When you're in love, you do things that surprise even yourself.

Alice walked into the kitchen to find Will in a pink apron and matching chef's hat that she hadn't seen in ages. "Love Grows Where My Rosemary Goes" was playing from Will's speaker as he formed what appeared to be cinnamon rolls.

Alice rubbed her eyes, still in her pajamas and clearly not fully awake yet. "Um... Will? Is that you?"

Will looked up and gave Alice a goofy grin. He clearly hadn't heard her come in over his music. "Oh, hey, Alice!"

"What... are you doing?" Alice asked, making a beeline toward the coffee maker.

"Can't you see? I'm making cinnamon rolls. How is this out of the ordinary?" Will asked. When the oven began beeping, he clasped his hands together. "The oven is up to temp!"

As jolly old Will threw his cinnamon rolls in the oven to bake, Alice just stared at him, stirring her coffee judgmentally.

"Alright, then. I can see that you're making cinnamon rolls. But why?" Alice asked. She took a much needed sip of coffee and let out a sigh of relief.

"Because this ol' bachelor just so happens to have a date!" Will smiled, showing off all his pearly whites.

Alice nearly spit out her coffee. "Dead serious?"

"Well, yeah!"

"Oh my gosh, is it that bookstore girl?" Alice asked, her mouth agape.

Will couldn't hide his childlike giddiness. His face began turning red almost instantly. "Indie, yeah. She's taking a chance on lil ol' me."

"Wow! I didn't know you had it in you, bro." Alice chuckled. "Well, congrats to you. I hope it goes well for you two today."

"Aw, thanks, sis. I-"

"But I still think she's too pretty for you." Alice prodded.

Will leaned against the kitchen counter. "Ouch."

"Are cinnamon rolls a first date food?" Alice inquired.

"Cinnamon rolls are an anytime food, in my humble opinion." Will shrugged.

"I guess I can't argue with you on that one," Alice took another swig of her coffee.

"Wow, that's a once in a lifetime occurrence."

"Shut it, baker boy."

Will laughed as he began to put away his ingredients.

"So, what's going to take place during this enchanting afternoon?" Alice asked.

"We decided to meet at the park later today. Nothing too crazy." Will explained. "Indie told me that, before we make any rash decisions, she just wants to get to know me better. I told her she could ask me all the questions her heart desires, and she thought that was a great idea." He smiled warmly, reminiscing their conversation over text. "Oh, and she said she wanted to feed the ducks that chill by the pond over there."

Alice put her hands over her heart. "Bless her, she sounds so sweet."

"Doesn't she?" Will agreed. "I just hope I can properly redeem myself after my awkward first impression."

"Good luck with that one. You're an awkward king. You can't change that overnight." Alice chuckled to herself.

"Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence, Buttons. I'll come up with a worthy comeback someday."

Alice hopped up and sat on the counter across from Will, still smirking from her victory in the area of sarcastic comments. "Does Indie go to our school?"

"She's homeschooled," Will answered.

"Ohhh, gotcha." Alice replied. "That sucks, though. I wanted to bond with her over the smell of the books in our library."

"Ooh, something smells good in here!" Will and Alice's mom, Betty, exclaimed as she entered the kitchen. Her short, wavy brown hair was tied back in a loose ponytail. She sported a light gray cardigan over a light blue t-shirt and matching gray sweatpants. "You look very awake, Miss Alice." She added as she gave her daughter a quick kiss on the forehead.

"Coffee cures all," Alice shrugged. "Where's dad?"

"Oh, you know how your father is." Betty laughed awkwardly. "He likes sleeping in on the weekends. Some of us, mainly me, can't do that anymore, due to a special someone's freight train snoring." She went quiet for a moment, looking down at the kitchen floor. She cleared her throat and clapped her hands together in an obvious transition to the next subject. "So, what's with the baked goods?"

"Mr. Macho Man here has a date," Alice wiggled her brows.

