Walking on Sunshine

[Ezra Cooper]

 [A week after this thread]

Much like any other date, Ezra had dressed up quite nicely in a dark blue button up shirt over a black tee with jeans and had brought a bouquet of an assortment of flowers for his date. It was weird that he didn't quite feel any qualms about dating someone who had such an age gap with him but he had no intentions of pursuing anything with her and she didn't seem the type to actually pursue anything with someone so much younger than her. At least that was what he was hoping for. Besides, she was far too sexy to be tied down to someone as young as him.

As it were, he checked his phone for the correct dorm for Amara and grinned when he saw the text that had just come in from Alex. He replied quickly to tell her he was already there before knocking on the door. He was legit excited for the date, even if it did go against his usually spontaneous nature when it came to dates but it was paid for and it was going to be with horses and well, he was definitely going to enjoy himself that was for sure.

As he waited for the door to be answered, Ezra's fingers tapped in a familiar rhythm of his favourite song against his jeans.

Amara Kingston

[Amara Kingston]

    Amara wore her favorite black dress jacket with a sequined top underneath. Her black jeans were stretch and would work well since they were going to be riding horses. She rarely wore dark colors like this, but it was a nice date and these were the nicest things she had clean in her closet right now. She really needed to do the laundry after she got back tonight.

    Amara waited patiently, going through messages from her sister on her phone and laughing quietly as Toby teased her about her date. She was slightly nervous, so it was good to be able to have her sister there to help her relax a bit. Amara always felt a little anxious before meeting people, but she was also happy to have found someone who seemed to be sweet and charming to go on a "date" with.

    Amara grinned as she heard the knock on her door and made her way to open it. He'd brought her flowers? Amara's smile widened at the sight, "They're so beautiful. Thank you." 
        

[Ezra Cooper]

When the door finally opened, Ezra's eyebrows shot up and his jaw slacked slightly. "Whoa." He said before recovering and shaking his head. "I mean wow." Reflex.

He handed the flowers to her and grinned widely. She looked amazing. Oh this date would be a breeze. "Amara, you look really good." He nodded, his grin widening to show his deep dimples.

"You wanna put this in water first? Or would you rather walk through our date holding them?" He teased. He was finally fully recovered.

[Amara Kingston]

    Amara felt her face warm slightly at his initial reaction and she smiled at him, “Thanks,” she offered sincerely as she took the flowers and smelled them. They were positively divine and she glanced up in time to see his dimples. “You look incredibly handsome yourself,” she commented with a warm smile.


    As he mentioned holding the flowers throughout the date, Amara laughed and shook her head, “I think I’ll go with putting them in water,” she replied easily as she held the door open wider and invited him in while she looked for something that could pass as a vase. She had a tall water bottle that was see through, and it was the closest thing she could find in her dorm that would work, so she filled it with water before placing the flowers inside, “Thanks again for the flowers, they’re absolutely gorgeous.”

[Ezra Cooper]

"Aw shucks, I know right?" He adjusted his collar playfully before he chuckled. "Just kidding. Maybe. I do look good what am I talking about?" He chuckled again before shaking his head. Stop rambling, Cooper.

Ezra nodded and grinned. "Excellent choice." He nodded and watched as she went about finding a place for the flowers. Once that was done, Ezra held his arm out to her and shrugged. "The lady at the flower shop said these would surely knock your socks off so I'm like, yes please. Lady knows her stuff." He joked and bowed slightly. "Shall we?"

[Amara Kingston]

Amara chuckled at his response and nodded, "You do," she agreed with a playful smile. Her compliment had been sincere, besides, she always liked a man with confidence. 

"She does. I can't find my socks anywhere," Amara joked before almost groaning. Wow. She was really bad at this date thing. Really? A joke about socks? She so incredibly socially adept... not really. She smiled as she finished with the flowers and made her way over to him, "Yes, absolutely," she agreed as she grabbed her purse and opened the door, slightly bowing to him with a smile, "Gentlemen first."

[Ezra Cooper]

Ezra beamed at Amara and lifted his shoulders happily. He laughed at her joke, genuinely enjoying it for the dorkiness of it all. He appreciated all kinds of humour; and it helped that it came from someone as pretty as Amara.

"Oh no no. Ladies first." He stepped aside so she could exit. He couldn't help looking her over again. She really looked great.

[Amara Kingston]

    Amara felt less embarrassed as he seemed to not mind her sense of humor. She then smiled as he stepped aside and shook her head, "Very well, though I don't know how much of lady I am," she admitted with a smile, "Most of my time is spent in the garden, so my clothes are constantly covered in dirt."

    She exited ahead of him and glanced back, "I have a bad habit of spending far too much time there." 

[Ezra Cooper]

"Oh please. I'm no gentleman either. I don't own a suit." Because owning a suit is the pinnacle of a gentleman's existence. "And I think it's so sexy when girls don't mind just getting into the dirt." He gesticulated digging his fingers in dirt and squeezing it.

