Chapter 19

I watched as snowflakes slowly poured down, almost fully covered the sidewalks, the branches of the trees were almost bare.

We'd been in the car for almost half an hour and I still didn't know where we were going, so I decided to break the very comfortable silence.

" Where are we going?" I asked as I diverted my gaze from the view outside to the rear view mirror.

"To a restaurant". He said as he turned a corner. I turned my attention back to the snow covered walkways.

"Which one?" I asked, my eyes still focused on the view.

"You'll see". He said before pulling up next to a big building I was sure I didn't recognize. 'This had to be the restaurant he was talking about ', I thought to myself before stepping out of the car. I noticed the street lights that were lined up in front of the restaurant as I made my way towards Kareem.

"So is this your surprise?" I asked, a bit surprised that he decided to bring me to a restaurant? Seems like I still have a lot to find out about this guy.

"What? You don't like it?" He said, just as we began making our way towards the entrance of the restaurant.

"No, I actually like it. Even though I've never been here", I paused as Kareem opened the door for me to enter. "I just didn't think you'd bring me here".

"Hmm, well this actually wasn't the surprise. I brought you here to have lunch". He said, just as we spotted an empty table by the entrance and had our seats.

The table was for two and had a little potted plant at the centre. Kind of made the whole thing feel like a date, especially the fact that it was a window seat.

"But I'm curious", I said as Kareem looked up from the menu. "If this isn't the surprise, then what is?" I asked as I also took a look at the menu.

"That's why it's called a surprise. I'd show you at sunset".

"Sunset? That's a couple hours away from now". I said as I glanced at my watch. The hour hand on two and the minute hand on six.

"Why don't we order until then?" Kareem said just before a waiter approached our table.

I wasn't really hungry, but upon seeing the effort Kareem was putting into making today special for me, how could I not oblige, I mean, this whole setting was too much of a romantic date-like setting for me to ignore, with the dimmed lights, the slow music and the falling snowflakes outside, serving as a background beside us, everything just seemed out of the ordinary. Sometimes I wondered if he did these things deliberately.

The waiter took our orders before taking his leave. I used that opportunity to truly observe the place. The slow music playing almost entirely blended in with the warm atmosphere and dimmed lights, tuning out the voices of the other customers in the restaurant. With the round tables placed randomly in the restaurant, each having not less than one occupant and the beige coloured walls carrying paintings of different kinds, made me feel like I was in some fancy restaurant in a movie or something.

I turned my attention from observing the restaurant interior to my watch, it was already ten minutes to three. 'I wonder what 'surprise' Kareem has in store for me'. I thought to myself as I diverted my gaze towards the big window that sat beside us, watching as each car passed by, the snow covering most of them.

"Uhm...so,what type of things do you like?" I heard Kareem say as I turned my attention towards him. He stared at me intensely with a blank expression plastered on his face.

"What?"

"Like, what are your hobbies? The things you like doing during your free time?" I observed him, every slight movement he made. Was he being serious? My hobbies? Really?

"I like reading?"

"Yeah, I probably noticed that a week after you moved in".

"Well, I guess, I like the arts. Drawing?" At this point I was just saying anything that came to mind. Drawing? Seriously? When was the last time I drew something? Four years ago? " What about you, what are your hobbies?" I couldn't let this conversation die young. This might be one of the first meaningful conversations we've had .

I watched as his eyes started towards his hands that were folded on the table before moving towards the window. Maybe I should've asked something else.

"Well, I don't really have any hobbies that are interesting".

"Well I'd still like to hear some of them". I said in a pitch higher than expected.

"Well, ugh, I like organising my things, uhm, comparing the profits and losses the company has made each month. Uhm, I also like watching the updated news on stock exchange". He said as he diverted his attention back to his hands. I sat there staring at nothing in particularly as I reasoned his words. 'Who on earth casually sits back and watches the news during their free time? But who am I to judge.

"Oh, well, ugh, do you play any sports?" Surely, he must have something more interesting to do than watch the news.

"Actually, I do, well, I used to play archery", he said as he stole a quick glance of the place.

"Why'd you stop though?"

"I don't know, after highschool, I just didn't have the time to spare to play, so I just let go of the sport". He said as he scratched his neck a bit before finally looking up to see my face.

And as if on cue, the waiter that took our orders earlier, walked towards us holding two trays, each containing our food.

"Ugh, thank you". Kareem said as the waiter took his leave.

I carefully took my spoon and began digging in. Just by the looks of it, I could tell that it tasted good, and I was right. This dish was probably the best I've had in a long time and I was sure to thank Kareem for it.

"So, how is it?" Kareem asked as he took a sip of his water.

"It's really good. Better than I expected. Not that I was expecting anything in particular". I whispered the last part to myself as I put my attention back to my food.

...

"It's about time we get going". He said as he stood up. I stole a quick glance at the building for the last time before also getting up.

