Norway Around It

Olivia rummaged through her suitcase looking for the perfect outfit for tonight. "You are going to give yourself a heart attack Olivia" a voiced echoed from the tablet set up on the white nightstand. It was her best friend, Karl. The two known each other for years and they are each other's anchor when things get rough. "I know I know" she stated in a calm yet angry tone. Olivia had planned this date for over two months and wanted, rather needed everything to go right. "Breathe. I promise you Layla will love it" Karl stated as he tried to calm his best friend. Olivia, who was now buried in clothes, stretched her arm up holding a green flannel shirt. "FOUND IT!" Letting out heavy breaths as she made her way unto the purple chair across from the bed. "I am amazed you put all this together. A trip to Norway and a surprise date. How did you keep this from Layla?" Olivia took a deep breath and looked over at the tablet. "It was harder than it seems. She is very VERY inquisitive, which is one of many reasons why I love her. I told her it was work related."

As she gazed at her phone and saw the picture of her and Layla on the lock screen, time melted away. It was one of the first pictures they took together. Layla surprised her with a kiss on the cheek as Olivia took the picture. Thoughts of the day they first met flew through Olivia’s mind. She had just left the store getting ingredients for lasagna. The sky was grey and the weather called for rain. Olivia planned it out to be home just before the rain started. As she was leaving, she noticed a woman with a baby blue shirt and shorts combination. Her dark brown hair hung just below her shoulders. Olivia was stunned. Without warning rain plastered the ground. Olivia fumbled with her umbrella for a few seconds before letting it up. She soon realized it the woman ran across the street to stand under the cover of the store where Olivia was. “This came out of nowhere, right?” The woman said looking at Olivia. It took a moment but Olivia replied “It wasn’t supposed to start for another 15 minutes.” The woman laughed. “Guess I need to pay attention to the weather more.” They both laughed. “Well, I’m sorry I started talking your ear off without introducing myself. My name is Layla. Layla Jackson.” She extended her hand. “Olivia. Olivia Wilson.”

Olivia jumped back to reality and put her phone down, then pressed the button to turn the camera off as she put on her outfit. A Green flannel shirt, a white T-shirt and some blue jeans that fit just right. After a few minutes she turned the camera back on. "What you think? Good?" Olivia did a spin giving Karl a look at the entire outfit. "Nice. But I'm sure you might need shoes." Olivia looked down at her bare feet. "Shit!" Olivia made her way to the pile of shoes she made earlier. Karl laughed as he shook his head. Moments later Olivia emerged with a pair of white sneakers and white ankle socks. "Ok, how about now?" Karl placed his hand under his scruffy chin thinking for a moment. "Perfect. Now did you put the food order in ahead of time?” In all the chaos the one thing she did remember was to put the food order in early. “That I did remember.” Karl smiled and replied “you got this. I have to go back to work now. It's what? 7:30 there? So that gives you an hour to get there." Olivia took a few deep breaths in and out before nodding. "Thank you, Karl. You are amazing. Fill you in on how it went tomorrow. Bye."

With that she grabbed her purse and made her way to the port. She set up a dinner date on the Ferry. It was a sail that was about two-hours round trip. This was something that Layla spoke about before, but Olivia played if off as though she did not notice. While Olivia was concerned with trying to make every single detail work perfectly, Layla was more of the ask questions and adjust to any situation. She told Layla to meet her there. Hoping to surprise her. "What if it's too much?" Oliva thought to herself. It was their first official date. The two had gone on group dates and hang outs but never just the two of them. As Olivia paced in circles a familiar voice broke her thought process. "Hey you." It startled Olivia and she jumped a little bit. She turned around to see Layla in a dark brown off the shoulder warp Midi dress, with some dark brown heels. Her raven-colored hair dangled off her shoulders. "Layla! You...you look beautiful. I mean you always do but. Wow!" Olivia stumbled over her words before regaining her composure. "How did you know this was a date?" Layla smirked and kissed Olivia on the cheek. "Because you're terrible at keeping secrets." Olivia could not argue that point. Still, she was happy that Layla was happy.

