The one where I have a realization

I flush. Mortification fills me. I just let out a gasp like this is the first time I'm seeing someone's arm. An incredibly attractive arm, but an arm nonetheless. Luckily, Max doesn't react. Either he didn't hear, or he just decided to ignore me. Anyone works for me. He walks over to my shoes and picks them up. He walks back to me, but I walk past him to go look in the lake.

He watches me silently, but when I attempt to put my hand in the water, he stops me.

"Calista, that's not a good idea,"  he says

"Why?" I ask

"You're cold," He replies to me matter of factly.

"Oh yeah, that's right." I sigh with regret but put my hand down. Max helps me to my feet. We walk away from the lake and sit in a patch of grass that I don't recognise. Max grabs my shoes and makes to go help me put it on. But I stop him

"I can do that." He raises his head and gives me what I have come to term."The brow"

"Fine," I say and roll my eyes. I try very hard not to think about the fact that he is helping me with my stupid generic sneaker while I'm wearing his– what seems like a very expensive suit jacket.

A thought occurs to me

"How old are you?" I ask him

"Twenty-eight," he says without missing a beat.

"I turned 20 today," I say to him. He stops what he is doing, and he looks up at me. He smiles and predictably, he says,

"Happy birthday " I accept his wish graciously and immediately launch into another question, I want to get to know him as much as possible.

"What's your full name?" I ask

"Maxwell Lauren," he replies.

"Mine is Calista II Richards, but everyone calls me Callie."  I realise something then. I'd never once mentioned my full name to him. The day he saw me, i was in my waitress uniform, and he read my name from my name  tag, but the kicker is, on my name tag, my name reads Callie, not Calista. It was such a small thing that I dismissed it entirely.

"How did you know my full name." He stops what he's doing and braces his hands on his things.

"I was in your class when your name was called, remember?" I remember him being in class, and I vaguely remember my name being called in class. I accept the explanation.

"Okay," I say, nodding my head, and he goes back to what he's doing.

"The second?" he asks me as he ties up the last shoelace. I notice his movements are precise and efficient, Not a single movement is wasted

"Yes, my grandma–" to clarify, I add, "My father's mum was the first Calista Richards. She died a few days before I was born. It's a way to honour her. "

"Hmmmm, so a family name then?"

"Yeah," I answer. Without hesitation, I ask him another question, hoping I disarm him long enough to give me answers

"Why were you wearing a suit at a night club"?

"I had a business meeting." I am caught off guard by his answer. It was obvious. He obviously had a career. It just never occurred to me that he had one. I instantly feel foolish.

"So what kind of business was it?"

"Work."he replies, not missing a beat.I give him an exasperated look.

" I know that, I meant what kind of business are you into?

"Real Estate." Before I can ask another question, he adds,"It's a family business. " I have nothing to say after that, so i just nod.

We walk in silence for a while.

"No more questions?"

He suddenly asks, breaking the comfortable silence we'd settled into.

"Well, now that  do have one more question to ask."

"Ask away."

"What's your favourite colour?" He laughs

"Off all things possible to ask, that's what you want to know?

"Yes," I say resolutely. I know it's a silly question to ask, but I really feel that it's the little things that you know about someone that helps you understand a person and eventually become closer to that person. To me, Max is that person. He is someone I want to know inside and outside.

I want to understand how he speaks, how he thinks, how he views the world, and perhaps most pathetically. I want to understand how he feels about me. I mean, you don't take someone out for a, dare I say romantic stroll and eventually dance with the person on the night of her birthday albeit when he did all those things he didn't know it was my birthday, but still, He did do all those things. I refuse to believe a person does that for another person without holding them in some regard, right?

He locks eyes with me.

"Brown," my breath catches, he repeats himself.

"My favourite colour is brown."

"That's too broad. narrow it down, be more specific" I get flustered so, I start rambling say for example, brown, like the colour of coffee after you add milk, or rhe colour of coffee before you even add any milk, or sandy brown, or even Mouse brown..."

"Like your eyes, Calista," he says, cutting me off. "I'm very partial towards the colour brown, especially when it comes in that shade,"

I give him a cheeky smile.

"Oh well, I guess all shades of brown can't be everyone's favourite?" I waggle my eyebrows at him, and he lets out a small laugh.

As we continue our walk, I start hearing voices and the sound of cars, The vegetation is a lot less, and buildings start to appear again.

We turn a corner, and I immediately see the club. He brought us back full circle. I sneak a peek at Max and smile. As if in cue, my phone starts vibrating, and I take it out to see that Neela is calling me. I signal Max to wait for me and take a few steps away from him to answer Neela.

"Wazzzuuuupppp," she says as soon as I answer

"Are you drunk?, You sound drunk"

"No, I'm not," she says indignantly.

"That's exactly what a drunk person would say," I say, chuckling.

"How's your date?" I flush,

"It's not a

"Ummm, you guys went on what I'm guessing was a romantic walk, in the middle of the night, Ergo..... dun du dunn... drumroll pleeeaaaassssseeee. " She gives me a pause that is very much meant for dramatic effect

"Date."

I think about the night and everything that has happened. I realise Neela is right. I've just been on a date.