Did We All Fall Down?

*Bob's POV*

When Ray came back he had Gee's medication and a huge (slightly confused) grin. I looked at him, questioningly. His smile became wider.

"Oh no, you didn't take some of Gee's prescription did you?!" I joked. He shook his head.

"Maria asked me out... I think." He said, still with that stupid grin on his face.

"Wait, who's Maria?" Gerard asked.

"Dr. Sanchez," Ray said, blushing slightly.

"Oooh!" Frank said. Ray began to blush even more.

"When are you going out?" Mikey questioned. I could tell that Ray wasn't used to us giving him the third degree, but he wasn't entirely opposed to it either.

"Tonight, the Haymarket." Ray told us.

"Ray's got a date! Dr. Sanchez and Ray sittin' in a tree K-I-S--"

Ray threw a couch pillow at Frankie before he could finish his little chant, now blushing more than ever.

By seven o'clock he was rushing out the door. Of course, we had to pester him and make smooching noises as he left. But in reality we weren't trying to be mean, we were excited that one of our friends might get a chance to be happy.

*Maria's POV*

I looked at my watch; 7:26. Relax, I thought to myself. Suddenly the door of the Haymarket burst open and in walked my coffee date -- easily distinguished by his fluffy hair. I smiled slightly. He spotted me and came over.

"Hi," he greeted.

"Hello," I said, gesturing for him to sit down across from me at the little table I had chosen. He sat down quickly, almost missing the seat and falling, but recovered at the last second. I smiled. He bit his lip, clearly unsure of what to say, I was at a loss too. Maybe I shouldn't have asked him out for coffee: an hour of incredibly uncomfortable awkward-ness....

"So, uh... Can I get you a coffee?" he asked.

"Yeah, thanks. Black, decaf, lots of sugar."

"That's how I take mine usually too," he said quietly, as he got up to order the coffees. He came back a moment later with two mugs.

"So, where are you from?" he asked as he passed me my coffee.

"Mexico, I moved here with my family when I was seventeen. You?"

"Puerto Rico, but I was born and raised here, in New Jersey," he said before taking a sip from his mug. After a while we began to tell each other the most random things we could think of about ourselves. It was really entertaining and nice to just lay whatever we wanted out on the table.

"I have this really odd recurring dream where I am at work, tending to a patient and I look down and see that I'm wearing nothing but a flimsy gown of rose petals. It's not as romantic as it sounds." I said.

"You know, I think I've had the same one. Red rose petals, really not my color," he joked.

"No, but seriously. A recurring dream I've had... um," he thought for a moment, "I've had this dream a couple of times where I'm a book and all the pages get torn out. I've also had the 'sequel' to that dream, where someone attempts to tape me back together."

"Interesting subconscious..." I said, nodding.

"Like you can talk, Petal-girl!" he defended.

"Urgh. You have a point. Then again I think that's half the reason for our subconscious: expressing thoughts or fantasies that you would never imagine in your waking hours." I admitted.

He slowly nodded in agreement. We sat in silence, each taking a last sip from our coffee cups. I noticed the time on my watch as I lowered my cup: 9:47.

"Oh, God, it got late really quickly. I gotta go home, get ready for tomorrow, I have an early shift."

"Oh, okay. I really enjoyed the coffee and conversation. Um.. would you, would you like to do this again?" he asked quietly. I nodded, pulling a pen and paper from my pocket. I scribbled down my number and handed it to him.

"I gotta run, call me!" I said, speeding out the door. I noticed him smile down at the paper I had just given to him. I smiled too.