Chapter 10 "You think this will work?" "Brian, you always think of all the things that girls like," Nick said over the phone. "I mean, you don't think of the weird things that AJ does. You think of the, how should I put this? Romantic things. Do you get what I'm saying?" "Yes, Nick." Brian was getting ready to head out the door to pick up Angela. He just wasn't too sure if everything that he was doing sounded corny or not. According to his best friend, everything was OK. "I'm gonna go now. I'll see you later." With that, he hung up the phone and left. At the same time.... "I'm coming out!" Krista came out of her room to see a very cute Angela. "Very nice," she complimented. "You think he'll like it?" Angela asked. Krista looked over her best friend. Angela had on a white baby-tee with a kitten on it that said 'Who me?' above it, with flares on. She had on her new Nike's and had her hair thrown up in a messy bun with her bangs done just right. "Yeah. He said comfortable right?" "Yup. So you definitely think he'll like it?" "Yes! I don't know why you're so worried about impressing him. It's not like you've never been out with him before." "I know, I know," Angela sighed. "But I want everything to go just right." Just then the doorbell rang. Angela took a deep breath and answered the door. On her doorstep stood Brian in a blue polo shirt and khakis. "He looks so good," she thought. "Hi," she said shyly. "Hey. You ready to go?" "Yup." She looked back at Krista and winked. Krista smiled at her as they walked out the door. "Can you tell me where we're going now?" "Nope. Not yet." They walked over to his green jeep and he stopped her right in front of the passenger side door. He pulled out a handkerchief and motioned for her to come closer. "I want to blindfold you for the full effect," he said in a dramatic voice. Angela just laughed at him. "Just trust me." She trusted him. So he blindfolded her and guided her into the car. "Am I going to like this?" she asked him again. "Like I said; you're going to love it." Brian got into the car and started the jeep down the road. Angela had no idea which direction they were going in because he took so many turns to get to their destination. She wasn't too familiar with the city yet. "This has got to be something special if you're going through all this trouble," she said. "Oh it is." It was a while before she finally asked, "Are we almost there?" He could hear the anticipation in her voice. "As a matter of fact, we're here. Just give me two minutes to take care of something. OK?" "Alright," she said. Angela heard him get out of the car and that was all. She couldn't hear anything else. No clues as to what it was. "He's good," she thought. She heard her door open and Brian helped her out of the car. He guided her for a little bit and then finally sat her down. He then sat down and said," You can take the blindfold off now Angela." Brian watched her slowly pull the blindfold off her face and the excitement creep upon it. He knew that she was happy and that's all he wanted to see. He had taken her to the beach and they were sitting on a blanket. On it was a candle lit dinner with all of her favorite foods. The best part was, was that there was a beautiful sunset. The kind that you only see in the movies and on postcards. She was loving it. Brian leaned over and gave her a single, white rose, and said," What do you think?" "Everything's beautiful," she said. "You sure know how to treat a lady." He blushed. "I try." "Did you cook all of this yourself?" "Yup." They slowly ate in silence the macaroni and cheese that Brian prepared for her. (They share a love for cheese.) It wasn't an awkward silence, but one that showed that they both were thinking. Wheels were turning in the sense of what was next. "Thank you," she said. "It's been a while since I've last had that. And you do make a mean macaroni and cheese." "Oh, I thought it was a very nice macaroni and cheese," he said in a serious voice. Angela laughed until her sides hurt. Brian couldn't help but laugh at her. It was these times that the two missed each other. They wiped the tears out of their eyes. Brian blew out the candles and packed everything up except for the blanket. He laid down on one side of the blanket. Angela laid down next to him. "So how are things in general?" she asked him. "Not too bad," he replied. "I have a couple days off from work." "Brian," she said looking over at him. "You don't have to hide it from me. I know you're a Backstreet Boy. I never knew it before, but I recently became a fan. I've heard 'As Long As You Love Me' on the radio quite a lot lately." "Oh. And you don't have a problem with that?" "Not at all. If you're happy, that's all that matters. Plus, I love knowing that I'm dating a Backstreet Boy." She elbowed him playfully. He then thought of Leigh Anne. "She's dating a Backstreet Boy too," he thought. "I have to stop making myself feeling guilty. I'm not doing anything wrong." "Brian?" He was knocked out of his thoughts by Angela. "What did you say?" "I asked if you would introduce me to the rest of the guys sometime." "Oh sure," he replied. "So how are things back at home?" And this is how it went on for the rest of the night. They talked about everything and anything. In between, Brian would occasionally think of Leigh Anne, but push her out of his mind. Eventually Angela got tired. She tried to hide it, but couldn't. She didn't want the night to end, but she knew that they would see each other again. "Brian, can you take me home? I'm kinda falling asleep." "Yeah." He was disappointed that she had wanted to go home. He could see that she was tired thought. Brian was definitely going to ask her out again. The ride to her house was quiet because she was fighting sleep. She was so happy though. And she realized how much she truly missed him. Brian finally pulled his jeep into her driveway. He got out and opened the door for her. "Always the gentleman," she said. He walked her to her door. And there they stood on her doorstep. "I had a really great time tonight," she said, breaking the ice. "Me too," he replied. "I just wanted to tha-" But she was cut off by his lips connecting with hers. He was gentle with her, but let his feelings be known through the kiss. Angela had a hard time trying to keep herself up; she was shaky in the knees because she was not expecting this tonight. But she returned it, letting her feelings through as well. They broke away and both smiled. Something happened during that kiss and they both knew it. "I'll call you tomorrow;" Angela said as she let herself in the house. "OK," Brian said and practically skipped to his car.