Chapter 18 - Luke

I finally did it. I asked Alexia out. And, you know, kissed her and stuff.

It had been amazing: our lips were in sync, fitting perfectly together. And when she slid her tongue in my mouth… Oh god. It had been really mesmerizing.

When I woke up, Alexia was still sleeping. I got out of my bed and kissed her forehead. I then went to change. When I came back, Alexia was still in bed, but her eyes were open. "Your lips are soft," she said dreamily.

I laughed. "If you get up, you can feel them a little more," I challenged.

She smirked but got up anyway. She walked up to me and kissed my lips. I placed my hands on her waist as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"So," Alexia said, as we broke apart. "Do we already know where we're going today?"

"No," I answered. "I'll go ask."

"Okay."

I walked out of our room and knocked on my mother's door. She opened after a few seconds. "Hey, mom. We just wanted to ask where we're going today."

"I love how you say "we" now," my mother said.

"Shut up," I said.

My mom chuckled. "I didn't organize anything today, so you can do whatever you want."

"Oh, great. Are you coming?" I asked. "Because you said "you"."

"Nah. I think I'll just stay here today. My legs are really sore from all the walking."

I wanted to tell her that she was the one who insisted we walk around all day, but I didn't want to start an argument early in the morning.

"Okay. Thanks, mom."

"No problem, pumpkin."

I walked back to our room and told Alexia the good news.

"So we have the whole day to ourselves?" she asked. I nodded.

"Cool," she said. "We should look up some places on Google. We could see if there's a Starbucks nearby. I haven't had coffee in forever."

"Uh…" I started to say. "There aren't any Starbucks in Tessin."

Alexia was silent for a few seconds. "WHAT?!"

I laughed. "Yeah, I don't know why, but they don't have them here."

Alexia passed a hand through her hair. "I'm going to die in this place."

"Oh, come on!" I reassured her. "We'll find you some coffee. And we can buy some chocolate too if you want."

Her eyes lit up. "Chocolate?"

I smiled. "You know that Switzerland is famous for chocolate, right?"

She seemed to think about that. Finally, she spoke. "Okay, so today we will raid every single shop for chocolate." She looked at me for confirmation. "Correct?"

"Correct," I said.

"We will find a coffee place," she continued. "Then, we'll come back here and eat everything."

"Cool," I said.

"And you won't stop me," she said. "I know I will probably gain a few pounds, but I don't care."

"Of course," I said, smiling.

"Okay," she said, a ferocious look in her eyes. "Let's go."

As Alexia said before, we raided every single shop. We had four bags full of chocolate and four cups of coffee. It was awesome. Chocolate in Switzerland is good. And I mean like really good. I probably put on a few pounds just by eating chocolate. Oh, well.

Alexia was happy. She was hopping along, not even caring about the looks people were giving her. Man, she was a really special girl. She's funny, she's smart, she's beautiful, she's… awesome. If I were to describe my perfect woman, Alexia would be the closest thing to it.

Whoa.

Did I just… no. I mean, sure, I have feelings for her, but do I… love her? No, not yet. But I'm probably pretty close.

Anyways, we went back to the hotel and ate. That's all we did. By the end of it, we were so full that we skipped lunch. But I didn't regret a thing. While eating our delicious snacks, Alexia stood up and walked towards her suitcase. When she came back she had a small pack in her hands.

"I told you I would get you a present," she said as she handed me the box.

I unwrapped it quickly and pulled out a book called "The Eighth Day." I turned it around and saw the first critic: Recommended for fans of Percy Jackson and Harry Potter.

"What?" I said, shocked. "How did you find this?"

Alexia just smirked. "I have my resources."

We stayed inside the rest of the day. We played cards, we watched TV, we made fun of the people outside… It was fun. And the occasional pecks on the lips made everything even better.

At about 5 o'clock, I went over to my mom's room to check on her.

"Hey, mom. How are you doing?" I asked as she opened the door.

"Aw, so sweet for you to come to ask me that," she said. "Your mother taught you well."

"Ha-ha."

"I'm a good sweetie. Oh, by the way, I'll probably just stay here this afternoon, so you could go out with Alexia." She raised her eyebrows at me. "You know… out?"

"You mean... out on a date?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "Go out, eat dinner, walk back home under the moonlight…"

"Sure, sure. Okay, yeah, I can do that," I said.

"Of course you can! Just remember to open the door for her. Oh! And also to pull back her chair when you sit down to your table. And, of course, don't forget to eat without your elbows on the table. You don't want to look like a pig! And also-"

"Mom," I interrupted. "I think it'll be fine. Thank you for those tips though."

"Of course honey. Have a good date!" she said. She then shut the door in my face. Thanks, mom.

I walked back to our room. Alexia was sitting on her bed, reading. God, she looked so peaceful and beautiful and… Okay, getting distracted.

"Hey," I said. "Would you like to go out to dinner tonight?"

She looked up from her book and smirked. "For a date?"

"Shut up," I said, an embarrassed smile creeping on my face. "But seriously, do you want to?"

She stood up and kissed my cheek. "I would love to."

"Awesome!" I said happily. "I'll reserve a table at Lanchetta."

"Don't know what that is, but okay," Alexia said. "When do you want to leave?"

"I was thinking to eat at about seven o'clock if that's okay for you."

"Yeah, that's fine."

"So we'll have to leave at about six forty-five," I concluded.

Alexia looked at her watch. I love how she wears watches. I mean, most girls just look at their phone, but I think having a watch is more…nerdy. I like nerdy.

