Second Date?

Rowan Powell is persistent. He had to have his way with everything and everyone. Some people found it cute while some others found it downright annoying. 

He was seated in the booth of an 80’s themed restaurant right now with his latest ‘conquest’, Daisy Smith. Daisy was new at school. Guys had already started showing interest in her because she had a friendly bubbly personality people found irresistible. Rowan had to end his two day fling with Maya Green because Daisy seemed to just attract him to herself.

     With the look on Daisy’s face right now, it was clear that she was one of the two groups that found Rowan cute. Her face was as red as her hair and she couldn’t stop giggling at almost everything he said. 

      “Seriously Daisy. How hard could it possibly be?” He asked her. She was enjoying his company almost as much as he was enjoying her’s. She was undeniably beautiful. Her hair stopped above her shoulders and framed her round freckled face perfectly. She was confident and wasn’t afraid to hold eye contact with the alluring Rowan Powell for longer than necessary. 

     “Are we still talking about the sandwich Rowan?” Rowan could hardly help the way his heart fluttered every time she said his name. Her accent was something else. He had lived in California all his life and the only time he had ever heard a Southern accent was from watching the walking dead. Hearing it in person from the perfectly shaped lips of Daisy was a whole other level.

Daisy couldn’t believe that after five minutes Rowan would still be going on about his expertise at making grilled cheese sandwiches. 

     “Yes. You can ask anyone Daisy. I make the best grilled cheese in the whole entire world.”

His hands made a huge circle as he made sure to emphasize the whole world. 

Daisy giggled.

     “By anyone you mean Elizabeth Grier, Susan Neil, Cassidy Tumbler-”

Rowan picked up on what she was doing soon enough. She was listing out all the girls that he may or may not have been in a relationship with. He had to stop her for two reasons; if she was going to list them all out, they would never leave this restaurant and secondly, he didn’t want to think about all those other girls when he was around her. Daisy did something to him. She gave him butterflies. Everything about her made him want to smile and sometimes she even left him tongue tied. 

“Summer Winefield—“

     “Woah Daisy! Let’s stop there.”

     “Why?”

     “None of those girls have ever tasted the legendary grilled cheese sandwich I make.”

     Her head tilted to the side as she looked at him. She wasn’t new to boys. Rowan didn’t know it but back in her hometown in Missouri, she was a heartthrob as well. Almost all the boys were tied around her fingers. She knew how to lure a guy in and keep him wherever she wanted until she was tired and ready to move on to someone new. “Uh huh.”

     “I’m telling you. I only make it on very special occasions.” 

Daisy was tempted to tut and shake her head from side to side as she usually did when things couldn’t get anymore obvious

     “Is that so?” She leaned over the table separating them and reached out so she could push the stray strands of Rowan’s brown hair out of his eyes. His blue eyes glowed at the contact.  “So what’s this very special occasion?” She crossed her hands over the table. 

     “It’s um… my brother’s birthday.  He’s turning ten.” 

Her eyebrows knitted in confusion. 

     “Let me get this straight Rowan. You want me to come to your house next week Saturday because it’s one of the ‘very special occasions’” she made air quotes. “Where you make your legendary grilled cheese sandwiches?”  

It was obviously more than that. He didn’t want to be the first person to tell her that he had a massive crush on her and wanted to see her again. That would seem desperate. Something Rowan swore never to do. Act desperate in front of a girl. He had never been desperate when it came to Susan or Elizabeth or Amy or all the rest and that was certainly not going to change today no matter how much his feelings had increased for her just by spending no more than two hours with her. She definitely exceeded his expectations. They had a fun afternoon together eating lunch. She ordered the food for both of them while he ordered their smoothies. They had conversations over their shared love of baseball. Rowan found it fascinating when she said she took up flower arranging a few summers ago and was probably going to do that as a part time job later in future— Making flower arrangements for weddings. He decided to tell her how passionate he was about sculpting. Something very few people knew about. 

They were both playing the same game without realizing it. They were interested in each other, something I’m sure all the waiters and everyone surrounding them in the restaurant had picked up on by their constant laughing and lingering stares. 

Rowan was fighting hard not to blurt out how amusing he found her. 

Daisy as well didn’t want to give much of her emotions away as well. Rowan wasn’t like other boys. It was cliché but true. Most of the boys she had fooled around with couldn’t get passed the first five minutes of being around her without telling her how beautiful she was or how much they liked her. They wore their emotions on their sleeves. But Rowan seemed to be finding other ways to try to stick around. No guy has ever boasted about a sandwich so passionately to keep her around. Her interest was undeniably piqued by him. 

     “Exactly.” He said slightly pink in the face. Maybe he realizes how crazy his story sounds after all. She giggled for the fiftieth time that afternoon. 

     “I’ve had a lot of grilled cheese sandwiches Rowan. Please tell me why yours is the so called ‘best’.”

His smile widened. 

     “I can’t give away the secret to what makes them special Daisy.” His voice was playfully reprimanding.  “You just have to be there.” 

Her eyes rolled dramatically. 

     “Grilled cheese sandwiches are so easy to make though. My daddy makes them almost all the time.”

     “Answer me this, has your dad’s grilled cheese sandwich ever cured anyone of a headache?”

     “Rowan-” her hand flew over her mouth as she tried to suppress a laugh. 

     “I’m pulling out all the stops here Daisy. Has it?” She shook her head. “Mine has. Has your dad’s grilled cheese ever ended up in your family’s book of recipes that is going to be passed down to the next ten generations?” Her head moved repetitively from left to right. No.

“What about curing cancer?”

     “Rowan!” She laughed. 

“I’m just being honest. You can ask my grandma Natty.” He raised his hands up and wriggled his fingers. 

“There’s magic in these hands.” 

     “Those sound like pretty awesome grilled cheese sandwiches.”

He nods in agreement. 

“But can they score me tickets to an Ariana Grande concert?”

     “Hmmm. It depends. You have to eat it first.” 

     “So assuming I manage to attend your brother’s birthday. All we’re going to do is eat sandwiches?”

     “No. Of course not!” He hadn’t thought about that part yet. The rest of the date that would fall on his brother’s supposed ‘birthday’ hadn’t even crossed his mind. He was so worried about actually securing the girl that he didn’t think about what they would do. He might have to start the date by telling her Connor’s birthday was actually two months later…

“We could go surfing if it’s sunny enough.”

     She somehow managed with all her might to control her excitement. She had been to a beach just once and that was when she was visiting her aunty Lucy in Maryland and her family spent the day at Ocean City. It would be really exciting to go again and this time it would be with a boy she liked. 

     “I’ve never been surfin’.”

     “I could teach you.”

     “What if it was a picnic date?” She suggested meekly. “We could bring your legendary sandwiches.”

He laughed and she joined. 

     “What I’m hearing is that we’re going on a second date next week Saturday?” 

She shrugged her shoulders. 

     “I think what’s going on is you’re asking me out on a second date?”

He wanted to groan. Daisy Smith was something. 

     “Fine, Yes. And I’d like to know your reply.” He gave in. 

She hesitated as though she hadn’t made up her mind as soon as he brought up grilled cheese that she’d go out with him again. 

     “I’d love that.”

He could breathe again. And so could she.

They were going out again. 

“By the way,” she said as they walked out of the restaurant, “ I’m allergic to cheese.”