"Alice..." Will began to protest as his ears turned red.

"Ooh, with who?" Betty perked up as she fixed her own cup of coffee. "Is she cute?"

"Too cute for William," Alice smiled.

"Her name's Indie Argyle, mom, and please do not Facebook stalk her and find her entire family, date of birth and hobbies." Will sighed.

"Psh! I have never done that." Betty replied. When Will turned his head, she and Alice winked knowingly at one another. "Well, good luck, my little lovebird. Let me know how it goes when you get back, ok?" She added, ruffling up Will's already messy hair.

"Sure thing, mom. Thanks."

Just then, Will's oven timer rang, and he sprang towards the door and opened it fervently. After pulling his golden brown cinnamon rolls out of the oven, he turned to his mom and sister with a goofy smile on his face.

"It's icing time!"

~ * ~

Indie and Will were set to meet one another at the park around noon. Will arrived a bit early so that he could get his nerves out of his system by walking around the public pond at least three hundred times. He wasn't sure if ducks were allowed to have cinnamon rolls or not, but he fed one to them anyway after making sure no one important-looking was watching.

After pacing for what felt like a thousand years, Will felt a vibration in his pocket. To his delight, it was Indie.

Indie: I'm on my way now, but I'm gonna be a little late. Sorry! See you soon! :)

Will smiled and quickly texted back a response. He couldn't believe how much more often he checked his phone these days in hopes that it was a text message from Indie. It was a strange feeling, but a good one.

Finally, after settling down on the bench by the pond and crunching a few fall leaves beneath his feet, Will saw Indie approaching in the distance. He grabbed his Tupperware container of cinnamon rolls and held them securely in his hands as he stood. Somehow, Indie looked even more beautiful now than she had when he'd first laid eyes on her; he was unsure of how that was even possible. Her long, blonde locks were flowing in the slight autumn breeze, her deep brown eyes pierced the monotony of the shady gray day, her long brown button-up coat accentuated her figure perfectly, and the long brown boots that sat atop her white jeans perfectly matched the color of her coat. She was the picture of elegance and grace, and a masterpiece at that.

When she finally made it over to Will, he was so excited that he practically tossed the cinnamon rolls from his hands to hers.

"I-I made cinnamon rolls, if you like cinnamon rolls. Do you like cinnamon rolls?"

"I-"

"Because if you don't, I can make you something else, it's no problem whatsoever-"

"Will," Indie stopped his ramble with a laugh, "I love cinnamon rolls. You didn't have to make me anything! Now I feel like a chump."

"No! I just wanted to do something nice, you know?" Will said. He looked everywhere but in Indie's eyes; he knew that if he gave in and stole a glance, his face would instantly turn every shade of pink at once. "Um... would you like to sit down? A-and feed the ducks?" Will offered, gesturing toward the bench.

"Oh, yes, that would be awesome." Indie smiled softly.

Will gently set his hand on Indie's back and led her to the bench, allowing her to sit down first. He gave her a few inches of personal space to ensure he wasn't bombarding her.

Indie sat the Tupperware full of cinnamon rolls next to her on the bench and watched the ducks splashing in the pond for a moment.

"I like your flannel," Indie began. "Red is a nice color on you."

"Thank you," Will smiled. "I like your coat and boots combo. They match your eyes."

"Thanks." Indie replied softly.

They both sat there, too flustered and far too nervous to look at one another, so they stared off into the dreary afternoon sky.

"So," Indie continued, "you said I can ask any question I'd like?"

"Anything." Will answered. "I'm an open book."

"Wow... I feel so powerful." Indie giggled.

Will smirked, glancing at her face every few seconds. How could one human being be so... perfect?

"Alright, I've had a few in mind, so I hope you're prepared."

"Lay it on me," Will taunted.

"Okay..." Indie thought for a moment, tossing a few breadcrumbs she'd brought in a bag. "The first one's kind of a doozy. Have you had any previous girlfriends?"

