A l'automne

I was afraid of what I'd be getting myself into. I liked Norman, a lot, a lot more than I should; especially for just meeting him. It was so unlike me, but I just really enjoyed having someone I could hold a normal conversation with; but I also felt it was nerve-racking. I was interested in him, that didn't mean he was interested in me.
Around six o'clock, I started getting ready, I tried not to dress up too casual or too formal either. I didn't really know what would happen, and while I liked the spontaneous edge to it, I also felt slightly overwhelmed, to say the least.
There was a quiet knock upon the door, and I could feel my heart begin to quicken pace while I made my way, slowly, to the door.
I greeted my night's company with a smile, while he greeted me with a most lovely bouquet of red roses.
"Is it cliche that red roses are my favorite flower?" I grinned, while I made my way to put them into a vase.
"Maybe just a little." Norman wore all black, it was a look that worked for him.
He looked comfortable, more so than I. Not that he made me feel that way, I just didn't know where things would go, and I've never dealt well with things of that sort.
We didn't drive, or take a taxi, we simply walked, which just so happened to be my favorite. We made small talk, nothing too notable, but it was nice; walking around the well-lit city against the black night, with good company.
Somehow, he took my mind off of all my nerves, he made it seem like we'd known each other for so long. With every word he said, he made me like him more, and I didn't know if that was a good thing or not.
I enjoyed his company, and his face, and his voice, so much so that I hadn't notice how far we'd walked, or where we even were.
It was a little restaurant, crowded and small, but beautiful nonetheless. We took a seat outside, which was illuminated by small, Christmas looking lights. The tall buildings were still surrounding us, but the tiny place we were at just seemed so much more friendly, and enclosed.
I knew it was real, and was happening, but my mind almost refused to believe the situation I was in; even though Norman was sitting across the table from me, casually leaning back in his chair, and smoking.
I observed the buildings around us, the people walking the sidewalks, and the almost non-existent night sky.
"How long have you lived in New York?"
I turned to see Norman, he smirked, and the light complemented his features, as the smoke from his cigarette swirled around him.
"Six years ago."
A look settled on his face "And we've lived in the same apartment building this whole time?"
I looked down, feeling slightly self-conscious about the possibility of the conversation that could follow, "Oh, no I moved in about six months ago, so I guess I haven't really been there a while."
"Where were you before?"
"Around the Buffalo area."
"What made you come here?" He lifted his arms, indicating and putting more emphasis on the word 'here.'
I noticed he had a tendency to talk with his hands a lot, just one more thing we had alike.
I sighed, "Breakup."
His smile faded, "I'm sorry, that's hard."
I shrugged, and shook my head, "No, I needed to get out of there."
The look on his face said he understood beyond my words. He knew there was a story there, one for much later of course, but a story nonetheless. And he knew it wasn't appropriate to ask now; I respected him infinitely for that.
We didn't say much while ordering food, or while we ate either.
Upon leaving, we walked back towards our apartments. Inside, I was disappointed because I thought I'd ruined the night. We didn't head our separate ways though, we headed to the rooftop. We could see everything, the beauty of the city was astonishing.
We watched as the people below either left for a night on the town, or were returning for a night at home.