Chapter Four

Chapter Four
    By the time we had gotten done with the Art Gallery and coffee shop, it was mid-afternoon. As we walked back to my house, I could tell David was exhausted.
    “You look tired” I said, concerned for his well-being.
    “I am a little bit” he replied. “I couldn’t sleep last night because I was so excited about today. Is it okay…” he stopped talking for a moment, then finished the thought. “…if I go home and take a nap before dinner? I don’t want to fall asleep on my plate” he explained with a small chuckle.
    “Of course it is” I said, nodding. “You need to get your rest.” David and I decided to walk back to my house so he could drop me off, and he promised to be back in a couple of hours. I hugged him goodbye and went inside, eagerly anticipating the next moment I would get to see him.
    To make the next few hours fly by, I decided to finish making David’s gift. I went up to my room, sat on my bed, and picked my knitting loom up off the floor. I had been inspired to start because of my grandma, but I could never get used to using knitting needles. I couldn’t understand how people managed to use them! Once I discovered it was possible to knit this way, I was relieved. And the best part was, nobody knew the difference. I was knitting a blue-gray scarf for David, because I remembered how much he admired mine, and the color would bring out his eyes. As I wound the yarn around the loom, my mind began to wander. I pictured the look on David’s face when I gave him the scarf, and the way his eyes would sparkle as he smiled at me. I loved being able to make someone this happy, and I loved even more that I was able to let someone else do the same for me.
    After roughly an hour had passed, I had finished the scarf. I attached some fringe to the ends, and folded the scarf neatly, wrapping it in white tissue paper and placing it neatly in the blue gift bag I had picked out. David had told me his favorite color was blue, so I wanted him to know I remembered that. It was easy to remember since it was my favorite color too. After I was finished with that, I glanced at the clock, growing more anxious to see David again. I still had a half hour to go before I would, or so I thought.
    About five minutes later, my phone began to ring. I picked it up and glanced at the screen, smiling widely when I saw David’s name staring up at me. I pushed the green “talk” button and greeted him cheerfully.
    “Hey you. Did you sleep well?”
    “I sure did” David replied. I could almost hear the smile appearing on his lips.
    “Great! I can’t wait to see you.”
    “Neither can I.” I smiled when he said this. Seconds later, I heard the doorbell ring. I waited a moment to see if my mom or Sarah would get it, and I heard it again. I rushed down the stairs to the door, and when I pulled it open, my jaw dropped. David was standing there smiling at me. He pulled his phone from his ear and ended the call, and I did the same.
    “How long were you standing there?” I asked, grinning.
    “Only a few minutes. I was driving over when you called me” he explained, the smile never leaving his face.
    “That was very sneaky” I said with a giggle. “Best surprise ever. Speaking of which, I’ll be right back” I said as I turned to walk inside. David followed, closing the door behind him. I hurried up the stairs, and turned to call down to him.
    “Wait there, I’ll be right back!”
    “Alright” David said with a small chuckle. I rounded the corner to my room, grabbed the bag off the bed and ran back down the stairs, nearly tripping, but I caught myself.
    “Are you okay?” David asked, trying to hold back laughter.
    “I’m fine, I just slipped” I replied, sticking my tongue out playfully at him.
    “Try to be more careful, okay? When I take my girlfriend out on dates, I don’t want to be carrying pieces of her in a bag” David teased.
    “I’ll try” I giggled. “So, did you want your present now, or after dinner?”
    “Well, when do you want to give it to me?” David asked, raising an eyebrow.
    “That depends” I stated. “How cold is it outside?”
    “What does that have to do with when I get the gift?” David asked, confused.
    “You’ll see” I said, smiling coyly. “Just answer the question.”
    “It’s a little cold, and looks like it might rain.”
    “Okay.” I replied. “In that case, open it now” I said, handing David the blue bag. He pulled out the tissue paper covered bundle and squeezed it, commenting that it was soft.
    “I hope you like it” I said quietly. I watched as David carefully unwrapped the scarf. His eyes lit up at the sight of it, just like I imagined they would.
    “Did you make this?” he asked, looking up at me for a moment before returning his gaze to the scarf in his hands.
    “Yeah, I did. I learned how to loom knit about a year ago, because I could never get the hang of using knitting needles” I explained. David listened as I spoke, nodding intently.
