We lay in the shade a while longer before we walk around. There are a lot of people everywhere, some with kids or dogs, some skateboarding, some listening to music on benches. It’s peaceful outside and I’m happy we came here first, it kind of set the mood for the day.
We walk around people laying on blankets and watch a group of people playing with a Frisbee.
After about 5 minutes, I get a weird feeling in my gut.
“Piper,” Laurel says.
I look up at her but she’s not looking at me. Her gaze is fixed on something far away.
“What?” I ask, squinting to see what she’s seeing. I knew I should have worn my glasses.
“That’s the guy, isn’t it? That’s the guy from yesterday isn’t it?”
I squint harder but I can’t really tell. “I’m not sure, he’s too far away.”
Laurel looks at me like I’m an idiot. “Your necklace, Piper.”
Duh. I look down and there’s a reddish tint on my Pathfinder but it’s not as warm as yesterday.
“There’s only one way to find out,” she says and grabs my hand. She pulls me across the grass and around people on blankets while her mom follows behind.
I’m getting butterflies in my stomach and a lump in my throat. My necklace is growing hotter and redder than before. I hope Laurel is only trying to get me closer so we can find out if it’s him or not but something tells me she isn’t going to stop until he sees me.
“Laurel, wait,” I say, my voice coming out strained. I’m sure I’m flushed and honestly I’m starting to sweat. This situation is even worse than yesterday, I actually have a chance to talk to him. The thing is, I’m not sure if I’m ready.
I don’t see his parents anywhere, it looks like he’s by himself and that makes it all the more stressful.
I look over at him again and see a dog running toward him with a Frisbee in its mouth.
“I have an idea,” Laurel says and continues to drag me over to where he’s standing.
“Hi!” She yells, waving a hand in the air. “Cute dog.”
We get close enough that she doesn’t have to yell anymore and my Pathfinder is on fire. I look at his neck and there’s no sign of a chain. He must not be wearing his today. I can’t decide if I’m happy or disappointed.
“Thanks, her name’s Molly.” His voice sends chills down my spine and I visibly shiver.
Laurel gives me a look and I shrug.
When the boy turns around to throw the Frisbee again, I quickly take my Pathfinder off and shove it in my pocket. There’s no need for him to see it glowing if he can’t feel his own getting warm.
“My name is Laurel and this is my best friend Piper.”
The boy turns back around and smiles. “Harry.”
Now I remember hearing his parents call his name yesterday and I scold myself for not remembering sooner.
“Are you two from around here?” He asks. I hear an accent in his voice and it just makes him all the more attractive.
I shake my head as Laurel says no.
“Where are you from?” He asks, his accent giving me more chills.
Laurel elbows my side for me to answer.
“Indiana,” I say quickly.
I don’t know why I’m so nervous to talk to him, he has no idea who I am or who I’m supposed to be. I’m going to be spending the rest of my life with him if all goes well, I shouldn’t be this awkward.
“That’s not too far,” he says with a smile. “What brings you to New York?”
“My mom thought it would be something fun to do for summer break,” Laurel tells him.
“Are you in high school?” He asks. I begin to get jealous of Laurel. Harry is talking to her too much.
“Yeah, we’re going to be juniors,” I say before Laurel has a chance to answer him.
“I’m going to be a senior,” he tells me.
Good, he’s not too much older than me. Some people get a five year difference between them and their partners and I’ve always hoped I wouldn’t be one of those people.
“What’s that hanging out of your pocket?” He asks me.
I look down and see the chain of my Pathfinder hanging out of my pocket.
“A necklace,” I answer with a smile. Hopefully he doesn’t ask anything else about it.
“Why aren’t you wearing it? I thought necklaces were supposed to go around your neck, not hide out in your pocket,” he jokes.
I shrug. “I just wasn’t in the mood to wear it after we left our hotel,” I say.
He drops the subject and I’m thankful. I don’t want to know what his reaction would have been if the necklace came out of my pocket and he saw it blazing red. I’m glad I wore dark shorts today because if I’d been wearing white ones the red would definitely be showing through them.
“Are you here by yourself?” Laurel asks after a moment of silence.
“Yeah. Well, besides Molly, of course. I bring her here every day around this time to get her out of the house,” he answers, taking the Frisbee out of his dog’s mouth and throwing it again. I never really understood how dogs could be so amused by something so boring to humans.
