The Perfect Evening

Dylan Walters took his girlfriend, Emily's hand in his and led her inside the bustling Italian restaurant: Lucio's. The heat of the summer evening had caused Emily's long white linen skirt to stick to her bare legs showing off her slim figure. They came here every Friday. It had become a ritual special to them, as it was at Lucio's on a Friday almost eight months ago that they had had their first ever date on a cold January evening. Dylan and Emily walked across to their usual table. It was probably the best in the restaurant because it was by the large bay window looking out over the bridge crossing the river. A waiter rushed up and pulled a chair out from under the table so that Emily could sit down. She did gracefully and with a great amount of style. That was one of the things that Dylan really loved about her. Her style. Not just the way she managed to look good in everything but the organized and casual way she went about her life. Her confidence and caring nature also contributed to the mix of good things that was Emily. As he caught her gaze over the top of his menu and became lost in her deep black eyes, he couldn't help but think how truly lucky he was to be with her. "Oh I wonder what you'll be eating today Dylan" Emily stated more than questioned as she already knew the answer but it broke him out of his reverie. "Hmmm, that's a difficult one. I think I'll have penne with Bolognese sauce. Just for a change or not" he joked. "I'm also willing to bet that your going to have a vegetable Lasagne" Dylan Continued. "Spot on, as ever" she replied with a relaxed and content smile playing across her lips. This was another part of the weekly ritual, eating the same food every week. In fact they barely needed to order as all of the waiters could now predict what they were going to order, as it had been the same every single week. The waiter who was standing beside them had already written down the order before it had properly come out of their mouths. Someone had even brought their usual bottle of house wine to the table. It sat there temptingly in its plastic cooler full of ice. Both Emily and Dylan sat there staring at it for a second before Dylan reached out for the light green bottle. "Some wine, Em?" he asked. Pretty certain that he knew what the answer was going to be. "Yes Dyl" Emily replied as he poured the sweet white wine into both of their glasses. They each sipped slowly and settled down into conversation on a number of topics: Their weeks at work, the stock market, their various mutual friends, the weather and what they should do at the weekend. They didn't care so much about what they were talking about as much as being with each other. When the food arrived (fairly quickly due to the excellent service at Lucio's) they settled down to eat in silence (not an uncomfortable silence though) There was something wonderful about just sitting there perfectly happy just staring into each others eyes. At times like this there was no need for any sort of verbal communication because the feelings, which mattered showed on their faces and in their actions. The food as ever was completely and utterly delicious, there had never been any variation in quality. If anything it had got better. The conversation finally resumed as they decided what they were going to do after the meal. There was no ritual to this so they could do pretty much anything. After a little deliberation they decided against clubbing or going to see a movie in favour of going back home. "I want you all to myself" Emily told Dylan leaning closer to him exposing a little cleavage from under her red spaghetti strapped top. "I'll go with that," he murmured into her ear as he also bent into her then choosing to leave a soft kiss upon her lips. He then fed her the last remaining pieces of penne before the plates were cleared away. The sun was beginning to set casting a beautiful orange light, which was reflected on the surface of the water. It was amazing to just be sitting there and watching the world go by knowing that your perfect other is looking out in the same direction as you. People bustled by looking exasperated while others went past with tears rolling down their cheeks. Lovers strolled while children ran past excitedly. The couple's thoughts were interrupted when the waiter brought their deserts to the table, Tiramisu for Emily and Cassata for Dylan. They set about eating it a little faster than usual as they both wanted to get home. Dylan ate his Cassata starting from the outside band of ice cream working inwards towards the sorbet in the middle. He got through it at a surprising rate considering how cold it was. However Dylan suffered for this when got a bad case of hiccups, which really amused Emily but it was not so fun for him. After they had eaten she reached over and stroked his cheek gently "I love you" she whispered kissing him deeply, tasting the ice cream which he had just been eating inside his mouth. They both decided against having their usual coffee, so they left the table and went up to pay. They both paid but as they came every week Dylan would pay one week and Emily the next. After the very reasonable bill had been settled they sauntered down the quiet back street towards Emily's car. Dylan had his arm draped lazily round her shoulders and they both had an expression on their face, which conveyed the perfect happiness they shared and once again they both felt that it had been the perfect evening and very soon the perfect Friday night.

Epilogue

Five weeks later on another even more perfect Friday night Dylan proposed to Emily and she accepted. They got married in a big ceremony surrounded by friends and family a year later.

A/N This is probably a lot of rubbish, I wouldn't be surprised if it was as I wrote it very late at night or rather early morning because I couldn't sleep. Anyway tell me what you think, good or bad. If you want to contact me through email it's [email protected]

~*Thanx*~

Naomi A.K.A Aveline