"Took you long enough". I whispered to myself before the two of us made our way out of the building.

By now, the sky was painted with a warm orange and purple just above the horizon. The street lights illuminated winter sky and everything just seemed perfect, except the fact that my hands were beginning to feel numb from being exposed all day.

We made our way to the car and the journey began, all while I continued to wonder what kind of a surprise Kareem has planned for me.

"Hey, uhm, how about, we stop for some ice-cream?" I heard Kareem say after some time, breaking the comfortable silence.

I maintained my gaze on the window, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere the sunset served as.

"Ice-cream? Really?"

"It'd make the whole experience a whole lot better if you ask me". He said as he turned a corner. This whole place felt somewhat familiar.

"Okay, if you're paying,then, why not?" I said as the car fell silent once more.

...

After what seemed like forever, the car finally came to a halt in front of a very familiar building. I looked around as I stepped out of the car. The building in front of me was a bit bigger than I expected for an ice-cream shop. The bright lights coming from the inside and the glass walls allowed us to see what was going on inside.

"Come on". Kareem said as he began making his way towards the entrance. I sighed before following quite and as expected, the building was brightly lit with a few tables already occupied .

Kareem and I made our way towards the counter where all the ice-cream flavours were presented.

"Good evening, what flavours would you like?" The cashier said once she noticed our presence. Her bright smile and deep brown eyes radiated the kind of energy that'd make this day even better.

"I'll have two scoops of vanilla". Kareem said as he observed the flavours that were presented before turning to me.

"Uhm, I'll get the same thing". I said before the cashier began scooping the ice-cream. I watched as she finished Kareem's cone and handed it to him before starting mine. I observed as Kareem took a slight lick of his ice-cream.

"Ma'am?" I heard the cashier say. I turned towards her before noticing the ice-cream cone in her hand.

"Oh, uhm, sorry". I said, a bit embarrassed before taking the cone from her hand.

I watched as Kareem payed for the ice-cream before we walked out the doors.

"It's sunset, you can tell me where we're going now ". I said as I made my way towards the car.

"Oh, no, we aren't using the car. Our next destination is close by". He said as he took my free hand in his. I was a bit confused by his sudden gesture but I couldn't deny the fact that I liked it.

A small smile spread across my face as we began walking down the road. We walked for a while before approaching a bridge and then he stopped.

"What do you think?" He said as he let go of my hand. It took me a moment to notice the breathtaking view that was set before me. I walked closer to the rail and looked down to see the city lights . The sun was almost fully out of view by now as the moon resurface. With the moon up shining the snowflakes slowly pouring and the street lights lighting up the dark, making everything look so amazing.

"Wow", was all I was able to say as I stared down at the city in awe. "It looks amazing". I said once Kareem stood beside me.

"I know. That's why I chose this place at this specific time". He said before licking his ice-cream.

I looked down at my ice-cream, which was for some reason a lot smaller than his. "How'd you know about it?" That probably sounded like a stupid question, considering the fact that he's probably lived in this city longer than I have.

"Well, it was actually my mom that brought me here for the first time. She said it was her favourite place to be during the winter sunsets". He said, his eyes glued to the view. I watched him closely, even though it wasn't shown exactly, I could tell he was upset. Deep down, thinking of the whole thing, in fact, bringing me here brought back both happy and sad memories.

"Well", I said before finishing the last bit of my ice-cream. "Why don't we dance". I said as I began slowly turning around, my arms spread wide.

"What?" I heard him ask. He was now staring at me with a questioning look, his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"You know, I've always loved the winter seasons and now with this amazing view, why don't we do a waltz?" I said as I stood Infront of him, my eyes boring holes into his. I don't know where this sudden confidence was coming from, but all I knew, was that I loved every second of it.

"What if I say I can't dance?" I heard Kareem say as his hands slowly made their way to my waist. I froze for a second before realising what was happening.

"Well unfortunately you have no choice since it's my birthday and I get to make the rules". I said as I slowly placed my hands on his shoulder.

I watched as a small smile spread across his face, my heart doing back flips in the process as I flashed a small smile of my own. "Really?" He said as he took a step back whilst I took a step forward.

"You took me to my grandma's house, "I said as Kareem slowly moved his hand from my waist to my shoulder as I did the opposite. "And then to some fancy restaurant". I said as I took a step back whilst Kareem took a step forward. Neither of us knew what we were doing but the moment was all that mattered. "And then you bought me ice-cream", I said as we both stopped and clasped our hands together. "And now we're here". I completed as both Kareem and I put down our left hands and at the same time lifted our right hands as he spun me around. I turned around slowly on my heels, my eyes closed and my face lifted as the snowflakes landed on my face where a big smile was placed. And at that moment, nothing else mattered, with Kareem by my side, dancing on an empty bridge and the stars up twinkling in the sky, today was noted to have been the happiest day of my life...