Page 52 of Let's Get Textual

His green gaze lights with amazement and I almost spit out the soda. “You knowKenan & Kel? You’re my dream girl.”

I wipe my mouth. “You sure you’re not toooldfor me?”

“I’m only eighty-six and a half, thank you very much,” he deadpans.

“In dog years?”

“No. I’m one hundred and eighty-oneanda quarter in dog years.”

“You know how old you are in dog years?”

His lips twitch as he tries to hold in a shy smile. “Uh, yeah. I was bored and used Google. Google is a dangerous weapon, by the way. Anyway, if I was a Golden Retriever, I’d be one hundred and eighty-one.”

“And in human years?”

“Twenty-five.”

I can’t take my eyes off him. The smile stretched across his face is so…warm. It reels you in, making you feel like you’re the only person in the room…or at the park. I love it, and I especially love the dimples it creates. They’re cute, boyish even.

“You’re not that much older than me.”

“Nah, not really. My younger brother is your age, so it’s notthatcreepy. He knows the significance of orange soda too. I’ve taught him well.”

“You have a brother?”

“I do. He goes to the university here in town.”

“No way! I do too.”

He tilts his head, studying me. “You’re still in college? You never mentioned it.”

My shoulders are rigid with fright. Did I just ruin our date by admitting I’m still in school? “I’m a senior,” I mutter, wanting to be honest but also not wanting to all at the same time.

“You know what I just realized? We didn’t once talk about all that normal ‘get to know you’ shit you’re supposed to talk about with people. We jumped right in, Zach and Delia style.” He holds his bottle of soda up. “Cheers. I like us.”

I clink my glass bottle with his and take another drink.

“So, you ready?” He waves his hand around. “For the real world, I mean. It’s a scary place.”

My brows crush together. “You don’t care that I’m still in school?”

“Should I?”

“Well…no, I guess not. I suppose I assumed it would be a big deal or something since you asked.”

“Nah. I’m not real hung up on age and all that crap. I mean, I’d have an issue if you were underage…” He trails off, raising his brows like I’ll confess to lying about my age.

“I promise I’m twenty-one and old enough to know all about orange soda.”

Zach grins and his dimples appear once more. “But you’re not, so we’re good,” he continues like I never spoke. “I can’t believe we’ve never talked about it. I feel like I know you, but I don’tknowyou—not the basics anyway.”

“All in good time, I suppose.”

“Fair enough.” He takes another drink. “What’s your major?”

“Journalism.”

He tilts his head, sizing me up. “I can see that. Do you know where you want to work when you graduate?”

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