Tea Parties in Boston

36 - New Skills

November 8th, 2022

Logan stood at a familiar spot by the Barker center, the same one she'd met Rory for the first time since five years ago. The surroundings were a lot more bleak - the leaves having fallen by now and overall the streets around him looked like they had been wrapped in a blanket of gray. There could've been better weather for a date, there could've been better moments for a date too - some more romantic evening date perhaps instead of this lunch date that really wasn't all that different from their weekly lunches they'd been having. But still - even despite that - Logan was still a lot more excited to see her this time, the fact that this was a date not just another lunch to talk about Em making a surprising difference.

While Rory had admitted to wanting to date him, or well - go on 'a' date, technically - she had been a little awkward when it came to actually doing so during the evenings because she didn't feel like she was ready to answer her family's questions about her whereabouts or whom she was out with. And that Logan actually kind of understood - after the first impression from her family, her family in its current format, he'd gathered that they had been both a little cautious, especially Gigi, and excited about his presence, the latter being even a little flattering for him to be honest. So even Logan could feel the expectations from the brief time he'd spent with them. Rory didn't want the pressure and she wasn't ready to introduce the topic to Em yet either. And he got that, he really did.

So for now, they'd agreed to start with their lunches and make them slightly longer, Rory having come to work a little earlier that day to make sure she could have a longer lunch break.

Logan knew better than to complain. His whole Boston experience was his second chance - and that even if the rest of his life was still a little unsettled.

And Logan certainly didn't feel like complaining as after having stared at a bird in the distance for a while, immersed in his thoughts, and then turned - just feeling like he should, sensing a strange almost warm radiating heat from that direction . at the sight of the gorgeous head of auburn hair approach. He'd never shared his Finn's obsession for red-heads, but in this context, with the full package that Rory was, maybe the man was onto something.

Rory had given the hair some attention to look vibrant and bouncy, adding some waves, and Logan appreciated it, not that he thought she needed it. Rory made a hasty step towards him, already a minute or two late.

The hem of her black flower-patterned dress, one he'd seen on her before, could be seen from underneath her coat, and it looked like she'd just touched up her lipstick - an understated tone of mulberry - which flashed especially attractively when she smiled humbly, when she noticed him from afar.

Logan was oblivious to the way his own face lit up too.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry," Rory said, fretting about being late more than she had in a while. She'd really wanted to do this right, and she was no longer that girl who intentionally let guys wait. Besides, it was not like besides going to the bathroom and freshening her lipstick she had had a lot of getting ready to do if coming from work.

"I'll live," Logan replied, almost wanting to say that he'd waited for much longer than these couple of minutes if he would be talking in the grand scheme of things.

They hugged in greeting, and Logan got a whiff of her perfume. Nothing too eccentric or overwhelming, but a light citrusy scent with a hint of orange blossom.

"So, what's the plan Huntzberger?" Rory found herself asking, having been at a fast pace all morning. Truthfully, she was struggling to come down from the high, having been very nervous all morning - and no, not just because of Logan but also because she had had a deadline to meet at work.