Deep hunting through her closet and scaffolding at everything, and yet, nothing Snow found was worthy of date material. All she had were basic tops, jeans, and shorts. She didn't have anything dressy, girly, or frilly except for that one white top with detailed ruffles, but that wasn't going to cut it. What were these clothes for her?

Thinking about her "first date," she wanted to treat it as a special occasion. Whenever she thought something looked decent, she held it up to her body and checked herself out at the mirror, but then lost interest a few seconds later and put it back.

It had proved a disastrous failure. Snow felt her hands tired of searching and then threw herself onto her bed. As her eyes bored into the ceiling, she sighed.

She stayed there for twenty minutes with nothing but rumination about how torn she'd be. Soft, yet sturdy knocks came from the outside of the door, and she knew it was a warning before her mother stepped into the room.

"Hi Snow. Are you tired?" she asked.

"No, just... miserable," Snow said slowly.

Her mother adopted that motherly look onto her countenance and then sat beside her on the bed. "Why do you feel that way?"

"Because... I can't find anything to wear."

"Are you going to go out? You'll look good in anything." Her mother was nice to reassure her, but it didn't help her right now.

"Mom, but I'm going on a date," she said, and her mother's eyes were widening and almost not believing.

She could tell she was curious, nevertheless, as she asked, "Date? You're going on a date? I never hear you about going on a date. Is this your first date?"

So many sentences ending with the word date got her mother flowing out like a dam. "It's not a real date, but it's a date. I want to look nice, but I don't have anything." Snow hoped it'd make sense with what she said, but she didn't believe it did.

Her mother was almost a little joyful when she thought Snow was actually going out with someone. She tried convincing her it was a different kind of dating in a sense they weren't, but her mother thought it was like a teenage kind of fling stage and shrugged it off.

"What about your plaid cardigans or thin sweaters? I think they look nice," her mother suggested.

Snow shook her head. "It's not enough."

Her head tilted, hesitating before she said, "I know just the right look for you." She lent her an outfit from her closet, which Snow saw in her eyes as the perfect fit. She thanked her for this, and her mother also offered to help her with her makeup.

By the time, Casey pulled up to the front of her house. Snow looked one last time in the mirror.

She had her hair done in beachy waves as the curls played loosely around than her usual normal wavy hair that fell at the ends.

Her face became enhanced in a natural look. Nude pink, Ivory, and Brown eyeshadow all over the lids, and around the corner of her eyes was a tad darker. The eyelashes made her stood out like a doll in addition to her soft arch eyebrows filled in with a darker brown. Her cheeks with a light pink blush on complimented her and her lips with a clear lip gloss. She thought she became ten times prettier than her usual no-makeup face.

The dress was a pink spaghetti strap with a V-neck and went a little bit above her knees. What she liked about it was the crochet top part and the lace strings that made a flower pattern and some fancy lines. From the middle to down had the material of a softly pleated skirt and a few ruffles.

Normally her mother's clothes size was smaller than hers, but this was one of the looser ones she had. 

She turned to her side to see the tied ribbon behind with her back revealed, and only if her hair was longer, she could cover behind. At least she could wear a gold round necklace and a bracelet to make everything a tad a better.

Snow lightly slapped her cheeks, scanning once more at herself. She didn't think she could be this girly, but another version was standing before her.

Okay, there's nothing wrong. I look fine. Right?

After a minute, she snapped out. I should leave now. Snow grabbed a cardigan sweater and her purse, leaving her room to the front door. "I'm leaving now," she softly called out to her mother and heard her say back, "Okay, have fun."

Slipping onto her brown boots, she made it out to her door and saw Casey's gray BMW. She could see him waiting inside. When she sat at the passenger seat beside him, she strapped in her seatbelt.

Casey cast a glance over at her, then one of his eyebrows raised. "You look... different?"

"Really?" Snow looked at her dress and back at him.

"It's nice, but you didn't have to put that much effort into it," he said with one hand on the steering wheel.

"Why not? It's a date," she said. Casey looked normal as ever. A dark blue jacket, and this time, instead of his dark shirt, it was green, and his tight jeans.

Once he checked his mirrors and the street, he started to drive away.

Snow and Casey waited in a line of people who are ahead of them. They chattered among themselves, and those who just got their ticket went inside through the glass door while several passersby moved past the Cinema building.

"Should we go see Petals and Love Letters?" she asked.

