Song: "Dream On" by Aerosmith

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Sunday afternoon, I was getting ready for my sister and her boyfriend to arrive. Since the next day was Halloween, we decided to paint our faces. No extravagant costumes or anything; I was just wearing a black sweater with my black skinny jeans, and I made up my face to look like a kitty cat. I put on a headband with cat ears; simple enough.

We were just planning to go to a bar and have dinner and maybe a few drinks, and not stay out too late since it was a Sunday night, after all, so I had to work in the morning. I was glad for the chance to meet Scott, and that I didn't have to think about cooking anything for them since we were going out. I had the Lions game on TV while I was doing various things throughout the afternoon. The Lions were winning so there would definitely be celebration in the city tonight.

The makeup on my face hadn't even dried completely when I heard a knock on my door. I wasn't expecting Lauren and Scott just yet since the game was still going, unless they decided to beat the foot traffic. It was a pretty sure win for Detroit anyway, but it would be strange for Lauren to want to leave before the final play.

I kept the chain latched on my door and opened it just enough to see who was there.

It was Harry.

I quickly closed the door and unlatched the chain, then threw it open again. "Hey," I said, trying to sound casual when in reality, my heart was galloping with excitement. "Come on in."

"Thank you," he said and I was happy to have his voice in my loft again. He hugged me and then stepped back and took a better look at my face. "Halloween?" He asked.

"Yeah, my sister and her boyfriend are coming over after the game and we're going out for dinner. Figured we might as well since Halloween is tomorrow. They tell me I'm too old for trick-or-treating," I said, shrugging.

Harry laughed and it made me happier. "I'm sorry for just stopping in unannounced, but I realized that I didn't have your phone number or any way to contact you."

Yep, I noticed that, too. I was still trying not to act too excited that he was there. "Why don't we get that out of the way before anything else?" I suggested. I handed him my phone and he put his number in. Then I texted him and voila, we had a connection.

"Well, it sounds like you already have plans, otherwise I was going to see if you, uh, might want to have dinner with me." He seemed to be a little nervous about asking, which was odd since we'd had such a nice time together the previous week. But maybe he was asking me on a date. Like a real date and not just a hang-out date. It didn't seem like he was ready for a real date yet, but why would he be so nervous about a hang-out date?

"Regan?" He prodded, interrupting my frantic thoughts. "Sorry, I know this is a bad time. I guess I'll just take off since you're busy."

"No, it's not a bad time at all," I assured him. "I was just thinking for a minute. Would you like to come with us? We're most likely going to hit a bar and have dinner there. It's really casual. No pressure."

He tilted his head to the side and scrunched up one eyebrow. "I have one question: Do I have to paint my face?"

"Face paint is optional," I said, laughing.

"Then that sounds great," he said, taking off his coat. "Again, I'm sorry for just showing up unannounced. My mum would scold me, saying it's not polite, but I had no other way to contact you."

I almost said, You could have come to the library, but I didn't want to sound angry or upset that he wasn't there this week, even if I had been quite disappointed. He didn't have to be there and he didn't have to explain why he wasn't.

"So, your sister, older, younger?" He asked.

"She's younger, 18. It's her first year in college and she met this guy Scott in one of her classes. It's kind of new still and I haven't met him yet. They're at the Lions game right now."

"Ahh, the good old Lions," he chuckled. "I'm a Packer fan myself."

"Whoa," I warned him, "You'd better not mention that the first time you meet my family!"

"Die hard Lions fans, are they?"

"Absolutely. I don't care as much about football as they do, but it's kind of a family thing."

"I see. Well, it shouldn't be hard to avoid football talk at dinner," he remarked, but I could see just the hint of a smirk in the upturned corner of his mouth.

"Right," I agreed dryly. "None of us will be talking about football at dinner, especially not after they just came from the game and the Lions won!" I looked at the TV screen to double check my facts. "Yeah, they're gonna win. There's only a minute and a half left. At least they won't be pissed at you for the Packers winning," I said with a wink.

"I like you," Harry said bluntly. "I like that you can make me laugh."

"Me, too."

Lauren called soon after the game was over and asked if I wanted to meet them downtown. It would make more sense than them walking all the way back here and walking back down or fighting post-game traffic.

"Sure," I said. "I'm bringing a friend along, too. I hope that's okay."

"Who!?" She shouted and I was pretty sure Harry heard her. "Is it a guy?"

"Yes, he's a friend I met at the library," I told her, hoping she wouldn't read too much into it.

"Okay, see you in a bit," she yelled cheerfully.

"So, are you up for walking?" I asked Harry.

"Absolutely," he nodded. "But what about you?" He teased. "You previously compared exercise to a root canal."

