The rest of the week passes by uneventfully. Winston and I text almost everyday. Through texting I learn the little minute details about Winston, such as his favorite color (blue), his favorite dessert (apple cake), and his favorite tv show as a kid (Ben 10).

Sometimes when he's not slammed or exhausted from work he'll call me before bed and we'll talk for at least an hour. I learn a little about his family, like the fact that his mom died in an car accident when he was sixteen, his sister Cecilia is two years younger than him, and that he isn't as close with his father as it seems. As a matter of fact, they usually butt heads about how to run the company. Winston has a different approach that deviates from his fathers cutthroat strategy, and Norman doesn't agree.

In return I tell him a little about my own family. I'm closer with Austin than with Tristan because we are more similar. Tristan is kind of the black sheep of the family, our father wanted him to pursue a career in law as well but Tristan wanted to help people in a different way. I know as a result there's some tension between the two. I rarely get to see either of them since they moved out, Tristan because he's all the way across the country, and Austin because he's always too busy.

After visiting the venue with Winston I start sketching out plans for the fundraiser with Isiah. Luca works on a spending budget while Svetlana organizes everything. On Friday Isiah and I print out flyers and hang them around campus to start generating buzz. With Principal Jones permission we also schedule to have personalized invitations sent out to all the students on Monday. These invitations contain a riddle we made up which is the password to gain access to the speakeasy.

On Saturday morning Winston texts me.

Winston: plans today?

Me: surprisingly no

Winston: cool. pick you up in an hour

Me: wait. where are we going?

Winston: dress casual. and wear comfortable shoes

He doesn't reply after that which frustrates me. I need more than just 'dress casual.' I need details. Where are we going, what are we doing, who's involved, etc. However it looks like dress casual is all I'm getting, so with a sigh I start getting ready. A black BCBG sweatsuit is as causal as I'm getting. Once I put on my shoes I tie my hair up and after some debate, decide to forgo foundation. A quick swipe of  lipgloss and I'm ready to go.

"Mother, I'm going out!" I yell as I bound down the steps. Without waiting for a reply I slam the front door behind me.

Winston is standing outside his car waiting for me when I emerge outside. I say goodbye to our doorman Jamison before approaching him.

"Nice shades," I comment teasingly. "You totally won't be recognized."

"I'm hoping they'll be too focused on how pretty you are to notice me," he grins, adjusting his black aviators.

I smile cheekily. "Flattery will get you absolutely everywhere." Winston opens the car door for me and I slide inside. Once he gets into the drivers side I can't hold it in anymore. "Can you please tell me where we're going? At least give me a hint."

He turns the keys and the engine purrs to life. As he puts the car in drive he turns to me and winks. "I hope you wore comfortable shoes."

...

"Can you believe I've lived in New York my entire life and I've never visited the Statue of Liberty?" I ask while staring at the enormous monument. I feel myself growing excited as the ferry approaches Liberty Island.

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it either when you told me," Winston shakes his head next to me. "Are you even a true New Yorker?"

I scoff. "Please. I've got the accent down to a t." Then I clear my throat. "Ay, I'm walking here!"

We both laugh as the ferry docks and passengers start disembarking. I feel like an ant compared to one of the most iconic sculptures in history. It stands before me, tall and imposing in all its glory. That's the amount of power I aspire to reach. In a lot of ways Lady Liberty is a leading woman in history.

Once we're on land I turn to Winston. "So. Are we staying down here or...?"

"Nope," he pulls out two tickets from his pocket. "We're going to the crown."

"That's at the top right?"

"The very top."

First we take an elevator up to the pedestal, which gives us an amazing view of the water. I'm not much of a water person, but even I can't deny the beauty of the ocean.

"Excuse me," I tap a random but kind looking lady on the shoulder. "Could you please take a picture of us?"

"Of course," she smiles. "Where do you want it?"

Winston and I stand by the water for a picturesque view. He places his arm around my shoulder drawing me closer and I lean in, wrapping my arms around him. My stomach flutters with butterflies. He smells amazing, like cologne but it's his natural scent. I feel like a giddy schoolgirl with a crush.

