One Thousand Miles

Chapter  |  It's a Date

Part  |  One

As Tanya and I entered the Starbucks, a few eyes turned to us before their attention went back to what they were doing. Tanya offered to buy drinks, but I only shook my head. I didn't want her paying, especially since she just got out of a relationship just thirty minutes earlier.

"No it's okay, I'll pay. Just because Tyler and I are broken up doesn't mean I can't pay for coffee with a friend," Tanya says as she takes a step in the direction of the cash register.

I grab her arm to stop her. "No Tanya, I insist. Don't worry, I'll let you pay next time," I say as I begin walking in the direction of the cash register, throwing a wink over my shoulder. I heard her mumble something about being stubborn, but I knew that she meant it jokingly.

As I approach the cashier who is currently counting the change in the register, I look him up and down. He had beautiful coffee colored skin, black hair, and I couldn't make out the color of his eyes by the way his head was tilted. After a few seconds of standing there, he puts all of the change back inside the cash register before looking up at me. As soon as his eyes landed on me, I noticed something flash in them, but I couldn't make out what it was. He cleared his throat before sending a lopsided grin my way. "Hello...um...my name is John, how can I help you?"

I sucked in my lips to keep the hugest smirk off my face. This boy has only just met me and is already head over heels. Well head over sneakers because he's a boy....and boys don't wear heels...but girls---

"I believe it's supposed to be, how may I help you?" I say, arching my eyebrow. He just stares at me for a couple of seconds before finally he blinks and lets out a quiet chuckle. I could listen to that all day, but unfortunately I had to get back to studying in about an hour or so.

"Um, you're right, my bad. So......my name is John."

I giggled before moving a stray hair out of my eyes. John must be the kind of person that could make anybody laugh even if they had a disease where they couldn't laugh. He obviously had a great personality in my eyes, and appearance. I could now tell what color his eyes were now that we were looking into each other's eyes. His were the same color as mine; blue, but his are just a tad bit lighter.

"You know, you already said that."

His eyes widen for a fraction of a second. "I did, didn't I?"

I let out another giggle and nod my head. "The name is Stephanie."

Finally after five more minutes of us just talking, I tell him my order. As I stand there waiting for Tanya and I's drinks, I quickly look around for Tanya who is sitting at a booth next to the window texting somebody on her cellphone. It was probably Tyler which really isn't a surprise to me. Those two have managed to break up, and get back together three times since I arrived here.

"Here you go, sorry we took so long with your order. I wanted them to make sure it came out just right, for you," John says, with a huge grin on his face as he sits the drinks down on the counter. I gave him a quick thank you before picking up both of our cups and frowning.

"Is something wrong, Steph?"

Steph, it sounded so bland and boring coming out of somebody like my dad or mom's mouth, but his, not at all. It sounded right.

"No nothing's wrong, it's just that you wrote Stephy on my cup instead of just my whole name..." I say softly, before looking down just as I feel the blood rushing to my cheeks. There in messy, but not messy enough for me to not be able to read, handwriting was the word Stephy written most likely by a black sharpie marker.

"What's wrong with Stephy? Is it weird that I'm calling you it while your boyfriend does the same?" he asks with a smirk on his face. That smirk on his face couldn't hide the jealousy in his eyes. He actually thinks I have a boyfriend.

"Actually, you're wrong because I don't have a boyfriend." It was now his turn to be embarrassed for assuming the wrong things. I have yet to even have my first kiss, unless kissing your dad bye counts.

"Oh well, I just kind of figured you had one considering the fact that you are a very gorgeous woman. I mean, I'm not trying to flirt with you or anything, but I'm just saying. Who wouldn't want such a pretty girl? A girl with pretty blonde hair, beautiful blue eyes, and a smile that the sun does not got nothing on."

I laugh at how cute he sounded. Yeah, he may have said he wasn't flirting, but guess what? He was definitely flirting.

"Well um, I think I should go. My friend Tanya is shockingly still waiting for me. Usually she would have walked out without telling me," I say giving him one last smile. He laughs and slowly nods his head. "So um, I'll see you around?"

"You most definitely will," he says with a wink just as the bell above the door rings, meaning that he had customers to attend to.

I look down with one of the hugest smiles on my face as I make me way towards the table Tanya was occupying. Before I can even take a seat across form her, she snatches her White Chocolate Mocha out of my hand. By now it was probably a little cold.

"It's about damn time! You know, I could have visited my family all the way in Philly and you still wouldn't have brought the drinks. What the hell took you so long?" she asks as she takes a huge gulp out of her Mocha. I just smile and look down at my hands resting in my lap. I shake my head and move another stray hair behind my ear. From across the booth, I hear her gasp and slam her cup down onto the table. "Ohhhh, did it have something to do with that sexy ass cashier.

"Would you drop the subject if I told you yes, it had everything to do with that sexy ass cashier," I say as I turn around to look at him. He was currently taking an elderly couples order with a smile on his face that showed his dimples. I turned back around to face Tanya who had a huge smirk on her face.

"Do you seriously think that I am just going to drop something as serious as this? I mean come on, get real Stephanie. You have never had a boyfriend in your entire life and you still have not had your first kiss, so no I'm not going to drop this, I'm going to help you."

"What, how?"

She rolled her eyes as if I should have already known the answer to that. "Look, you are going to march up to him and ask for his number. Once you two exchange numbers I don't want you to call or text him."

I frown and gave her a look. "I am so confused Tanya. You're telling me to go up there to get his number, but yet you don't want me calling or texting him? Tanya, how in the world does that help?"

She rolls her eyes again before signaling for me to stand up, which I do. "Just do as I said and go." I stand there for a moment before letting out a breath of air and slowly going back over to where John is standing taking somebody's order. As I wait patiently for the family ahead of me to finish ordering, I think about what I am going to say to him. Maybe I should just hurry up and go back to the table before he even notices that I'm there. Hmmm, that actually doesn't sound like a bad idea.

"Stephy, I see you have returned. You just couldn't stay away could you?"

I shake my head out of my thoughts just as I realize the family ahead of me is walking out the door with their order. I turn back to John who is just staring at me with one of the biggest smirks I have ever seen. I'm pretty sure he was the cocky type too.

"So can I get you anything? I mean, the Banana Walnut Bread is just---"

"What's your number?" I suddenly blurt out. Just by the look on his face he obviously did not expect those words to come out of my mouth. Moments pass by before his shocked expression turns into an excited one.

"Oh darn it, you beat me to it," he says as he reaches into his pocket for his phone. I grab mine out of my own before handing it over so we can exchange numbers. He hands me back my phone with a smile on his face that could just light the town. "So Stephy, you free this weekend?" I think for a moment before nodding my head yes. "Good. So I'll pick you up at seven on Saturday night. Just text me your address, we're going on a date."

I grin excitedly before nodding my head. "It's a date." I turn to leave and notice Tanya standing at the door with both of our drinks. If possible, my grin widens and my pace quickens.

"Sooo, what happened?" she asks as we walk out the door.

I breathe in the cool summer air before slowly letting it out. I turn towards her with a huge girn on my face. "It's a date."