60

~This one won third place in the 2016 Westerville Public Library 

Celebrate the Arts Writing Contest~

He could still salvage this. He looked at her intently. “What can happen in one minute of conversation?”

            Sure enough, it got her attention. “Excuse-“

            “Go!” He checked his watch.

            “You can’t be serious.” She laughed, leaning back. They’d picked a booth for the evening, to help release the tension. The booths were of a fruitwood finish, not too light and not too dark, putting the atmosphere along the line of chatty and cozy.

            Well, we need to work on the chatty part. He thought desperately as her laugh died off. She studied him closely. “Holy crap, you are serious.”

            “When in doubt, do something random.” He insisted.

            “You have a lot of doubt about this, then.” She assumed.

            “Sixty seconds.” was all he replied, starting them on the half-minute mark.

            Her face drew a blank. “W- And you want me to start?” She shook her head. “Typical male, afraid to take the plunge.”

            “I find that unfair since I’m the one who asked you out.” He exclaimed.

The muscles in her face relaxed. “Why did you? Ask me out, that is.”

            “Why wouldn’t I?”

            “Oooohhh no!” she leaned back in over the table. “You don’t pull the spontaneity card and then act all elusive. That just proves my point.”

            “Or you just think it does because you want to be right.” He matched her lean. “You’ve got that take-charge, not-to-be-deterred type of attitude.”

            She snickered. “Thank you?”

            She was fearless too. Three seconds ticked by.

            He needed to reach farther, he guessed. “I hear that Canada is letting people into their national parks for free next year.”

            She didn’t look the slight bit impressed. “Why would you even know that?”

            “I heard about it through a pal on Facebook,” he gained confidence. “I met him during a triathlon in California. We keep in touch about upcoming marathons, Mud Runs, and the like.”

            She nodded at that information. “So, you bike?”

            “And swim, and boat, and hike,” He was getting exited. “Pretty much anything that involves fresh and air. You?”

            “So long as there’s a book next to me.”

            The excitement fled… and so had the minute. What he had learned from it? Not much on compatibility.

            “Not much athletics for you then.” He supposed.

            She cocked a brow slyly. “I become a blue belt next month.”

            “A bookworm and a martial artist?” He looked her over. She did the same, hand cupping her chin. “An outdoorsman and a chauvinist. What a surprise.”

            “You believe in all stereotypes.” he was getting annoyed now. “Or just the ones involving males?”

            “I believe that there’s more to first impressions then people think. If someone puts their best face forward, they care enough about a positive interaction.” She shrugged sadly. “If they don’t, then they don’t care really care… about themselves or any other.”

            That’s condemning. He felt spooked at the coolness with which she stated the words. But he only went, “Hmm.”

            “Hmm.” She went back. “You know it’s been over a minute.”

            “We were able to break the silence.” He pointed out.

            “Sometimes silence is golden.” She smiled. “Sixty seconds, not a word.”

            “Wh-“ he began.

            “Go.”

            He opened his mouth, then shut it. Her eyes pierced him, daring him to look… only to find what? Talk about stereotypes, she was making a mountain out of a mole hole. That was the freaky part about dating. The peeling back of the layers.

            Chill, man! It’s just a minute.

            A minute that had to last forty-six seconds more…

            Guy’s got a chin on him! She was biting her cheek to keep from grinning. She had been noticing the chin because it was rarely without a smile. Inviting, nervous, curious or calm… smiling seemed to be his thing.

            It doesn’t just stay on his lips though. She thought. The feeling climbs through his eyes, over his forehead… how’s THAT possible?!...

            Her hands moved. He locked the muscles in his neck to keep his cheeks from blushing. Why would hands make him blush? Dimwit, she probably wants you to look at her face!...

            Were those ringlets of green- inside his brown eyes? Uh, this guy was making her sweat. Or the silence was. Maybe it had been a bad idea. Probably made him uncomfortable. Well, he started it with his whole ‘do something random’ proverb...

            How many more seconds? He sweated, afraid to check his watch. He didn’t want to back down…

            “Time’s up!”

            Apparently, it wasn’t an issue for her.

            “That was… fascinating.” He cracked on the word, being the only one he could think of. Well, that and one other thing. “So… second date?”

            Her eyebrows rose, lips pursed. She considered him; could she see the sweat?

            “Definitely.” She said, picking up her menu.

THE END

'Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.'

~Proverbs 27:1~