    “I love it” David said, his eyes sparkling with joy as he wrapped the scarf around his neck. The color of the yarn brought out the intensely beautiful color in his eyes, just as I had suspected it would. It also brought out the slightly red tint in his hair, which was adorable. I had actually never noticed it until now.    
    “I’m glad” I said, leaning into him as he outstretched his arms to embrace me.
    “You really are wonderful, Kallie.” David said, looking into my eyes tenderly as he leaned down to kiss me. Every time he did that, I could feel another part of myself becoming one with him.
    “It’s nothing” I replied, feeling a little bit embarrassed. “I just care about you a lot, so I want to do things that make you happy” I explained, smiling.
    “I want to do the same for you” David said softly, pulling my small frame closer to him as he spoke. “Your happiness is the most important thing in the world to me.” Part of me wanted to break down when he said that, simply because of the emotion I felt upon hearing those words. I didn’t think anyone would ever say anything like that to me, but David proved me wrong.
    As we stood in the long, concrete driveway, the wind picked up slightly, causing me to shiver. David noticed, and began to rub my back gently.
    “We should get going” he chuckled. “I don’t want you to freeze.” He then proceeded to escort me to his car, and even opened the door for me. After making sure I was safely inside the car, he shut the door and walked around to the drivers side. Once he was in, I glanced over at him, a shy smile on my face.
    “I could have opened the door” I said quietly.
    “I know,” David answered. “But I refuse to let you. You’re a lady, and you should be treated like one. As long as you’re with me you will never open your own doors again.” he stated, winking at me. I sighed, sinking back in my seat.
    “Alright, you win” I said with a smile. David smiled back, and stuck the key into the ignition to start the car. He backed out of the driveway, and we were on our way.
    “Where would you like to go?” David asked me, glancing towards me for a brief moment before looking back at the road.
    “I can’t think of anywhere specific” I answered, sighing a little. “Where do you want to go?”
    “I’ve heard that new Italian place is pretty good” David suggested.
    “That sounds good to me” I said, grinning. “I could always go for pasta” My grin turned into a giggle as David glanced over at me.
    “That’s interesting” David said, his eyes scanning me.
    “Why?” I asked somewhat nervously.
    “Do you really eat pasta that much?”
    “Most days” I said with a nod.
    “But you’re so skinny…” David said. I could tell he was trying to choose his words carefully.
    “I do work out, you know” I teased.
    “I know” David answered, blushing. “I wasn’t trying to Imply that you should be fat” he explained. I could tell he was embarrassed, so I leaned over and lightly kissed his cheek to let him know I wasn’t upset.
    After a few more minutes, we arrived at the restaurant, Luigios. From the outside, it looked rustic, but trendy, like it had been plucked right out of Sicily and given a Tulsan makeover. The scents of tomatoes, basil and parmesan floated through the air, nearly making me salivate. We walked inside and were able to be seated immediately. The hostess, Andie, handed us our menus and informed us that our waitress, Kayla, would be over shortly. David and I began to browse the menu, and after only a moment, I knew exactly what I wanted. I decided on the chicken scampi, and David decided to go with the classic lasagna. Kayla came over a moment later to take our drink orders, and we both ordered a raspberry lemonade.
    “Do you know what you would like to eat as well, or do you need a few minutes?” she asked sweetly.
    “We already know” David said confidently, then motioned to me.
    “I would like the chicken scampi with a side salad, please” I said with a shy smile.
    “Alright” Kayla responded, then turned to David. “And for you, sir?”
    “I will have the lasagna, also with a side salad” Kayla scribbled both orders onto her notepad and walked away. Our food arrived rather quickly, making us both impressed with the speed of the employees here. Almost every table was full, and the restaurant buzzed with the quiet murmur of people talking. The food was amazing, and I wasn’t  sure if I would be able to finish it all, but somehow, I did. David did as well.
    “Are you full yet?” he asked with a grin.
    “Almost” I sighed. “Why?”
    “Want to split a piece of cake?”
    “Sure” I said, smiling. “Which kind should we get?”
    “Do you like lemon?” I asked.
    “Sweetie, I’ll eat anything. Pick what you want.”
    “Lemon it is, then” I giggled. When Kayla returned to collect our dishes, David ordered the cake.
    “I’ll have that right out for you” she said with a nod. As she walked away, I sat back in my chair and let out a content sigh. This would be the perfect end to one of the best nights I’ve ever had.