It was just past 7 PM when you and Dilean stepped into the warm, ambient glow of the little Italian restaurant tucked away on a quiet street corner. The kind with string lights above the patio, soft jazz playing inside, and the smell of garlic and fresh bread floating through the air. You had been talking about going somewhere nice for a while—just the two of you—and tonight felt perfect.

Dilean looked absolutely stunning. Her dark hair was curled loosely over her shoulders, and she wore a soft red dress that made you do a double take when you picked her up. She smirked at your reaction. “What?” she said, raising a brow as she took your hand. “You act like you’ve never seen me in a dress before.”

“I haven’t seen this dress,” you said, pulling out her chair once you were seated. “You’re gonna get me in trouble looking like that.”

She laughed and rolled her eyes, “You’re already in trouble, babe. You ordered me to stop studying and go out tonight, remember?”

You grinned across the table. “Best decision I ever made.”

The waiter brought you two lemon waters to start, and you both glanced over the menu, casually joking and chatting about random things—how annoying her philosophy class was, the couple next to you arguing about ravioli, the TikTok trend she was tired of seeing.

She leaned on her elbow, looking at you with a small smile. “You’re kinda cute when you’re not being chaotic.”

“I’m always cute,” you said, pretending to be offended. “You just act like you don’t notice.”

“You’re lucky you’re funny,” she shot back, smirking.