Emma awoke to the sound of her alarm blaring on her night stand. Normally she would groan and hit the snooze button till she had 5 minutes left to get ready. Today however, she practically jumped out of bed.
She turned off her alarm and took a deep breath in. She checked the time, just to make sure she had plenty of time. 7 AM. Emma grabbed her bathrobe and made her way to the bathroom.
Emma took a shower and made sure her favorite music was playing. She couldn't contain her excitement. Once her hair was washed and conditioned, Emma grabbed the best smelling soap she had and washed her body. Not only did she want to look the best, she wanted to smell her best.
She got out of the shower and brushed her teeth and let her hair air dry. She walked over to her closet, and was trying to find the perfect outfit, silently cursing herself for waiting until now to pick out her outfit.
She finally settled on a pair of dark blue jeans, black boots with a two inch heel, a white tank top and a brown leather jacket. She put the top half of her hair up in a bun while the rest lay on her back curling slightly on the bottom.
Once her makeup was done, she check the time. 9AM. Okay, she had time left. She went over to her full length mirror and took a couple of photos.
She said the best photo to the group chat the consisted of August, Ruby, and Regina. While waiting for her friends to respond Emma sent a quick confirmation text to Neal.
Emma: Hey, We still on for 10?
Neal: Of course! Where do you wanna meet?
Emma: We can meet outside the coffee shop.
Neal: Awesome! Sounds Good!
Emma couldn't help herself from grinning the entire time texting him. She was so excited and could help but feel giddy. She never thought that she would be going on a date with someone as handsome as Neal.
She put her phone down beside her on the bed and lean back, so she was laying on her bed. She was planning on what time she was gonna leave her dorm when her phone vibrated again. It was her friends responding to her picture.
August: Oh sweetie, you look so cute! How excited are you?
Emma: Very, though next time, I am gonna pick out my outfit the night before. It took me a good 30 minutes to find the right one.
Ruby: Gosh, I am so excited for you! Please when the date is over I want all the details, and I mean all of them. I wanna know if he bought your coffee, where did you guys sit, did he kiss you? Did you guys do more than kiss?!
Emma could help but laugh at her friends excitement, but blushed slightly at the thought of kissing Neal, let alone doing anything else.
Emma:Okay, we shall what happens, but we are only getting coffee, I'm trying not to out too much pressure on this.
Regina: Hey, sorry I'm late to the chat, Emma I love the shoes! Also, what color did you paint your nails, I think purple would look amazing!
Emma looked down and realized that she forgot to paint her nails. She began to panic and started pounding on her phone's keyboard fast and hard.
Emma: OMG! I completely forgot about my nails! I don't have time to paint them now! OMG! Please tell me I didn't mess everything up?
Regina: Yep, you ruined the whole thing.
August: Regina!
Regina: What? I am only joking! No, your nails are not gonna ruin the date! Have you never been on a date before?
Emma: Regina! You know the answer to that!
Ruby: Wait, Emma. Have you never been on a date before?
Emma: ..no
Ruby:OMG WHAT! This is your first date ever!OMG I think I'm gonna cry! This is so precious!
Emma: Okay, you guys. I have to go. I am leaving to head over to the coffee shop.
August: Are you walking or driving?
Emma: It's quicker for me to walk, besides, I need to clear my head before I see him. Now I'm nervous!
Ruby: Don't be nervous! You got this! Have fun and good luck!
August: Have fun Emma! Lets meet for dinner later tonight and we can talk about it then.
Emma:Sounds Good!
Regina: Have fun, Emma
Emma stood up from her bed and put her phone in her pocket. She grabbed her purse and took a deep breath, before pulling open her door and walking towards the coffee shop.
The entire walk there, Emma couldn't help but think about how new she was at this. Yes, she has never been on a date before or even kissed a boy. She felt naive and inexperienced.
She soon was at the front door of the coffee shop. 9:50 AM. She was a bit early. Emma decided to let Neal know that she was early but him not to rush. As soon as she sent the message she heard someone calling her name. She looked up and saw Neal walking towards her.
"Hey!, I was just texting you!" Emma said, smiling, hoping he can't hear how loud her heart was pounding.
"I know, I felt my phone vibrate and ran as fast as I could here." Neal said giving Emma a smile that caused her entire body to hurt.
"Well, you must run pretty fast than." Neal chuckled a little.
"Well, I run faster when I have coffee in my system, speaking of, shall we?" Neal asked, gesturing towards the door.
Emma nodded walking towards the door as Neal opened it for her. As Emma walked past him, she could smell his cologne, and she swore she has never smelt anything better in her entire life.
