After failing to find parking near Kieran's condo building, Naomi crossed the river and parked her car on a side street beside the old St. Boniface cathedral. She didn't love the ten-plus minute walk to his place as evening set in, but it was a busy enough path, and this neighbourhood was safer to leave her vehicle.

She dialled Kieran's number, and his friendly greeting made her smile.

"Sorry Kieran, slight problem," she said.

"What's up? Did something happen and you can't make it?"

Was that what he was hoping for? Perhaps he'd had second thoughts about inviting her to meet his friends. Or was he expecting her to bail? Would he rather be out with Brinny?

Breathe Naomi. It's a normal question.

"No, I couldn't find parking, so I'm a whole neighbourhood away in St. B. It'll take longer than I thought."

"How about I pick you up? That's only a couple minute's drive, and I don't want you walking that alone at night."

Although she appreciated his offer, that might not be a solution. "Won't you lose your parking spot?"

"We have underground parking."

"Damn, look at you, Mr. Fancy."

Kieran chuckled, and she pictured the cute smile on his face. "Jake's choice, not mine. Whereabouts are you?"

"Beside the cathedral near the French university."

"Cool, I'll see you in five."

She hoped he wasn't annoyed that her lateness made this extra work. He seemed relaxed during the call, so maybe he didn't mind. She clicked her screen on and off a few times before unlatching her seatbelt and standing outside of her car. As the sun dipped lower on the horizon, the evening breeze refreshed her.

Was tonight a good night to ask Kieran out? She had no desire to ask him in front of everyone. If she tried now and he answered no, it would affect her night. Did she save it until the end and these nerves overrun her body? It was the safest option. She sighed. Why was attraction so nerve-wracking?

Unable to sit still, she walked through the cemetery of the province's Métis founder and many French Catholic settlers to the main path to get a better view of the cathedral. Most of it had burnt down in a fire in the sixties, but the stone front remained topped with a cross and an oval hole in the center. The fading evening light cast a gentle glow on the structure.

The cathedral fire destroyed a lot, but some parts would remain strong enough to survive. It was like their province's founder, Louis Riel. He was hanged for treason against the British in charge of the newly founded Canada, but his legacy of language rights, fighting for the Métis and his role in creating their province made more people consider him a fighter for human rights than a guilty man today.

Figuring Kieran would be a little longer, she strolled toward the river, passing through the iron gates, crossing the street, and making it to the walking path along the riverbank. Across the Red River, the Human Rights Museum's glass exterior reflected the evening sky with the city skyscrapers intermixed. She'd always found it comforting to be near the water, and it was also tonight too. The white spire of the Esplanade Riel pedestrian bridge caught the sunset colours.

A couple walked past her hand in hand as the man whispered in his partner's ear. She and Greg used to bike to this spot from his place. They'd walk across the river together, explore the Forks markets, and stroll the Assiniboine River path. One of the city's free gems, especially if you brought snacks and didn't pay for fuel, he'd like to say. She'd break their free pact from time to time and treat them to ice cream. He would but a lot less frequently than she did. She'd naively thought one day they'd stop on the bridge and, under the gentle glow of its lights, share a kiss.

"Naomi," Kieran's voice called out.

She glanced around until she spotted a truck idling near her. She must have zoned out longer than she realized.

"You're fast."

"I'll park and meet you here."

Before she could protest, he turned onto the side street where she'd parked and found a spot. She met him on the opposite side of the crosswalk. He grinned at her as the overhead lights flashed, and the crosswalk beeped.

"Hey, fancy running into you here."

Naomi laughed as he joined her. "I have trouble staying put sometimes."

"That's perfect because I don't want to share you yet."

Giddiness filled her that travelled down to her toes. "What did you have in mind?"

He shrugged and looked ahead. "Seems like a nice evening for a walk."

"It does."

"How was the game?" he asked.

"Alright, nothing memorable."

"It would have been memorable to watch you slide into home plate wearing this." A grin slid across his lips.

She laughed and caught his gaze. "This is just for your brother's game night." Or just for you. But it was too early to make that bold statement.

"Then I'll talk Jake into hosting those at least twice a week. You look amazing."

As he stared into her eyes, she suspected Shivanna was right. This differed from a friendship, but it would be complicated. How would he react to her boundaries?

He glanced at his shoes then back at her. "Is that okay to say to you?"

She smiled at his cute hesitation. If he was this attentive now, he'd likely do the same if they dated, which put Naomi at ease. "Yeah, I like genuine compliments as much as the next person."

The walkway curved toward the esplanade, and they passed the blue and white tourism booth shaped like a mini-street car. The scent of sugar, chocolate, and caramel filled the air, making Naomi's mouth water coming from the identical-looking food kiosks. "That smells incredible."

"Then we'd better stop because there's nothing like that at our place. It's all veggies, hummus, and healthy snacks."

"Are you sure? We don't need them."

Kieran smiled. "Luckily, we live in a world where we can have more than what we need."

They stopped at the chalkboard menu before the street-car-shaped kiosk with various savoury and sweet crepe options. Naomi's sweet tooth had her studying the chocolate, lemon and sugar, jam, banana and chocolate, or salted caramel choices.

"What caught your eye?" he asked.

"Banana and chocolate or salted caramel."

