I was not going to text Will.“. . .

I was not going to text Will.
“. . . and then maybe live abroad someday . . .”
I was not going to text Will.
“. . . maybe Germany. Or, maybe Turkey . . .”
I blinked back to the conversation and nodded to Dylan, who sat opposite me and who had basically trekked the entire globe during our conversation. “That sounds really exciting,” I said, smile stretched wide across my face.
He looked down to the linen tablecloth, cheeks slightly pink. Okay, so he was pretty cute. Like a puppy. “I used to think I’d want to live in Brazil,” he continued. “But I love visiting there so much, I don’t want it to ever feel familiar, you know?”
I nodded again, doing my best to pay attention and rein in my thoughts, to focus on my date and not the fact that my phone had been silent all night.
The restaurant Dylan had chosen was nice, not overly romantic but cozy. Soft lighting, wide windows, nothing heavy or too serious. Nothing that screamed date. I’d had the halibut; Dylan had ordered a steak. His plate was practically empty; I’d hardly touched mine.
What had he been saying? A summer in Brazil? “How many languages did you say you spoke again?” I asked, hoping I was close enough to the mark.
I must have been because he smiled, obviously pleased I’d remembered this detail. Or at least that such a detail existed.
“Three.”
I sat back a little, genuinely impressed. “Wow, that’s . . . that’s really amazing, Dylan.”
And that wasn’t even stretching the truth. He was amazing. Dylan was good-looking and smart and everything an intelligent girl would be looking for. But when the waiter stopped at our table to refill our drinks, none of those things kept me from glancing quickly down to my phone again, and frowning at the blank screen.
No messages, no missed calls—nothing. Damn.
I swiped a finger over Will’s name, and reread a few of his texts from earlier in the day. Random thought: I’d like to see you stoned. Pot amplifies personality traits so you’d probably talk so much your head would explode, though I don’t know how you could possibly say even crazier things than you do now.
And another: Just saw you on 81st and Amsterdam. I was in a cab with Max and watched you cross the street in front of us. Were you wearing panties under that skirt? I plan on filing that away in the old spankbank so whatever you do, just say no.
The time stamp on his last message was just after one this afternoon, almost six hours ago. I scrolled through a few more before pressing the box to type, my thumb hovering over the keyboard. What could he possibly be doing? The phrase or who crept into my thoughts and I felt my frown deepen.
I started typing out a message and deleted it just as quickly. I will not text Will, I reminded myself. I will not text Will. Ninja. Secret agent. Get the secrets, and get out unharmed.
“Hanna?”
I looked up again; Dylan was watching me.
“Hmm?”
His brows drew together for a moment before he laughed a small, uncertain sound. “Are you okay tonight? You seem a bit distracted.”
“Yeah,” I said, horrified to have been caught. I lifted the phone from my lap. “Just waiting for a text from my mom,” I lied. Horribly.
“But everything’s good?”
“Absolutely.”
With a small, relieved sigh, Dylan pushed his plate away and leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. “So what about you? I feel like I’ve done nothing but talk. Tell me about the research you’re doing.” For the first time all night, I felt the grip on my phone lessen. This I could do. Talk about my work and school and science? Hell yes.
We’d just finished dessert and my explanation of how I was collaborating with another lab in our department to engineer vaccines for Trypansoma cruzi when I felt a tap on my shoulder, and turned to see Max standing behind me.
“Hey!” I said, surprised to see him here.
He was about ten feet tall and yet when he bent to kiss my cheek, he didn’t look awkward at all. “Hanna, you look absolutely smashing tonight.”
Damn. That accent was going to kill me dead. I smiled. “Well, you can pass your compliments to Sara; she’s actually the one who picked out this dress.”
I wouldn’t have thought it possible for him to get even more attractive, but the proud grin that stretched across his face did just that. “I’ll do that. And who is this?” he said, turning to Dylan.
“Oh!” I said, turning back to my date. “Sorry, Max, this is Dylan Nakamura. Dylan, this is Max Stella, my friend Will’s business partner.” The two men shook hands and chatted for a moment, and I had to talk myself out of asking about Will. I was on a date, after all. I shouldn’t be thinking of him in the first place.
“Well, I’ll just leave you two to it, then,” Max said.
“Tell Sara I said hi.”
“Absolutely. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
I watched Max walk back to his table, where a group of men were waiting for him. I wondered if he was out for a business dinner, and if so, why hadn’t Will gone with him? I realized I didn’t know much about his job, but didn’t they do this kind of stuff together?
A few minutes later, just as the bill came, my phone vibrated in my lap.
How’s your night, Plum?
I closed my eyes, feeling that word vibrate through me like an electrical current. I thought back on the last time he’d called me that and felt my insides liquefy.
Fine. Max is here, did you send him to check on me?
Ha! As if he’d ever do that for me. And he just messaged. Said you look pretty hot tonight.
I’d never known I was much of a blusher before Will, but I felt the heat as it flashed through my cheeks. He looked pretty hot himself.
Not funny, Hanna.
You home? I hit SEND and then held my breath. What would I do if he said no?
Yes.
I was really going to have a talk with myself; knowing Will was home and texting me should not have made me quite so damn happy. Running tomorrow? I asked.
Of course.
Quickly wiping the smile from my face before Dylan noticed, I tucked my phone away. Will was home and I could rest easy and attempt to enjoy the rest of my night.

