"You pressed up," Renee told Dean, believing it was a mistake.
"I know," Dean responded casually and waited for the elevator to arrive. The waiting seemed too long, though. "Come with me," he changed the strategy. He looked at Renee who had questions on her mind. But he didn't hesitate.
"Where?"
"You'll see." Dean gently took her hand and guided her toward the staircase. It was so quiet. The hotel wasn't very big but usually it was busier, especially at this time. Now it seemed almost empty. They couldn't hear any voices or any kind of noise in general. They were certainly the only ones on the staircase. But Dean didn't mind the privacy they had been given, and Renee was still puzzled and wondering where he was taking her rather than why there was not a single person around.
For Renee, it felt really strange at first to hold hands with him. So unnatural. Yet comfortable. She soon came to like and enjoy feeling his presence. Both of them were secretly glad their hands didn't get sweaty.
Renee pressed Dean's hand harder as she almost tripped over one step, and he covertly smiled. Yet he was ready to catch her if she was falling. It was his task to make her safe.
"Why are we going up?" Renee wondered.
"Because that's the way to get where we want to go," he responded as if he had actually given her a sufficient answer.
"I don't get it. So we're not going out?"
"In a way," he admitted.
When they finally arrived to the highest floor, Dean opened door for her and then guided her through the rest of the hallway until they reached a door at the far end. He pushed it but nothing happened.
"It says do no enter," Renee read the sign.
"Yeah . . . well, they say whatever bullshit to keep you away," he justified his actions of breaking in, or more like breaking out, as he kept trying to open the door
"And you're not gonna take their advice," Renee assumed.
"Advice?" Dean frowned. "Please. Those bastards just put it there to safeguard themselves in case you get hurt and want to sue them. What that sign really says is 'we warned you, jackass, now go kill yourself, we don't give a shit.'"
"That makes me feel better," Renee said sarcastically.
"There we go," Dean cheerfully announced as he succeeded in opening the door. He knew it had to work if he used enough strength.
Renee walked outside as Dean followed her on the roof. The wind blew Renee's hair straight into Dean's face but he wasn't too irritated. It smelled good. But he didn't enjoy it for long. He moved aside and soon disappeared. Renee didn't notice he wasn't next to her because she had been occupied herself with watching the skyline. The city was loud, there were cars to be heard, but still the atmosphere was somehow calm. It was a little cold but she didn't mind yet, maybe after few minutes. She found the courage to walk to the edge and look down. The height wasn't too overwhelming but she certainly wouldn't want to fall down. She stepped back and turned around to talk to Dean. He was out of her sight.
"Dean?" she called, wondering if he left her there alone.
"Yep," she heard a distant voice. Then she noticed him walking toward her, holding two glasses and a bottle of wine or champagne.
When she realized the rooftop was probably their final destination and there was nobody else to see them, she had to ask, "Why the dress?"
"So it would go with my suit," he joked. Then he poured the drink into the glasses and handed one over to her. "I wanted this evening to be special," he returned to her question. "And I wanted to see whether there's some connection between the dress you choose to wear and me."
"What do you mean?"
"If the effort put into dressing up is proportional to how much you like me."
"Wow. I've never thought you'd think about it that way." She looked at her dress. "Now it just looks silly."
"There are many words to describe this dress or how you look in it, but silly is certainly not one of them. Beautiful, gorgeous, dazzling, stunning, sexy. Yes. Silly? Never."
Renee looked away to hide that she was blushing, but Dean touched her face and pointed it back at him. "You don't need to hide away. That won't make me stop complimenting you anyway. You look wonderful tonight," he said with all seriousness. He didn't realize he was quoting a song by Eric Clapton. It was just something that felt right to say.
"Thank you. You look great, too." Right after she said it, she remembered what he said at the Slammy Awards. She anticipated his taking the chance she had given him, but he didn't. Maybe he didn't notice or he chose to ignore it.
"To tonight," he raised his glass and proposed a short toast.
Renee smiled in agreement. Then she asked again, "So we're really not going anywhere public?"
Dean didn't mind the question. "With that dress?" he emphasized. "I wouldn't let you."
"You wouldn't let me?" she repeated, but not in a way that would make him feel guilty about saying it.
"I have some training but it's easier to protect you when there's no danger around."
"Are you saying that you're not a threat?" Renee was curious to hear the answer.
"My first thought would be no. My second thought is more honest. I can be dangerous. I can be as dangerous as you want me to be. But let's leave it for later," he added nonchalantly.
Noticing Renee was getting goosebumps, Dean took off his jacket and put it over Renee's shoulders. She thanked him. "Why do you girls always do this?" he wondered.
"Do what?"
"Wear light dresses that you know won't keep you warm, and then wait for the guy to offer you his jacket. Wouldn't it be easier to just bring you own?"
Renee didn't expect that kind of question but she was ready to answer. "The way I see it, it's a test. We want to know if the guy is a gentleman, and therefore deserves our time."
"Oh, so I passed the test," he celebrated.
"This one. But there are others," Renee hoped to kill his cheerful mood.
"I'm ready," he responded confidently while looking her in the eyes. Then he took her hand and walked her to the other side of the rooftop where he had something planned. Next to the wall, there was what appeared to be a warm fleece blanket for them to sit on, and then another one for using if they got cold. Several pillows were on the floor, each of different color. He asked her to sit down while she wondered what would happen next. She couldn't see a computer or any screen to watch a movie, so she crossed that option out. Dinner seemed improbable, too. Except for a bottle of red wine, there wasn't much.
When Renee adjusted a few pillows behind her back so that she wouldn't feel coldness of the wall, she took off Dean's jacket and wrapped herself in the blank. As she was getting comfortable, Dean seemed impatient and frequently checked the time.
"Are we waiting for something?" she asked him. Before she could get an answer, she heard something of a massive explosion. She turned to see a firework. "By any chance, you don't have to do anything with it, do you?" she suspected.
"No," he said, "I just happen to know about it." She wasn't sure if she should believe him but she didn't ask.
She let him place his arm behind her back, and then she placed her head on his shoulder. Dean pulled her closer to him. It felt nice to feel warmth coming from her body. Although her back was cold, the rest of her body was sending warm waves his way.
Renee didn't feel the need to think about any kind of schedule of their date. If she really thought about it, she would realize they weren't doing much, but it felt just right. Being with each other, even in silence, sounded good enough to her. She kept watching the firework, unlike Dean who stared at her. He had seen many fireworks before and he knew what stars looked like. Surroundings were not bad but she was more interesting. Renee noticed soon enough that Dean wasn't paying attention to the skies. She looked at him, wondering what was going on his mind. She was tempted to ask at first but it felt unnecessary. Moreover, he wouldn't give her a real answer anyway. So they were just sitting there, their bodies touching, gazing into each other's eyes instead of looking at the stars, and getting lost in the moment. Renee wanted to say something but ended up smiling. He smiled as well. He hadn't done a single mistake, and she decided to reward him with a kiss, she had longed for giving him.