Aurora had barely finished changing out of her work clothes when her phone buzzed on the dressing table.
She glanced at the screen.
Felix: So, have you made a decision?
Aurora stared at the message before shaking her head with a small smile.
He really wasn't going to let this go.
Aurora: About what?
His reply came almost immediately.
Felix: Dinner, Rora. Don't tell me you've forgotten already.
Aurora: I have a lot on my mind.
Felix: And apparently, none of it involves feeding a hardworking athlete.
Aurora laughed.
Aurora: You're very dramatic.
Felix: I'm also very hungry.
Aurora: Fine. Dinner.
There was a brief pause before another message appeared.
Felix: Wait. Really?
Aurora raised an eyebrow at the screen.
Aurora: You've spent the entire day asking me. What did you think I was going to say?
Felix: I don't know. I was prepared to negotiate.
Aurora: Fortunately for you, I'm off duty.
Felix: Excellent. I'll send you the location.
Aurora put her phone down and returned to her wardrobe.
She had agreed to dinner, not a business meeting. There was no reason to overthink it.
Besides, she had spent most of the day dealing with supplier quotations, construction schedules and a client who seemed to regard every detail as a personal responsibility. A quiet evening away from her desk sounded rather appealing.
She chose a simple outfit, picked up her handbag and checked her phone again.
Felix had sent the restaurant's location along with a message.
Felix: Seven thirty. And please don't bring any contracts.
Aurora: I wasn't planning to.
Felix: Good. I don't think I could survive another discussion about budgets.
Aurora: You haven't even seen my budgets.
Felix: Exactly. I'd like to keep it that way.
Aurora laughed as she headed out.
For someone who spent so much time training, Felix certainly had enough energy to keep a conversation going.
She wondered whether he was always like this.
Or whether she was simply becoming more accustomed to him.
...
The restaurant was already moderately busy when Aurora arrived.
Warm lighting filled the dining area, and soft music played beneath the conversations of the other diners. She spotted Felix near the windows, dressed in a dark shirt and trousers. He was looking at his phone, but the moment he noticed her approaching, he put it away.
His eyes met hers as he stood up. "You came!"
Aurora stopped beside the table and looked at him."What!? Were you expecting someone else?"
"No, but I wasn't entirely sure you'd come."
"You asked me to dinner, Felix. You didn't ask me to rearrange my entire schedule for you."
"Give me time," Felix replied with a grin."
She laughed and took the seat he pulled out for her.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
His gaze lingered on her for a moment before he returned to his seat.
Aurora caught him looking and tilted her head. "What?"
"Nothing."
"That didn't look like nothing."
He smiled. "I was just thinking you look nice."
For once, Aurora didn't have an immediate response.
It wasn't an extravagant compliment, and he hadn't said it in a particularly serious tone. Still, the unexpected remark caught her off guard.
She recovered quickly, reaching for the menu.
"Well, you don't look too bad yourself."
Felix paused.
Then his smile widened. "Not too bad?"
"Don't push it."
"I'm just trying to understand the standard I'm being judged by."
"Perhaps you'll find out after dinner."
"Now I'm curious."
"Good. Curiosity builds character."
Felix laughed as he handed her a menu.
"I've been here a few times. The food is good."
"That's reassuring. I'd hate to discover that you brought me somewhere terrible."
"I would never do that."
Aurora looked at him over the menu. "You say that with a lot of confidence."
"I have excellent judgement."
"Is that why you spent the entire afternoon complaining about Coach Vance?"
Felix lowered his menu. "That's different."
"Of course it is."
"He's determined to make my life difficult."
"You know he's trying to make you better."
Felix stared at her. "You're literally never on my side."
"I am on your side. That doesn't mean Coach Vance is wrong."
He sighed dramatically. "I knew this was a mistake."
Aurora smiled and returned to the menu.
"Then I suppose you won't mind paying for dinner."