The two made their way onto a ferry and into the dining area that was mostly empty except for the workers and a few other couples guest scattered over the dining area. Autumn is usually off season for tourist which was great for them. "You went all out on this one Olivia" Layla stated turning around to take it all in. The lighting added the perfect ambiance. The red and gold carpet complimented the red chairs and the dance floor reflection could rival that of an actual mirror. Olivia had saw pictures online but seeing it in person was something that she just could not describe. The waiter showed them to their table. “I’ll be back shortly with your drink order Ms. Wilson.” It had the perfect view of the city. She placed her hand on top of Olivia's and smiled. Olivia smiled back even blushing a little. The waiter appeared placing a bottle of wine and two glasses on the table. "Your orders are being prepared as we speak. About ten more minutes." With that he disappeared into the back.

The music played as the ferry started its journey. The dance floor seemed to call out to Layla as Olivia noticed her moving a little in her seat. Dancing wasn’t part of the plan but it would make Layla happy and Olivia herself had not danced in since before she met Layla. “Care to dance?” Olivia asked with her hand extended. Without hesitation Layla grabbed Olivia’s hand and the pair made their way to the dance floor. While dancing was never Olivia’s strong suit, Layla on the other hand thrived at it. Like it was second nature to her. Olivia started to move in tempo with the beat. A little stiff at first but after a few moments she started to get into it. So much so she didn’t see the waiter carrying a glass of wine when she stumbled into him. “Oh my God, I am SO sorry!” Olivia cried as she tried to help clean it up. Layla rushed over and assisted as best she could. The aroma hit Olivia’s nose and the strong blackberry notes were very prominent. “Is that...Coppola? Director’s Cut Merlot?” The waiter impressed, gave a nod as the two women helped him up. Wine was one of Olivia’s past times. Specifically, red wine. Fortunately, it didn’t get on Olivia which was nothing short of a miracle.

After the cleanup, the duo sat back down in her seat and Olivia had to stop herself from smiling as the waiter returned with their food. Smoked Salmon. Layla poured herself a glass of the wine as well as a glass for Olivia. The ferry, the ambiance, the way the city lit up as the sunset, all of it made the date that much more special to Olivia and Layla. The two enjoyed their meal and laughed about the wine glass incident. Once they finished, Layla pulled out her phone and snapped a picture of the two. “Hashtag, Ferry good date.” Olivia couldn’t help but laugh at the terrible pun Layla just made. They headed towards the cabin that came with booking the ferry. The gold and red drapes continued the theme in the dining area, the pillows were red with gold stitching and the sheets all white. The pair flopped on the bed ads gazed out the large window in their room. “This reminds me of the day we met” stated Layla. Olivia smiled and rubbed Layla’s hand. “Yeah, you did just insert yourself into my life.” “I did not!” Layla replied while laughing. “You looked like you could use a friend.” There was a long stretch of silence between the two. Olivia placed her hand gently on Layla’s cheek and caressed it. “I needed a friend, but I got so much more.”

Olivia glanced down as she felt Layla’s head on her shoulder. The night was special in every way possible. "Babe thank you! I love this" Layla stated as she snuggled closer to Olivia. Without thinking Olivia immediately blurted out "I love you." There was a brief pause as neither one of them had said the words before. It was on her mind as they've known each other for almost a year and been dating for four months now. Olivia realizing what she said, tried to back pedal but ended up spewing out non sense words. In the middle of her rambling, she felt Layla’s soft hands lift her head up and cup her face in her hands. Oliva looked directly into her hazel eyes. "I love you too" Layla retorted as she smiled. Then Olivia felt Layla's lips on hers. They were soft and sent small tingles all over her body. Olivia didn't want it to end. Olivia could rest easy knowing the date didn’t go exactly as planned, but she couldn’t have planned a better date.