A Date With a Princess

Nathan stood there on the doorstep, fidgeting. He twisted and rolled the end of his striped, navy tie, he picked at a stray thread on his jacket cuff, and he felt a bead of sweat begin its journey down from his brow. He was so timorous, so nervous for their first date, yet he couldn’t really say why.

Maybe he was worried that she would think it was silly? No, that wasn’t it. He knew that she loved to get all dressed up to go out, and she also liked hitting the lanes. Maybe he was worried that she wouldn’t enjoy his company? That was closer – he certainly worried that she would get bored and seek out Daniel or Chase’s companionship instead. But more than anything, he was worried that it wouldn’t be that magical experience for her; that intangible charm that gives a memory its golden hue.

He tried to imagine how she’d look as she came flitting down the stairs. Would her mother curl her hair or would she straighten it? Or, would she let those wild, winding locks stay as they are? Would she wear the pink dress with the silver trim, or the yellow one with the long, matching gloves? Would she let her mother do her makeup, or insist on doing it herself? While her mother was the more skilled of the two, he still loved the way she decorated her eyes and lips. Speaking of her mother, Nathan wondered how long she would let them stay out tonight. She could sure be a stickler when she wanted to.

He caught his hand shaking as he straightened his tie, and he took a steadying breath. He had made dinner reservations for them at the Columbia Cafe in Channelside at the heart of Tampa, and after that he planned for them to walk to Sparkman Wharf to go bowling. He desperately hoped that she would enjoy the evening.

The door finally opened, and there she was. She had gone with the pink dress, the matching tiara resting in her curled, chestnut hair which bobbed and jounced as she bounded down the stairs. Her sweet, bright smile lit up her whole face, and Nathan felt his heart melting with the warmth that spread through him at the sight of her. She was perfect.

“Daddy!” Emily exclaimed, and she threw her arms around him in a tight, excited hug.

“Hey there, princess,” he told her affectionately as he returned the hug and then got down on one knee. He brought her hand up to his lips and gave the back a soft kiss, which made Emily giggle.

“Where are we going, daddy? Is it a movie? No! A concert?” Her voice dropped down to a conspiratorial whisper. “Are we going to see Santa?”

Nathan laughed, amazed as always by the youthful energy that seemed to bubble up through his daughter. “It’s a surprise, but first we’re going to have dinner. Are you hungry?” he asked her, and Emily clutched her stomach dramatically.

“I’m staaaaaarving,” she groaned, and Nathan caught his wife Sarah rolling her eyes good-humoredly behind her.

“You be back by ten, you hear?” She told them, feigning sternness. Nathan pulled her in for a quick kiss and immediately felt his arm being tugged back.

“Hey that’s my date, mommy!” Emily chided her, and Nathan and Sarah shared a laugh.

“You two have fun,” she said with a last smile. And then they were off.

Emily’s Princess Aurora dress had been her fifth Halloween costume, though neither Nathan nor Sarah could have predicted that it would tie the Belle dress she got from their last trip to Disney as her new favorite. She spent a few minutes admiring her dress and tiara in the visor’s vanity mirror that reflected the rapidly dropping sun behind them. Then she told Nathan all about the forest and animals she’d drawn in her kindergarten class that day as they drove across the Howard Frankland Bridge and into Tampa.

They arrived at the Columbia Cafe just in time for their reservation. The ornate, decorative fixtures gave an ethereal, twilight glow to the dining room amidst the fading sunlight that was drifting in from the expansive windows overlooking Garrison Channel. Elegance floated on the atmosphere as the patrons around them laughed and conversed to the sound of busy knives and tinkling crystal. Emily’s eyes were the size of the saucers already carefully arranged on the rounded, marble table as she took in the sights around her.

“Daddy…” she started, her voice lowered and shaded with wonder and awe. “Is this a castle?”

“A castle fit for a princess,” he replied as he pretended to bow to her from across the table, which made her break out in delighted giggles.

Their server, a charming young man with dark hair and a thick accent, took the drink orders – a Shirley Temple for Emily, and a glass of the Merlot he recommended for Nathan. He brought Emily a kid’s menu and a mini-box of crayons, which she eagerly started unpacking, and set a basket of steaming, tempting rolls on the table between them.

Nathan buttered a half-roll and set it on the small plate in front of Emily as she doodled, a dog with a passing likeness to their Schnauzer, Bailey, slowly taking form on the paper in front of her. Of course, Bailey wasn’t fire-engine red.

She started to give him a companion, who Nathan could only guess was Chase from Paw Patrol, when an idea sparked to life in his mind.

“Hey princess, you wanna play a game?” he asked her, and her hazel eyes immediately flashed with anticipation as a smile claimed her formerly pressed lips.

“What kind of game?” she asked in return, and Nathan slipped the green crayon from the box.

“It’s a puzzle game. Look,” he started as he drew out a 7x7 grid of dots on the paper. “Every turn you have to draw a line between two dots, and the goal is to keep the other person from making boxes.”

He connected two of the dots, and Emily immediately added her own blue line perpendicular to it.

“Now watch, if I draw my line here...” he instructed as he formed three sides of a square. “You can close the box and color it in.” Emily quickly did so, small shavings of blue wax fleeing from under the crayon as she colored. “The one with the most boxes wins.”

They had time to finish two games as they waited on their orders – empanadas de pollo for her, and salteado for him. Nathan let his daughter win the first one; ignoring her mistakes and making subtle suggestions. The second game, he didn’t go as easy on her. Emily’s disappointed pout was short-lived as her royal feast was laid out in front of her, however, and they quickly started in on the sumptuous meal.

Dusk had fully caved to the relentless will of night by the time they left the restaurant, and the black, restless water of the channel was harried by the cool, autumn breeze. They didn’t talk much on the walk to Sparkman Wharf, their bellies bulging and minds at ease as they strolled. They crossed the crowded parking lot – apparently this was a popular spot for a Friday – and Emily beamed as a comely older lady complimented her dress.

Sparkman Wharf had the feel of a sprawling Bazaar with stands offering all manner of treats and delectables, but their destination lied at its heart – past the covered bar and beer garden, and past the lawn with the back-lit stage featuring guitar-wielding Millennials for the night’s entertainment.

Spitzville was nestled in the back corner of the beer garden, not looking like much from the outside but opening up into 8 lanes, a restaurant, and a barcade once you stepped through the heavily-tinted doors. Their reservation was for lane 5, and after getting situated with their shoes they set out to pick their balls. Emily was a little put-out that her dad wouldn’t let her keep her sparkly, silver flats on, but her shoes were quickly forgotten as she hoisted a neon-orange, 8lb ball from the rack. Nathan selected his own projectile – a jet-black 12-pounder, and they started up the game.

Nathan used to be a club player in his younger years, but that night he was much less concerned with turkey hunting than just watching his daughter have fun. It came on the sixth frame – the bumpers on the sides of the lane went untouched as the orange ball sailed down the oiled wood. The pins scattered under the force of the impact, and the last one made a valiant effort to stand tall before succumbing. Emily went rigid, then leapt into the air with a squeal and ran to give her dad a hug.

“I did it! I did it! Did you see?!”she exclaimed over and over. It was her first strike.

“That was awesome! How do you feel?” Nathan asked, unable to contain his own excitement. Emily twirled around, the pink dress and her springy curls flaring out around her.

“Like a princess!”