Jeannie was always the aggressive one. Ever since the beginning, when he opened her bottle and she greeted him with two sentences in a language he didn't understand and then a kiss, she was the one who made the moves. Kissing his cheek when he came home from work, taking him by surprise and causing him to kiss back for a moment before he snapped back to reality, kissing him fiercely when he felt the same way back, and the sweet gentle kisses (that Tony secretly loved) when they both were a little wary and a little intimate were her specialties.

However, both of them failed to notice he hadn't initiated any kisses – until the day Jeannie was thinking over the way his muscles relax when Tony would give in to her kiss and hug her body close to him. Her legs were in the air, shoe dangling off her right foot as she thought about it, her arms resting behind her head and her mouth twisted in a way to show she was stumped.

The door opened, letting the sunlight pour into the house. "Hello, Jeannie," Tony said, taking his hat off.

She sat up quickly, trying to keep her shoe from flying across the room. "Good afternoon, master." She swung her legs over the couch, bobbing over to him. "Master, do you like me?"

Tony, who had been preoccupied with unbuttoning his blouse, faced Jeannie who was only mere inches away from his face. He chuckled. "Why, of course Jeannie. Why wouldn't I?" He headed for the couch.

"Are you sure master?" She followed him on her tiptoes, her mouth almost level to his ear.

He stopped to turn around. "I'm certain. You're a beautiful, bright girl. What man wouldn't like you?" Jeannie didn't say anything back. "What's wrong, Jeannie? Did somebody say anything to you?"

"Oh, no master." Her eyes met his. "Why do you not marry me then?"

"Jeannie, we've been over this." He started back for the couch.

She sighed. "That is not why I was asking, master."

"Then why were you asking?" he questioned, sitting down on the couch. Jeannie blinked him a drink. "Oh, thank you Jeannie." He sipped on it.

"Do you like kissing me, master?"

He seemed to choke a little on his drink. "Why do you ask that, Jeannie?"

"You do not seem to like it very much."

"Now Jeannie, you can't just go around asking people things like that."

"But I want to know, master." She hurried over to him, sitting down on his lap. "Do you need me to show you again?"

He attempted a laugh as he pushed over off his lap and stood up. "Jeannie, forget this whole topic, will you? I don't want to get married right now."

Jeannie scrambled to her feet. "But I did not ask to marry you," she said innocently. "I just wanted to know if you liked—"

"You asked before that. Now, drop it."

"But I—"

"Drop it."

She sighed, her arms flopping to her sides. "Very well, master." She blinked, popping out of the room.

Tony stood in the living room, his hands together, his mind whirring. What was Jeannie asking for? If he had to answer, he guessed deep down—really deep down—he might like it just a little. "Jeannie," he called out. "Jeannie, I have a question to ask you." He was now wondering if someone had hurt or feelings. What if he somehow hurt her?

Climbing up the stairs, he called again, "Jeannie!" She was sitting by the telescope, her chin resting on her hands. Going to her, he kneeled down beside her. "Jeannie, why are you looking so glum?"

"I'm not master." She gave a phony smile.

"Did I make you upset?"

"No, master, you did not."

"Then why are you acting so sad?"

She gave a sigh, looking back at him. "Do you really want to know, master?"

"Yes, Jeannie."

She sat up straighter, looking away again. "A woman on the television—"

"Ah, no need to go any further."

She paused. "But master, I'm telling you what's wrong."

Tony stood up. "You've seen one of those romances, haven't you?"

Getting onto her feet, she continued in a rush, "Oh, yes, master. At the end, they got married after these wonderful dates. Then I started thinking about the times you've taken me out and I thought that since you didn't want to get married, you at least like all those times we kissed like the couple in the movie were saying. But then I remembered that you hadn't kissed me yet—I mean, you've suggested it but you never kissed me first—and I thought… maybe you didn't like it when I kissed you."

Placing his hands on her shoulders, he told her, "Jeannie, don't listen to those romance movies. They're fake."

Her head drooping, she mumbled, "Yes master."

