Lexi's Love & War

Chapter 13

Isaac stood not far from the entrance of Jenny's, pacing and rubbing his hands together to wipe off any remaining sweat. He hoped he wasn't overdressed for tonight with his dark blue jeans and a dark green-and-black plaid button-up shirt. He also hoped that he didn't speak too much or accidentally make things awkward between him and Lexi during their date.

Let's hope she even shows up, Isaac thought.

Just thinking that caused a heavy sigh to escape him. He cleared his throat and tried to lose his nerves as best he could.

"Hey!"

Isaac looked behind him and saw Lexi fast approaching. He mustered up a calm smile as he returned her greeting and led her inside the diner.

A female hostess took them to a cozy booth with black cushions and a bright red table. Once she left, the pair began silently looking through the menu. Isaac paused to look around the small restaurant. There were a few tables and booths filled with patrons talking while eating standard diner food. The front was painted black and red to match the seating, but it stood out against the remaining bright white walls. Isaac stopped looking around in time to see the server appear to take their drink order.

"I'll have a water," Lexi said.

"I'll have one, too, please," Isaac added.

After their server left, Lexi gave Isaac a kind look. "Are you alright?"

"Sure," he lied. "You?"

"I'm fine, thanks."

Isaac resumed staring at the menu. He'd already decided what to order, but it was his only excuse to not talk to Lexi. It's not that he didn't want to talk to her; he just didn't know what to say. He felt his nerves creep back on him yet again.

"You're nervous."

He looked up to see an amused Lexi staring at him. He tried to brush off her observation, but that lasted for about a second before he gave in and nodded in defeat. He felt Lexi touch his left arm.

"Why?" she asked.

"I don't know," he confessed. "I guess...I don't want this to go badly... So it's easier to say nothing than anything."

Lexi nodded. "If it makes you feel any better, I was a trainwreck before I showed up. I'm still a tad nervous now."

"Really? You hide it better than me!"

"Ha, thanks! Look, I think it's silly that we're both acting so friggin' nervous over this. I mean, we know each other and already get along well. We both need to relax and stop overthinking this date," Lexi explained.

Isaac pondered this over for just a moment. "You make a good point."

"I try."

Both students laughed for several minutes over the ridiculousness of their previous behaviour. Their server came by a few minutes after they had calmed down to take their order, and then soon left.

"So, what do you wanna talk about?" Isaac asked.

"How about you tell me about yourself?" Lexi proposed. "I told you about myself not that long ago, so it's your turn to do the same."

"Sure. Uh...I'm from Buffalo, and I've lived there my whole life with my parents and sister."

"You have a sister?"

Isaac nodded. "Her name's Laura. She's older than me— she's 22, and in her last year of Nursing at Rutgers University in New Jersey."

"That's awesome! What do your parents do?"