Felix immediately straightened. "I didn't say that."
"Interesting."
"Rora."
She laughed, and he finally joined her.
By the time the waiter arrived to take their orders, Felix had already recovered from his disappointment at discovering that Aurora refused to sympathise with him unconditionally.
They ordered their food, and once the waiter had left, Felix leaned back in his chair.
"So, how was your day?"
Aurora gave him a look.
"You've been asking me that all day."
"Through messages. This is an actual conversation."
"Very different, apparently."
"Extremely."
She considered the question. "Busy. I spent most of the day reviewing the Ravencrest project estimates. A couple of suppliers decided to increase their prices, so I had to look into alternatives."
Felix nodded. "Is that the project you told me about?"
"Yes. The one I'll be working on directly with Mr. Voss."
"How's that going?"
"Fine, so far."
He tilted his head.
"Just fine?"
Aurora reached for her glass of water. "He's demanding."
Felix chuckled. "I can imagine."
"But he's reasonable. He wants everything properly calculated, and he expects us to justify our decisions. I don't have a problem with that."
"Sounds like someone who takes his business seriously."
"He certainly does."
"Does he give you a hard time?"
Aurora thought about it for a moment.
"Not exactly. He asks a lot of questions, and he expects detailed answers. But I would rather have a client who knows what he wants than one who changes his mind every five minutes."
Felix nodded thoughtfully. "You make it sound easy."
"It isn't."
Her answer came without hesitation.
For a moment, the playful expression on his face softened.
"I know you work hard, Rora."
Aurora looked at him.
There was nothing exaggerated in his tone. He wasn't trying to flatter her or make a joke out of the conversation. He simply sounded as though he meant it.
She looked away first, reaching for her glass again. "Thank you."
Felix smiled before shifting the conversation.
"Speaking of hard work, Coach Vance nearly made me repeat one of my routines until my legs stopped working."
Aurora laughed.
"Nearly?"
"I'm choosing to believe he has some mercy left."
"That's optimistic."
"I have to be optimistic. Otherwise, I'll start questioning my life choices."
"And we wouldn't want that."
"Exactly."
Their food arrived shortly afterwards, saving Felix from explaining the full extent of his suffering at the rink.
For a while, they ate and talked about lighter things. Felix told her about a younger skater at the academy who had somehow managed to convince the entire training group that he had invented a new warm-up routine. Aurora told him about a meeting at her firm where two architects had spent fifteen minutes arguing over a detail that could have been settled with a ruler and a little common sense.
Felix laughed so hard at that story that he had to put his fork down.
"I'm sorry," he said, still amused. "But I can actually picture you standing there, wondering how you ended up working with these people."
"You have no idea."
"Did you say anything?"
"I asked them to demonstrate which measurement they believed was correct."
"And?"
"They both discovered they were wrong."
Felix burst out laughing again.
Aurora shook her head, but she was smiling too.
"You're enjoying this far too much."
"I am. I wish I'd been there."
"You would have been completely useless."
"I could have offered moral support."
"You would have made it worse."
"Probably."
They laughed again, and Aurora realised she hadn't checked her phone once since they sat down.
That was unusual.
She wasn't sure when she had become so comfortable around Felix, but she didn't feel the need to analyse it, so she left it be.
For now, she was content to enjoy the evening.
At one point, she caught Felix watching her while she finished telling him a story.
She stopped mid-sentence.
"You're doing it again."
He blinked. "Doing what?"
"Looking at me like you have something to say."
"Maybe I do."
Aurora set her fork down, suddenly curious despite herself.
"Well?"
Felix leaned back, looking entirely too pleased with himself.
"I was going to say that you smile more than I expected."
She narrowed her eyes. "What exactly did you expect?"
"I don't know. You're always so serious when you talk about work."
"That's because work requires me to be serious."
"So, I should be honoured?"
Aurora laughed softly. "Don't let it go to your head."
