Throughout the weeks I spent getting to know Rowan, I never once mentioned him to Jack. It was almost like living two separate lives. I spent most of my classes, and time out of school, with Jack. But I spent every gym class completely focused on Rowan. It was exhausting. Rowan was becoming just as important to me as Jack, and I wished more than anything that they could be friends as well. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem very likely to happen. Rowan had expressed interest in wanting to meet Jack, claiming that if I liked him, he would too. But Jack still seemed nervous every time he dropped me off at gym class, eyeing the room closely before he went to class. I wanted to ask Jack what exactly he had heard about Rowan, but I was too afraid that bringing his name up in conversation would only cause conflict.
By the end of the month, I had become accustomed to using crutches. My arms had gotten stronger, and they hardly seemed to bother me anymore. I went to gym class on my last day on crutches, excited to see Rowan. But there was one thing bothering me. I never talked to Rowan outside of gym, and after today, he might never talk to me again. Although I was a very introverted person and usually walked around with my nose stuck in a book, I got attached to certain people extremely easily. Other than Jack, Rowan was my best friend, but I was afraid that he might only see me as a way to get out of gym class. I might be nothing more than a distraction to him. The worst part was, my feelings for Rowan went far beyond friendship. At first, I thought my attraction to him might have been a crush, a result of his naturally gorgeous physical appearance. However, as I spent more time with him, I found that my feelings for him were rooted so much deeper. My feelings, my love for him was like a giant hook that became more firmly rooted in my heart every day. The truth was, I was simply afraid to lose him.
Comfortably I sat down on the bleachers as usual but was disappointed to find out that Rowan wasn’t at school. Impatiently I sat there quietly for the entire class period, silently reading City of Bones, by Cassandra Clare. Rowan had told me it was his favorite modern novel, so I had decided to give it a try. The period seemed to go on forever. Generally, I hardly ever got bored when reading, but today seemed to be an exception.
After class, Athena walked up to me. She pulled a letter out of her purse and handed it to me. “Rowan told me to give you this. He gave it to me yesterday. I hope it’s good news,” she said as she walked off. She blew a kiss to some boys standing nearby as she walked away. I silently said a prayer, sincerely thanking God that I hadn’t been born with a personality like Athena Jackson’s.
It was almost painful to wait to read the letter until I got home. As soon as I opened the door, I dropped my things on the floor and went up to my room. After sitting down on my bed, I examined the letter. It had no address and had obviously been intended to be delivered in person. My name was neatly written in cursive on the front side of the envelope. Opening it, I carefully took out a beautiful piece of golden stationery paper.
Dear Lily,
I would love for you to join me for dinner tonight at my home, around 6 o’clock. My address is below.
28 Chestnut Street
Sincerely yours, Rowan
I carefully put the invitation back inside the envelope and sat there staring at it. This was much better than what I’d expected. I never thought he’d even give me his number, much less invite me to his house for dinner. After reading the address, I knew he only lived about fifteen minutes away. I glanced at the clock—four-sixteen. I knew from experience that if my parents weren’t home by now, they probably wouldn’t be home until around nine. I was sure they wouldn’t mind me going, but I’d still have to walk.
In a rush, I jumped off my bed and walked to my closet, quickly opening the doors. Since today was my last day on crutches anyway, I made the executive decision that I could abandon them a few hours early. Even though I’d become pretty skilled at using crutches, I was pretty sure that taking them to dinner might ruin the mood. Since I had virtually no experience in these matters, it was a bit stressful. At eighteen, I’d been on exactly three dates, and none of them had been even a little bit formal.
Quickly I thought back to all of our conversations, trying to remember if Rowan had ever talked about clothes. The only thing I could remember him saying was that he thought skirts and dresses looked more elegant than pants. In truth, although I loved my yoga pants and leggings, I found that I almost preferred dresses and skirts. In a way different from most women, I felt powerful in a dress, so a good portion of my closet consisted of them. I opted for a dress rather than a skirt, and started pulling all of the ones I owned out of the closet.
After holding a few of them up in front of me, I decided on a dark-green maxi dress. I put the dress on and examined myself in the mirror. The dress was long enough that it just reached the floor, and was covered in tiny white flowers. It was sleeveless, so I threw on a denim jacket in case I got cold.
