I Never Imagined ✔️

Chapter 29: The First One (Part 2)

Song: Ajab Si from the movie Om Shanti Om. Here's the lyrics translation:

http://www.bollynook.com/en/lyrics/6391/ajab-si/

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For the first time in a while, I felt peaceful. Life has been so stressful lately. Being vice president isn't easy at all. You've got so many things to plan, and it's really not fun at all. Top that with all the drama lately, and it's deadly. The Roman drama, the voting drama, and the accident. It's really stressful.

But, this little moment we have is so peaceful right now. It's like he takes all the stress out of me. I felt care free. I felt at ease. It was amazing. But peace doesn't last forever. The abrupt rumbling of my stomach completely disrupted it. "Come on, stomach. Don't ruin this moment," I think to myself. It's too late.

Ray heard it. "Are you hungry, Sophia?" he asks, and he lets me go. I turn around, but don't say anything. He smiles. "You don't have to be ashamed about it. I was going to take you out anyways. I need to treat my queen," he says. I smile. "I'm your queen?" I ask. He smiles.

"You're a queen. But most importantly, you're my queen and I need to treat you like one," he says. My face starts to go red. "Stop being so perfect," I say. He leans in closer to me. "I'll stop when you stop being so beautiful," he says smoothly.

I'm probably redder than a tomato at this moment. But I don't care. "Now, for that dinner? I don't want to keep my queen waiting," he says. "Let's go," I say. He takes my hand and leads the way.'

"So which restaurant are we going to?" I ask. He smiles. "Take a guess," he says. I think for two seconds, and, out of hope, ask, "Mona Lisa Cucina?" Ray smiles even bigger and says, "You're good at this guessing game." On the outside, I'm calm and collected.

But, on the inside, I'm doing a happy dance. Mona Lisa Cucina is easily my all time favorite restaurant. It's a cozy little Italian restaurant in Huntington Beach, not far from the town we live in. I know I'm part Italian, and I'm a waitress at Olive Garden.

But the food at Olive Garden is a sin compared to the food my mom and I cook and the food at Mona Lisa Cucina. My family took my nonna there one time, and she said it reminded her of Italy. It's so authentic, and it's also very cozy. It makes me feel like I'm back in Italy, eating true Italian food.

Ray really knows me well. And I mean that. "You're happy, aren't you, Sophia?" he asks, snapping me out of my mental impromptu dance routine. "That's an understatement. You know me so well," I say. He smiles. "Of course I do," he says as we pull into the parking lot of the restaurant. Ray parks, and he gets out of the car.

He opens my door, takes my hand, and helps me get out of the car. We walk up to the restaurant. Ray opens the door and holds it open for me. "After you, my lady," he says. I smile. "Such a gentleman," I say, and I walk into the restaurant. A waiter walks up to us. "Good evening. My name is Collin. How may I serve you today?" he asks.

"Table for two, please," Ray says. "Right this way," the waiter says, and he seats us and gives us menus. "I'll be back in a little bit," Collin says. I open my menu and I look through it. Eventually, after two minutes, Collin comes back.

"Have you two decided on what you would like?" he asks. "Have you decided, belle?" he asks. I nod. "Let's start off with drinks. What would you like?" the waiter asks, turning to me. "I'll have a Sprite," I say. The waiter turns to Ray. "What about you, sir?" he asks. "I'll have the same," he says.

"Excellent. Now, let's move on to food. What would you like?" Collin asks, turning to me. "I'll have the bruschetta," I say. Collin turns to Ray. "Sir?" he asks. "Make that two," he says. "Excellent. I'll be back with your appetizers and drinks," he says, and he walks away. "Ray, can I ask you something?" I ask. Ray nods.