"Hmm. No," he admitted. "Is it from the movie we saw last week?"
"No," she answered. She knew he was thinking about the film's heroine, who had worn a tight black vinyl cat suit as she battled Ninja spies.
"Is it romantic?"
Danni pretended to think about this. "Yes," she answered. "And that's all I'm saying."
"Rats. This plan didn't work as well as I hoped," said Logan. "Give me something more to work with, will you?"
"That's cheating," said Danni, shaking her head.
"Come on. Please. Pretty please."
She sighed. "All right. Think ... my birthday."
"Your birthday?"
"That's it. And before you complain, that's a perfectly acceptable hint. Way closer than I should've given you, actually." Her costume was related to Logan's birthday gift to her, not that she expected him to figure that part out. For one thing, he'd given it to her a week early, since they spent her birthday at a restaurant with friends.
"My turn," she announced, while he was still pondering her answer.
He shook his head. "Sorry. You're too good at guessing."
"What?" she asked, in protest. "Not fair! You promised, Logan."
"I'll give you another hint," he said. "Here." He pulled a shopping bag from under the table, one which had escaped Danni's notice until now. A logo from a party supplies shop was emblazoned on its side.
"Ooh, a visual," she said. "Yes, please. Give me this hint."
"Are you ready?" he asked. "Really ready?"
She rolled her eyes. "Are you going to give me a hint or not?"
"Here it is." Triumphantly, he pulled out a makeup kit — one with orange, yellow, and black pigments, a container of white, and a small brush.
"What are these for?" Danni asked, perplexed.
"That's the surprise." He put it back into the sack.
"Logan, that was practically nothing!"
"You'll figure it out from just seeing that little detail," he answered. "I know you. I've already told you too much, so just be satisfied, all right?"
She pretended to pout for a few seconds. "It's not the Great Pumpkin, is it?" she asked.
"No," he scoffed. He took a sip of his coffee cup. "That's way too original for me."
She cut her pancakes into perfect squares, swiping them through the extra maple syrup on her plate. "A giant carrot?"
He shook his head. "Nope." He was polishing off his pancakes, Danni noticed. They must be growing on him.
"Garfield, maybe?"
"Guess again."
****
Logan's costume was a big tiger suit, complete with a long, springy tale coiling behind him. Beneath the mask, his face was painted with matching colors. Danni had guessed Tigger at the cafe, but Logan hadn't accepted her hint.
It was the complete opposite of Danni's own, since she had gone as Roxie from Chicago, the musical Logan had taken her to for her birthday. They made quite a pair, Danni thought, a girl in fishnets and a black flapper dress and a big striped tiger lumbering along the street after the party.
She gave him credit though — he was the only tiger at Gabby's party. And women still smiled flirtatiously at him, even with orange and black makeup covering his face, most of which was now streaked after a silly bobbing for apples game, and copious amounts of party cider and snacks.
It was too crowded at the party, as usual, since Gabby invited too many people. Between the loud music and conversation, Danni was relieved to slip away early, once the cider started kicking in, and the hour was growing too late for Gabby to notice a few guests had gone home.
They were arm and arm now, Logan and Danni, with Danni leaning against him for warmth. "There's still time for more pumpkin pancakes," she said, nuzzling against the furry coat of his costume. "I'm hungry. Are you?" She had only eaten some chili dip and some kind of chocolate zombie cupcake which had been way too sweet.
"Sounds delicious," he said. "Pumpkin pancakes, here we come." He hooked the costume's long tail through his arm as a customer who had just left Pauline's gave them a good-humored grin.
"Tell me again. Why a tiger?" she asked, again, for the seventeenth time tonight.
"I thought it would be fun," he answered. "When I was a kid, my favorite children's book was about a tiger. I saw this costume and thought — why not?"
Earlier he'd told her it was because of some famous congressman who had dressed up like a tiger for a promotional campaign photo — something about 'Tigergate' bringing down the politician's career.