"That's only when I'm doing it for the sake of working out. I don't mind walking if it's to do something fun."

"Ahh, I see," he said. "Well, then we shall have to find more ways to disguise exercise as something fun."

My insides swelled with happiness for the fact that he suggested we'd be spending more time together. "Harry, are you suggesting that I need to exercise?" I asked, incredulously. Of course, I wasn't really offended and he knew it by the smile on my face.

"No," he chuckled as he put his hands up in surrender. "Not what I meant at all. It's just that exercise is good for you."

"Thank you, doctor. How about this? You come up with a fun activity that seems nothing like exercise, and I'll give it a try."

Were we flirting? I think we were.

"You're on," he said, holding his hand out so we could shake on it.

We arrived at the pub where we had arranged to meet Lauren and Scott. It was crazy busy, but we managed to find them when Lauren yelled so loud that half the bar heard her. "Ray-ray!" It was quite impressive, actually, considering this was a crowded sports bar in Downtown D-town after the Lions just won a close game.

"Oh, my god," I turned to Harry. "I should have warned you that she's kind of loud; my whole family is."

We quickly made our way to the tall table where they were seated. Lauren had gone all-out with her make-up, painting her face like a sugar skull in the Mexican Día de Muertos tradition. Scott's face was a little more on par with mine, a painted on black goatee with evil eyebrows and a few flames licking up the side of his face to make him look like a very tame devil. Lauren had probably done his face paint for him because she was quite talented with a brush.

As soon as I hugged Lauren, I knew she was drunk. "Lolo," I chided her using my nickname for her since she used mine so loudly. "How did you get booze?"

She grinned at me and tried to use a loud whisper, but because of the overwhelming din, she practically yelled in my ear. "Scotty!"

I introduced myself to Scott and said, "You let my baby sister get drunk?"

"Sorry, probably not the best first impression, huh?" He answered sheepishly.

"Nah, don't worry about it. She's a party animal, I get it. Just make sure she gets home safely. This is Harry," I said, motioning to him.

Scott and Harry shook hands and then Lauren yelled, "Are you guys dating?"

"Oh my god," I said again, mumbling close to Harry's ear. "I'm sorry."

He laughed, "It's all right."

"We're just friends," I told her. "I met him at the library."

"Ohhh," she said dramatically. "You mean that night when you got attacked?"

"Yeah, Harry helped me," I said, and then quickly told Scott, "We need to get some food in her pronto!"

"Yeah, I already ordered some appetizers," he said. 

Soon a waitress appeared with said appetizers, and she asked if Harry and I wanted anything. We both ordered wine, so she asked for our ID's. After showing them to her, Harry went to put his back, and I leaned over to ask, "How old are you?"

"Twenty-five," he answered.

"You're so young," I said. To be a widower, I continued in my thoughts, but I didn't say it out loud. It definitely wasn't the time or the place. Besides, this was a fun night, hopefully a chance for him to let loose and forget about things for a while.

"How was the game?" I asked.

"Frickin' awesome!" Lauren yelled as she grabbed a mozzarella stick and shoved half of it in her mouth.

"Drink some water," I told her, laughing. "I watched for a little bit. It was pretty intense."

"Yeah, it was a good game," Scott agreed.

We found out that Scott was a few years older than Lauren, around my age actually, hence his ability to supply her with beer. He seemed like a pretty upstanding and responsible guy otherwise.

After dinner and more drinks, the four of us walked back to my apartment, swaying and talking a little too loudly. I was glad to see Harry laughing along with us and apparently enjoying himself.

We said good-bye to Lauren and Scott, who luckily hadn't drunk nearly as much as Lauren so he was okay to drive. Then Harry and I  continued up to my loft. It was getting late, but I didn't want Harry to leave yet, and I could sense that he didn't want to either.

"So, what'll it be?" I asked when we stumbled into my apartment; well, I stumbled a little but Harry seemed to be as graceful as ever. "Another glass of wine or some strong coffee?"

"Wine sounds good," he answered, heading to the record player. "I'm in love with your collection. Aerosmith?"

"Sure," I said. "I've been collecting them as I've saved up money. The record player was a gift from my folks a few years back."

The music started and I brought two large glasses of Merlot to the coffee table and sat down next to Harry.

"Thank you for inviting me along tonight," he said, leaning his head back against the couch. "I haven't been out for a longer time than I can remember. That was a lot of fun."

"I'm glad you stopped by," I said. "Can I tell you something?"

"Sure."

"I was disappointed when I didn't see you at the library this week."

"Yeah?" He asked with a slight smile.

"Yeah. I had a great time last week and then you kind of disappeared. I was just hoping we'd be able to spend more time together."