As usual, I decided that I wanted a relatively natural look and used a minimal amount of makeup. In a rushed manner, I moved on to my hair, taking it down from the ponytail it had been in all day. Along with my general clumsiness, I was also absolutely awful with hair appliances, but I knew how to braid better than anything. Quickly I pulled my hair back and slowly braided it in a crown across the top of my head. I fluffed my bangs and let them fall gently across my forehead. Remembering how Rowan had said that he preferred natural beauty, I pulled some small hairs out from behind my ears and lightly curled them with my fingers. Since I knew I’d be walking, I put on a pair of comfortable yet feminine black sandals. Nervously I went back to the mirror, re-examining myself. I sighed in relief. I was at least relatively pretty, but inwardly I knew that my dull brown hair and pale skin could never compare with Rowan’s golden curls and honey complexion. In nervousness, I quickly bit my lips, hoping it would add some natural color to my face, and headed out the door.
Feeling silly for being so nervous, I anxiously walked to his house, squeezing my handbag the entire way. My stress level increased as I reached his street and turned the corner. The entire street, composed of only ten houses, was absolutely gorgeous. I’d never actually been there before, since I didn’t know anyone else who lived there. Each house was impeccably decorated. Some of them were surrounded by flowers, while others had beautiful water features or dozens of fruit trees. Each house seemed to have a considerable amount of land, and as I walked by, I sometimes saw children playing on the hills behind their houses. The neighborhood seemed magical, almost otherworldly.
I reached the end of the street where a large two-story, Tudor style house stood. It looked as though it was a hundred years old, but was so well maintained that it seemed brand new. Behind the house were dozens of trees that appeared to lead into a forest. There were rose bushes with luscious blooming flowers surrounding the entire house. I glanced at the house number, recognizing it as Rowan’s. I slowly walked up the pathway to the front door and knocked.
Within seconds Rowan appeared at the door, dressed in a perfectly-fitting black suit. I inwardly slapped myself for not dressing more formally. He smiled at me, gesturing for me to come into the house. “I was hoping you would come,” he said. “You look perfect.”
I blushed, turning away, pretending to examine a painting on the wall. “Thank you,” I said.
The table was covered in a variety of fresh-looking foods. There was a bowl of salad, a tray with uncooked vegetables, and two large pieces of baked salmon. He set the rest of the food out and sat down. I walked over to sit across from him at the large, wooden table. I glanced down, noticing that there were only two places set.
“Are your parents not eating with us?” I asked.
He looked down at his plate, focusing very hard on his silverware. “No. My mom died when I was three, and my dad passed away last year.” His eyes never moved up to meet mine.
I set my silverware down, mortified with myself for asking such a stupid question. “Rowan, I’m so sorry. I know it’s not an excuse, but I didn’t know. I assumed that being so young, you’d have to live with someone. I’m sorry.”
I anxiously squeezed my hands under the table. I kept my eyes down, so embarrassed that I didn’t think I could speak.
“Lily,” he said, extending his hand across the table. “You had no way of knowing. And about my age. I was eighteen before my dad died, so I was allowed to live by myself. I have no siblings, and my dad left everything to me.”
I looked up at him, bringing my hand up onto the table to hold his outstretched hand.
“I didn’t ask you here to talk about my parents,” he said, his usual grin creeping onto his face. I smiled, glad that I hadn’t ruined the dinner.
The rest of our meal went on without any other hiccups. We talked, laughed, and held hands for a good part of the evening. When it was time for me to leave, Rowan asked if he could pick me up the next day around four. I told him I’d be looking forward to it. He offered to drive me home, but I said that after having been on crutches for so long, I would enjoy the walk.
On the way home, I thought about everything that had happened that evening. But I mostly thought about how Rowan was so different from anyone I’d ever met. There was no awkwardness when we talked, and he could make even the most boring conversation enjoyable. I couldn’t imagine why Jack wouldn’t like someone who was so fun to be around. I decided I would tell Jack about the dinner and my date the next day. After I told him how important Rowan was to me, not to mention how amazing he was in general, Jack would have to like him.