that possibility. “Of course. But you’re you.”

She recounted the whole thing for me, the vibe of the offices and the other people who worked there. Then she detailed the whole interview. She nailed all the answers we’d practiced and seemed to handle any surprises with grace and poise.

“Wow, you are such a force.” I sank into the couch after a few minutes of pacing together.

Unable to sit down, Jenna clapped. “Can I take you out to dinner… tonight? I owe you for all your help.”

My jaw dropped and all I could do was nod. “Name a place and I'm there.”

“What if I don’t name a place but you’re still there?” Biting her lip, Jenna was starting to scheme a way to surprise me just as much as I’d surprised her since our dates started.

And after all the shit I’d pulled to keep secrets from her this summer, I couldn’t deny her the chance.

So I smiled. “Just tell me the vibe and I’ll follow.”

A few hours later,we’d gotten changed and ready for what seemed like it was going to be a shockingly fancy dinner. But it was a Thursday night so most restaurants wouldn’t be too busy.

Jenna was in full gentleman mode, opening every door and taking total control of the date. Walking us to our first bus of the evening, Jenna swiped for me on the digital ticket scanner.

We shuffled to the middle of the bus and took a seat with a good window view. Huddling together, we were basically on top of each other in the seat as we rode the seven-minute bus to the subway station.

Even during the chaotic transfer, we hadn’t stopped talking for a single second. It was like the opportunity alone had brought back Jenna’s excitement about her life and the city.

I tried to contain my own excitement, hopeful that we’d finally get to see what was happening between us without fear of some premature long-distance relationship.

It wasn’t until we hopped off the subway on West 4th Street that I started to question where exactly Jenna was taking me. We’d spent lots of time in the West Village in the last few weeks of Pride month.

But this was also suspiciously close to our college.

As we approached Washington Square Park on West 4th Street, everything started to click. We descended down afamiliar set of stairs to a restaurant with an all-glass facade. There, a vegan restaurant called Red Bamboo was tucked away.

“We haven’t been here in ages!” I laughed as Jenna nodded.

---