Suddenly he felt bad for her. Her whole body seemed to be drooping, the usual spunk and feistiness gone. "Jeannie, I'll tell you what. I'll take you out tonight."

She looked up at him. "But master, you have work tomorrow! I am not more important than your work."

"Consider it a treat for being a great genie."

Jeannie smiled. "Are you sure, master?"

He nodded, grinning himself. "Positive."

Squealing, she kissed him on the cheek. "Oh, master, you're the greatest master in the whole wide world!" She blinked out of the room. Tony chuckled to himself, pleased to see her so happy. Sure, he might feel tired tomorrow, but there was nothing wrong with making his genie happy. After all, she made sure she did what she thought was best for him… even at times when it wasn't really the best thing to do.

The clock struck seven. Tony was adjusting his bow tie when Jeannie popped in behind him. "What do you think of this dress, master?" He turned around to see her beaming, twirling around in a sapphire dress.

He leaned back against the wall, his arms crossed. "Jeannie, how do you manage to outdo yourself every time?"

"Aw. Do you really like it?"

"Jeannie, you're always beautiful."

"Do you mean it master?"

His eyes locked on hers, a hopeful glance from them. He knew she asked that question every time, but there was something about it that seemed almost necessary, as if propping up the mood for the entire night. Her bright smile and her glittering eyes made him feel as if sometimes his feet weren't touching the ground and he was almost ready to fall at any second. But he never did. Not with Jeannie there.

With a grin he answered, "I always mean it."

She gave a happy noise and stepped towards him, her arms loosely holding his right arm. "Where are we going tonight, master?"

"Remember that one restaurant you really liked about thirty minutes from here where you wore that pink dress?"

"Oh, that one!" Her eyes lit up even more. "You told me I looked stunning that night."

"You really remember what I said?"

"Of course, master. I remember everything you say to me before our dates."

He opened his car door for her, crossing over to his side when she was in. As they pulled out from the driveway, Jeannie looked over at Tony, her thoughts hopeful and pleased. She just loved it when her master took her out on dates; no matter if he kissed her or not, she was sure to have a good time.

They entered the restaurant's parking lot as Jeannie was finishing her story on how women got dye for clothes before she was put in her bottle. She gave another happy noise as they parked. Tony opened the door for her, and she asked him again how he was so fast getting there. He never really answered her, but she didn't mind.

After they were seated at a table and had their orders taken, Jeannie looked over at him. "Master, can we go dancing after we eat?"

"Of course, Jeannie. I wouldn't take you to this place if we weren't going to."

She grinned widely. "Oh, I just love dancing." She gave a cheerful sigh.

Tony had to smile at the look on her face. She gazed at the couples on the dance floor with the naivety of a child, her eyes dreamy and lips curved. Her hands were clasped together right underneath her chin, making her look even more like a little girl fantasizing about being a princess or something of the sort.

His eyes drifted to her hair, noticing the perfection of the curves. He started noticing other things, like the smooth, silky white gloves that hugged her hands; the way her dress curved in all the perfect places; how her eyes shone in a way that he couldn't describe. She turned to face him, noticing the look of adoration on his face. "What are you looking at master?"

"Oh, uh…" He sat up straight. "I was just admiring how lovely you look in that dress."

"Aw." She scooted closer to him. "You look very handsome, too master."

"I wear the same thing every time," he said, a small smile on his face.

"And you always are the most handsome man in Cocoa Beach." She wrapped her arms around his, laying her head on his shoulder.

Tony, seeing the waiter approached, shook her off gently as the food was placed before him. The waiter's eyes drifted over to Jeannie and back to Tony. "Miss, you look lovely tonight." As Jeanie smiled her thanks and fluffed her hair, Tony caught a wink directed at him from the waiter.

"Oh, we're not dating…." Tony started, catching on to the waiter's message. He left it at that as Jeannie looked back at him.

"What a nice waiter!" she said. "Let us eat, master, so we can go dance!"

Tony and Jeannie started on their food, Tony watching her out of the corner of his eye. Sometimes he forgot she was two thousand years old and would still be looking like this when he was gray. A thought entered his mind: what would happen when he was old? Would she be young forever and watch him pass away? Would she even be his genie at that time?

