Seven was right when we first met. Well…Around the time we first met. This town had a certain kind of magic over it late at night. And I loved it. A part of me wishes I would've thought about that while I was doing his office. I would've put a couple neon signs in there, too. Oh, well. Hindsight's 20-20. But I loved going out late at night like this. Especially with Seven. And definitely to this diner. Granted, it's not the most orthodox favorite date location, but a 7-Eleven parking lot with a pack of Twinkies could be a favorite date location if it's with the right person. The diner just happened to be our parking lot.
"So?" Seven wondered, peering over his pancakes at me, "Have you hired PR yet, MC?"
"No," I groaned, not even wanting to think about that mess, "Zen says he's got it covered. And I hope he gets it covered quickly. I'm sick of dealing with this bullshit."
"But by the looks of things," he pulled his phone out of his hoody pocket, "Zen's not the only one who has this covered. Because I think you do, too."
"What do you mean?" I wondered.
"You're the one who gave me the link to your blog, MC," Seven scrolled down a little way, "There we are. That's what I was looking for."
"What were you looking for?" my stomach dropped.
"I'm a complete and utter mystery to you that you don't think you'll ever figure out?" Oh, shit…Seven's reading my blog. Why, God? What did I ever do to deserve that? "And you wouldn't have it any other way…Oh, MC. You're truly a wordsmith. So much for you not ever wanting to get personal on main."
"I didn't know you read my blog, Seven," I bit the inside of my cheek, trying not to reach across the table and smash his phone to bits.
"Of course I do!" Seven gasped, "I'm appalled you thought otherwise. I've read your blog from top to bottom, MC. But this post? This one takes the cake. Very transparent. Very moving. I shed a tear or two. A heartwarming experience. A poet of our generation, my dear MC."
"You're such a dork," I threw a sweetener wrapper at him.
"That seems to be the rumor," he shrugged, "But look on the bright side. I'm your dork."
"Somehow," I giggled, melting inside. Honestly, I'm surprised he didn't get freaked out over me dropping the boyfriend bomb publicly like that before we even discussed it. I think he likes the title. We'll chalk that up as a good sign.
"Hey!" Seven squeaked, "I have a surprise for you!"
"Really?" I perked up. Seven surprises were always a surprise. And the thought of a Seven surprise concerned me. Because the last time Seven surprised me, it ended up on the front page of every local gossip blog I could find. So, color me skeptical.
"Finish your pancakes first," he insisted, "It's bad for you to skip meals, MC. But I super duper pinky promise this is a good surprise."
"Just tell me," I nudged him under the table
"I can't do that!" Seven stopped me, "Because if I do that, then it won't be a surprise. You'll see soon enough. I bet you looked at your Christmas presents early, too, didn't you? Why do you hate Christmas, MC?"
"I don't hate Christmas," I rolled my eyes, "You're exhausting."
"It's a good thing you have those pancakes then," he pointed out, "Because those pancakes will give you the necessary fuel your body will need in order for me to give you this special surprise! And you will get said surprise after you finish your pancakes, but before you go home tonight."
"Ok…" This boy was truly a mystery. But in order to figure out the mystery of whatever Seven's surprise for me happens to be, I needed to inhale the rest of my pancakes, so we could get the hell out of here. Because despite me being concerned with what Seven's planning, I'm just as curious. I needed to know. And most importantly, I didn't want to give Seven the satisfaction of knowing I would always get in trouble as a kid for peeking at my Christmas presents.
By the time my plate was absolutely spotless right down to the last drop of strawberry syrup, Seven and I took off for whatever this surprise may be. I had no clue what to expect. The last time Seven took me somewhere for a surprise, it ended up being two nude gentlemen that neither one of us needed to see. I knew better, though. Seven wasn't taking me to the porn theater. Instead, he brought me somewhere I didn't know even existed in this town.
"A roller rink?" I stared up at the neon sign while Seven pulled a set of keys out of the door, "You don't own this place, do you?"
"No," Seven explained, "I know the guy that does, though. And he gave me the keys for the night. I told you I had something to take care of today and now, you know what that something is."
"What are we doing at a roller rink at 2AM?" I wondered, "Or is the roller rink the surprise?"
"Well," he pushed the door open and held it for me, "Because we never got to finish our dance the other night…I figured we could do that here. If that's alright with you. Not that the rooftop wasn't romantic. But I thought an empty roller rink would tug at the heartstrings, too. And if we so desire, we could finish that dance on wheels!"
"I'd end up hurting myself," I pointed out, "And I know damn well you would, too."
"I don't know," Seven shrugged, "I'm pretty good on a pair of skates. Do you have a song preference or should I just play traffic noises and you make something out of that?"
"I don't trust your music tastes," I shoved my finger in his chest, "I've lived next door to your office for the last couple months and I know the weird, off the wall shit you listen to. I'll pick something."
"Alright," he allowed, "Lady's choice. Go ahead. The booth is over there."