"Sorry about that," he said. "I'm still working through things."

"Oh, yeah," I said. "I get that. I just missed you, that's all." The alcohol was loosening my tongue. I hoped he didn't think I was pressuring him to spend more time with me or anything.

"For the record, I missed seeing you, too," he said, taking another hefty sip of wine. He placed his glass back on the coffee table and then laid his head against the couch, getting lost in the music. He started singing along.

"Every time when I look in the mirror
All these lines on my face getting clearer
The past is gone
It went by, like dusk to dawn
Isn't that the way
Everybody's got the dues in life to pay"

I sang along, too, much more quietly. At least until the chorus.

"Sing with me, sing for the years
Sing for the laughter, sing for the tears
Sing with me, just for today
Maybe tomorrow, the good Lord will take you away"

I laughed when he played air guitar and sang the falsetto "Dream On," and by the time the song ended, we were both belting it out like we were superstars in concert. As the song faded, giggles kept bursting from me, uninhibited by the wine. I enjoyed this tremendously, just hanging out with Harry and having fun.

He was so good looking, it almost hurt. He had worn his hair down, but it was no longer matted and messy. It hung in neat waves, curling up at the bottom and covered half his face when he leaned just the right way.

He was still laughing a little after we finished the song, breathing heavily from the gusto he had put into singing. I turned just to smile at him but I didn't expect his face to become serious. He studied my face, his eyes scanning mine intently. Finally, he murmured softly, "You're so pretty."

"Thank you," I whispered. A warm sensation spread from my heart through my chest, and then my heart started pounding when he lifted his hand to my cheek. I watched intently as he slowly leaned towards me. When he was just an inch away from my lips, he paused, just for a moment.

And then he kissed me.

I didn't hesitate for one moment and I kissed him back, letting his lips taste mine and mine taste his, and together we tasted like wine and a little bit of hope.

I raised my hand to his chest, bundling the fabric of his t-shirt and pulling him closer. He responded by pushing his fingers into the hair at the base of my neck. With that little bit of extra control, he held us together while moving his mouth heatedly against mine. When I felt his tongue trace my bottom lip, I opened my mouth and let him in.

I lost track of time and space; there was only Harry and his kiss and the pressure of his body as  he pulled me more tightly against him.

When he finally released his grip and leaned back slightly, I just smiled lazily at him.

"I like you a lot," he said quietly.

"Yeah," I whispered. "I figured that out when you kissed me." He laughed easily. "I like you a lot, too."

He took one of my hands in his and we snuggled down together, our shoulders crunched against each other. We didn't talk for a long while, we just enjoyed being close, still high from the energy of our kiss. Finally Harry said, "I'm not sure how to do this."

"What?"

"This," he said squeezing my hand. "You." I turned to face him and squeezed his hand in return. "I just...I don't know if I'm ready...for anything."

"You wanna know my honest opinion?" I asked softly.

"What's that?"

"You're probably not ready, but the good news is that I'm not really ready either."

"What?" He asked in absolute confusion.

"I think you're not ready because you were a wreck just a few weeks ago. And I'm not ready because I don't know how to be with someone who already met the love of his life."

Harry was silent for a long time and then he finally spoke. "I can understand that. And honestly, for a long time, I never thought I could love anyone else. But now, I'm starting to think that maybe I was wrong."

"Yeah?" My voice was hoarse.

"Yeah," he answered. "So how about if we decide to be not ready together," he suggested.

"Meaning what?" I asked with a slight giggle.

"Meaning I want to get to know you. And I definitely want to spend more time with you. But I'm just not sure when my heart will be ready to move on."

"So...friends," I said for clarification.

A small smile made one corner of his mouth turn up more than the other, and his eyes grew warmer. "How about friends with possibilities?"

"As long as it's not friends with benefits," I laughed. "I don't do that kind of thing."

His laughter was genuine as he said, "Good." He stood up and pulled me up into a warm and firm hug. "It's getting late," he whispered, his mouth close to my ear. "Problem is that I don't think I should drive."

"Probably not," I agreed.

"Is your couch free?"

"For you, always."

I went to get blankets for him, and when I returned, he took them gratefully and placed them on the couch. Then he turned back to me and pulled me in for one more lingering hug. The problem with combining a lingering hug and too much wine is that it can lead to kissing, which it did.

My hands rested on Harry's hips while he kissed me, and he cupped my face protectively. When he we finally managed to pull away, I said, "That was a little more than friends with possibilities should be doing, right?"

"I guess so. Sorry," he said, grinning in a way that told me he wasn't sorry at all. "Let's start tomorrow." And he pulled me back in for another long-lasting kiss.

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