"We'll try them both."

They waited for the couple in front of them to finish, then Kieran ordered and paid before she could offer. He'd been doing that a lot lately.

Once the crepes were ready, he handed her the chocolate banana, and she accepted the cardboard sleeve that warmed her hand. The crepe was thin and crispy, and hot enough to burn her mouth. He chuckled as she quickly pulled it away from her tongue and blew on the dessert.

They walked over to the railing overlooking the junction of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers, which gave this area, the Forks, its name. The occasional motorboat and tour boat zipped beneath them. As night grew closer, the city lights flickered to life, and groups of people ebbed and flowed across the bridge, speaking a multitude of languages.

Naomi and Kieran watched each other eat their crepes between smiles and silly faces. Soon she switched the chocolate banana for the plate he had with a salted caramel crepe with a side of whipped cream.

"Which one's the winner?" he asked.

"Salted caramel is doing it for me tonight." She took one last bite before attempting to hand the plate to Kieran, but he pulled the chocolate crepe he held away and hid it behind his back.

"You can't be serious."

Yet he refused to budge. "Usually I'd hold it over your head, but I suspect you have a good jump."

"That's pretty accurate. But don't you want any more?"

"I'd rather see you enjoy the one you like most. They're both good to me."

"You're sure?"

Kieran nodded and took a bite as if to emphasize his point. Chocolate sauce spread across his cheek, beard, and nose. Naomi giggled as she dug into her purse for a napkin.

She stepped closer to him. "You have a little something."

"Here?" Kieran used the crepe to smear more chocolate across the other side of his face.

"You are a child!"

He laughed from his belly and when he bit into his dessert, chocolate sauce squirted onto his nose. His wide eyes made Naomi laugh this time.

"Serves you right."

"You wanted some, right?" He advanced toward her with the chocolaty crepe, and she scurried back with an excited shriek until she nearly took out a couple sitting at the metal tables behind the kiosk. She apologized and led him further down the bridge.

Her heart thumped wildly as she steadied her breathing. "You still have chocolate all over your face."

Kieran licked around his lips. "The correct perspective is that you don't have enough chocolate on yours."

"Agree to disagree."

They stopped halfway across the bridge to finish their crepes. He took her up on the napkin, but it could only help him so much since it was caught in his beard hair. "What am I going to do with you?" she muttered.

Kieran chuckled. "I'll leave that up to your discretion."

"How long did you want to delay game night?"

"There's no maximum amount I had in mind. If you're enjoying yourself, I'm good to keep exploring. I was only excited about game night because you were coming."

Her cheeks grew hot, and he smiled. Perhaps it was a friendly statement, but it felt like more. Would he say something, or should she? Her face was like a sauna. He continued walking, and some of her nerves eased.

They arrived at the end of the bridge in a round brick-paved area. Straight ahead led past the museum. To the far left would wind them around the path along the river, and slightly left would take them toward the markets. She opted for the river path since Kieran was big enough to intimidate anyone who might try to mess with them, and she enjoyed wandering beneath the tree canopy.

"Have you visited the Forks much?"

"I walk here from the apartment when I need space. Brinny showed it to me when I moved here too."

He talked little about his Ontario life or his past. He almost got emotional about it at Greg's place over a month ago. Getting to know him was a good step before asking him out. "What's it like, jumping to a new province where you don't know anyone? You must be used to it, but it probably took time."

"It can be lonely, but it also gives you a fresh slate."

"So you weren't always Tough Kieran with the eyebrow piercing and arm tattoo?" Coloured ink, forming waves and a beach, poked out from his right sleeve.

"I've had the eyebrow piercing since I was eighteen, and I got the tattoo a few months before leaving Kingston."

"Needed to boost your rep to keep up with the dangerous streets of Winnipeg?"

Kieran laughed. "I knew nothing about the city until we moved here. I got it for a friend."

"Not Brinny, I hope." Naomi was only partially joking.

"No, a different friend. She was like you in some ways. She loved food but didn't have the genes to be in great shape. No matter what I said, she was always insecure about it. She was funny and goofy, and she and Jake hit it off too."

Between Kieran's tone and the past tense, Naomi had a sinking pit in her stomach, telling her he'd eternally lost this woman. Jealousy didn't even flicker, just the urge to hug him. "She sounds amazing."

"She really was."

Naomi linked her arm with his and leaned her head against his shoulder. She didn't wish to pry, but she wanted to show she'd listen when he was ready.

"Careful there, Caramel Paws. This is a nice shirt."

She shook her head. "Okay, Chocolate Beard."

Kieran didn't say more about his female friend, and Naomi didn't ask more as they walked in silence. That he shared at all showed he trusted her.

"You know what we need?" she said as they neared the Oodena Celebration Circle with its metal arms stretching into the sky and the circle of steps descending toward the middle.

"Hmm?"

"A mirror, water, and mini donuts."

He smiled at her which sent her stomach into another extended gymnastics routine. 

"You read my mind." 

Here's where Naomi and Kieran are exploring: the bridge, cathedral, crepe shop, Forks market and river paths. One of my favourite areas in the city.

All the photos on the above board are copyrighted to the author. The crepe clipart below is from Victoria Sergeeva and the leaves are from Anastasiia Studzinska both accessed through CanvaPro.