...And It's Blue

12

I had gotten the acceptance letter from one of the universities and I was relieved. I hadn't done too well on my exams and I thought I had blown my interviews at the universities so when I received the letter, I was ecstatic. 

I ran to my parents to tell them about it. I knew they would be happy too. I could imagine them smiling so wide and hugging me so tight that I would have been out of breath. I wished I could actually experience it but we can't always have everything. I was going start college soon and I was excited. I also told my parents a lot of other things. About Ava. About the cafe. About all the incidents that had taken place this week. 

I saw Aiden on my way back and we started talking to each other. 

"So what were you doing here?" He asked me
"Visiting my parents. I got an acceptance letter from one of the universities I had applied to" I smiled at him.

"Lacey that's amazing! Congrats!" He pulled me in for a hug, the kind of hug I've always wished for. The one that screams I'm proud of you. 

"Thank you, Aiden" I hugged him back, holding back the tears that threatened to fall down my cheeks.

"Are you free today? Let me treat you to lunch" 

"You don't have to do that Aiden"

"I want to. You got accepted into college and I'm not letting you stay at home all day. You're free to say no if you have any other plans. So?" I nodded my head at his question. "Great! I'll pick you up at 2?"

"Yeah 2 works" 

***

The door bell rang exactly at 2. I hadn't seen anyone as punctual as him ever in my life. I opened the door and there he was, clad in a dress shirt and pants, looking handsome like always. 

"You did your hair" I said, noticing how it was slicked back and styled.

"You noticed"

"Of course I did. You always have a bed hair"

He chuckled as I pointed it out. "That is true"

We arrived at a fancy restaurant and I was not dressed for the occasion.

"You look good. Don't worry about it" He stated as he held my hand and walked inside the restaurant. I was wearing a dress like Aiden had asked me to and it still didn't look fancy enough for the restaurant we were currently in.

"I would've loved to bring you here for dinner but I couldn't wait that long. I really hope you like the food here" He looked nervous, very unlike him.

"I'm just happy you brought me here. It means a lot" I smiled at him.

We talked to each other about a lot of things while we waited for the food to arrive.

"So Lacey, tell me more about yourself. We still don't really know much about each other" He asked.

"Let's see. I was born and grew up here. My parents owned a clothing brand which I plan on taking over after I graduate. Like you already know, my parents passed when I was 12. I'm an only child. I can say confidently that I have had 1 friend my entire life and you know her, Ava. She left to New York when we were 10 and my introverted ass hadn't made any friends after that. Well that is me and my boring life. Tell me about yourself" I rested my chin on my hands as I looked at him.

"I was born in San Francisco. Our family came here when I was 2. My mom wanted to get away from that city life and my dad loved the beach so here we are. My dad is the CEO of this investment bank and my mom is an assistant fashion designer. As you already know, I have a younger brother who once broke my nose cause he underestimates his strength" I snickered at this part and he deadpanned. "It isn't funny when you're on the other side of the punch" He chuckled. "As for friends, I have quite a few and one of them being you" He smiled wide at me.

The food arrived right when he finished talking.

After lunch we decided to go to a mall. We started shopping for clothes. More like Aiden started shopping for clothes as I mindlessly followed him around. I bumped into him as he came into a sudden halt and I looked at him in confusion.

He pointed up towards a sign that read "Changing rooms". I slowly turned around and waited for him outside, while I browsed through some clothes.

"Lacey" I heard his voice from the direction of the changing rooms and I made my way to the place.

"What is it?" He then proceeded to show me tons of outfits and asked my opinions on it. After selecting around 10 outfits, we finally left the store. "That was a lot. How aren't you tired?" I asked him and I sighed. He simply shrugged his shoulders. He then excused himself to go to the washroom.

We went to the arcade after grabbing something to eat. He challenged me in all games and in the end I won. I think he let me win but well that would be his fault.

We decided to leave the mall at 10. We grabbed fast food on the way home and he dropped me back home.

"Lacey wait a minute" He walked towards my doorstep and handed me a box. "I'm sorry I couldn't get anything better. I hope you like this"

I opened the box and saw a really cute necklace with a cat charm. "When did you get this?"

"In the mall. Luckily they had a cat charm. I knew you would like it considering how you spoke about your love for cats for half an hour at the restaurant" He chuckled. "I thought it was cute"

"Thank you so much Aiden" I pulled him in for a hug. "Thank you"

***

Aiden's POV

I dug into my pocket and got the necklace out.

I probably should've told her it was a matching necklace. It's fine as long as I don't wear this. I can give it to her some time in the future.