"Too late."
She shook her head, but the smile stayed on her face.
And when Felix looked away to take a drink, she found herself watching him for a moment longer than necessary.
Perhaps she wasn't the only one paying attention.
...
By the time they finished eating, the restaurant had grown quieter.
Felix reached for the bill, but Aurora looked at him in surprise.
"I thought you were going to negotiate."
"I did."
"When?"
"When you agreed to come."
She laughed. "That wasn't a negotiation."
"It was to me."
He picked up the bill before she could reach for it.
"Besides, I invited you."
Aurora studied him for a moment, then let him have his way.
"Fine. But next time, I'm paying."
Felix looked up.
"Next time?"
She realised what she'd said.
For a brief moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Felix smiled.
"I didn't know there was going to be a next time."
Aurora picked up her handbag, determined not to let his expression unsettle her.
"Well, I didn't say there wouldn't be one."
His eyebrows rose slightly. "That's encouraging."
"Don't get too excited. I haven't decided where we're going."
"So there really is going to be another dinner?"
Aurora gave him a warning look, although her smile betrayed her.
"Felix."
"Rora."
"Don't make me regret it."
"I wouldn't dare."
"You're already thinking about it, aren't you?"
"Thinking about what?"
"Where we're going next."
He paused, then grinned. "Maybe."
Aurora laughed and shook her head. "You're impossible."
"And yet, you're still here."
"Only because you haven't finished paying."
"Of course."
She gave him one last amused look before he settled the bill.
Then they left the restaurant together.
Outside, the evening air was cooler than Aurora had expected. She paused near the entrance while Felix checked that he had everything with him.
"Are you driving?" he asked.
"Yes. My car is just over there."
"I'll walk you."
"You don't have to."
"I know."
He said it so casually that Aurora didn't argue.
They walked towards her car, talking about the upcoming week. Felix had another demanding training schedule ahead of him, while Aurora would be submitting the revised Ravencrest schedule and preparing for whatever Mr. Voss decided to review next.
Their responsibilities were waiting for them, whether they liked it or not.
At her car, Aurora turned towards him.
"Thank you for dinner."
Felix slipped his hands into his pockets.
"Thank you for agreeing to come."
"You sound surprised."
"A little."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Should I be offended?"
"No. I just know how busy you are."
Aurora's expression softened.
"Well, I had a good time."
Felix smiled.
"Me too."
For a moment, neither seemed particularly eager to end the evening. It wasn't an awkward silence, exactly. There simply wasn't anything urgent that needed to be said.
Felix glanced at her, his smile turning playful again.
"So, does this mean I can ask you out again without having to spend an entire day negotiating?"
Aurora laughed. "That depends."
"On what?"
"How good your next proposal is."
"Right. I'll make sure to prepare a detailed presentation."
"Include the location, the menu and a convincing argument for why I should say yes."
He nodded thoughtfully. "Anything else?"
Aurora pretended to consider it.
"Surprise me."
For once, Felix seemed to have no immediate comeback. He looked at her for a second, then smiled.
"I'll keep that in mind."
Aurora felt an unexpected flicker of satisfaction at having caught him off guard.
Eventually, she opened her car door.
"Goodnight, Felix."
"Goodnight, Rora. Don't work too late."
She gave him a knowing look.
"Take your own advice. You have training tomorrow."
"Unfortunately."
"Survive Coach Vance."
"I'll do my best."
Aurora laughed before getting into the car.
As she drove away, she glanced at the restaurant in her rear-view mirror once before turning her attention back to the road.
Dinner had been simple. There had been no grand gestures, yet she found herself smiling.
Perhaps Felix was right about one thing.
Sometimes, a person didn't need an elaborate plan to make an evening worthwhile.
Sometimes, it was enough to spend time with someone whose company you genuinely enjoyed.
And as Aurora drove home, she found herself hoping that the next time wouldn't take too long to arrive.