"Wow, starting off strong," Will chuckled. "Unfortunately, the answer is no."

"No? Really?"

"Really, really. I know, it's so hard to believe that muscular ol' me has never had a girlfriend." Will said with a wink. "No, the only thing that came even remotely close to 'having a girlfriend' was a few crushes I've had on girls in my grade a long time ago. I'd sort of obsess over them for a while, write poems about them and all that, but it never went any further because I was and forever will remain an awkward king."

Indie's eyebrows furrowed together. She looked up at Will, her eyes sparkling beneath the gray autumn sky. "You write poetry?"

Will blushed instantly. How had he already given away something that felt so exposing? "Well- um... I wouldn't really call it that, I mean... it's not very good. I dabble in poetry, but I also really like the idea of writing stories and novels... and all that other stuff."

"Woah, that's so cool!" Indie replied.

"You don't think it's totally and utterly lame?" Will inquired.

Indie laughed. "No, of course not! Art is so important to me. I could never judge you for something as interesting as writing poetry." She tossed another round of breadcrumbs at the crowd of ducks that had gathered around them, watching them gobble it up. "I've dabbled in so many things that I feel like I'm not good at any of them anymore. Guitar, crocheting, piano, painting, pottery... I've kinda become a Jack of all trades, master of none."

"Huh. Well, it's cool that you've attempted so many different mediums." Will complimented. "I've kinda just fixated on poems ever since I realized it was my favorite way to express my feelings."

Indie nodded. She tapped her chin as she tried to think of more questions. "When's your birthday?"

"October 16th."

"Why does that make so much sense?" Indie inquired. "Your face looks like it was born in October."

Will chuckled. "I do not know what that means, but I suppose I'll humor you." He looked at Indie and their eyes met. He examined her face once more, but it felt almost as if he was looking upon it for the very first time. He always noticed something different and beautiful every time he looked at her. "Your face looks like... June?"

"Close! My birthday is May 23rd."

"That makes sense!" Will exclaimed. "I understand what you mean now," he chuckled softly.

"Your birthday is coming up soon," Indie noted. "I'll have to make you some cinnamon rolls." She added with a wink.

"Oh goodness," Will sighed. "I'm never going to be able to live this down, am I?"

"Don't worry about it, you goose. It was a really sweet gesture. I'd like to return the favor." Indie replied honestly. She opened the Tupperware container and grabbed a cinnamon roll to munch on herself.

The chilly breeze blew past the acquaintances. They noticed a few people strolling down the sidewalks, couples giving one another random forehead kisses, and dog owners playing fetch with their furry friends in the distance. The park was full of life, even on a day that felt colorless.

"One more question." Indie broke the silence again. "Do you think this counts as a date?"

Will's eyes widened and his cheeks went red. He nervously scratched his scalp. "Erm... well, what do you think?"

Indie thought for a moment as she watched the ducks swim by. She absentmindedly began twirling a strand of her sunshiny hair. "Hm... well, to consider this an official 'date,' I think we may need to check the physical touch box off the list."

Will looked down, his classic goofy grin returning. He gave Indie a quick look as he held out his hand. "M'lady, will you do me the greatest honor you could bestow upon me and hold a poor peasant's hand?" Will asked.

Indie rolled her eyes playfully as a smirk parted her lips. "Whatever, weirdo."

Indie gently slipped her hand into Will's palm and their fingers intertwined. Neither of them could make eye contact at that moment. Indie rested her head on Will's shoulder with a sigh.

"What a perfect day," she whispered.

"Yeah," Will replied, still stunned he'd made it that far without passing out or puking. "I couldn't have said it any better myself."

Indie took a deep breath in. "So, same time next week?" She inquired, her voice still soft.

"Maybe a bit sooner than that." Will replied.

And there Will and Indie sat, wishing that they could freeze the clocks and remain in that moment forever.