Chapter 4: Extra! Sean Winters is On a Date!

Did Sean have to pick the fanciest restaurant he knew for their date? No.

Did he do it anyway to impress Isaac? Yes.

“I feel like I’m breaking something fundamental in the universe by being here,” Isaac stated. He stared slack-jawed at the three-tier crystal chandelier in the middle of the room, the candles on the tables, the priceless paintings decorating the walls.

Compared to other guests, Sean would admit Isaac appeared underdressed. He hadn’t worn a tie, and the black blazer he wore was a size too large, and he still had the red hi-tops and dark jeans.

Sean didn’t mind the jeans, even if they were a little casual for the venue. Isaac looked amazing in them.

“You mean you don’t come here every Friday?” Sean asked.

“Ha. One round of appetizers and I’d be bankrupt. Really hope you’re paying, by the way.”

“Of course, I’m paying.” That’d be pretty poor thanks if he made Isaac pay his own way. He gave his name to the hostess and followed her to a quiet table in the corner, pulling out a chair for Isaac.

Isaac blushed and sat down. “You’re quite a gentleman.”

Sean considered that as he took his own chair across from him. “I don’t think about it, most of the time.” He shrugged. “Consequence of how I was raised, I guess.”

There were a lot of consequences for how he was raised, but those were hardly first date conversation topics.

Preferably, they were ‘never’ conversation topics.

“I didn’t mean it in a bad way,” Isaac said. He fiddled with the corner of the menu in front of him. “I think it’s nice.”

“Well, one good thing came of my upbringing, then.”

Isaac bit his lip and dropped his gaze to the table.

Sean grimaced. “Sorry, forget I said that.”

“No, it’s alright. I guess, with your father being who he is, growing up must have been challenging.”

‘Challenging’ was the nicest word that could describe his childhood. “There were a lot of expectations and a lot of pressure to succeed.”

They were interrupted by the waiter asking for their drink order. Sean asked for water, and Isaac asked for iced tea, and once the waiter walked away, Sean took the chance to change the subject.

“How long have you worked in the bookstore?”

“I started back in college, so about six years. I went fulltime when I graduated two years ago.” He bent the corner of the menu.

“You went to Wilson, the local college? What was your major?” College had never been an option for Sean, and the culture fascinated him.

“I was an English major, with a concentration in writing.” He smoothed out the corner he’d bent.

“Does that mean you’re a writer, then?” It wasn’t just college that fascinated him, anything outside the fashion world intrigued him.

“Trying to be,” Isaac said with a heavy sigh, propping his elbow on the table and setting his chin in his hand. “Turns out getting published is…not easy.”

“How does that all work?” Sean asked. They were briefly interrupted again by the waiter’s return with their drinks, and then they scrambled to pick out their entrees. After the waiter left, Sean repeated his question.

Isaac launched into an explanation of beta readers and literary agents and query letters, slipping seamlessly into the finer points of traditional publishing verses indie publishing. He used his hands when he talked, tapping the table and waving to invisible points.

His face went through a range of emotions, so different from Sean, who struggled to portray any emotion besides ‘indifferent’ most days.

“Anyway, this is probably really boring to you,” Isaac said, dropping his hands to his lap.

“Not at all,” Sean countered. “I read a lot, so it’s interesting to hear how those books made it the shelves.” Books were quiet and portable, something he could do waiting around on photoshoots or traveling, and they gave him a world to escape into that wasn’t his own.

“Oh, yeah, you had a book on that last cover,” Isaac said.

Sean tried to hide his grimace. This was why he didn’t date. Everyone in the world acted like they already knew him because of the cherry-picked answers he gave in interviews.

“Sorry, is it weird to bring up your pictures? I have no clue about any of this.”

“It’s hard to avoid,” Sean admitted. “Pretending you haven’t seen my face everywhere is just as weird.”

“You are front and center in at last three magazines at work,” Isaac said. “But we can talk about something else. What book are you reading now?”

Sean gave a brief summary of "The Liar’s Dictionary" by Eley Williams. Their food arrived after that, but Isaac prompted him to keep going as he cut into his chicken parmesan. Sean wasn’t used to talking this much. Modeling meant his opinions were rarely asked for or wanted, and most people in his social circles loved the sound of their own voice and only needed the occasional nod or vague question to maintain a conversation.

Isaac gave him his undivided attention, though, and then he recommended "The Lost Apothecary" by Sarah Penner. It was on Sean’s ‘To Be Read’ list, but he moved its placement up.

Conversation throughout the meal was easy between them, trading book recommendations at first. Over dessert, they switched to books they regretted reading, and after their final dishes were cleared away and Sean had paid the bill, he had the uncomfortable realization that the night had to end.

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d enjoyed himself so much, or wanted to be in someone else’s company.

Still, neither of them moved until the waiters started blowing out the candles on the empty tables around them, and they got the hint. They walked slowly to the door, stopping on the sidewalk outside.

“I had a really good time,” Isaac said. “Thank you.”

“That’s my line,” Sean said. “Do you think…I don’t want to assume, but maybe…we could do dinner again, sometime?”

Isaac’s jaw dropped. “You want to?”

“If you don’t, it’s fine, I just—”

“No, no, I do! I just didn’t think—”

They both stopped talking and looked at each other. Sean chuckled. “I’ll text you tomorrow.”

“I’d like that,” Isaac said.

This was the part where they said goodbye and went their separate ways for the evening, but Sean found his legs wouldn’t listen to him. He wanted to freeze this moment and stare at Isaac’s gentle smile forever.

But they did part, with awkward stammering and stiff waving. Despite that, Sean held onto the feeling as long as he could, cradling it in his chest.

It vanished in the morning, when he checked the news and found his name trending.

“Who is Sean Winters New Mystery Boyfriend?”

The thumbnail image pictured him and Isaac at the restaurant.

His heart dropped to his feet.

This was all kinds of not good.