Shaking his head at her 'bad habit', Ezra couldn't have disagreed more. "Are you kidding me? There is nothing bad about getting your hands dirty. It's the most natural thing to do. Do you do gardening? Like...plant plants and stuff?" Yes, Ezra, you're so good with your words. Of course, he wasn't aware that Amara was talking about her abilities.

[Amara Kingston]

    Amara laughed and grinned, "Well then, I suppose not all hope is lost," she replied with a warm smile. "Sexy gardening... perhaps I should use that to attract people more often," she joked. "Having a few dates in the greenhouse wouldn't be so bad."

    Amara nodded at his question, "I do. I've loved gardening since I was young. My dad even gave me a portion of the back yard that I could so as I pleased with." She'd loved that little garden, until she'd stopped being able to take care of it. But she was on the road to getting better and the last years she'd spent at home, she'd been able to replant and regrow that little patch of land to her heart's content. "I also have an ability that helps. Botanokinesis, as they call it." 

[Ezra Cooper]

Ezra laughed, nudging Amara lightly at her joke. "But hey, don't knock that until you try it. I mean really, surrounded by pretty flowers and a pretty girl, not that bad an idea." He pointed out with a cheeky grin.

"Nice." He smiled when she confirmed his thoughts and when Amara added the little info about her abilities, something that sounded exactly how it would help, Ezra found it rather fortuitious.

"That's awesome! All I can do make myself warm during winter and cool during the summer. You get to do something you like with your abilities. Pretty damn cool." He nodded in approval.

They were out of the dorm building when he turned to her with a curious tilt of the head. "Do you have a job here while you're studying?" He asked.

[Amara Kingston]

    Amara smiled at that, "Hmm, perhaps you're right. Though, I don't stay pretty long when I'm working," she replied with a laugh.

    "Well, that power would actually be incredibly useful if I could somehow incorporate it with mine. Protect and keep the plants warm during cold spells and prevent them from completely withering in extreme heat," she offered as possibilities quickly came to her, before she paused, "Sorry, I was just thinking out loud," she offered, slightly self-conscious at her tendency to talk too much when she got excited about anything. 

    At his question, she shook her head, "I don't currently, though I've certainly been looking," she admitted. "I just got here in time to move in... I dropped out a few years ago, and this is my first year back," she added cautiously, wondering if he was the type to judge for that. She'd had to deal with a few unpleasant encounters in her own neighborhood back home, and she knew she'd probably have to deal with something similar eventually here as well. 

[Ezra Cooper]

"Oh stop it you. A little dirt never hurt." He leaned against her teasingly. He didn't believe for one second that Amara could look anything less than fabulous and that is the God's honest truth.

When she babbled on about his powers potentially helping hers, his eyebrows rose and he thought about it. "Well...that's an interesting thought. Why don't we try it one day? It'll give me an excuse to see you get down and dirty." He chuckled.

"Ah." He nodded at her, understanding completely what she meant. Ezra had no reason to judge someone simply because they dropped out. The important thing was that Amara came back. Which was doubly good because he was making a new friend! "And how are things so far? What course are you taking?"

[Amara Kingston]

    Amara grinned, "Well, I'm glad you agree with me. Others aren't quite as open to the idea," she said with a smile. "But if I ever end up trying to seduce you, I'll invite you to the greenhouses," she joked lightly. 

    Amara was genuinely surprised he seemed to be considering the idea and she tried to remain neutral in her answer, but the smile on her face betrayed how she felt about it, "If you're up for it, sure! I'd love to. There's so much potential there. It might even help with getting rid of some of the tougher diseases- I'm not sure and would have to experiment, but- but I can always work on that later," she admitted with a small laugh as she stopped herself from getting carried away again.

    Amara smiled at his question, happy he didn't seem to be judgmental in the slightest, "I'm currently taking Biology, and then I'm hoping to take two courses next semester once I get back into the habit of being in class," she told him easily. "And you? Do you have any plans for school?"

[Ezra Cooper]

"Oh don't tease me." He leaned in towards Amara before chuckling. He really needed to keep his flirting in check. He wasn't good at it. If he was, things would have progressed with...

No, no thinking about other girls today. Amara was his date for the day. She was getting his undivided attention.

Her enthusiasm seemed to be catching and soon enough, Ezra was nodding along with her. "Yeah, that would be brilliant. I'm gonna have to sit down with you on those experiments if you'd have me. I mean I'm the worst person to teach science to; I had to retake my sciences twice before I got to graduate, but science experiments could be totally fun to watch if it was you doin' it I bet." He nodded.

"Ooh! Miss Smartypants." He teased lightly. "I am actually majoring in photography. I'm actually doing up a portfolio for a showcase soon. It's still under a rough cut but I'm positive about it so hopefully that makes all the difference. But! I'm not pursuing it as a career. I'm actually gearing up to be the next top fire fighter." He struck a hero pose before chuckling and waving a dismissive hand.

"I've even started interning with Mr. Spe- I mean Corey. He's actually been conducting some awesome courses on it and I'm just shadowing him for now."