Stark got out of the car, shuffled back to her, and wondered how he could stand. He felt almost numb, overexposed to that point like a nerve rubbed raw. He wasn’t used to so much emotion pulling him this way and that, he was used to machinelike control. He listened though.
He blinked rapidly a few times before speaking. “I…” he swallowed, working to compose himself to help the conversation and himself. “To make myself clear I do, at the very least, want to see more of you. A date or two. And… yeah, that was selfish of me to do—to think I could decide for you. And… my mouth is?” He couldn’t help but ask.
Summer’s pupils were huge from more than the darkness of the night. Light glittered off the tearstreaks on her face. “I want to kiss you so badly right now,” she whispered, feeling utterly caught in his gaze. “Say it again. Why you want /me/. Say it again and I’ll start believing you.”
“I want you because of who you’ve shown me you are. You’re so honest, so selflessly helpful. You’re not full of yourself, and you don’t kiss ass to those who are. You’re smart…” He paused, a small hint of a smile pulling at his lips. “You’re beautiful, too. The whole package…”
He did his best to push his negative self image from his mind for the time being, and he succeeded.
With every word out of his mouth, Summer’s shoulders relaxed a little more. One hand swiped at the wetness on her face, smearing it away. “Okay. Okay. Let’s just … okay, let’s just go and have dinner, and, and we, you can count this as a first date. Okay? And, and … ” she pulled in a deep, shuddering breath, “please just … be yourself. What you want to do, don’t hesitate. Trust me to tell you if it’s not okay?” She fetched her backpack from the car, and looked over her shoulder. “And if I ever hear ‘you’re too good for me,’ come out of your mouth in a serious context again, I’m going to explode your ego.”