His Naughty Lessons

** Eli **

In utter contrast to the scream-filled hours of the earlier evening, the rest of the night passed in an almost serene quietness. The two of them took the long way around the bay, wandering aimlessly along the promenade and occasionally stopping to admire the festive show of lights. As the hour drew late and the lingering effect of adrenaline rush finally dissipated, their chatters and reminiscences grew sparse, spaced out by comfortable silences that stretched between them.

It seemed like a fitting end to a day full of surprises and thrill. But as they made their way around the loop and neared the park entrance again, Eli realized that he wished the end wouldn't come so soon. This trip was supposed to be for Harper … Yet surprisingly, he had somehow relaxed so much into it himself, and it brought back a long lost feeling of how nice it could be to simply enjoy someone else's company.

The world for adults had too many more rules than for children. Screaming was embarrassing, eating messily was uncivilized, and long silences in conversations were impolite. But with Harper, everything was easy. They had known each other for too long and too well for any of that to matter. She could act like a silly little girl in front of him all she wanted, and he could laugh at it to his heart's content. They could spend hours just walking like this in silence, without feeling awkward, or he could be just as thrilled to spend the same length of time listening to her talk about anything — her chats were always smart and interesting, not unlike the presentation that had intrigued every audience's mind.

Perhaps, this was the kind of pleasant closeness that could only come with half a lifetime of friendship.

A muffled sound of conversation pulled him back from the musings. It was the staff at the gate bidding them goodnight. Apparently he had forgotten that it was almost midnight already. Even private reservations had time limits.

"Can you believe I'm still not ready to leave yet?" Harper hovered over the threshold, glancing longingly back at the park behind them. "This was the most fun I've had in a long time … Such a pity that it's over so quickly. We should totally do it again."

A smile tugged at Eli's lips. That was precisely his thought. "We should," he agreed, "and hopefully before another decade passes. Funny to think that we went six hours out of the way to visit last time, but then never bothered to come back for all these years while we lived next door."

Harper chuckled. They exited the gate with some reluctance and strolled back toward the valet. "Well, I, for one, didn't really have a … good reason to come here for," she said. "My friends had all been here various times on dates. Me, on the other hand …"

She trailed off, biting her lips slightly, as if uncertain whether she should finish the rest of that sentence. "Anyway, I suppose you and Julie weren't the 'amusement park date' type of person yourselves? Otherwise, I'd expect you guys to have frequented this place plenty."

The sudden mention of his ex was jarring. "Ugh, no." Eli shrugged off the topic that ill-fitted his current mood. "I prefer asking someone out as a result of making them angry and having to make up for it."

It took Harper a short moment. Then she laughed, and that slight uncertainty in her voice was gone. "Oh, in that case, should I figure out how to trick you into getting me angry more often?" She looked at him with bright, glittering eyes. "I'll make it a personal challenge to win the rest of the five reservations we skipped today, for future make-ups."

"Future make-ups?" Eli shot her a glance of feigned exasperation. "You know that I'd gladly take you anywhere even if you aren't angry at me, right? Or rather, especially if you aren't angry at me."

It was a half joke, though also completely serious. If there was anything that the magic of the night made him realize, it was the preciousness of this comfortable ease between them, and he certainly wasn't going to ruin it by ever getting her actually angry at him.

Harper cocked her head to the side, clearly intrigued and possibly surprised by the admittance. "Hmm, in that case, maybe I should start making a long wishlist for you … Though given the places I'd love to go and your reservation style tonight, I think that'll make me an instant VIP of all of Davenshire's major entertainment venues in no time."

"Good. It will be my greatest pleasure to achieve that end."

Their car was brought forward, and Eli opened the passenger door for her with a flourish. "Should I get the company limos out next time too?" He winked. "Make it a full package experience?"

Harper giggled. Though as she climbed into the seat and settled herself, she grew more pensive again. "Well, maybe we shouldn't be setting our expectations too high already for all future rendezvous … It might disappoint you when you show up at my place this Saturday, and realize that I'll have no extravagant plans other than some wine and cheese to properly thank you."

"… Thank me?"

She bit her lips slightly again, locking eyes with him this time. "Yes … You do know that I really am not angry at you, right? In all seriousness, you should know how much I appreciate everything you've done for me so thoughtfully. The work project, the trip here tonight, the … other side projects …" — she seemed to blush a little at that — "I'm so thankful to have someone like you in my life, Eli."

It was rare, to hear things like that from Harper. A bit too straightforward for her, and if it were any other day, it might've even sounded a bit cheesy. But at the end of such a magical night, Eli found that it seemed only fitting, and the feeling even echoed a little within him, stirring up a sense of pride and contentment that he hadn't expected to feel.

"It's my greatest pleasure to achieve that end," he said again. And this time, he meant it wholeheartedly.