No More Waiting, She Chooses Love

Although Dustin had proven his patience with me over a decade, it didn't stop me from teasing him a bit now and then.

"Sorry, Dustin, I got held up," I said as I sat down, offering a rather insincere apology.

"It's okay. As long as you're here, I don't mind waiting," he replied with that cliché line, like something out of a romantic comedy.

Honestly, it was pretty awkward. I busied myself with arranging the silverware to avoid eye contact.

He waved over the waiter for me to place my order, but my stomach was still full from the braised meatballs I had earlier, leaving me with no appetite. Still, it would be rude not to eat, so I ordered something light on a whim. When the food arrived, there were several additional dishes I hadn't ordered-Dustin had ordered them for me.

"Dustin, we're just here for a simple meal. This is too much; it's wasteful," I pointed at the dishes, invoking the sentiment of "every bit counts."

"I ordered your favorites. Just try a bit of everything, and whatever we can't finish, we'll take home," Dustin said, sounding practical.

arguing seemed pointless, so

how about some wine?"

drunk. I had played the part so convincingly that I might as well have had selective amnesia about that night. Faced with Dustin's hopeful and slightly probing look, I agreed, "Sure, but you'll have to

said, gesturing for the waiter to pour

to keep the conversation going by reminiscing about our childhood, including how I often ignored him when with Conrad. Mentioning Conrad brought back the image of him coughing up blood. I wondered if it was stress-related or if there was something more serious going

he'd probably walk the other way if he saw me," Dustin

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his gaze never affected me, but now, knowing his

or even someone like Allen looked at me. Dinner was an exercise in discomfort, and I resorted to pretending to be drunk to bring it to a