Deserve [H.S.]

Chapter 9

CLARITY

Once again, a fresh bouquet of flowers held up to Harry's chest greeted Noah as she opened her door on Saturday afternoon. Her and Harry had agreed to meet in the late afternoon rather than in the evening for their date because Harry had something specific in mind and he figured the earlier, the better.

Once again, Harry was five minutes early to pick her up. He prided himself on being punctual and the truth was, he couldn't wait to see Noah a minute longer. Being five minutes early meant he got five extra minutes with her, which he was more than happy about.

Once again, Harry felt his heart stutter when he caught sight of Noah. Her hair was curled and held back out of her face in a half-up half-down bun that had a small white head scarf tied around it. She had done a light, gold eye-makeup look that made her eyes pop even more.

Noah was wearing a forest green wrap dress that had cinched ruffles on the short sleeves with a delicate white floral print all over it. She called it her 'tea dress' in her head. On her feet were simple white tennis shoes and white high ankle socks. She had on her usual pieces of jewelry as well - her necklace and a few rings.

Harry was wearing a somewhat more normal outfit. A pair of light blue straight leg jeans covered his legs with the bottom hem touching a pair of white sneakers on his feet. On top he wore a blue palm tree patterned button up shirt over a white tank.

Though Noah loved to see Harry in his more carefree outfits, she couldn't ignore the fact that he looked effortlessly attractive in his casual outfits, too.

The flowers Harry had gotten this time were yellow, red, and orange. He had gotten them from a different store than last time because the possibility of running into the same worker made him too embarrassed. He was already self-conscious enough about buying flowers again.

Flash forward about 30 minutes and the pair were standing in line to rent a paddle boat on a small lake. Noah was certainly surprised at the choice of activity; paddle boating was something so innocent and sweet and completely out of character for Harry. Though, she guessed that she was truly still getting to know him so she couldn't entirely make such an assumption so early on.

Mini golfing and paddle boating dates. Noah didn't know what she was anticipating for each date, but it certainly wasn't that. She absolutely adored mini golf and had a great time playing it with him, so she was really excited to see how much fun they'd have paddle boating. She especially liked that choice of a date because there wasn't much else to do besides talk. They would just be paddling around the small lake, meaning they had ample opportunity to get to know each other more without much getting in the way.

The area in which the small lake was in was right by the coast, only about 500ft inland from the sea. The lake was quite small in the shape of a horseshoe with a small island in the middle. Though, the word island was hardly applicable, as it was covered in trees and bushes such that one would be unable to actually get onto the small piece of land. Many of the bushes had overgrown into the water, meaning one could easily run into them with their paddle boat if not careful.

Around the lake were pathways lined by trees to stroll around as well as playgrounds for kids to play on. It was a beautiful, sunny day with pale blue skies and gentle, minimal clouds. Plenty of people used this opportunity to go on walks, bike rides, and paddle boat rides around the lake.

A little ways down the street from the lake was a wharf with multiple tourist shops and decadent restaurants. During a summer's day like that one, couples, families, and friends took advantage of the beautiful weather, especially on a Saturday, and were milling about the wharf.