A/N: With all the trouble this storm's been causing, I almost forgot to post this chapter. Good thing I didn't! And now everyone gets to read what is probably my favorite chapter so far. Happy reading!
Disclaimer: Rainstorms are so fun! Especially when I don't have to worry about any lightning or thunder.
The next morning, everyone at Beach City Grill was buzzing with excitement and curiosity. They all were dying to know how Ezra and Jen's date went, and they couldn't wait until the two showed up to give them details.
Finally, just as they were about to open up for the day, the two entered the shop. "'Bout time!" Priestly yelled to his cousin and his friend. "What took you so long? I had to be on time for once just so I could talk to you!"
Without giving either person a chance to respond, Piper and Tish whisked Jen away to the back office, and Priestly and Trucker shoved Ezra into a booth, joining him seconds later. "Okay, Zig," said Priestly. "Spill."
"We want to hear how everything went last night," Trucker added enthusiastically.
"Give us every detail," Tish demanded of Jen. "Leave out nothing."
Jen blushed under the interrogation, but she didn't back down. "We went to dinner at Mama Bella's," she started slowly. It didn't take long for a smile to join the blush on her cheeks. "We got that pizza that I like there. He joked about leaving me for the pizza."
"He better not be leaving you for anything," Tish threatened playfully.
"Well, I told him that I'd already cheated on him with with the pizza," Jen chuckled, "so it all worked out in the end."
"What else did he do?" asked Piper.
A look of surprised flashed on Ezra's face. "But what about opening up?" he asked.
"It can wait," Trucker dismissed with a wave of his hand. "Lucille and Mr. Julius will understand."
"And if they get impatient, we'll let them in and they can join the conversation," said Priestly. "So there's no backing out."
Ezra rolled his eyes and sighed in resignation. "Okay, fine. I'll tell you. You know we went out to eat. I paid for dinner."
"And dessert?" Priestly cut in.
"Please, Bo," Ezra scoffed. "When have you ever known me to pass up dessert?"
Priestly held his hands up disarmingly. "Okay, okay. Don't kill me. I was just wondering." Trucker and Ezra both laughed as the mohawked man put his hands back on the table.
"For the record," continued Ezra, "yes, I bought dessert. And because I know you're going to ask, I did buy flowers also. I got her a small bouquet of hydrangeas."
"Nice," Trucker praised approvingly. "Nice and simple. Good choice."
"We went to the restaurant, joked about cheating on each other with the pizza we had."
"That is some good pizza," Priestly admitted.
"Right!" Ezra exclaimed. "That was, by far, the best pizza I've ever had. Anyway, after we finished dinner, I convinced Jen to let me buy dessert. She didn't want to at first, since I'd already said I was paying, but I told her not to be afraid to ask me for things like that, and that it's okay to have high expectations of a guy."
"After that, we walked on the beach for a while," said Jen, a blush on her cheeks accompanying the bashful smile on her face at the memory of the night.
"Did he hold your hand?" asked Tish. Jen's shy grin was answer enough. "That's so romantic!" Tish and Piper swooned together. By now, they were huddled together, hands clasped as they listened to their friend recount her date.
"Then we went back to my apartment. Ezra kissed me-"
"He kissed you?" Piper shouted, cutting Jen off.
"On the cheek," Jen finished. Piper deflated a little, but didn't say anything else. "Then we wished each other goodnight, and he went home."
"That sounds like an awesome first date," said Tish with approval. "You gonna go out for a second date?"
Jen didn't answer right away, taking time to think about how to answer. "I definitely want to," she said slowly. "But I don't know if I should wait for him to ask me or if I should just ask him myself."
"I mean," Ezra mumbled, "she hasn't really said anything about wanting to go out again. She had fun last night, I could tell, and I really enjoyed it. So should I ask her out again or wait for her to ask me?"
"Try to gauge his mood and frame of mind today," Tish counseled. "If he seems to be in a good mood, then I'd say ask him."
"If you ask me, I'd say he's pretty darn happy this morning," Piper added.
"So I should just go for it like I did last time," Ezra said again, just to make sure he knew what his friends were telling him.
"Yes, Ziggy," sighed Priestly. "If she was as happy about last night as you say she looked, then she'll definitely say yes."
"Trust us, Ezra," Trucker assured the younger man. "We know Jen. She'll say yes."
Taking a deep breath, Ezra squared his shoulders in determination. "Okay," he decided. "I'll ask her sometime today."
"Atta boy," Priestly clapped his cousin on the shoulder. "You go get her, tiger."
"Go get'im, girl," said Tish and Piper encouragingly. "You can do it."