"You don't exactly look like a Golden Book character, though," she giggled. "You look more like something out of Cats."
"You look great," he said. "What do you care what I look like?"
Secretly, she had wanted him to dress up as something hotter for once. It was because of the previous Halloween, she suspected, when this notion — and the realization that she liked him as more than a friend — first crossed her mind. She was too ashamed to admit this truth directly to him, however.
"You would look good as a superhero," she suggested. "A gladiator, a — a spy. Someone more like James Bond."
"James Bond?" he echoed. "What — you want me to dress up like someone more handsome? Is that what you're saying?" He was teasing her. "My tiger stripes aren't good enough?"
"Just promise me next year you'll go as something a little more sexy," she answered. "Something I can romanticize. Promise me."
"I promise. I'll let you pick."
"Good." She hugged his arm tighter.
The neon lights from Pauline's window sign glowed a pleasant rose pink, the scent of spices and coffee escaping every time a customer opened the door. Logan paused just outside it, fumbling with the hook on the back of the costume that was supposed to keep the tiger tail pinned back.
"Help me out, will you?" he asked. Danni found the button loop, securing the springy tail so it wouldn't sweep coffee cups off of the cafe's tables.
He pulled off his mitten paws. "How do I look now?" he asked.
"Still like a cast member of Cats."
"Oh, well. Maybe I should lose the ears, too." He smiled.
Danni buttoned up her coat to hide her rustling, sequined costume. Not that anyone in Pauline's would notice her, given her tiger companion and the customer already inside, dressed in an Iron Man costume and seated in the Scrabble lovers' former spot.
"Danni," Logan said. "I want to meet your family."
"My family," she repeated. She stared at him.
"I think it's time you met mine, too." He sat on the edge of the windowsill, gazing at her earnestly from beneath the blurred tiger stripes on his face.
Her breath caught in her throat. She didn't say anything, just gazing at Logan beneath the neon of Pauline's sign.
"You know how I feel about you," he said. "I want to move forward. I've known it since I came back, that I can't be without you. I want everybody to know I love you, including the people closest to me."
"That's a big step," she said, when she found the words. The feelings inside her were overwhelming, pushing to come out, only there were too many of them. Images moving lightning fast through her brain: of herself meeting the people from Logan's family photos, of her introducing her parents to him, holding tight to his hand for this meeting....
"What do you think?" he asked. "Are you ready for this?"
"I am," she answered. She didn't think about the words. She simply said them the moment they came to her lips. "I ... I could kiss you right now." She cupped his face, feeling the hood of the tiger costume, the rumpled wisps of Logan's dark hair escaping from beneath it. "Tiger stripes and all."
"You'll get makeup all over your face," he answered, drawing back before she could press her lips against his. "Let me wash it off first."
"You’re just afraid of my lipstick," she murmured. "This, from a man in a furry tiger costume."
"We'll talk about it over pancakes," he said. He rose and opened the cafe door, escorting her inside. She glanced ov
er her shoulder to make sure his tail didn't get caught in the door as it closed behind them, her hand holding onto the furry tip just to be sure.
"Tiger by the tail," she said, with a wink. Knowing without a doubt his next words would be for the corniness of her joke.
It's almost as if I can read his mind now. Maybe he can read mine, too. If so, he would know that she was a little afraid of what came next. It was a leap into the unknown for her, since no relationship had ever been this intense, or lasted this long.
It was for him, too. He would remind her that there was nothing she loved more than leaping into something new. But, for once, Danielle was afraid of that uncertainty.
Love must do that people. That's what she told herself this time.
Flavor of the Week
November
"Don't go see that movie. It's horrible. You'll regret it," said Eric. "Me and Julianna saw it on Friday, and I was tempted to say 'can I have my twenty-five bucks back? 'Cause that was not what the trailer promised."
"Well, I still want to see it," said Danni. "I like to decide for myself whether it's good or bad."
