Traverse City: where I used to go with West all of the time. We would visit the port towns which were more than gorgeous during Winter, when the naked trees glistened a shimmery white from the snowfall. We liked to shop around, visiting all the cute stores and, of course, cafes. Our guilty pleasure was a steaming cup of salted caramel hot chocolate from the Traverse Cafe (they also sold the best mini pies that melted in your mouth). No matter when we visited, West and I made it a tradition to go to our favorite restaurant of all time: Firefly. And that was undoubtedly where Otto and I would be going later tonight.

    Traverse City was a three, almost four hour drive from Ann Arbor, and that was the only downside. But the reason I had suggested it was because it was incredibly unlikely that we would run into anyone from school there. Meaning that Otto and I could spend time together out in the real world without the fear of being spotted together. And that was the most exciting part of it all. I was determined that tonight would be exceptional.

    The last bell was about to ring and I was so ready to get out of Spanish. I still wasn't sure why I'd signed up for that class since I didn't need another Spanish credit, but I guess I had decided to inflict some torture upon myself when I was filling out my schedule over the past summer. Impatiently, I started to pack up my backpack.

    I wanted to get out of here as soon as I possibly could. The drive was long, and since school got out at 3, leaving right away would get me to Traverse a little past 6. I then realized that I couldn't leave right away, remembering that Otto had a meeting at 4 that he estimated would last an hour or so. Which meant that he wouldn't be leaving until past 5, getting to Traverse around... 8.

    It hadn't dawned on me until now just how late that was for being 3 hours away from my dorm. 8 wasn't incredibly late, I mean, I usually went to bed no later than midnight. But since I would then have to drive back to Ann Arbor, I couldn't even imagine how late I'd be getting back.

    The bell rang and I quickly grabbed my backpack and exited the classroom. Usually West met up with me after class so we could talk about our days and he could gossip about something random he overheard in his gym class, but he wasn't in our usual spot. I shook it off and kept walking toward the girls' dorms. In my head, I thought about watching a few episodes of season 3 of The Walking Dead before leaving to Traverse. Had I been watching seasons 1 or 2? No. But since I'd seen the show so many times, I didn't feel obligated to start from the beginning of the series. I much preferred seasons 3 and up.

    Pulling me out of my thoughts was the buzz of my phone in my back pocket. Not bothering to stop, I grabbed it and read the text on my home screen:

O- The tree to your right.

    I looked over to the right and saw Otto standing against the tree, so I walked over towards it and stood against the other side, then pulling out my phone and pretending to text someone. Trying to be as discreet as possible at our impromptu meeting.

    "So about tonight," he started, "my meeting gets done around 5, but then I have to meet with the dean to discuss how the job is going, which might last until around 6."

6. That was later than I had initially expected, which knocked us back an hour to around 9 or 10 pm. "Well shit," I said.

    "Look, us going out of town doesn't change the fact that you still have school tomorrow. And I don't want you to get behind on your work because I'm keeping you out," Otto said. "We can reschedule?"

    "No." I said it without even thinking. After how our last date went (ignoring the positives), I wanted nothing more than to press the restart button in my mind when it came to our relationship. "The only important class I have tomorrow is science, and that's my last class. I don't need the optimal 8 hours of sleep. I'd rather get out of town for the night, and I'd really like to go with you."

    I could hear him chuckle on the other side of the tree which warmed my cheeks. "Are you seriously pushing this?" He asked it a bit apprehensively, indicating that he didn't believe it to be the best idea, but he wasn't going to argue with me either.

    "I seriously am. Have you ever been to Traverse City?" I asked.

    "No."

    "Then you have to go." I smiled at the thought of being with him there, walking along the canal in the city, bundled up against the cold air. "There's no better way to spend my night," I said, meaning every word.

    "What happened to The Walking Dead?" He joked.

    I shrugged. "It can wait."

    "And what happened to homework?" He asked again.

    "Who cares? Get to your meeting and go to the address I texted you afterward and meet me there. Don't you dare ditch me."

    "I wouldn't dream of it," Otto reassured, and his husky tone sent chills down my arm.