We watch as Harry plays with Molly for a while more before we rejoin Laurel’s mom who had taken a seat on a nearby bench to people watch. Before we left, Harry invited us out tonight with him so he could show us the night life of the city. Of course Laurel agreed before I could say anything but I didn’t mind because I probably would have said yes anyway.
We walked around the park for about 20 more minutes before we went back to the hotel for the day.
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Once we were back in our room, Laurel closed the door and told me to sit on the bed. I knew what was coming so I kept my mouth shut and watched as she pulled the drawers open on the dresser and looked through all of my clothes. I figured we were just going to be on vacation so I didn’t bring anything like what she’s looking for which is no doubt something dressy.
“Do you not own anything expensive?” She asks in a harsh tone. She’s gone through everything I brought and slammed the drawers closed.
I shake my head but keep my mouth closed. I know she’s got another idea.
Sure enough, she pulls open her drawers and starts looking through the clothes she brought. Sometimes I hate being the same size as her because this happens a lot.
After a few minutes, she pulls out a black dress with short sleeves and a v neck.
“No way,” I tell her, standing from the bed. “I know you want me to look nice but there’s no way I’m wearing that.”
“You can wear a cardigan over it or something, I don’t care, but you’re wearing it.”
I know there’s really no use in arguing with her, there’s no way she’s going to change her mind. I know she’s sensible enough not to make me wear heels with it.
I take the dress from her and throw it on the bed. I’m not putting it on until the last possible minute. I hate wearing dresses and, even if it is for my soul mate, I’m not wearing it longer than I have to.
For a few hours we sit around and watch TV and listen to music and Laurel even falls asleep for a while which is alright with me, I like the silence. Being alone to my thoughts is one of my favorite things.
Around 7, Laurel wakes up and tells me I need to start getting ready. I remember Harry saying he would meet us at our hotel at 7:30 so I figure she’s right.
I grab the dress and head to the bathroom to get ready. The dress hugs all of my curves and doesn’t look too bad. It’s still not my style though. I pull on a white cardigan over it and look in the mirror. It’s not too bad.
I fix my makeup and change my jewelry before going back into our room.
Laurel throws a pair of plain black flats at me and I slip them onto my feet as she fixes her makeup.
When she’s finished, we tell Laurel’s mom again that we’re going out. I stick my necklace in the pocket of my cardigan and grab my cell phone. I know there’s no reason for me to take the necklace with me since I already know who he is but I like the warm feeling it gives me when I’m close to him.
“Call us if you need anything or if you want to check in,” Laurel says as we walk out the door.
“Be careful!” Her mom calls after us.
We take the elevator to the lobby and step outside. There are a lot of cars on the street and I can’t help but hope that every taxi I see is the one Harry is taking to the hotel. Imagine my surprise when a black SUV rolls up in front of the hotel with the passenger window rolled down and a smiling face looking at us.
“Ready?” Harry asks through the window.
I give Laurel a shocked look and she shrugs. She opens the door to the back so I take the passenger seat and Harry pulls away from the hotel. I wonder if Laurel’s mom would still be okay with us going out if she knew Harry was driving. I know for a fact my mom would be pissed out of her mind.
“Where are we going?” Laurel asks from the back seat.
“Times Square,” Harry answers with a smile and a look in the rearview mirror.
I’ve always wanted to go there, especially at New Year’s Eve during the countdown so I could watch the ball drop at midnight but I guess an ordinary night in June with the guy I’m going to marry is as good as any.
Laurel and Harry make small talk on the way there, asking me a few questions every now and then. I mostly stare out the window and watch the cars pass going the opposite direction.
“You’re really quiet,” Harry says.
“I know, sorry,” I apologize.
“Don’t be sorry, I was just making an observation,” he says with a laugh.
I feel my cheeks grow warm and I try to turn myself further towards the window. Luckily for me, he doesn’t notice.
He parks the car on the side of the street and we get out to walk around. There are a lot of people on the sidewalks but not as many as I’d imagined there to be.
“This is so cool,” I say.
“Yeah, I come here a lot. I love it here,” Harry tells me. He looks at the ground for a seconds and fear shoots through me when I realize why.
“You dropped something,” he says, bending down to pick up my necklace.
My heart starts beating faster and Laurel is staring at me in surprise. I should have just left that stupid thing back in the hotel room.
When Harry realizes what it is he smiles. A split second later, he realizes it’s red and warm. The look on his face when he looks at me says it all.