"Alright, alright," Jen relented with a grin. "I'll do it today."
Just then, there was a knock at the door. Trucker turned around to see Mr. Julius and Lucille, punctual as ever. "Okay," said Trucker, "time to open."
The men got up from the booth, Trucker to open the door for the customers, and Ezra and Priestly to the grill. "Hey," Priestly called to the girls in the back, "time to open."
"Coming," called Tish. "Remember," she turned to Jen one last time, "you can do it."
Jen nodded and the girls filed out of the office back to the main room. As Jen passed Ezra on her way to her seat at the computer, her eyes met his, and neither could stop the smile that lifted the corners of their lips.
As the day progressed, neither Ezra nor Jen could find a good enough time to ask the other out for a second date. But when the last customers of the night finally left the sub shop and Trucker flipped the open sign to closed, they both found a moment during clean up that they thought just right.
"Hey, Jen," said Ezra at the same time that Jen called his name. "You go first," he offered with a nervous chuckle.
"No, you go ahead," Jen insisted.
"Um, well," he hedged shyly. "I was wondering if, uh, if you'd like to take another walk on the beach tonight before going home."
"Yeah, I'd like that very much," Jen accepted. "Um, I was also wondering if-"
"Okay," Priestly called out, drawing everyone's attention. "I'm all done, so I'm heading out."
"Yeah, same here," said Tish. Both of them took off their aprons and walked hand in hand out the door, throwing a goodnight over their shoulders. Ezra wasn't positive, but he could swear he saw his cousin send him a quick wink on his way out.
"Hey, why don't you guys go ahead on out as well?" offered Piper. "All that's really left to do is sweep the floor, and I can have that done in just a few minutes."
"You sure?" Jen asked. "You're still finishing with the dishes, and I'm almost done with the till."
"Yeah, I'm sure." Piper gave them a smile as she dried a plate. "Go on, get outta here."
"But-" Jen started to protest, but Trucker spoke before she could complete her thought.
"Yes, she's sure," the older man repeated with fake exasperation. "Get going before I fire you."
Ezra and Jen knew good and well that Trucker wouldn't fire either of them, but they complied nonetheless. "See you guys tomorrow," said Ezra as he threw the rag he was using to clean the counter into the clothes basket under the counter.
"Goodnight," wished Jen as she headed toward the door. Ezra held it open and let Jen exit before him, oblivious to the knowing grin and smile of approval being thrown his way.
Because the beach was just a short walk away from the grill, Ezra didn't bother driving himself and Jen. Just like the night before, the walk was pleasant and enjoyable. They were able to talk about pretty much anything that came to mind, and when they had nothing else to talk about, they just walked along in companionable silence.
A good ways down from the grill was a beachside bar, and the music playing inside could be heard down by the water. Jen stopped to listen to the music, a smile coming on her face when she recognized the song. "I love this song," she said dreamily.
"I recognize Paul McCartney's voice," said Ezra, "but I don't know the song."
"It's 'This Never Happened Before,'" Jen informed him. Her eyes closed as she began to hum and sway along with the music.
A brilliant idea occurred to Ezra as he watched Jen enjoy the song. It was an idea that he just could not resist. "May I have this dance?" he requested, holding out his hand to a surprised Jen.
Jen blushed, but she nodded. Ezra stepped closer to her and took her hand, bringing his other arm up to her hip. "I didn't know you could dance," commented Jen as Ezra began leading her into a slow dance.
"I'm a man of many talents," he quipped lightly, eliciting a laugh from Jen. The song continued to play, enveloping the couple in a musical cocoon, their own little world.
Jen rested her head against Ezra's chest, loving the feeling of his arms around her. She felt safe and loved. "Jen," Ezra's gentle voice spoke softly. She hummed a response and looked up. Ezra took a deep breath and met her questioning gaze. "Will you do me the honor of being my girlfriend?"
Tears welled in Jen's eyes as she gave him a beaming smile. "Yes," she whispered, unable to speak anymore loudly than that. "Yes, I will." Neither of them noticed that they had stopped dancing, too wrapped up in each other to care. Ezra's hands moved to cup Jen's face, his thumbs brushing her cheeks. Leaning into each other, their lips met in the best kiss of their lives.
A/N: If you guys haven't heard the song This Never Happened Before, I highly recommend you look it up. It's such a beautiful song, and it was just perfect for this chapter. I tried to do that thing tv shows and movies do where they'll switch points of view between two people telling the same story when Ezra and Jen were talking about their date. I don't really know how well I did, and I hope it doesn't confuse anybody. Thanks for reading, guys. Don't forget to review!