"Smile!" The lady says.

It's windy as hell so the first couple shots my hair gets in my face and mouth and Winston tries to help me remove it which just causes us to laugh even more. Eventually we both settle down and smile.

"You two are an absolutely gorgeous couple," the lady compliments us as she hands my phone back to me. "How long have you been together?"

I blush. "Oh, um, we're not-"

"It's new," Winston cuts me off. My eyes widen and I glance at him from the corner of my eye, but he just give the lady his natural charming smile and she falls right under his spell as I'm sure many others have before.

"Well you two are just adorable," she waves as she begins walking away. "Enjoy your trip!"

I watch her walk away before facing Winston. "Ready to go up?" He asks causally, as if didn't just imply we were kinda sorta a thing. But if he's not going to make a big deal about it, then neither am I. Besides, I can't lie and say my heart didn't thud when he said that.

"Yeah," I stuff my hands in my pockets. "Where are the elevators?"

He furrows his brow. "The what now?"

"The elevators...to get to the top?" When Winston still looks confused I frown. Am I speaking Mandarin here?

"There are no elevators love."

Now I'm the one who's confused. "So then how do we get to the top?" 

"I told you to wear comfortable shoes didn't I?" He chuckles. "We climb."

I laugh. He must be joking. When his facial expression remains the same my smile slowly fades, and I crane my neck up. I practically have to tilt my head all the way back just to see Liberty's crown. Oh hell no. There's no way I'm climbing up to the top.

Winston smirks. "Scared you won't be able to do it?"

I gasp before narrowing my eyes. "Is that a challenge?"

"It's whatever you want it to be."

I don't know if he did it on purpose or not, but now I'm determined to prove him wrong. I march ahead. "Come on. Let's do this."

...

Three-hundred and fifty four steps later, we finally make it to the top of the Statue of Liberty. To say I'm tired would be an understatement. I'm exhausted. My lungs are ready to collapse in on themselves and my legs feel like overcooked noodles. In fact, the only reason I haven't passed out yet is because of all my years playing tennis. I've built up some pretty good stamina, but the climb sucked it right out of me.

"This view," I pant out. "Better be worth it."

"Don't forget, we still have to climb back down," Winston jokes. He's enjoying this. Asshole. He holds out his hand for me to take on the last step but I ignore it and move straight towards the tiny windows inside the statue. I need fresh air ASAP.

When I finally catch my breath I look up, and the wind is knocked out of me for a completely different reason. Woah.

"Incredible right?" Winston comes up beside me. I nod mutely. Incredible doesn't even describe it. I tuck a strand of wind blown hair behind my ear as I stare outside, entranced. All of New York City lays spread out below us, like a tiny toy town. I take a mental snapshot of this view for my memory, because no photo could ever capture what I'm seeing right now.

I spin to face Winston. "Was this a date?" I blurt.

"I don't know. Was it?" He waggles his eyebrows playfully.

I punch his shoulder. "I'm serious!" When he doesn't say anything I laugh. "Come on! Tell me."

Unexpectedly he grabs both my wrists and pulls me to his chest. "What if I said it was?"

"Then..." I pretend to think. "It was kind of an amazing one."

"Only kind of?"

"Well yeah. You did make me climb three-hundred and fifty four flights of stairs.

He chuckles and I search his eyes before making a split second decision. I lean up and kiss him. It's short and sweet, and before he can react I turn around and start back down the stairs. "Come on slowpoke!"

The entire way down I can't wipe the stupid smile from my face.

...

After leaving the Statue of Liberty Winston takes me to get a late lunch. When he drops me back off at home I finally check my phone, which I had been ignoring the whole day. I have a slew of messages from different people, but I check Vienna's first because she's more important than anyone else.

V: SOS!

V: hello?

V: kennedyyyyyyy

V: answer me woman!

V: 😭😭😭

V: WHERE ARE YOU?

