"Mmm, thank you Mr. Ta— I mean Chris. And you Yuki."
Steve left shortly after, his mood improved. He had an odd feeling in his stomach, something that he hadn't felt before, almost like butterflies were having a party in there.
As he was driving away, Stephanie's image appeared in his mind. While he had thought of her as a childhood friend all these years, this was the first time that he imagined her as a potential girlfriend.
There was something about it that felt new and exciting, causing his heart to thump loudly.
"I'm gonna do it…" He muttered.
With prom coming up this weekend, he only had a few days to get things organized. With a smile on his face, Steve drove home.
The following day, Steve and Ken pulled up out the front of a nice looking two-story house. Ken marveled at the lawn which was comparable to some of the great baseball fields he had played on.
"Man… I'm starting to feel nervous." Steve said, trying to calm down his beating heart. He was dressed in a nice shirt and tie, but his face was covered in sweat despite the air conditioning being on full blast.
"Dude you need to chill. You look like a melted popsicle."
"Thanks…"
Ken smiled, patting his friend on the shoulder. "Don't worry, I'm here for moral support."
Steve let out a sigh, nodding his head. "Here goes nothing."
With that, he got out of the truck and opened the back door, collecting a sign and flowers which were placed on the seat. As he made his way to the door, he made sure to stay off the grass.
Ken got out of the car and leaned on it, watching his friend walk towards the house. The guy turned back a couple of times and Ken was forced to give him a reassuring smile and a thumbs up.
DING DONG
Steve resisted the sudden urge to run away, his heart beating out of his chest. He had already come this far, it would only be cowardly to turn back now.
However, when the door opened and revealed a man, Steve's throat suddenly dried up. The guy had well-maintained gray hair and looked to be wearing what could only be described as golf attire.
"Stephen? What brings you around here?" He looked rather taken aback, especially after seeing he was dressed in such a way.
"H—Hi Mr. Anderson. I was just wondering if Steph was around." He said meekly.
"Mmm sure, come in." He said, gesturing inside the house.
"Umm, I'd like to stay out here if you don't mind." Steve said, sounding a little panicked.
However, these words caused the other man's eyebrow to raise in suspicion. "Alright, tell me what's going on." He said, rather sternly.
Feeling that this was getting a little out of hand, Steve felt pressured to resolve it. He let out a sigh and turned his sign around, showing Stephanie's father what was written.
With a frown on his face, Mr. Anderson looked at the sign and almost laughed out loud. His eyes danced with amusement, but Steve wasn't sure if he was laughing at the sign, or the entire situation.
The man grinned and nodded, "I'll go get her."
Steve turned the sign back around, letting out another sigh as he waited. He already felt truly embarrassed, but he hadn't come this far just to turn around.
A few moments later, Steph appeared at the door, her face turning up in surprise after seeing who was waiting for her. However, just like usual, her expression turned sour.
"What do you want?" She asked coldly.
'Oh crap, this sucks.'
"Ahem… T—These are for you." Steve said, handing the bouquet of flowers that was hidden behind his back. They were red and white roses, and cost quite a pretty penny.
Out of instinct, she accepted them, taken aback a little. But in the next moment she frowned, "What are these for?"
Steve felt his heart sink, things were not going as he had planned.
"I… I just wanted to ask something." He said, biting his lip subconsciously. Steve turned the sign around, the one which had elicited laughter from Steph's father a few minutes earlier.
There was a moment of silence as she read the sign. He was afraid to look at her expression, fearing that it would just show the prelude to her rejection of his question.
However, Steph's face lit up and she let out a chuckle.
"Can I steal you for prom? That's pretty lame." She said, but it wasn't said in a scathing way like he might have expected.
Just as he felt the fire of hope arise from within, her next words completely extinguished it, sending his thoughts spiraling.
"Sorry, but I'm already going to prom with someone." She said softly.
The words were like a thunderclap, echoing in his ears. Steve's expression froze as he tried to come to terms with this information. It was painful, but he had been too late.
With his mind blank, Steve was about to turn around and leave without another word. But a soft voice spoke up, rooting him in place.
"But, if you can convince Ken to go with Sarah instead, I'll accept your promposal…" Steph said, her cheeks turning red.
Steve was stunned in that moment, so much so that he was unable to respond.
'She said yes?' He thought, his soul almost bursting out of his body in triumph.
"O—Okay!" Steve responded, not even second guessing his response. He grinned widely, almost jumping up and down in elation.
"Okay it's a deal." Steph replied, responding with a smile of her own.
Seeing the interaction from afar, Ken could tell that things had gone well. He pumped his fist in triumph, a smile forming on his face.
Steve returned shortly after, a perpetual grin painted on his face.
"So? Everything went well I assume." Ken said with a chuckle.
However, it was only now that Ken asked him that he suddenly remembered something.
"Um… look man, I need a favor."
"Hm?"