Page 13 of The Sitcom Star
She shrieked and dropped her purse before realizing it was Adrian.
Okay, maybe she was a bit high-strung.
Adrian didn’t seem bothered.“Good thing you weren’t carrying bubble tea.You probably would have spilled it all over me.”
“And you would have deserved it.”
He shrugged with a little half smile that was more appealing than it ought to be.“I suppose I would have.”
He started walking south, and she followed him.
“Where are we going?”she asked, though she wasn’t sure he’d tell her.Perhaps he was going to leave her in suspense, and then she’d obsess over it.
But he replied, “The island.”
“I haven’t been there in years.”
He slowed his pace.“Is it okay with you?”
Going to the Toronto Islands conjured up images of swan boats and a petting zoo.She wasn’t sure exactly what he intended to do there, but knowing where they were going did make her feel less anxious.
“Sure,” she said.
He flashed her a smile.“Excellent.”
They spoke about their week as they headed to the ferry terminal, and she insisted on paying for the tickets to Centre Island.Since it was rather busy, she put on her face mask, which had the added benefit of making it difficult for people to recognize her.
“We gotta stand outside, at the back of the boat,” Adrian said as they filed onto the ferry.
The ferry began making its way toward Centre Island.Maddie had forgotten just how nice this view of the Toronto skyline was, the CN Tower and other buildings visible across the water.She unlocked her phone and snapped a few pictures.The cool breeze was pleasant on her skin.
“Want me to take a picture of you?”Adrian asked.
“Yes,” she replied, just because she was determined to live her life a little more like she was doing improv.She didn’tneeda picture of her crowded amongst the other passengers on the boat, but why not?
She handed over her phone, and he took a picture.Then she gestured him toward her.
“Let’s take a selfie together,” she said.
Her suggestion felt a little like “yes, and…”That was a staple of improv, and it was also useful when brainstorming ideas in the writers’ room, but thinking about it in her personal life was new.
They had to stand very close to both appear in the frame, and it was the nearest she’d been to him.It made her slightly out of sorts, and she wasn’t sure what to say to him afterward.
Fortunately, it wasn’t as weird once they got to Centre Island.They wandered around the amusement park, where the squeals and laughs of children filled the air.Then they walked out to the pier and looked at the vast lake, so large that she couldn’t see the other side.A few sailboats were out, and sunlight glittered on the water.
“It’s hard to believe we’re in Toronto right now,” she said.
“Yeah, it really is.”
“Thanks for taking me here today.If I weren’t here, I’d probably be, I don’t know, trying to bake bread again.This is better.”
He chuckled.“You’re welcome.The bread baking didn’t go so well?”
“My dough didn’t rise properly.”Sometimes, she hated admitting that she wasn’t good at something, but it didn’t seem like a big deal right now.
“My sister tried to make bread a bunch of times in 2020, when the stores were selling out of flour and yeast.After she made a terrible loaf, I challenged her to a bake-off.”He shrugged.“I lost.”
“Yeah?What happened?”