V: you have ten minutes to reply to this message or I'm notifying the authorities

The last message was sent eight minutes ago and I quickly call her.

"Finally!" She yells. "I was about to call in the hounds!"

"You're so dramatic," I roll my eyes. "What's the emergency?"

"What's the emergency? Where were you?!"

"You won't believe it," I bite my lip, twirling a strand of hair around my finger and grinning.

"Well?" Vienna prods impatiently. "Spill it!"

"I was on a date," I flop backwards onto my bed. "With Winston."

The line goes silent. It's silent for so long I'm afraid Vienna hung up. "Hello? Vi?"

Silence. Then..."AHHHHHHH!" I cringe and cover my ears.

"Ohmygod. I can't believe you two went on a date! I am sooooo happy for you and believe me I'm dying to know everything, but I kinda need your help because Danny asked me out!"

This time I'm the one screaming. Quickly I compose myself. "Details. Now."

She explains everything to me in a rush. It's hard to catch some of her sentences and twice I ask her to repeat herself.

"So let me get this straight. For your first date...you're going to a rave?"

"I'm totally freaking out here. I mean, the last rave he went to he almost set the building on fire, and if you've ever seen raves on tv, you know they're no joke. Anything could happen. I need to be prepared. I need an outfit, I need a game plan, I need-"

"Woah, woah, woah. Slow down. Let's go back to the outfit."

Vienna take a deep breath. "Okay. I'm stuck between two options. Let me FaceTime you."

Before I can respond she ends the call and a second later I get an incoming FaceTime notification. I swipe right.

"Hello?" The video crackles before focusing on Vienna in her room. It looks like a hurricane struck. Clothes are strewn everywhere. "Can you see me?"

"Yes. Why the hell does your room look like that?"

"I've been trying to find an outfit all day! Why do you think I was blowing up your phone? I mean now that I know why you weren't answering I understand, but still."

"Okay," I adjust my phone camera for a better angle. "Show me the outfits."

She goes off camera for a few minutes and I hear shuffling. There's a bang followed by an 'ow!' before she re-appears on screen. "Voila! What do you think?"

I stare at her. She's wearing a pastel purple mesh top with a white bra underneath, high waisted black leather shorts that show off her ass cheeks, and fishnets. On her feet are some type of shiny purple platform sneakers. They look ridiculously high, and that's coming from an avid heel wearer. Stilettos included.

"What are those shoes?"

"You like?" She flexes then proudly. "I just got them last week. Aren't they super cute?"

"They're interesting. What's the second outfit?"

She changes into her second choice, a holographic two piece set also with fishnets and those furry boots.

"Well..." I trail off. "Both make your ass look great."

"I know," she laments. "That's why I can't choose!"

Yeah, neither can I.

In the end I reluctantly pick her second choice. At least she'll stand out among the crowd. However I make her switch out the furry boots for her platform sneakers. They looked much better.

"Okay, gotta go do my hair and makeup. Thanks for your help!"

"What are you gonna tell your parents?" I ask.

It sucks, but Vienna has your stereotypical strict Asian parents. It's probably why she's so wild in the first place, having been sheltered for most of her life. She's constantly lying and sneaking around behind their backs, but they're oblivious because she puts on a carefully crafted 'sweet angelic I'm the perfect child' act whenever she's around them. They don't know a lot of the things she's done, such as piercing her tongue, getting a tattoo on her ribcage that says 'live life to the fullest' in Japanese symbols, or losing her virginity sophomore year just to get it out of the way.

"I'll tell them...I don't know. I haven't gotten that far yet, but you know me. I'll come up with something and fill you in on the details later."

"You better."

"Bye! Love you!" She blows me a kiss before ending the call. I shake my head and smile to myself. Afterwards I check the rest of my messages, which vary from details about the fundraiser to texts asking about various school assignments and what not. Yawning I set my phone aside. It's only early evening but I'm already tired.

I'll just take a quick nap, I tell myself as I lay down. Soon my eyes grow heavy and before I know it I'm knocked out.

...