She saw him made a face of a fake gag. "Rom-com chick flick is a no. Why don't we see an action film? There is one playing, right?" Casey looked at the theater sign ahead. "Hey, there's one with Will Smith."

"I'm not into violence." She blinked hastily.

Neither of them wanted to see a genre that was the opposite of what they liked. The line moved up, and when it was their turn, they had asked the cashier which movie looked better. She was from a neutral standpoint.

Soon enough they were suggested the 6:15 pm show of The Missing Princess in Paris. After getting their tickets checked out, they were free to roam around the lobby. The smell of popcorn filled the air, and looking ahead of them, was the concession stand with people waiting to get their snacks. To her right, teenagers were present at their mini arcade section, fooling around and playing games. Different family and friends, and some by themselves, walked around the widening space on the brown carpet floor.

Casey paid for the huge popcorn; and Snow with the candies. Each of them had their own drinks. Once they walked in the dark room with the previews playing, they saw the sight of people's shadows stretched out. Snow and Casey made their way to the middle row and sat down.

When the movie started, their eyes landed on the screen. A male protagonist was a trained agent sent to find the missing princess who was kidnapped and had to gather the clues to find her. Throughout the scenes, Snow openly followed whether it was good, bad, or funny, and any time she took a quick peek at Casey, he didn't react, and his eyes were glued to the screen the whole time.

They walked out the end of the film. Snow fell in love with the ending, and Casey got what he wanted with tons of action scenes. As their popcorn bucket was three-fourths empty and they ate all the candy and finished their drinks, Casey threw them away at the nearest trashcan.

"What do you think of the film?" Snow asked.

Casey shrugged. "It's fine."

She kept her optimism. "Some parts could've done better, and I hate what happened to the best friend, but at least it has a happy ending." 

Casey took her to a restaurant called Smoked & Served, a classic themed BBQ restaurant. The customers had taken their place in medium or wide tables, including with their orders of meat on their plates and fruity drinks on the side. Some liked to be on the wide Countertops or the island where there was a bar.

Golden lights high above their heads were lined vertically across the whole room. Vintage paintings hung against the dark brown smooth beadboard wall. Neatly polished floor tiles looked almost anew. Looking through the glass panel, more tables and empty seats sat outside. Currently, three people were there as lights and outdoor fences surrounded them. The place gave her a homely, yet comfortable vibes like you could have casual outings frequently and for when you want to have a good time.

The noise level was medium, and soft jazz music blew out from the speakers. If she didn't know any better, the place looked very Texas-style.

"Impressive," Snow noted.

"Yeah," Casey said indifferently.

They sauntered up to one of the smaller tables. Snow automatically looked at Casey, who's sitting across from her, and suddenly, it felt so awkward. The awareness caught up to her like now she should be on a one-on-one date.

The guy, the place, the soon-to-be food and drinks, the making of the small talks, it was all weird. She never imagined the scenario as something coming to reality. She was more of observing the experience of someone else's date as a third person.

He stared back at her; he didn't say anything either. It was an awkward silence. As the sound of the crowd was talking around them, she tapped using her fingers on her wrist.

Was she the only one anxious? While it may not be a real first date, she couldn't help but wonder if she'd act the same way as she did now. If she couldn't talk to him, talking to anyone else must be ten times worse.

First dates are creating first impressions and building a kind of connection between you and the other person. She should spark up a conversation, smile at him, and keep good energy between them. She wanted to go home with remembering what kind of things she did, how she felt, and how he thought about her. Good dates could only last if both of them had a good time and wanted more.

A topic—She needed a topic to talk stuff with him. Snow remembered that to show interest in someone, she'd have to talk about them. The more you talk about them, the more they think you're interested. Maybe she could use her chance to find out more about Casey's life.

Snow broke the silence. "How is everything?"

"It's normal," Casey responded casually.

Normal. Right. It wasn't like he wanted to be on this first date in the first place. Then something curious popped in her mind: What was he like when he went on his date with his former girlfriend? Was he nervous? Did he act the same? Did they had a lot of interesting things to talk about?

"How is she? You know..." Snow wondered.

His face hardened at once, and his eyes too, almost expressionless. Casey tore his gaze away from her, and she could see the side of his jaw. "Fine." It came out harshly than what he may have intended.

Now she wished she hadn't asked him.

