Page 4 of Cinnamon Strudel
“I felt like he would be intimidating enough for people not to touch him as they might do with a cute labrador.”
“Also, very clever.”
With it being Friday evening, the plaza was busy, but Blue was used to navigating through the crowd to get to the next crossing.
“That’s me,” she said softly when they paused. “I really enjoyed our cake meet-cute.”
Damn, every time he thought that Ruby couldn’t be more adorable, she topped it off. “I did too.”
Then she surprised him by pulling him into a hug. He could see a flash of red hair, her build smaller than his as she pressed into his side. “I’ll see you both tomorrow at six.”
Then she disappeared into the mixture of colours and light, melting with everything around him.
Morgan
The next morning when he woke up, he took a moment to enjoy the warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest. At first, he had trouble pinpointing where it came from, but then he remembered Ruby, with her soft voice and intoxicating aura.
He reached for Blue who lied next to him and scratched behind his ear. He only hoped the whole encounter hadn’t been a dream. First dates were always awkward enough, much less when someone was visually impaired. If it weren’t that they tiptoed around the obvious, they’d constantly force him into accepting help or pet Blue without permission. Ruby had done none of that, even when shehadoffered help, it had been second nature, like telling him where she’d put his fork or when she guided Blue outside.
He let their conversation repeat in his head, his heart fluttering with all the details he remembered. Her giggles and laughs had him grinning even now. When his phone rang, he turned and saw Manuel’s number on the screen.
“Hi.”
“How was the date?” his youngest brother asked curiously.
“She stood me up.”
“Bitch.”
Morgan laughed and let his head fall back to the pillow. “But then the cute waitress asked if we could have cake together, so my night was saved.”
“And cake was all there was to it?”
“We’re going out tonight to see the Zoo Lights.” He could almost see his brother’s surprise through the speaker. “Her idea.”
“Shedoesknow you’re blind, right?”
Morgan rolled his eyes. “No, Blue must have forgotten to explicitly state what his job is.”
“What time are you meeting up?”
“Why? So you can follow us around like a creep?”
“Basically. Not like you can judge how cute she is until you’re already kissing her.”
“I hate you.”
“Who cares?”
“Clearly not you.” Morgan sighed, trying not to let insecurity burst the cosy bubble Ruby had built around him. “Look, we’ll see how it goes today and if you promise to behave,maybeI’ll let you meet her. I have a good feeling about this one. She was entirely open and not one bit awkward. Curious, yes, but I don’t mind that.”
“Good, that’s all I want for you. Tell me how it goes, okay?”
“Will do.”
With that, Manuel was gone, leaving Morgan to bask in his bubble just a little longer. When Blue had had enough of his laziness and demanded he be taken outside, he got dressed and started his day by taking Blue to the dog area of the apartment complex. Their friendliness towards pets in general had made him choose this place over others. Legally, they couldn’t denyhim because of Blue since he was service animal, but acceptance made life easier.
After breakfast, his Harry Potter Lego set had him occupied for most of the day, with only breaks for short walks for Blue. He had plenty of work ahead of him that evening, after all.