After ordering their coffees, Neal and Emma sat down at a table next to a big window that overlooked most of main street. Emma looked outside for a moment, before she could catch herself Emma thought out loud,
"Man, I am really gonna miss it here." Realizing that she said it out loud she quickly turned from the window to look at Neal. "Sorry, sometime I speak before I think." Emma said, before looking down at her coffee, completely embarrassed at what she said.
"No need to be sorry. I understand how you feel. I mean, this place has been apart of our lives for almost 3.5 years. I'm gonna miss it as well." Neal said.
Emma looked up at Neal and smiled, feeling a bit more comfortable now. "Well, it's only September, we have another 8 months left to enjoy our time here." Neal shifted a bit, before focusing his attention on Emma.
"Actually, I will be leaving here in December. When everyone leaves to go on winter break, I will actually be graduating." Emma felt slightly disappointed, but was also very excited for him, to accomplish this.
"Oh wow! That's amazing. It will be sad to not see you when we come back from Break but that is still an amazing thing." Emma said. Before she could stop herself, she reached her hand across the table and placed her hand on top of his. "Congratulations!" Emma said sweetly.
She was about to pull her hand away, but Neal moved his hand around, till he was holding hers. Emma looked down at their intertwined fingers, than back at him,m blushing slightly. "So." Neal started. "Tell me a bit about yourself."
The two of them spent the next three hours, talking about their home life and what they were majoring. Emma found out that Neal was majoring in accounting, but when he wasn't in his office, or in class, he would be outside any chance he got.
She found out that his mom died when he was a little boy, and wasn't the closest to his father. His father was to be married in the next year and as much as they strayed apart from one another, Neal was planning on going to the wedding and hoping to restart his relationship with his father, now that they are both adults.
Emma told Neal about her parents the the cute nicknames that her town has for them. How she was going studying Criminal Justice. She talked about her three best friends and some of their adventures together.
Just before 1 PM Neal said that he had a meeting with one of his professors so he had to go. Emma walked with Neal out of the coffee shop, their hands were still intertwined.
"Well Emma, I would like to say thank you for a wonderful morning and early afternoon." Neal said turning towards Emma. Emma gave a small smile, looking down at the ground.
"It was my pleasure." Emma said, feeling slightly flirty.
"I do hope we can do this again." Neal said. Emma's face lit up a little be and she smiled brightly at him.
"I would like that." Emma said.
"Well, than as a placeholder till I can see you again.." Neal, started to say, taking a step towards Emma. Once they were less than a foot apart, Neal placed a hand under Emma's chin, lifting her head towards his.
He leaned down and captured her lips with his. Emma's heart was pounding she thought it was going to explode out of her chest and her head was spinning. She was pretty sure she was gonna pass out. Emma wanted to bottle up this moment and live in it of ever. The kiss only lasted a second, before Neal pulled away smiling.
"Until next time, Emma." he said, before turning and walking towards campus.
Emma stood there, unable to comprehend what was happening. She felt like she was floating on a cloud. She doesn't remember leaving the coffee shop but suddenly she was unlocking the door to her dorm room and was making her way towards her bed.
Emma couldn't help but smile. Once Emma was sitting on her bed, she had no idea what to do. She wanted to tell her friends, but thought about waiting till dinner. What should she do till dinner? Suddenly her phone vibrated and her heart jumped for joy when she read that Neal was texting her.
Neal: Hey, let me know when you get back to your dorm, wanna make sure you got there safe.
Emma smiled at her phone. Maybe he is beginning to care about me. Emma thought to herself. Suddenly she felt flirtatious. She has never flirted before but thought about taking a page from both Ruby and Regina's book.
Emma: Careful, one might think that you care about me.
Neal: Maybe I do. Sue me
Emma: Give you a run for your money
Neal: A woman after my own heart.
Emma: Money first, heart second
Neal: and priorities. My favorite. Anything else I should be warned about?
Emma read the message over and over again, hoping that something would come to her mind but it seemed her flirtatious stage had ended.
Emma: I have no warning, but just because you asked so nicely before, I will give you the satisfaction to know that I am home.
Neal: Thank you for letting me know. I have to put my phone away so I don't get caught with it. I will talk with you later Emma. ;)
Emma looked at the winking smiling face for what seemed like hours. Finally she put her phone down and decided to get some work done herself.
Once 5PM hit, Emma's phone vibrated. It was August, Ruby, and Regina, confirming their dinner plans. They agreed to meet in the lobby of their dorm hall and all walk to a cute little diner down the road.