After they order their food, and to pass by the awkwardness: Snow asked him how he found this place. The story was: before he was getting adjusted to this college kind of life, he was driving by around with really nowhere. It was a casual kind of drive where he let his thoughts loose and forget about everything around him. He wasn't a fan of driving, but he needed to get to places where he could go and become used to the streets and signs if he ever got lost or something. It was one wrong turn he made accidentally, and that's how he knew.

The waiter left them their food and drinks on their table, telling them to enjoy themselves before he left for his other duties. Snow examined the meat before her with a curious gaze. She ordered something called Honey Garlic Pork Chops. It looked crispy and mouthwatering from the way it looked and even the smell.

"Smells good."

"Then eat it," Casey said, piercing his steak with a fork and bringing it to his mouth.

"I'm going to," she mumbled. She picked up the fork, and with the other hand was a knife to cut it into a piece. The small piece entered her mouth, and she found it tasted amazing; then went for another bite.

"It's really good." Snow sipped the straw to her pink lemonade drink.

"So you're a fan of Barbeque?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Yeah."

She made a ridiculous amount of small talks; everything she tried to get him to open up, he'd respond with short answers. Casey was really bad at trying to go along with the flow.

"Casey," Snow said, her voice calm. "I know you're probably still having a hard time, but I want you to think of me and look at me right now."

His face was still.

"It'll be okay. Don't forget I'm here." She had a concerned smile.

She heard him sigh, and he gave her a nod. "I'll think about that."

"How about instead of me asking you things, why don't you ask me something? Whatever you want."

Casey took another bite of his meat, chewing slowly, and he swallowed. He deliberated. "Have you always been... optimistic?"

Snow blinked. The question was direct. "Have I? I don't know. I like to think it's good to find a brighter side of things."

That's odd, had she always look optimistic in front of others? She thought of herself as considerably normal.

"Do you think of me that way?" she asked.

He chuckled. "You were a little quiet before, that's what I thought. But now? You're a little strange."

"Strange as in good or bad?"

"You're not necessarily bad. You're mindful."

She was wide-eyed with astonishment. It's like his first compliment toward her.

"I try to. I thought you were kinda quiet too," Snow confessed.

"Then that makes both of us."

The first impression of what they think of one another: it was out of the bag. That could be the first thing she had in common with him. They expressed the individuality of awkwardness that this place couldn't sense.

"Are we getting graded at the end of this night?" Casey questioned.

"Hmm..." Snow paused. "We can just keep notes in our head as we go, and we can gather a final grading at the end. How about that? I won't count anything if it has to do with... her."

Casey nodded his head slowly. "Okay."

It was mostly for Casey. If she said that Casey's only problem when he was with her was how he was still fragile because of his ex-girlfriend, then this relationship was nothing. She was walking on eggshells with him.

The rest of their dinner went by. Snow had a great meal with pork chops and dessert, and while she tried warming up to Casey. He drove her home, and they walked up to the doorsteps of the front porch. She could see that the night had fallen around them. How unbelievable—it was the first night of her life where she was alone with a guy.

She hoped she was a passable company for him. "Thank you for driving me back," she said.

"No worries," he told her.

"And for this night," she added.

Casey nodded, and his hands moved behind his back. "Yeah."

Was this the awkward part after the guy dropped the girl off, they just stood there in silence before they ended the date with a goodbye?

Snow watched him, puzzled. "Did you like tonight?"

"It was all right. It's nice... talking to you?" Casey said, a great uncertainty crossing his features.

She lifted a hand to her cheek, with self-consciousness kicking in. "Yeah, you too," she said in her small voice.

They gazed at each other, and now silence reigned over. There weren't people chattering around them, no music playing from the speakers, or sounds of noisy background running. It was just them under the lights near her front door.

Snow abruptly broke out in an unsettling laugh.

"See you tomorrow then?" she asked.

"Yep, good night then," he said casually.

"Good Night."

Casey stepped down, walking to his car, as she watched him. His gaze met across her through the glass window, and she waved. He waved back.

Shortly, his car left the street.

Turning around, she went inside the house and was left to think about how tonight went.

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Had there ever been a first date where a guy takes a girl out instead of a fancy restaurant where you look sophisticated and such, he just takes her out to a chill BBQ place? I haven't read a book like that on here yet. But in case they have, then here's one more list to add on top of dates Wattpad characters go on. Haha. 

Gosh damn Casey, pour your heart out and stop bottling up everything. 

Hopefully, you guys are having a good weekend. This is just one of their many kinds of dates. There will be others coming soon, and you'll see more progress between them. 

Please vote and comment as it means the world to me.