"Since when?" asked Logan. He pushed aside his coffee cup, which was mostly empty. The last bit splashed against the newspaper spread across their table, the movie times for the city's theaters. There was a brown ring around the Movie Multiplex's ad.
"Since I decided to stop pre-judging them based on movie reviews," answered Danni. "Didn't you encourage me to let people make their own choices? Even bad ones?"
"You'll regret it," said Eric. "Logan, don't listen to your girlfriend on this one. Listen to your old buddy."
"Who is Julianna, anyway?" said Logan. "Is she someone I need to meet — a serious relationship?"
"Umm....she works as a catalog model, I think? Or does she write ads for catalogs? I don't remember. It was kind of hard to hear in the bar where we met."
"That's pretty pathetic," said Logan. "How did you meet her, then?"
"She was Sammy's ex."
"Sammy?" echoed Logan.
"Hey, I'm open to a variety of relationships, all right? So be it if I step on the toes of a few friends in the process."
"Again, pathetic," said Logan, who sounded incredulous. "Why would you date your best friend's ex?"
"Hey, if you and Danni break up, I'm not above asking for her number," said Eric, with a grin.
"Don't even think about it," said Logan.
"The number — or the breakup?" asked Danni.
"Both," he answered. "So, did you just stop by my table to mess up my weekend plans?" He wished Eric would go now. Wasn't he supposed to be on his way to a convention? Some kind of comic book thing?
"What, am I interrupting some kind of lover's tete-a-tete?" asked Eric. "You two planning a wedding shower or something?"
Danni's face blushed, then returned to normal. She was embarrassed by this, Logan noticed — lately more and more people were taking it for granted that they were engaged, as if that future was becoming more solid and tangible. Rushing them towards the future with comments like Eric's, or the massive hints dropped by Gabby more and more often.
The idea was easy for him to embrace; but he hadn't officially proposed, and he didn't want to think about doing it just yet. Not until after he met her parents, for instance, and maybe until she met his. He didn't want to buy a ring until he felt certain there was no way she would say 'no,' when he popped the question, either.
"I think you should go now," he said to Eric. "How about I call you later and find out how your comic book thing went."
"It's a Wookiee convention," scoffed Eric. "I've got the costume in the car. Marshall's doing my makeup at his place."
"Wookiees?" repeated Danni. "As in —"
"Vintage. Classic. Itchy."
"What?"
"The Star Wars Holiday Special," he answered, exasperated. "Is everybody on the planet that uninformed about this subject?"
"Go, please," said Logan. "I can't listen to this anymore." He waited until Eric was gone to roll his eyes. He shoved the third chair back to its original table.
"I hope he takes pictures," said Danni. "I want to see them."
"Why? So you can fantasize about your future boyfriend? Join him at the convention as Malla or Lumpy —"
"Stop it," said Danni, swatting his arm. "I have no idea what you're talking about, anyway. Half of those names sound like skin conditions." She took a sip from her coffee. "What are they from, anyway?"
"Let's just say I have an unfortunate knowledge of The Star Wars Holiday Special, thanks to Eric."
She lowered her coffee again, her fingers twisting the handle on her cup. "I wish he didn't have to be so flippant about us, sometimes," she said. "He makes us sound like one of those self-absorbed couples, gazing mistily into each others' eyes like the rest of the world doesn't exist."
"Like the Scrabble couple of old," said Logan. He wondered what happened to them — were they newlyweds? Just sweethearts? Did they get married and live happily ever after, or were they playing Scrabble separately now?
"Us planning a wedding shower," he scoffed. "Like we'd waste a Saturday afternoon on picking out barbecue grills or china patterns."
"Not us," said Danni. "We'd farm those projects out to some well-meaning relatives. We'd be at the movies, kicking back and enjoying our carefree relationship. Making out during the trailers."
"Never during the trailers," said Logan. "That's the best part."
