A date with sharks

When Michael finally got home that day, he had time to clean his apartment, eat a sandwich and take a shower before it was time to go and meet Sara.

"Hey, you're here", she said with a happy smile. He smiled back. He was feeling a little nervous at the idea of seeing her again but managed to say hi back. "Shall we?" she asked.

"We shall."

They bought their tickets then went to the popcorn counter where they each ordered a bag and a drink. Michael had changed clothes and Sara thought that he looked very good. He was now wearing another pair of jeans (less old this time) and a dark grey v-neck sweater with a white tee-shirt. He had a black puffer jacket and, on his feet, there was a pair of black Puma shoes. Sara had also changed and she was wearing a light grey wool sweater and black pants. Her hair was now down. Very elegant (and extremely attractive, if he had to be completely honest).

"So what did you do this afternoon?" Michael inquired once they had found good seats.

"Well, nothing exciting. I did my groceries and a little bit of cleaning. You?"

"I only had time to clean my apartment. I still need to do my groceries but there's always tomorrow!"

They continued talking until the movie started. At some point, Michael's attention turned to Sara. She appeared to be totally focused on the film. God, she was beautiful! He couldn't believe he was on a date with her. Yeah, yeah, she said it wasn't a date but it was a date, right? Right?! He tried to will his eyes to look at the screen and, while he vaguely remembered the story, he couldn't help but jump off his seat when a great white shark attacked a female swimmer. Sara looked at him, surprised, and giggled: "Are you okay?"

"Yes, yes. I did not see that coming!" He probably looked like an idiot (or a child) but at least she found him amusing. That was something.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

They were exiting the theater and talking about the movie and its decades-old special effects when two women holding hands interrupted them. "Hey Sara, how are you doing?"

"Hey, Sam! What a surprise!"

Sam looked at Sara, then at Michael, then at Sara again with a curious look.

"Sam, Anna, this is Michael. Michael, this is Sam and this is Anna." And talking to Michael, she added: "Sam and I work together." Sam was a brunette with long hair in a ponytail. Anna was a tall blonde with mid-length wavy hair.

Once the introductions were done, Sam asked them: "What did you guys see?"

Sara answered: "Jaws. You?"

"The Rocky Horror Picture Show. So who was the most afraid of sharks?"

Michael and Sara looked at each other and started laughing. "Him!", she said pointing at Michael.

After a few exchanges, Sam said: "Well, it was fun seeing you. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Sara, I'll see you on Monday." By the way Sam was looking at her when she said that, Sara knew that she would have to answer a lot of questions at work on Monday morning…

They had discovered that they were living 10 minutes away from each other and since it wasn't too cold that night, upon Michael's suggestion, they walked back home.

"Well, this is me", Sara said in front of a tall building. "Thanks for tonight. That was fun." That was true. Maybe it was the movie, she thought, but she immediately doubted it was the only reason. She enjoyed Michael's company very much and had to admit that she was attracted to him even if she had only met him a few hours before.

"Yes, it was fun. Thank you." And summoning all his courage he added: "Listen, do you want to do something next weekend? Dinner maybe?"

"Michael, are you asking me out on a date?"

Michael wasn't sure if she was making fun of him or was actually serious with her inquiry. He grew nervous again all of a sudden. "Maybe?"

"Maybe?!" Her look was now undeniably teasing.

"Yes, yes, I am asking you out on a date." He gave her a shy smile.

She smiled at him and thought he was adorable. "I'd like that", she replied, not breaking eye contact. Seeing that it had started to rain she opened her building's door and added: "Call me?"

"Yes, I will. Good night, Sara."

"Good night, Michael."

He asked her out and she said yes! What a day!