"Thank you," I skipped over to the sound booth and scrolled through their list of music. My god…There were some in here that I was almost sure they were made up. But still, I kept scrolling until I found something absolutely perfect. And I hit gold with a gem from the late nineties. Granted, it doesn't exactly hold up to some of the pop masterpieces of today, but for a little bit of nostalgia for a simpler time, nothing hit quite like Steal My Sunshine.
As the opening beat started to play, Seven looked over at me, not sure what to make of this, "Are you serious?"
"As a heart attack," I went down into the rink, meeting Seven in the middle.
"Of all the songs you could've picked," he pulled me into his chest, "I kind of expected you to play some sappy love song that would make us all teary-eyed and have us crying in the club. But you pull out Steal My Sunshine?"
"Well," I hid my face in his shoulder, "I know this guy who is kind of like sunshine on legs. And I don't know about you, but I'd be devastated if someone took that away from me."
"Me, too," Seven hugged me tight, moving me with him.
"Hey, Seven…?"
"Hmm?"
"Why did you really take me here tonight?" I wondered, "I'm sure it wasn't just so we could finish our dance."
"It was completely so we could finish our dance," Seven promised, "It was somewhere that had no Saeran, no worrying about work, no worrying about the paparazzi outside our building. You've done so much for me, MC, that I couldn't even begin to thank you for, so I figured the least I could do was finish a dance with you. For the sake of my hopes and dreams."
"Of course," I curled into him.
"No, no, no," he lifted my chin to his lips, "You are not hiding that pretty face of yours away from me. Don't steal my sunshine, MC."
"I won't," I swore, "But only if you don't steal mine."
"Deal," Seven snuck in another kiss on me. What can I say? The little shit's got moves, "Hey, MC…"
"What?"
"Are you busy tomorrow?" he asked.
"Why?" I wondered, "So you can shut down the roller rink for me again?"
"I'm serious," Seven giggled, "Do you have any plans?"
"Not that I can think of," I told him, "I'm taking a sabbatical from my blog until this shit with Zen dies down. If you so desire, you could have me all to yourself tomorrow. Technically, today, but semantics. Why do you ask?"
"Because," he spun me around, "I want you to meet a friend of mine if that's ok. I promise he's not an asshole, nor will he try to steal you away from me. Or attempt to harvest your organs. Although, if I think about it, this would be a hell of a way to go about doing that. Get you to fall hopelessly in love with me, then take you to meet my 'friend', who is actually the surgeon behind everything. BAM! Next thing you know, you're waking up in a bathtub full of ice and short a kidney and a few pints of blood."
"Jesus Christ, Seven," I shook my head, "What have I gotten myself into?"
"You knew," Seven shoved his finger in my chest, "You knew damn well what you were getting yourself into."
"Thank God for that ass," I teased, "But yes, Seven. I'll meet your friend. That's fine by me."
"Good," he kissed my cheek, "Because…Out of all my friends, he's…really important. Probably the most important."
"Ok," I snaked my arms up his back, "But for now, we have tonight. Remember? No worries. Just you and me?"
"That sounds like a plan."
Seven and I continued our dance until the song ended. After that, it was time to go home. We were both tired. And Seven. being the gentleman he is, was kind enough to walk me home. Fortunately, the camera crews had packed up and gone home for the night, too. Was that going to stop me from stealing Seven's hoody? Of course not. I had to sleep in something. If I remember correctly, Seven liked to steal my silky nightie. It's only fair.
"Well…" Seven and I stood outside my apartment. And I got one last kiss out of him, "Good night, MC."
"Good night, Seven," I stopped him before he could leave me, "You know…If you wanted to come inside, I wouldn't have a problem with that. It is late and it wouldn't be the first time we've shared a bed together."
"I can't," he shot me down, "As much as I'd love to. But I really should be going. I love you, MC. Go to bed."
"I love you, too," I sent Seven off and went inside. Something about hearing him tell me he loved me warmed my little heart to no end. I still couldn't believe that we were actually a thing. But if I'm going to be meeting Seven's friend, I should probably be well rested for something like that. So, just as he told me, I got into my pajamas and crawled into bed, settling in for a long, well-deserved sleep…That is until I heard something on the other side of my bedroom wall. What the hell…?
It sounded like a horn section. And then, some drums kicked in. That's weird. I've never heard this one come out of Seven's office. I bet he had to get back to work. That's why he couldn't stay with me tonight. Oh, well. I understand. Whatever this song was, it sounded like something from the sixties. That didn't strike me as Seven's usual decade of choice, but like I said, the boy is a mystery. But then, the lyrics kicked in. Was this the Beach Boys?
Don't know if words can say…
But darlin', I'll find a way…
To let you know what you meant to me…
Guess it was meant to be…
I hold you in my heart…
As life's most precious part…
Oh, darlin'…
My…Heart…I couldn't hold tears back if I wanted to. And someone was going to answer for this. And my money was on the asshole next door. I threw Seven's hoody on and left my apartment to pound on my neighbor's door. Before he could see, I wiped the tears off my cheeks.
"I'm sorry," Seven answered the door, "Was the music too loud?"
I threw myself into Seven's chest, letting my tears soak through his t-shirt, "I love you, Seven…"
"I love you, too," he held me tight, "You want to come in?"
"Please."
