Bloom

08 | bloom

Giselle "G" Rowe
Friday, October 7 | 2:34 p.m.
Elliette's Catch - Cajun style restaurant

-

I get a huge whiff of June's cologne when I walk past him holding the door open for me. It's a masculine aroma that blends well with his natural scent and I love it.

"Thank you." I tell him, hyper aware of how close he's standing behind me as we reach the podium.

The atmosphere of Elliette's is warm and cozy and the taste of the food offers the same feeling. I've eaten here a few times before and I'm happy that this is the spot that he chose. We follow the hostess to a booth by a large window and take our seats across from each other.

Less than a minute later, a woman clothed in an apron tied tight around her waist approaches us.

"Hi there, my name is Camille and I'll be taking care of y'all today. Can I start y'all off with something to drink?"

"Strawberry lemonade, please."

"Same for me."

"Alrighty, I'll just go put those in. Be right back."

She walks away, leaving us alone and for a long minute, neither one of us says anything. I stare at the trees, watching their branches sway subtly in the early autumn breeze. Many of them still have leaves that are fully green but there are a few that are starting to turn red.

I feel June's eyes on me so I turn my attention back to him. "What?"

"Nothin.' He shakes his head, a smirk forming on his lips as he continues to look me over.

Today, I opted for white, long-sleeved, silk blouse with blue jeans that that do my figure some justice. My small bag matches my red heels and I kept my jewelry simple — just small gold hoops with a thin necklace of the same material.

June is wearing a light gray hoodie with matching sweatpants. The diamonds in his chains and on his ears compliment his dark complexion well. His hair looks freshly cut and his beard? Clean and moisturized.

"So," I drum my nails on the table. "What do you do for work?"

He tucks his bottom lip between his teeth briefly, finally tearing his eyes away from me as he looks at the ceiling for a moment. "I flip houses. Buy and rent out properties."

"Hmm so real estate." I conclude, remembering that he is the co-owner of 99 Degrees. "Well, good for you. You seem to be doing really well for yourself at such a young age."

Camille comes back with two strawberry lemonades and a friendly smile. "Are y'all about ready to order?"

"Nah, we need another minute." June replies, picking up his menu and I realize that I've barely looked at mine. I smile apologetically at her and she leaves us to tend to another table.

"Thank you." June looks at me from over the tall laminated menu. "You seem to be doin' aight yourself working at one of the nicest restaurants in the city."

I could be doing better.

"Umm, yeah. I guess." I shrug and bring my attention back to the section that reads fresh seafood platters.