[chapter six]
Disclaimer: If you've heard of them, I don't own them. Everything else is mine, so no stealing, pretty please. ;-)
**
~Jimmie's POV~
I've been looking forward to this all week. Getting to see Shea again. And not when she's having to make mochas or take insanely short breaks.
I climb out of my car and nervously brush the front of my sweater, hoping I don't look like a tool in it. I step through the front door of the Silver Spoon and smile as Shea smiles from behind the counter.
"Hi." I say and she grins in response.
"Hi." She echoes.
"You look nice. Ready to go?"
She blushes slightly. "Thanks. Sure, I'm ready. Where are we going?" Shea asks as I lead her out the front door to my car.
"You like Chinese food?"
**
"So where did you go to school originally?" I ask, trying unsuccessfully to eat my sesame chicken with chopsticks. She, I notice, has no trouble using them instead of a fork.
"Um. Columbia." She says shyly.
"Wow! Columbia … that's awesome." I gush, impressed. "Always wanted to be an English major?"
She nods. "Yeah. For as long as I can remember, that's what I've wanted to study. And Columbia has one of the best programs in the country. I was really lucky … I got a full scholarship to go, or I never would have been able to afford it."
"Beautiful and smart." I say with a wink and she ducks her head, embarrassed. She's just too cute, and humble, for her own good. "But then you came back. Why?"
Shea is silent for a moment, and I wince slightly. It's none of my business really, but I'm dying to know why such a smart girl, with a scholarship, would come back to Mooresville.
"I was needed back home." She says neutrally. "I had to come back."
I watch her for a moment, hoping she'll elaborate, but she says nothing more.
"Oh." I say instead, feeling like an idiot. "So is your correspondence through Columbia?"
"No. I can't afford it, and when I left, they took away my scholarship." Shea says unhappily. "Maybe I'll get back there someday."
"I hope so." I say sincerely.
"You do?"
"Mm-hm. You're wasted somewhere like this." I say convincingly. "But if you need to brush up on your teaching skills, you can always teach me about sonnets and Shakespeare and the Great American Novel. I promise to be a really good student." I say with a broad grin and a wink and she laughs out loud.
"I'll keep that in mind." She smiles and I feel my heart soar at the sight.
**
"Thanks. I had a good time."
"Me too." I say earnestly. And I did. For the last four hours, we've talked, laughed, sipped coffee (much to Shea's joking consternation) and gotten to know each other. And I've discovered something.
I really like this girl.
Once she stopped being so shy and began being herself, I found out how smart, how funny, how kind she is. I still don't know anything about her family or her everyday life or what brought her home, but I intend to find out.
Because I really like this girl.
"Can we do it again sometime?" I ask hopefully and she smiles at me with a small nod.
"I'd like that, Jimmie."
I love it when she says my name.
"I'll stop by soon and set something up, okay?"
"Okay." She whispers, turning to go back into the coffee shop. Gently, I grasp her upper arm and turn her back around, dropping a kiss onto her unsuspecting lips.
"G'night, Shea." I say after a few seconds, wanting to laugh at her shocked expression.