"It's already 5.15," Alexia stated. "I should probably take a shower and get ready."

"Yeah, go ahead," I answered. She walked swiftly towards the bathroom and, with a wink, closed the door.

I took out my phone and called the restaurant. I reserved two seats at their best table. By the time I was done, Alexia had walked out of the bathroom, with a towel around her chest. I looked her up and down, noticing her smooth legs and arms. Her hair was wrapped in a turban. She saw me staring but just smiled. "What are you looking at?" she asked.

"You," I answered without even thinking about it. She blushed.

"It's your turn," Alexia said to me. "I'm not going on a date with you if you stink." Just to be silly, I ran towards the bathroom and shut the door. I could hear her laughing outside. I chuckled, then stepped under the hot water. I lost track of time and only got out of the shower after Alexia had knocked and called me repeatedly.

I opened the door and gasped. Alexia looked stunning. She was wearing a short, skinny blue summer dress, which showed off her beautiful curves. The blue color brought out her eyes and her black hair was neatly brushed and fell down onto her shoulders. I was happy to see she had put on the bracelet I had given her, along with a pair of silver earrings and a silver necklace.

"What are you doing? We have to leave in less than ten minutes!" Alexia said.

"Oh, crap. Yeah, give me a second," I answered. I picked out a pair of jeans, a buttoned-up shirt, and my jacket. I don't know why, but dressing up like that made me feel like a successful businessman or a powerful city guy.

"You ready?" Alexia asked.

"Yeah, we can leave."

We walked out of the hotel, and a taxi was out there to take us to the restaurant. Alexia looked surprised. "Why don't we drive there in our own car?"

"Switzerland is weird," I said as if that explained everything. "You can drive only when you turn eighteen, not sixteen like in America."

"Oh," she said. "Switzerland is weird."

I laughed. We got in the taxi and drove off. Five minutes later, we arrived. As my mother had told me, I opened Alexia's door and offered her my hand. She took it a smiled brightly. Hand in hand, we walked to the door. I wanted to open it and let Alexia pass, but the waiter beat me to it. He smiled and greeted us happily.

"Buonasera. Avete già un posto riservato?" he asked.

"Yes," I said. "I reserved a table for two about an hour ago."

"Oh, yes," the waiter said, switching to English. "This way please."

We followed him to a table next to the windows. There was a view of the lake, which was why I chose this table.

"Please," I said to Alexia as I pulled back her chair. She sat down and looked at me weirdly.

"What?" I asked.

"Why are you being so nice?" she asked. "I mean, don't get me wrong, you're an angel, but this is too much. I feel like a spoiled little girl with the best date ever."

I smiled, pleased with the way she had described me. I was an angel. I was the best date ever. A strong sense of pride surged inside me.

"Uh okay. So, you're saying I should stop being nice?" I asked. "I kind of like doing this." It was true. It felt good to care about someone and to help her with whatever she needed.

"You do?" she asked, surprised. "Well then, I won't stop you. You can spoil me all you want."

"Ha-ha."

"Here is the menu," the waiter interrupted. "Would you like to order something to drink in the meantime?"

"I'll just have some water. Still, please," Alexia said.

"I'll have the same." The waiter nodded and walked away.

We took our menus and chose what to eat. Alexia got the Agnolotti with Ricotta cheese, black Truffle, and Almonds. I got the Rib Eye with horseradish and sweet potatoes. I'll save you the details, but it was all absolutely heavenly. Along with the delicious food, we had a wonderful conversation. Alexia and I talked about family, friends, embarrassing stories, and hobbies. I found out that she likes writing, in fact, she sometimes writes short stories. I asked her if I could read some, but she just said, "Maybe."

I found out that she used to play a lot of sports like gymnastics, swimming, tennis and still does horseback riding. I found out that she really likes nature and wants to live in Montana when she grows up. I thought it was really inspiring how she had all her plans already figured out. She also told me that her ideal job would be to become a writer: she would stay at home all day, she would be doing something she loves, and she can be stress-free. I don't even know what I'm going to eat tomorrow and she knows what she's going to do in ten years.

I told her about how I played soccer when I was young, and how I now just swim. I told her about my life in New York. It was fun to finally talk about this stuff to someone. Since moving to California, I still hadn't felt really comfortable sharing my experiences. It was different with Alexia: she didn't judge me no matter what I did. And for that, I could talk freely.

After the lovely dinner, we walked back home under the moonlight, just as my mother had suggested. After a moment of silence, Alexia spoke.

"This was amazing," she said. "Thank you."

She then leaned over to me and laid her head on my shoulder. I instinctively put my arm around her waist, holding her close.

"It was nothing."

"Stop saying that, you beautiful boy!" Alexia suddenly exclaimed, stepping in front of me. "It's not nothing! You are perfect, and everything you do is special. Stop underestimating yourself. You're the most amazing person I have ever met, so never say "It was nothing" ever again, or you'll have to deal with me."

"Okay," I said, grinning. "It was something."

She sighed. "Thank you."

We walked home wrapped around each other. We didn't even say hi to my mom, just walked in our room. I closed the door and turned around, finding Alexia a couple of inches away. She leaned in, closing the gap between us.

In that moment, I knew something that I'd been trying to answer for a while now: I loved this girl. She was the whole package: funny, smart, athletic, gorgeous, adventurous. In that moment, I understood that Alexia was my other half, and my job was to love her forever. And, from that very second, I promised myself to do so.