Flowering Dreams

Dillan

I sat down at the table furthest from ocean eyes and opened my book. I didn't understand what happened between us earlier, but I couldn't focus on my reading because of it. It wasn't 'love at first sight' like I had read in any books before, but it was.. different.

Even now, sitting across the room from him I felt myself leaning towards him. It was difficult to keep my eyes from darting over my book at him. He was so good to look at.. deep blue eyes suddenly locked with mine. I felt my breath catch and face begin to flush. I put my head down and focused on keeping my eyes on my book.

I couldn't read because I was so distracted by the electic tension in the air. I heard a chair against the floor, then footsteps walking towards me. Please don't be him. I will just make a fool of myself once again.

"Hello, Millie. I notice your shift ended and wanted to be sure you got this." He slid the muffin I had given him with his coffee earlier across the table to me. "You did say it was your treat. Plus, I have been here for hours and haven't seen you eat anything. I want to be sure you don't go hungry."

His voice was soft and sincere. I didn't know how to respond for a moment. Before I could make myself speak, he said "My name is Dillan, can I sit with you?" He gestured to the chair across from me. I nodded yes. "Good read by the way." He said as he sat down.

"You like romance novels?" I asked.

"Love is one of the greatest pleasures of being human. Reading about romance is a great way to pass the time before your own story begins. Anyone who says they don't care about finding love is lying to themselves. We all want an epic love story, don't you?"

"Yes. I do." I felt myself getting lost in the ocean of his eyes. They were mesmerizing. "Thank you for this," I pointed at the muffin, "but when I said it was my treat, I meant my treat for you. It was very kind of you to help clean up the coffee mess this morning and I wanted to thank you for it."

"We can split it then. I still want to make sure you eat something." He reached over and ripped the muffin top off, then held both halves of it out for me. "Would you like top or bottom?" He asked with the cute half smile on his face. I know he's talking about the muffin, but my mind can't help but wander..

"I'll do either. I mean.. I'll take either." Sh*t. He chuckled once. "You pick first." Get your mind out of the gutter, Millie. His eyes were still locked with mine as he slowly bit off a piece of the top half of the muffin.

After swallowing the bite, he said "I prefer the top." His voice was slow and smooth. I realized I wasn't the only one with dirty thoughts right now. Only then did I realize we had both slowly gravitated towards one another across the table.

We were close enough I could smell the sweetness of his breath. The scent was mouth watering. I glanced down to his lips just as he licked a muffin crumb from the bottom one. I wonder what they tasted like.. Stop that! I moved back, snapping my eyes down towards my book. I felt my face getting really hot.

He isn't the one.. right? If he was my epic love I would have known instantly when our eyes met.. It would have been clear as day. Like a neon sign.. at least that's what I've always read. It can't be him. Right?

Yet the electricity between us was practically visible in the air. It felt as if I had some magnet pulling me towards him. I didn't know what was happening between us, but it wasn't the love story I wanted. It was time to let him down before he thought things would go any further than friendship.

When I looked at him though, our eyes met and my brain was empty. All I could think about was the overwhelmingly powerful scent of him. Was he wearing cologne, or was that just him? I wanted to lean in and get a better smell..

The chair next to me suddenly screeched as it was pulled out and Jordan flopped down between us. The sound made both of us snap back in our chairs. I didn't realize we had slowly moved closer again and our faces had been only inches away. Dillan flashed me another half smile before looking at Jordan. This was suddenly awkward.

"Hey there, I'm Jordan, Millie's friend." He said the word 'friend' weird again, glancing at me and flashing a smile before looking back at Dillan. Then he held his hand out and Dillan grabbed it, both of them squeezed so tightly I thought they were going to hurt each other. Neither of them looked away from the other one.

"Nice to meet you, my name is Dillan." They finally let go of the handshake and I saw Jordan clench and unclench his fist under the table. His hand obviously hurt after that. I held back a giggle, but Jordan noticed anyway and bumped my leg with his.

"So what are you guys talking about so intently?" His tone was playful, but I detected a bit of jealous anger as well. He leaned forward on the table, resting his head in one hand and taking the bottom half of the muffin in his other hand. He took a small bite, then held it up to my lips.

I swallowed hard, glaring at Jordan as he stared at Dillan. Was he serious? He turned to face me, smiling and gesturing the muffin towards me again. I snatched it from him and kicked his leg under the table. "Thank you, friend." I put extra emphasis on the last word. "We were discussing my book. I know you don't like romance so you don't have to join us."

"He's not a bother at all. I'd actually like to hear his opinion on it, if you don't mind that is?" He asked Jordan. There was no stopping this, was there? I rolled my eyes and turned to Dillan.

"He doesn't believe in love." I said.

"That's not it." Jordan said. "I think the concept of true love at first sight isn't real, it's more like lust at first sight. It takes more than meeting someone to know if there is a connection. Yeah, you might find a person attractive at first, but you have to get to know someone to fall in love. Romance novels make lust so appealing it tricks you into believing it's love. In real life, it's better to build a friendship first."

Jordan's eyes met mine as he said the last sentence. My blood began to boil. "Lust and love go hand in hand. You can't just learn to love someone, especially if you don't lust after them. You can also find someone attractive without wanting to be with them. It wouldn't be true love either way. If the connection is strong enough you can feel it the second you look into that person's eyes. If it wasn't real there wouldn't be so many stories about it." I said angrily. My whole body was turned in my chair facing towards him at this point.

"Not every love story starts with love at first sight though, Millie." Jordan's voice was softer as he said this. We both stared at each other silently for a while. I couldn't quite read his face, but his words felt personal.

"I, for one, believe that sometimes, it's just as simple as love at first sight. There is no mistaking the pull you feel." Dillan said confidently. I turned my gaze to him, and for a moment I swear he was talking about me as well. What was happening? I think I needed sleep.

"I'm going to be late." I said, standing up suddenly. Before either of them could speak or move, I practically ran out of the coffee shop. Did that seriously just happen!?