I can't take my eyes off of him as we amble towards one another. He reminds me of a giant teddy bear that keeps me safe, and reminds me that I am never alone. There is a part of me that wants to run towards him and jump into his arms, but I keep my regular pace, and fight my emotions to stop working in over-drive. I wonder if he feels this way too or if I'm just a little bit crazy. The closer we get, he flashes a smile my direction and I know that if my feelings make me crazy, then he is crazy as well and that is just fine with me.
Finally we share, "hello's," and begin walking aimlessly but I don't care because I'm here with him and I cannot remember a single time I have felt so blissfully happy. Occasionally we stop into a few stores to do a little shopping and make a few purchases. We walk past a Caribou Coffee and his eyes light up-of course we have to turn back. The girl behind the counter practically drools when he places the order, (she very clearly finds him attractive) and the little green jealousy monster creeps up on me. We sign our names on the, "Chalk Thoughts," board, which for some reason re-activates the butterflies in my chest.
With all our talking, laughing, and teasing each other, the time flies faster than one could imagine and I realize it is almost time to leave so we go sit on the benches by the doors and wait for the rest of my classmates to show up. It appears as though everyone is going to be late which in this situation, I am completely okay with because I don't want the evening to end. As we wait, we talk about our night and how much fun we had with one another. The incident at Caribou Coffee somehow comes up and I tease him about how, "Coffee Girl," was so intrigued by his good looks and smooth way of talking. The realization hits that we never took a picture of the board on which we signed our names. We look at each other and at the same time, make a mad dash for the second floor, and back to Caribou Coffee. We take our picture and rush back to join the group.
Sadness hangs in the air around us as we say our goodbye's, and part ways. The night may be over but in my heart I know it is the start of something great, something new, and something with the potential to go a long way if the two of us decide we want to continue down this path. We load onto the bus and make our way back to the hotel. The chatter around me seems to disappear as I replay the events from the night in my head. We reach the hotel- I go to my room, shower, brush my teeth, and crawl into bed knowing sweet dreams are to ensue!
