"A planetarium?!"

Debbie nods and smiles.

"That's so romantic! Can she talk to Tom? For our anniversary he bought me a birthday card because he mixed up the dates and thought it was my birthday. No cake though."

"She lit candles too."

"Oh, wow. Go on, just tell me everything."

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"And then it just happened, we kissed. God, Tammy, I haven't felt this…. feeling in so long."

"You look happier." Tammy smiles.

"I feel it, too." Debbie unconsciously touches her watch. "I haven't felt like this in a little while now."

"Have you talked to her yet today?"

"She texted me good morning."

"Look at you! You haven't looked this smiley since college!"

"I just… I really like her. I know I haven't known her very long, but it just feels right, you know?"

Tammy nods knowingly. "Mm, you know what you two should do? The county fair's gonna be in town for a bit starting next week. You can win her a stuffed animal at the ring toss."

"I don't know if Lou is the fair type. Although, I'd pay to see her carry around a giant stuffed animal all night."

"So, when do I get to meet her?"

Debbie finishes the yogurt on her spoon. "I don't know. I mean, what's the appropriate amount of time to wait before I introduce her to my friends?"

"I don't know that there's a schedule for these things. Maybe just feel things out as they come your way?"

Debbie stares off into space as she nods.

"Well, since you're so taken with her, I'll order the flowers for the spring formal from her shop."

"Tammy, that's months away. How do you even know if-"

"Oh, I know. Also, I'm finally head of the PTA and I'm a little bit drunk with power."

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"Not even a single guess?"

Lou tried her best not to smile at Debbie's disbelief. "Nope."

"I don't buy it. I call and ask if you're busy tonight, you say no, and I tell you when to be ready and you don't ask a single question?!"

"Why ruin the mystery? Besides, watching you incredulously ask me over and over again if I want to know where you're taking me is more fun."

Debbie playfully pushes Lou's shoulder as she pulls into the fairgrounds. "Let's go win some prizes."

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After an hour at the fair, as promised, Debbie had won Lou a giant giraffe. And Lou, in turn, won a giant penguin for Debbie. They looked ridiculous walking around with the oversized toys and they knew it.

They stopped for some subpar fair food and sat, with their new friends, at a picnic table.

"You are really good at darts. Like, really good."

"I was a bartender at this shithole bar in Florida for almost a year. It was in some small town where there were approximately 5 people under the age of 78, including tourists."

Debbie laughs as she takes a bite of her hot dog getting some mustard on her face. Lou looks at her and just can't help but feel a little weaker in the knees at the sight. She finally reaches her hand out and wipes the bit of mustard off Debbie's face with her thumb and licks it off her finger.

Debbie never knew that someone wiping condiments off of her face could be so…. Sexy.

"There wasn't much to do there so I played darts with the two regulars for most of my shift. I used to be really good. I've gotten a bit rusty."

"You used to be good? I'm glad I chose the ring toss to impress you." Debbie said the last bit without noticing.

"So, you're trying to impress me?" She smiles and sips her soda.

Debbie tries her hardest not to smile and fails. "So what if I am?"

Lou scoots closer. "Well, I don't know if you know this, but I'm here on a date." She points to her giraffe.

Debbie goes along with the game. "Yes, I'm here with a very hot date myself. He even wore a suit."

"Well, then now I know who to apologize to."

"Apologize for what?"

"For this." Lou looks at her a moment longer and kisses her. This time it's Debbie who reaches into Lou's hair making her moan a little.

"You're pretty good at that too. Kissing and darts. You can add that to your resumé."

Lou rests her head in her hand and just looks at Debbie as she wonders how life had such a funny way of working out.

"Just so you're aware, we're going on the viking ship ride before we leave."

Debbie nearly chokes on her drink. "We? As in me too? As in I'm going to be on the ride while it's in motion?"

"You're scared!"

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are! I can smell it on you." As she says this Lou sticks her face into Debbie's neck and sniffs. "See? Right there, fear." She says into her neck.

"I'm not saying I'll go, but what do I get if I agree to get on the death boat?"

As their laughter dies down Lou keeps her head in place and ever so slowly places the gentlest and warmest kiss on Debbie's neck. She moves up a little and places another at the pulse point below her ear.

"Anything you want." Lou whispers in her ear.

At that moment all Debbie wanted was something she and Lou may very well get arrested for if it happened right there on the table.

Lou nibbles on her earlobe and then sits back again watching Debbie try her hardest to maintain the illusion of control on her face.

She clears her throat and waits a moment before speaking. "I have decided to go on your death boat."

As they sit facing each other on the same side of the picnic table, Lou holds both her hands lacing their fingers together and comes really close to Debbie's lips. "Be brave and I'll make it worth your while."

"See, I'm a responsible woman. So I always place safe bets." Debbie says as she feeds Lou some funnel cake, getting some powdered sugar at the corner of the blonde's mouth. "And you talk a big game, but when it comes time for me to collect will you be able to make good on this promise?"

At that Debbie leans in licking the sugar off Lou's mouth, gets up and picks up her penguin. "The boat is on the other side of the fair, let's go." She says with the straightest face possible. When she looks back at Lou and sees the expression on her face and the fire in her eyes, she thought that maybe getting arrested wasn't that terrible.

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"For the record, I would have totally bailed you out."

"I was kidding, Tammy, jeez. I'm not looking to get arrested for public indecency."

"Tom is an excellent lawyer. He would've got that taken off your record like that." Tammy snaps her fingers.

Debbie laughs. "Tammy, if anyone knows how good a lawyer he is, it's me."

She's helping Tammy pick out Halloween costumes for her kids. "Have they chosen their costumes yet?"

"Well, Stephanie wants The Wizard of Oz."

"Oh, that'll make such a cute costume. She'll be an adorable Dorothy."

"No, she wants to be The Wizard of Oz. My precious 6-year-old daughter wants to be The wizard. Not Dorothy, The Lion, The Scarecrow or The Tin Man. The big, scary wizard."

Debbie loves her godchildren and would expect nothing less. "What about Michael?"

"Toilet."

"I think it's towards the back."

"No, Michael, my baby boy, wants to be a toilet."

At that Debbie can't help but laugh. "How are you gonna find these costumes here?"

"Oh, I'm trying to find one for me and Tom. I'm gonna make the kids' costumes." Tammy throws a bottle of fake blood in the cart just in case. "What about you? What're you doing for Halloween?"

"I don't think I'm doing anything. Lou hasn't mentioned anything yet. But it's still two weeks away and she's not the planning type. She's more of a 'fuck it, let's just do it' type."

"Oh, you definitely need her then."

"Excuse me?"

"You are the most Type A person I know and the phrase control freak was invented for you. You need someone that'll help you cut loose and live a little."

"I can't even be mad at that assessment."

Just then Debbie's phone pings with a text message notification.

Lou: What are your plans for the 30th?

Debbie: None so far

Lou: Wanna go to a Halloween party?