Into the Light

16

I pushed the drink back against the lever, so that some ice poured out into it. I still tended to forget that Anna really didn't have a clue what was going on in the world today. Things had changed so much since she'd been...well, since her time. "You just press the image of whatever kind of drink you want." I pulled her over, in front of me, and settled my hands on her hips. She stiffened for a second, then almost sighed as she relaxed. A lot had happened tonight, but one of the main things that I noticed, was how intense things since Anna had been brought back. In that short time, I'd kissed her twice. Each time made me feel like my nerve endings were zinging with an electrical charge. She was more intense. The way she reacted to me, to the tiny things that I did, like simply brushing her hair back, or holding her hand. She wouldn't stop blushing and it was just so damned attractive to me. I watched as her hand reached towards the machine, and she hesitantly pressed root beer. The image changed and slid to the different flavor options. "There's more than one flavor or root beer?" I heard her mutter under her breath. She sounded like she was getting a little overwhelmed. "You can just get the normal one, if you don't want the flavor. It's right there," I replied, pointing at the option. She looked up and shot me a grateful smile, before nodding. I pressed it for her, and watched the cup fill up. "Thank you," she replied, softly. "Sure," I replied. "I know it's different and can probably get a little overwhelming but you'll get the hang of it. Until you do, I'm always here to help." I picked up her drink and handed it to her, so that I could get my own. We stood off to the side, and waited for our number to be called. She took the first sip of her drink, and my mouth went totally dry. Her eyes rolled back a little, before she closed her eyes, and moaned. "Oh my God, this is heaven. I forgot how amazing root beer was." It took me a second to get my bearings back, before I cleared my throat. "Yeah," I croaked out, dumbly. She opened her eyes, and those emerald orbs seemed to penetrate straight to my heart. "Thank you for this," she said. "For what?" I asked, shrugging. "It's just food." She shook her head. "No, it's more than that." She was cut off by the server calling our number, before she could finish. I grabbed our order, and thanked the guy. "All set," I said, turning back to her and grinning. "Good, I'm starved!" she exclaimed, bouncing on her feet a little. That made interesting things occur, with that tiny top and skirt, and I wasn't the only one who noticed. Almost every guy, and a few girls, around us, turned their eyes in her direction. "Let's get this to the car then," I exclaimed, stepping closer to her. I had always been a little jealous, but in LA, it was kind of moot to worry about someone looking at your girl because of what she wears. I had gotten used to it over the years. With Anna, that old jealousy reared it's ugly head and had me wanting to shield her from their hungry eyes. I stepped in front of her and pushed the door open with my hip. While I waited for her to go through, I glanced back at the group of people ogling her. Unable to help myself, I grinned and shot them a wink, before stepping out. Before the door completely closed, I heard a few whistles and laughter come my way. "What happened?" she asked, turning back to look. "I don't know," I answered. "Let's eat before it gets cold." Once we were settled into the car, I turned the key and set the music to a low background noise, then passed her the bag, while I took the shakes out of their holder. She opened the bag and inhaled deeply. "This is gonna be the best burger I've ever eaten in my life," she moaned. She had to stop that. "You still want to go get more food?" I asked, watching as she took a huge bite out of a fully loaded cheeseburger. "Mmmhmm, yesh," she managed to get out around the food in her mouth. She had sauce in the corner of her mouth, with toppings falling out of her burger onto the paper wrapper in her lap. She was tearing into that burger with a vengeance. I didn't really get to see girls eat like that anymore, unless they were drunk, so this was quite a show. I grabbed a few napkins and passed them to her. She looked at them, then finished chewing and swallowed. "Are you trying to tell me something?" she asked. "Absolutely," I laughed. "I mean, I'm fine with your face being covered in grease and condiments, if you are. Just trying to help." She rolled her eyes, and took the napkins. "Food always tastes better if you don't give a shit if people are watching you." "Huh...you're right," I replied. "Okay, you eat and I'll drive. Try to save room, because we still have a couple of stops." "I have plenty of room," she replied, as she took a few fries and dipped them into her shake. With the way she was eating, I was actually almost scared for my poor car's upholstery. I shook my head and turned the music up, before pulling back out onto the road. I decided to take her to a taco truck to get a couple of tacos and a plate of nachos, first. She moaned over the flavors, and inhaled them, just like she did the burger. "Still hungry?" I asked. "No," she laughed, holding her stomach. "But I'm not ready to go home yet." I noticed how she called my house her home, and I had to admit that I liked the sound of it. "How about we get a few giant pretzels and go to the beach for a little while to eat them and let our food settle?" "That sounds amazing," she replied, leaning back in her seat. "I think that I should've worn sweatpants for this though. My stomach is trying to explode. I'm still going to eat that damn pretzel though." I glanced over at her, and let my eyes trail over her for just a second. "Your stomach is perfect," I replied, then looked away. "Oh...thank you," she said, blushing a little. "But, you're lying. It's bulging. I have a food baby. I have to stretch."