    I smiled and then started walking away towards the dorms. I turned around briefly to look at Otto, who smiled at me and shook his head. Pleased with myself, I turned back. I wasn't sure what it was about Otto that drew me to him so much. I just felt something indescribable whenever I was near him, whenever he touched me or especially spoke my name. The way my name left his mouth made me want him to say it again. Say it again, I pleaded in my head. I wanted him to say my name again because it sounded perfect coming from his mouth. And to say I was excited about tonight would be putting it lightly.

•••

Traverse City was a beautiful place. I couldn't stop thinking about how breathtaking it was there. Sometimes I wished I could live there instead of Ann Arbor.

    It was currently 9:32 and I had been walking around for about 40 minutes because I had left earlier than I originally planned. I thought it would be nice to do some window shopping and get a hot chocolate before Otto arrived, and boy was I right.

    I decided to head to Firefly early to get a seat for me and Otto. Once I got there, I found a spot in the corner of the restaurant, obviously in a booth. I then decided to order myself a strawberry lemonade, AKA the best drink ever. I wasn't sure if Otto had left yet or not since he hadn't texted me. It was now 9:55, and I had been sitting in the booth for a while awaiting him. Maybe he was running late?

    Before I could keep talking to myself in my mind, Otto walked in the doors and to my surprise, noticed me right away. He hurried and walked over, sitting down across from me. "It's about time I showed up, right?" He joked.

    Otto was wearing a white button-down shirt with the top 2 buttons left undone and he finished off the look with grey jeans. His hair was au natural in its slight curls that fell effortlessly above his forehead and shaped his face. He looked good.

    "Yeah, no kidding," I joked back.

    Otto sighed and ordered a glass of water from the waitress before turning his attention fully on me. His eyes pierced into mine with some sort of lust. "Meeting ran short, but it's still late," Otto said. "And I am parched and starving."

    "So am I."

    He opened his menu, but I didn't because I already knew what I was getting: sesame chicken fingers with their signature Thai peanut sauce. That sauce was the love of my life. "You're not opening your menu?"

    "Well, if you didn't know, this is my favorite restaurant. And I get the same thing every time," I said. "Take your time."

    Otto shook his head. "I got it." And he called the waitress over. She politely set his water on the table before Otto said, "I'll have the spring rolls, and... the sesame chicken fingers for the lady." The waitress silently nodded before leaving us be. And now I was left wondering how on earth Otto knew my order.

    "How did you know what I wanted?" I asked.

    "Just a guess," He said. "I know you like chicken. And it just seemed like something you would get."

    "And what if I didn't want that?" I asked, pushing him further. I know I had already told myself I was overreacting about our last date being sketchy, but some part of me was still conflicted. I was going to need a better explanation to convince myself that Otto wasn't hiding something. That he wasn't some random stalker.

    "Well, then I would've gotten her to come back and let you order for yourself," He said. "Look, Harrison, I just think I can read you. It's like you're predictable in a way."

    "Is that a bad thing?"

    "No, not at all," Otto quickly said. "It's a good thing, I think. I just feel something when I'm with you, something that pulls me towards you even more. I feel like I get you in some weird way that doesn't really make sense to me yet."

    For some reason, I understood what he meant. Because somehow, I felt the same about him. I felt the same strange pull towards Otto and it both excited and terrified me. It didn't really make sense to me, either.

    "So this is your favorite restaurant?" Otto asked.

    "Yeah, it's amazing. The dessert, especially." I said.

    "Then we'll have to try it," He grinned.

    "You'll have to try it since you've never had it. But I will literally just devour it," I said.

    He laughed. His laugh was, in a way, so desirable. How could a simple laugh make me want him? How could it make me want to reach my hand under the table and touch him in a way that would say, Let's get out of here. But I resisted the temptation, settling for setting my hand on top of his on the table as we talked until the food arrived. My mouth started to water at the sight and smell of the delectable sesame chicken fingers.

    "Praise the Lord!" I exclaimed, immediately taking a bite of the chicken. "It's literally so good." I couldn't even help myself when a small moan escaped from my lips. Otto's cheeks had flushed for a moment after my random outburst, but he soon focused on his food, too.