Hasil (Bahasa Indonesia) 1:

Aku tidak akan ke teks akan.".... dan kemudian mungkin tinggal di luar negeri suatu hari nanti..."Aku tidak akan ke teks akan."... mungkin Jerman. Atau, mungkin Turki... "Aku berkedip kembali ke percakapan dan mengangguk untuk Dylan, yang duduk di seberang saya dan yang pada dasarnya telah berjalan-kaki seluruh dunia selama percakapan kami. "Hal itu terdengar benar-benar menarik," Aku berkata, tersenyum lebar membentang di seluruh wajahku.Ia melihat ke bawah untuk taplak meja linen, pipi sedikit merah muda. Oke, jadi dia adalah cukup lucu. Seperti anak anjing. "Aku digunakan untuk berpikir saya ingin tinggal di Brazil," lanjutnya. "Tetapi saya suka mengunjungi ada begitu banyak, saya tidak ingin pernah merasa akrab, Anda tahu?"Aku mengangguk lagi, melakukan yang terbaik untuk membayar perhatian dan mengendalikan pikiran saya, untuk fokus pada tanggal dan tidak fakta bahwa telepon saya telah diam sepanjang malam.Restoran Dylan telah memilih adalah bagus, tidak terlalu romantis tapi nyaman. Lembut pencahayaan, jendela lebar, tidak ada yang berat atau terlalu serius. Tidak ada yang berteriak tanggal. Aku punya halibut; Dylan telah memerintahkan steak. Piring itu hampir kosong; Aku hampir tidak menyentuh saya.Apa telah ia berkata? Musim panas di Brasil? "Berapa bahasa Apakah Anda mengatakan Anda berbicara lagi?" Saya bertanya, berharap aku cukup dekat untuk tanda.Aku pasti sudah karena Dia tersenyum, jelas senang saya mengingat detail ini. Atau setidaknya itu seperti sebuah detail yang ada."Tiga."Aku duduk kembali sedikit, benar-benar terkesan. "Wow, itu... itu benar-benar menakjubkan, Dylan."And that wasn’t even stretching the truth. He was amazing. Dylan was good-looking and smart and everything an intelligent girl would be looking for. But when the waiter stopped at our table to refill our drinks, none of those things kept me from glancing quickly down to my phone again, and frowning at the blank screen.No messages, no missed calls—nothing. Damn.I swiped a finger over Will’s name, and reread a few of his texts from earlier in the day. Random thought: I’d like to see you stoned. Pot amplifies personality traits so you’d probably talk so much your head would explode, though I don’t know how you could possibly say even crazier things than you do now.And another: Just saw you on 81st and Amsterdam. I was in a cab with Max and watched you cross the street in front of us. Were you wearing panties under that skirt? I plan on filing that away in the old spankbank so whatever you do, just say no.The time stamp on his last message was just after one this afternoon, almost six hours ago. I scrolled through a few more before pressing the box to type, my thumb hovering over the keyboard. What could he possibly be doing? The phrase or who crept into my thoughts and I felt my frown deepen.I started typing out a message and deleted it just as quickly. I will not text Will, I reminded myself. I will not text Will. Ninja. Secret agent. Get the secrets, and get out unharmed.“Hanna?”I looked up again; Dylan was watching me.“Hmm?”His brows drew together for a moment before he laughed a small, uncertain sound. “Are you okay tonight? You seem a bit distracted.”“Yeah,” I said, horrified to have been caught. I lifted the phone from my lap. “Just waiting for a text from my mom,” I lied. Horribly.“But everything’s good?”“Absolutely.”With a small, relieved sigh, Dylan pushed his plate away and leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. “So what about you? I feel like I’ve done nothing but talk. Tell me about the research you’re doing.” For the first time all night, I felt the grip on my phone lessen. This I could do. Talk about my work and school and science? Hell yes.We’d just finished dessert and my explanation of how I was collaborating with another lab in our department to engineer vaccines for Trypansoma cruzi when I felt a tap on my shoulder, and turned to see Max standing behind me.“Hey!” I said, surprised to see him here.He was about ten feet tall and yet when he bent to kiss my cheek, he didn’t look awkward at all. “Hanna, you look absolutely smashing tonight.”Damn. That accent was going to kill me dead. I smiled. “Well, you can pass your compliments to Sara; she’s actually the one who picked out this dress.”I wouldn’t have thought it possible for him to get even more attractive, but the proud grin that stretched across his face did just that. “I’ll do that. And who is this?” he said, turning to Dylan.“Oh!” I said, turning back to my date. “Sorry, Max, this is Dylan Nakamura. Dylan, this is Max Stella, my friend Will’s business partner.” The two men shook hands and chatted for a moment, and I had to talk myself out of asking about Will. I was on a date, after all. I shouldn’t be thinking of him in the first place.“Well, I’ll just leave you two to it, then,” Max said.“Tell Sara I said hi.”“Absolutely. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”I watched Max walk back to his table, where a group of men were waiting for him. I wondered if he was out for a business dinner, and if so, why hadn’t Will gone with him? I realized I didn’t know much about his job, but didn’t they do this kind of stuff together?A few minutes later, just as the bill came, my phone vibrated in my lap.How’s your night, Plum?I closed my eyes, feeling that word vibrate through me like an electrical current. I thought back on the last time he’d called me that and felt my insides liquefy.Fine. Max is here, did you send him to check on me?Ha! As if he’d ever do that for me. And he just messaged. Said you look pretty hot tonight.I’d never known I was much of a blusher before Will, but I felt the heat as it flashed through my cheeks. He looked pretty hot himself.Not funny, Hanna.You home? I hit SEND and then held my breath. What would I do if he said no?Yes.I was really going to have a talk with myself; knowing Will was home and texting me should not have made me quite so damn happy. Running tomorrow? I asked.Of course.Quickly wiping the smile from my face before Dylan noticed, I tucked my phone away. Will was home and I could rest easy and attempt to enjoy the rest of my night.