Off Campus | ✓

10: Mila- Art Galleries

first dates to remember

****

AS HE'D PROMISED, Enzo showed up right on time. This time wearing clean clothes that didn't have the stench of a keg party.

"You cleaned up nice," I grin as I see him approach me.

"Well, what can I say?" He handed me a box of chocolates. "I like to impress people."

"That's so corny," I laugh, accepting the box and marveling at its arrangement. "Thank you, they're beautiful."

"Ah, wait." He took them from me. "It didn't occur to me we weren't at a place where you could place them in a pot." Enzo let out a nervous laugh.

"Oh, yeah." I laughed along with him. "That's fine, we can just stop by my place. It's close by."

"Alright," Enzo agreed. "Let's stop by and we can go."

It didn't take long before we got to my apartment, which was literally only five minutes away. After finding a vase and filling it with water, I place the flowers in them and set them in the dining room.

"How does it look?" I ask Enzo—who had been watching me the entire time.

"It looks nice," he scans the room. "But it would be better if you place them in a place where they would get sunlight, the natural lighting, and the yellow color would brighten the color of your walls."

"So, move them to the living room?" I take in what he said.

"I'd say yeah because that's where I noticed where most of the sunlight comes in through because of the balcony outside."

"Got it," I take the vase and walk to a coffee table that faced the sliding glass door to the balcony.

"That looks better." Enzo sat down on the sofa.

"Alright, thanks." I smile at him. "Now let's go on that date."

We leave my apartment and take notice of our lack of transportation and plans.

"Did you plan what we were going to do on this date?" I ask him.

"I was actually planning on taking you to an art gallery, but I'm not sure how we'll get there." Enzo chuckles.

"Art gallery?" I echo in awe.

"Yeah, do you not want to go? I mean, we can totally go to a different place if you want? It's totally up to you. Shit, I should've asked you before..." He stuttered slightly and has a pink tint on his cheeks.

"Of course not, I would love to go! It's actually always been a thing I've had yet to complete on my bucket list."

"Oh really?" He looked excited. "Then let's get going."

"Alright, so my car is in the shop," I tell him, both of us standing outside my apartment. "The next bus should be here in twenty minutes, but that won't exactly take us to the gallery."

"How about we take a taxi instead?" Enzo chuckled. "Either that or Uber."

"Shít, I didn't think of that." I laugh. Enzo shakes his head with a grin on his lips.

"I'll just call an Uber and we can get there on time."

After Enzo called for an Uber, we only waited for five minutes before we were in the backseat of an SUV.

"See? We should've thought of this earlier." Enzo said to me, looking outside the window.

"Shut up," I punch him lightly in the shoulder.

"You're adorable." He places his hand over mine and interlaces them.

I look down at our hands and look back up at him. I smile and shift closer to him, our arms now touching each other.

"This is already one of the best dates I've had. Hands down." I say turning my head brushing his arm. My head only coming to his collarbone, I note our height difference.

"Really?" He asks surprised. "Considering how everyone's always after you, I thought for sure you'd reject me after today."

"You're not like other guys, Enzo."

"That's a lie, Mila. Trust me." He looked grim.

"Not what you've shown me today. I really do believe that you're a good guy. I've had my fair share of stuck up guys, you're not like them at, believe me when I say this."

"We'll agree to disagree." By the time he said that we stopped in front of a building that I was familiar with. Getting out of the car, Enzo paid the driver and we stand near the sliding doors.

"It's going to take place here?" I look up at the tall, glass-paned structure and recognize it as one of my parents' multiple buildings they own.

"Yeah, it's on one of the floors here. My friend was able to rent out a floor for a good price. Why is there something wrong?"

"No! Nothing, I'm just really shocked at the size of the building." I try to cover up.

"I know, right? I was shocked that Layton was able to hold an art gallery here." His eyes glitter under the sun's light. I stand there on the pavement admiring his expression.

"Do you also want to hold an art gallery soon?" I ask him.

He turns to me and shows me a blinding smile. "Are you kidding? That would be a dream come true."

"I would love to see your works soon," I hold his hand.

Squeezing it back, he leads me inside. Walking to the elevator, Enzo takes us to the third floor. Once the doors open, a boy notices us and walks over to us.

"Enzo! I'm so glad you're here!" He does a handshake with Enzo. He notices me and raises his eyebrows at Enzo. "Is this your girlfriend?"

"Ah, no." Enzo shakes his head. "We're friends."

I slip my hand out of his and smile at his friend. "Yeah, this is actually our first date."

"Oh shit, my bad." The boy who I assumed was named Layton curses. "That was rude."

"It's alright," Enzo waved it off. "Now tell me about your main showpiece."

Layton was just about to begin speaking before he was interrupted by a girl who told him that one of his works was sold. He faces us, "how about I tell you later? Enjoy the show, guys."

Once he left, I turn. "So friends, huh?"

"You know you're not just a friend to me, Mila." Enzo grabs a hold of my hand again. "'Friend' is not something I would use to describe you."

"Then what word would describe me then?"

"I'll tell you later," he leaned in, his voice sending shivers down my spine. "So let's just enjoy our first date, shall we?"