He pushed the questions away, replacing them with images of Jeannie's radiant face and the feeling of her body brushing against his during slow songs. Caught up in his thoughts, he didn't notice she was staring back at him with the same face she had when she was watching the couples dancing, and suddenly it seemed as if it was them two and no one else.

When their meals were finished, Jeannie broke the lengthy silence (as well as the affectionate stares) by squealing, "Let's go dance now!" She grabbed Tony's hand, pulling him up and onto the dance floor. She started moving along with the upbeat music, laughing with him as they danced. There were a lot of people there for a weeknight, crowding around them as they swayed back and forth. The songs changed, and after three more upbeat songs, a slow one came on.

Tony was a bit out of breath, but Jeannie sent him a glance asking him to stay. Giving her a tiny grin, he took her hand and started dancing with her to the tempo of the music. Their eyes locked on each others, with each step he seemed to be more lost in them. He didn't realize they were getting closer and closer, their noses mere inches away from each other, her legs brushing against his.

He never realized how soft her skin was, or how they seemed to pale in comparison to her rose-colored lips. His heartbeat quickened as he wanted to place his lips on hers in the middle of the dance floor full of other couples dancing conservatively or so close you couldn't tell if they were showering each other with kisses and romantic whispers.

Her perfume filled his senses, and he didn't realize his face was even closer to hers than it ever was before. Jeannie's eyes appeared to quiver with excitement, glinting like they never had before.

Then the song ended.

Tony leaned away. "Jeannie, let's go to our table."

The starry-eyed expression faded from her face. "Oh, okay master."

He couldn't help but notice how all the enthusiasm she had before seemed to have completely gone away. "Jeannie, are you tired?"

"What?" She looked at him. "Oh, no master. Let us stay."

"We can go back home Jeannie and have some champagne all by ourselves. Does that sound good?"

Jeannie looked at the crowd. "Sure, master." She seemed to perk up some.

"Good." Smiling, he paid the bill and left with Jeannie around his arm.

When they entered the house, Jeannie blinked a bottle of champagne into his arms. "Oh, thanks Jeannie, but I have some."

"No problem, master. Consider this a thank you gift." She gave him a smile. Grinning back, he put the champagne down on the table. Two champagne glasses appeared on the table.

Tony looked down at the glasses. He gave Jeannie an appreciative nod as he poured the champagne into the glasses. Taking a glass in one hand and giving Jeannie the other, they headed out to the patio. The air was crisp outside, wind gently ruffling through Jeannie's hair. They didn't say anything to each other as they sipped on their drinks; they observed the moon that shone brightly down on them, despite the bright lights of the city.

Jeannie faced him, a content look on her face. "Oh, master, I've had a wonderful night!"

"That's great to hear, Jeannie." Jeannie looked down at the empty glass in his hand, blinking both of them away. Feeling the glass disappear, he sent a smile at her. "What would I do without you?"

"Be an astronaut, I suppose." She gave a tight-lipped smile.

Tony was wrapped up in the smile she was giving him. The way her lips curved and her irises gleamed made her appear brighter than the moon. Her personality seemed to slide through the outward beauty, and suddenly she seemed exposed in the most breathtaking away.

And before he knew what he was doing, he leaned forward and kissed her.

She froze for a moment, slowly understanding what was happening. When it processed, she wanted to hug him as she always did when she kissed him, but she still couldn't move. It felt all natural in those moments, with the wind blowing softly and the moon illuminating the dark yard, the city lights acting as its accomplice. The time for thinking was over.

When Tony pulled back, their eyes didn't move away from each others. Tony, slack-jawed over what he had just done, had thoughts race through his mind. She couldn't know that he could possibly ever be interested in her, much less the possibility that through the mask he put on he could actually… love her.

"Master," she whispered.

Tony's mind was silenced as her voice sliced through the night. He realized it was silly to be as concerned as he was, and managed to push it all aside as they both smiled lovingly at each other.

He leaned in and kissed her again.