Page 25 of Dating Mr. Right A Collection
I decide to stop thinking about texting her . . . and text her.
Cameron: Question. When you skated, were you as feared on the rink as you were at the blackboard?
Kristen: But of course. I made opponents cower.
Cameron: I’m not in the least bit surprised. Do you still skate, and when you do, do you wear those socks that go to your knees?
Kristen: You mean . . . wait for it . . . knee-high socks?
Cameron: Yes, those.
Kristen: I do. Got a thing for knee-high socks?
Cameron: Interesting question. I’d love to find out. It would be helpful if you could send me a photo of you in full skater regalia, knee-high socks and all, and then I could answer you honestly.
Kristen: All in the name of research and learning, of course?
Cameron: Of course.
I wait patiently, threading through the morning crowds as I head to meet Lulu. Two blocks later, my phone buzzes and I’m rewarded with a photo.
There. Is. A. God.
It’s a picture of Kristen—legs only. She’s wearing white knee-high socks with purple stripes.
Those legs in those socks. Kill me now.
Cameron: Do you realize you make socks sexy?
Kristen: Why, thank you. You make . . . polo shirts sexy?
Cameron: You remembered what I wore. :)
Kristen: Or maybe I’m looking at some of the photos we took . . .
Okay, now I have a city-wide grin stealing the real estate on my face.
Cameron: Maybe I’ve been doing that too. Good thing we took so many pictures.
Kristen: Do you have a favorite?
I stop at the crosswalk, click over to my photo folder, and find the last shot. The one I snapped at the airport. I didn’t photoshop this picture. It’s just us, before the night ended. I send it to her.
Kristen: Ah, I like that one too. And now I have one more to look at.
Cameron: I might have looked at it a few times already.
Kristen: I’m catching up to you right now on that tally. By the way, what are you doing today?
Cameron: Contemplating chocolate, business deals, and how to grow wings and/or learn to Apparate.
Kristen: And what exactly would you do if you could Apparate? Inquiring minds want to know.
Cameron: Take you out, pretend we were at the Taj Mahal, maybe add Mt. Everest or a Buddhist temple behind us, possibly even the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Or we could visit Monkey Jungle and mock up a picture of us in a barrel testing the baseline of fun. Other options—take you to a bookstore and get lost in books on philosophy. Go to a concert and decide whether indie is better than pop, or just debate it all night long. Take you to a roller rink and watch you skate in those knee socks, then take them off . . .
Kristen: Where do I sign up?
Cameron: You good with all that?
Kristen: With every single thing. But you know what I like most?
Cameron: Do tell.
Kristen: Talking to you as you.
Cameron: I like that too. More than I want to.
But now I have to end the conversation. I say goodbye and head into the shop, feeling both better and worse.
18
Kristen
I text him the next afternoon.
Kristen: Today my hair is purple. I ate eggplant for lunch.
Cameron: I’ve got an eggplant right here for you.
Kristen: *facepalm*
Cameron: You did walk right into that.
Kristen: I did. I totally did.
* * *
That night he texts me.
Cameron: By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask about the Orion Nebula.
Kristen: IS THIS YOU?
Cameron: YES. WHY?
Kristen: You know this is how I was catfished! The Orion Nebula was the bait.
Cameron: I’ll prove it’s me.
I wait, and his picture appears on my phone. His face. Then his . . . feet? Is he actually wearing . . .?
Kristen: Are you wearing Crocs?
Cameron: Yes.
Kristen: Why would you show me Crocs and, more importantly, why would you wear them?
Cameron: To answer the latter, they’re comfortable. To answer the former, to prove it’s me.
Kristen: That proves this is you?
Cameron: It proves I’m me because if I were someone else impersonating me, he’d never humble himself by showing Crocs. I’m showing you who I really am.
Kristen: A Croc wearer?
Cameron: Yes, do you still like me?
My smile is contagious. They’re grinning in the next county, and they caught it from me.
Kristen: Yes. But for the love of pi and the golden ratio, please never show them to me in person so I don’t have to bleach my eyeballs. Deal?
Cameron: Deal. Especially the in-person part.
Kristen: Also, is it so obvious l like you that you knew even Crocs wouldn’t ruin it?
Cameron: Call me crazy, but I like obvious on this count. In fact, I like it a lot. And I like you—a whole helluva lot.
Kristen: Same . . . it’s totally the same. Even in Crocs.
Cameron: Now, back to the Orion Nebula. Evidently, the first me, who wasn’t me but rather based on me, talked to you about it. But I wanted to look at it tonight, and since you’re a stargazer, I was hoping you could give me some guidance.