"Wow," He said after his first bite of the spring rolls he'd ordered. "That is pretty fantastic. I think I'll put this place on my list."

    "Your list?" I asked, taking another big bite out of my chicken. Peanut sauce is heaven, I'm telling you.

    Otto downed a bit of his water. "I have a list. So far it's the top 16 best food places I've discovered around the U.S. I think this will be a candidate for number 17 on my list."

    I almost choked. There went that 17 number again. And maybe it was just ironic, one of those numbers that you just can't get away from, but it still caught my attention. It struck me as a bit weird but I shoved the thought to the back of my mind in an attempt to focus on Otto.

    We sat and ate and talked. It seemed like we could talk about anything. We discussed books like The Tipping Point and Romeo and Juliet. Both of us coming to the conclusion that reading Romeo and Juliet was truthfully quite exhausting. It wasn't nearly our book of choice. I finished all my food soon and without a problem because as I said, I was starving. Otto ended up getting a to-go box to save room for dessert, mentioning that Jason would be appreciative of the leftovers. I was tempted to ask him about Jason, but I didn't want to ruin our night by bringing up his friend and my friend. So I shook it off.

    "Now, I am looking forward to trying this dessert," He said, opening up the dessert menu. "My God."

    "I always get the blueberry pie with ice cream. That's my favorite, but the cheesecake is always a good option," I said. "I'm still getting the pie though."

    "I think I'll get the cheesecake. We can do bite for bite," He suggested. "I'll let you try mine, you let me try yours."

    "Amazing idea."

    I had been planning on taking Otto to the pier after dinner. The pier was somewhere West and I used to go all the time and it was absolutely stunning. We would sit there with our feet in the frigid water and talk. I could sit there for hours. And I also didn't want our night to end yet. Which really meant that I didn't want to say goodbye to Otto. I wasn't ready to do that for some reason.

    Otto was incredibly alluring to me. Maybe it was the fact that he was older than me, or maybe it was just the way he acted around me. He taught me how to see the Big Dipper for the first time, talked to me about how he hated parties as I did, yet the only tolerable part of those parties were talking to each other. Time passed effortlessly when we were deep in conversation, no matter the topic. And I can't say the physical part of our relationship didn't draw me towards him even more.

    Soon after ordering, the dessert had arrived and we did what we had planned: bite for bite. I hadn't had dessert here for at least a month, which was a lot for me, so the slightly sour, yet sweet taste of the blueberry pie fully satisfied me. I lifted up a spoonful of the pie and Otto smirked, but opened his mouth and I shoveled the dessert inside it, feeding him. Watching his mouth close over the metal spoon and seeing his tongue lick any remaining blueberry off of it. It was like he was trying to seduce me right then and there. It was surely working and I didn't mind taking the small bit of whipped cream that sat at the top of his lip with my thumb and putting it in my mouth. He raised his eyebrows at me, but blushed, too. Maybe I was also seducing him.

    After our dessert cajolery, I suggested that we both head out. Otto agreed and we paid and left the restaurant.

"Follow me," I said when we got outside, and I grabbed his hand which took him by surprise. I lead him towards the pier which wasn't in sight yet, but I knew exactly where to go.

"Where are we going?" He asked.

    I looked over towards him, making eye contact, his eyes shining a vibrant green under the moonlight. "It's a surprise," I said, then turned back to pay attention to where we were going.

    "A surprise? Isn't that awfully cliche," He said from behind me. I lightly hit his arm and rolled my eyes. "Kidding, kidding. Lead the way."

    When the pier had finally come into sight, I smiled and pulled him towards it. I continued pulling him to the end of the dock until we got to the very edge. Sitting down, I took off my shoes and dipped my feet in the cool water. Otto sat down next to me, but kept his shoes on.

    "West and I would come here after we ate and just talk. The water is cold, but the feeling is warm and fuzzy. Like a blanket or something," I explained, then immediately regretting letting the simile come out of my mouth. "That sounds so stupid."

