Granny's was practically empty. It was exactly the way Ruby liked it. Besides a couple of patrons sitting at the counter, her and Jefferson were the only occupants. She was thankful that the lunch rush was over and that she could rest her feet and have some time to talk to her friend.
"What are you doing for Christmas?" Ruby asked as she put the pot of tea and two teacups down on their table. She was more of a coffee drinker herself, but she knew Jefferson had an inexplicable obsession with tea and she had grown to like her tea break.
Jefferson shrugged, "Grace and I are going to Regina's. She and Henry invited us over for movies and hot chocolate."
Ruby raised her eyebrow, "Just movies and hot chocolate?" She had noticed that her friend had been spending a lot of time with the mayor lately, too much to be strictly platonic.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Jefferson teased with a cocky smirk. He poured himself a cup of tea and asked, "What about you?"
She shrugged. "Just the usual eggnog and the annual broadcast of Elf with Granny."
"You need a girlfriend," Jefferson replied, "Or a boyfriend." He paused for a moment, "I've got the perfect person in mind."
Ruby laughed. "I'm not letting you set me up again. The last time was a disaster."
"I think you'll like this one," Jefferson replied, "She works over at the library."
"I'll believe it when I see it," she grumbled.
The bell at the front door interrupted their conversation. A beautiful woman that Ruby had never seen before walked into the diner. She had brown hair and eyes so blue that it was easy to get lost in them. She carried a book under her arm and her smile was so bright that it could light up a city grid. She made her way over to her table and Ruby was unable to speak as their eyes locked.
"Jefferson!" The girl grinned, glancing at Ruby. "I didn't realize that anyone would be joining us."
Ruby glared at Jefferson. "You didn't tell me that you were inviting anyone."
Jefferson shrugged. "Must have slipped my mind." He gestured between the two of them. "Ruby, this is Belle. Belle, this is Ruby."
Belle held out her hand to Ruby, and she awkwardly shook it. "Hey," Ruby managed to get out, surprised at how uncharacteristically nervous she was.
"Hi," Belle said, smiling at her. Neither of them moved as they took each other in.
After a few moments, Jefferson cleared his throat. The two girls turned to look at him. "I'm glad you two have finally met." He checked his watch. "Would you look at the time? I have to pick up Grace." He smirked in a way that told Ruby that this was a part of his plan. "Perhaps you can carry on without me."
Ruby just glared at him as Belle said goodbye to him. When they were left alone, they looked at each other awkwardly. Ruby stood up and asked, "Can I get you anything?"
"I'll have an iced tea," Belle said. Ruby went behind the counter and fixed up a glass for her. "Thank you," she smiled and Ruby's heart fluttered.
She slipped into the booth across from her and asked, "You wouldn't happen to work at a library, would you?"
Belle nodded, "I do. And am I correct to assume that you work at this diner?" Ruby nodded and Belle said, "It appears that we've been set up on a blind date."
"It appears so," Ruby said. Despite being furious at Jefferson for forcing her into a blind date, she couldn't deny that the girl in front of her intrigued her. They sat in awkward silence as they looked at each other and Ruby realized that she wasn't the only one forced into this date. "You can go if you want," she said, "If you don't want to be here."
Belle's face fell slightly. "Do you want me to go?"
"No," Ruby said a little too quickly. "I want you to stay, I just don't want you to feel forced to stay."
Belle smiled back at her, "Then I'll stay." Ruby felt a sense of relief at the declaration.
Ruby cleared her throat and glanced at the book resting on the table next to Belle. "Jules Verne?"
Belle smiled as she held up her copy of The Mysterious Island. "It's my favorite book."
"I've never read it," Ruby admitted. She made a mental note to check the book out of the library later.
"Do you like to read?" Belle asked as she drained her glass of iced tea.
Ruby quickly got up and brought over a pitcher. Refilling her glass, Ruby replied, "I do, but I don't get to as much as I'd like."
Belle thanked her for the refill and asked, "What kind of books do you like?"
She shrugged. "I guess I like books with adventure."
Belle's eyes lit up, "I love adventure stories as well."
They spent the next hour discussing their favorite stories. Ruby glanced over at Granny, expecting her to call her back over to work. To her surprise, Granny gave her a knowing smile and took care of the customers herself.
She was surprised at how easy it was to talk to Belle and how she made the butterflies reappear in her stomach every time she smiled at her. "Why haven't I seen you here before?" She asked during a lull in their conversation.
"I've…I've been a kept woman until recently," Belle admitted. Her eyes avoided Ruby's and she figured that Belle didn't want to talk about it.
"I'm sorry," Ruby replied, "For whatever happened."
Belle looked up and smiled at her. "Thank you." She checked her watch and stood up suddenly. "I should get going." She paused and looked back at Ruby, "Thank you for the lovely afternoon."
Ruby realized that she didn't want the date to end. As Belle walked away, a sudden idea crossed her mind. "Wait!" She called out as she caught up to Belle. She turned around and looked at her. "Are you doing anything for Christmas?"
Belle shook her head. "Not at the moment."
"You could come over," Ruby said, "I have a nice collection of movies and Granny makes the best sugar cookies and eggnog."
She smiled. "I'd like that."
They said their goodbyes and Belle slipped into the cold December night. Ruby couldn't stop grinning during the dinner shift. She made a mental note to buy Jefferson a lifetime supply of tea.