His hand played with hers, momentarily isolating her ring finger before he caught himself. Conversations about their relationship had taken a more serious turn lately. Gradually, they were beginning to coach each other through the details of their separate lives. Family members' names, childhood haunts, old friends and former romantic flames. It was still lighthearted, but Logan could sense the underlying importance in every detail.
Some were great, like Marissa's upcoming graduation. Others weren't so fun. Like learning that Danni had been deeply in love with a coworker once, for almost six months before the feelings crumbled.
What if that was himself in the future? He didn't like to picture it, frankly.
"Are you ever jealous?" he asked, suddenly. "Not of me — I'm not saying I'm some kind of magnet for women's attraction," he added, quickly. "I mean past relationships."
"You are a magnet," answered Danni. "Sometimes, anyway. It doesn't bother me that other women notice you." She took another sip of coffee. "Are you jealous when other guys notice me?"
Like Eric, he supposed. "Sometimes," he admitted. "I was really jealous of that guy you brought here once. Randy, or something."
"Rick?"
"Yes, Rick. That's him." He remembered seething quietly at another table while Rick and Danni flirted their way through a typical third date lunch. Wishing that Rick's flawless personality would disintegrate into a snarling jerk any second. "It was my first time to see you with another guy. I already had feelings for you, so I was pretty disappointed by it."
She laughed. "I can't believe that," she said. "You were so casual about it."
"Well, I wasn't. I just pretended." He took a bite out of his muffin, then noticed the corner ad for the art house cinema, showing some sort of modern reinterpretation of George Washington's life. Would Danni be up for revisionist filmmaking?
"Doris." Danni's voice brought him back to the conversation. "I never liked her." She studied the contents of her coffee cup. "I didn't think she deserved you. She was like a big spider trapping you in a web. Wrapping you up so you couldn't get away."
"Doris?" he repeated. It was his turn to be incredulous now. "I thought you liked her. You encouraged me to keep dating her."
"I pretended," said Danni. "I didn't want you to think I was jealous. Actually, I didn't even realize I was jealous until later. I was so relieved to find out you broke up with her. I was pretty ashamed of myself at the time." She smiled, wryly.
"Did you root for me breaking up with anybody else?" he asked.
&nb
sp; "Who? The one girl you dated after her?" Danni scoffed. "One date isn't enough to make me jealous. I knew you weren't interested enough to ask her out again. No, the only other person I envy is the girl you were crazy about before you came here."
"Oh. Rachel." He had told Danni the most about her. She had been his only serious relationship, apart from this one.
"I looked her up on social media, after we started dating," said Danni. "I kind of wanted to dislike her, but I couldn't do it."
He had no idea she had done that. This was a new side of Danni, he thought. He wondered if she was seeing a new side of him, too, with all these recent confessions.
"There weren't that many people in my past," he said. "I didn't date that many girls, and only a couple seriously. But you — you had a couple of close brushes with commitment. I imagine you ending up with one of them ... then I wonder why you didn't. Like Billy."
Danielle scoffed. "Billy?" she repeated. "I know he thought he was serious about us, but believe me, there was no future there. Not unless he had grown up, something I realized he had no intention of doing. Ever."
"Joe, then."
"Joe broke up with me," she reminded him. "I don't think we had the same future in mind. Last time I saw him, he seemed happy enough."
"When did you see him?" Logan asked.
"Umm...a couple of months ago."
"Months?" he repeated. His smile faded slightly. He had pictured something a couple of years ago. A post-breakup run-in, one which ended with wistfulness, but no real regret. "Where?"
"We had lunch somewhere," she said. "It was no big deal."
"And you didn't mention it because it was no big deal."
She rolled her eyes. "It didn't seem important. He was just an old friend. I think he even has a girlfriend now. All we did was share a table and talk about why we broke up."
Don't be suspicious. It was harmless, Logan knew. He didn't want to be jealous, or suspicious of a casual lunch.
She tweaked his sleeve. "It's not like you haven't made me worry about your affections a time or two," she said.
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