    "It doesn't sound stupid at all. It sounds nice," Otto said. I wasn't looking at him, but I could feel his eyes focusing intensely on me. I liked the feeling of being looked at when I, myself, wasn't looking.

    "West has been off lately, he's been acting weird. I don't know why and I didn't want to bring it up, and maybe I shouldn't. But he's my best friend and I'm kind of worried about him. I think it has to do with Jason because he acts weird every time I bring him up," I said. "Do you know anything about what's going on with them?"

    Otto shook his head and then hesitated before responding, "He flipped out on me the other day, but other than that, he's been acting normal around me. Maybe it's just something you have to force out of West? Or it's something he has to work out himself?"

    I nodded. We sat in silence for a minute before Otto put his hand on top of mine. I felt my heart rate immediately increase. The way he made me feel was otherworldly. Just the simple placement of his hand over mine drove me insane. "I just like it out here. I could spend all night out here, despite the cold. I just like the peace," I said. "Sorry if you don't like this." I was starting to think that maybe bringing him here was stupid.

    "No, I love it," Otto said sincerely. "It's amazing out here. Of course, despite the cold."

    Sitting next to him was so nice. Being with Otto and spending time with him made me feel the best I had felt in a long time. It was much better than locking myself in my room with my junk food stash and Netflix shows I'd already watched countless amounts of times. For the first time in a while, I felt as though I was actually getting a life. A good one, too. And I didn't want to lose that. Tonight had made me completely get past the whole 17-thing from our last date. I could appreciate Otto for all he was, and he was incredible. The way he made me feel was incredible.

    Interrupting our silent, yet intimate moment was a sudden drizzle of rain, much to my luck. I wanted to stay longer with Otto here, just sitting beside him with his hand on top of mine. But of course, it had to rain. And what began as a small sprinkle quickly turned into hard pouring rain.

    "You've got to be kidding me," Otto muttered. He quickly stood up while I was putting my shoes on as fast as possible. He helped me up, grabbing onto my hand. I half expected him to let go, but he didn't. He just held my hand and looked down at me as we were getting soaked. We stood there for a moment and then burst out into laughter for no apparent reason.

    "Shit. If I knew it was going to rain I wouldn't have brought you here," I said, still laughing.

    Otto was smiling and our laughter seized before he said, "Come on, let's go!" He still held my hand and we started to run up the steps of the pier towards the direction of the restaurant where our cars were parked. We finally got underneath a covered patio and stood there for a moment, facing each other so that we could say goodbye before driving back to Ann Arbor.

We smiled at each other and I looked down, teeth chattering. It was now very, very cold. Much colder than it had originally been. Otto must have heard the chattering, realizing that I was freezing which caused him to take off his jacket and proceed to wrap it around my arms. "Isn't that awfully cliche?" I stuttered, mocking his words.

    He shook his head and laughed. "Of course it is," He said. "I had a really good night, Harrison."

    "So did I."

    There was a small pause where all it seemed we could do was stare into each other's eyes. It was as if we had both been captivated by one another, under some sort of spell. Otto then leaned down and cupped my chin in his hand, kissing me, but it wasn't like it had been at the party. The kiss was soft and sweet: gentle and tender, I guess you could say. I still craved him to touch me more or kiss me harder, but this moment was perfect just the way it was. Simple.

    Otto pulled away, keeping his eyes locked on mine and moving his hand up towards my wrist. He smirked before leaning back in, hovering his lips just above mine. "Your pulse is bounding like crazy," he whispered onto my lips.

"I think it's just because of all the running we did," I said, not even believing my own lie.

Otto chuckled lowly before placing his lips back on mine. Our lips moved together perfectly, like they were made to be kissing each other. When he pulled away again, Otto gently held the side of my face and said, "Goodnight, Harrison. Get some sleep. You have school tomorrow." He said the last line earnestly, in a way that only a teacher would say something.    I shook my head and then took one more look into his emerald eyes. Otto smiled and I stood up on my toes to kiss him one last time before we both headed to our cars, parting ways for the night. Even though I wanted him so badly. I still craved him to touch me more or kiss me harder. But I resisted again and surrendered back to my car. The only thing on my mind for the entire ride home was Otto.

•••