After about 20 minutes Emma grabbed her purse and headed towards the main entrance to her dorm. As soon as the door shut behind her, Emma realized she left her keys on her desk.
"No, no no!" Emma voice, trying her door knob, hoping it didn't lock, but to her dismay is was. "Shit!" Emma said aloud. She made her way down two flights of stairs and found her friends, waiting for her by the front door.
"There she is, the women of the hour." August voice boomed through the nearly empty room, causing Emma to blush and looked down at the ground.
"So.." Ruby said, making her way toward Emma, linking arms. "How was your date?" Emma looked at Ruby and gave a small chuckle.
"Come on you guys, I'm starving." Emma exclaimed, dragging Ruby towards the doors.
"I think thirsty is more like it." Regina voice, giving a small laugh. Once they made it outside, they made their way down the street to the local diner. Once seated, and their orders placed, everyone went silent and stared at Emma.
"What?" Emma ask, suddenly feeling shy and insecure, having everyone stare at her.
"What do you mean 'what?' Spill!" Regina, nudging Emma's shoulder a bit.
"Okay, okay." Emma laughed. "Well, we had a really good time. We drank some coffee, and we talked about our majors and a little bit about our home life. He is very sweet and kind, and yes, a bit of a charmer, but I am okay with that. He seems like a really great guy." Emma said, unable to contain her smile.
"Awe, Emma, that's so sweet. I really hope things work out for you guys." August said, reaching across the table and placed his hand on top of Emma's.
"Okay, yes that is all great and all, but I said I wanted details." Ruby interrupted, cause Emma to chuckle.
"Well, he told me somethings that I really don't think that he would want other people to know." Emma said, poking fun and Ruby a little bit, who just rolled her eyes and leaned forward a little bit.
"No, that's not what I meant. I don't care what you guys talked about, did you guys kiss?" Ruby asked, her eyes growing wider as Emma smiles and reached for her drink and took the longest sip known to mankind.
"Oh my god, you did!" Ruby practically screamed.
"Okay, keep it down will you." Emma said, feeling like everyone in the diner was staring at them now.
"Emma's first date and she even gets a goodbye kiss, well I will say that I am impressed, job well done Emma." Regina said, smiling at Emma.
The rest of dinner passed with laughter and making plans for the rest of the week. They all agreed to have a small gathering at Emma's, that following Friday night for drinks and more boy talk.
When Emma finally made it back to her dorm, she remembered that she locked herself out. She made her way over to the main desk, only to find that it was closed for the evening.
"Of course it is." Emma grumbled to herself. She texted her friends letting them know, she locked herself out of her dorm. Hoping they would let her crash at their place. When no one answered, Emma made her way over to one of the couches and sat down.
"Guess I am sleeping here tonight." As soon as the words left her mouth, Emma's phone vibrated. Hoping it was one of her friends, she quickly grabbed it. She was slightly disappointed to see it wasn't one of her friends, but her disappointed was replaced when she read Neal's name across her screen.
Neal: Hey! Whatcha up to?
Emma: Oh Same old. I went out to dinner with my friends, had a nice relaxing wake back to my dorm hall, and locked myself out of my room.
Neal: How did you manage that?
Emma: Left my key on my desk..
Neal: See if anyone at the front desk can open the door for you.
Emma: Tried that. No one is there. I don't mind crashing on the couch in the lobby.
Neal: Emma, you don't need to do that. I am coming over there, just wait a second.
Emma: You don't have to come over, really it's okay.
Emma: Neal?
Emma: Neal?
Suddenly Emma heard a knock the window beside her, causing her to jump. Emma looked and saw that it was Neal, slightly chuckling to herself she opened up the door to let him him.
"I said that I didn't mind sleeping on the couch." Emma said, as neal walked past her and into the lobby.
"Emma, it's really no trouble, not tell me, which one is your door." Emma stood there for a moment, dumbfounded.
"Oh! Here, follow me." Emma said, after a moment of just staring blankly at him. Once they made it up to her dorm room, Neal turned towards Emma.
"Do you have a bobby pin?" Emma shook her head yes, reaching yup in her hair and taking out a bobby pin. She handed it to Neal, who thanked her and went to work on the key lock. After about 2 minutes the latch released and Emma's door was now open. "See, a piece of cake." Neal said, smiling towards her.
"How...how did you know how to do that?" Neals face fell for a moment before clearing his throat.
"I..I use to lock myself out of my moms house all the time. After a couple of tries, you pretty much know how to unlock any door. Don't worry, I only use my powers for good." Neal said, regaining his smile.
"Well I guess that makes you my hero."
