Page 53 of Paradigm

Then, her hand was on Eline’s back, and they walked side by side like that until Eline realized that they were heading outside.

“We’re eating on the patio?” she asked.

“Is that not okay? I should have asked. You just used to like when we could get a table outside. Well, until winter came. Then, you’d practically run inside a restaurant looking for the warmest spot in the place.”

Eline laughed a little as they were led outside and replied, “It’s perfect. It’s a nice night, and I didn’t realize how pretty it was over here until I looked up the restaurant and saw some of their photos. It almost looks like a real lake at night that is surrounded by office buildings.”

“Here you are,” the host said and set the menus down on the table for them.

Arlowe looked at him like that was a strange thing to do and waited for him to walk off. When he did, she pulled out one of the two chairs and motioned for Eline to sit there.

“For you.”

“Why are you being so nice to me?” she asked.

“I’m always nice to you,” Arlowe answered and pushed the chair in a little with Eline’s help.

Eline sat down and then watched Arlowe walk around to sit down in her own chair. Once settled, Arlowe picked up the menu, and when she didn’t, Arlowe looked over her own at her.

“You looked it up already, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Spaetzle?”

“Yes.” She smiled. “But I’m going to ask to have it with the chicken. I’m not a fan of duck. I’m assuming you looked up spaetzle and local restaurants?”

“Yup,” Arlowe replied before lifting her menu back up to review it. “Told you, I’m always nice to you. I think I’ll get the steak with the broccoli.”

“Broccoli? Since when do you eat that?”

“I like it now. It has to be cooked right, and it isn’t always, but I bet this place can do it right. It needs just a little crunch for me, some salt, and I’m a happy camper.”

“So grown-up now,” Eline noted, laughing a bit. “When I knew you last, you lived off macaroni and cheese that you bought from the grocery store, noodles, and French fries.”

“I was a poor college student. I had no choice. That mac and cheese wasn’t good, but it was cheap. Those noodles were decent, but most importantly–”

“Cheap?” she teased.

“Yes.” Arlowe laughed. “I still like cheap food, and I don’t exactly eat healthy. I just happen to like broccoli now, and the steak sounds good, so I’m going with that. If you’re nice to me, I might even give you a bite of it.”

“Would I be required to share my meal with you?”

“Only the chicken. I’d never ask you to share your favorite side dish in the world.”

“Is broccoli yours?”

“No. I think I’d prefer something in potato form. I’m not specific, though. Fries can be terrible or amazing, so it depends. I love a well-cooked baked potato, but one that’s not cooked through isn’t great. Yeah, I’d say really good potato… something is probably my favorite side dish. There’s this place, over on Market Street, that only sells potatoes. It’s amazing. You get a big potato that they’ve baked for you, they slice it open, and you get to pick the toppings you want. They have, like, fifty choices. I had a brisket-topped one once and added barbecue sauce. Then, last time, I got something a little more standard – just butter, sour cream, cheese, chives, and bacon – and it was so good. Yeah… Um… Why am I talking about potatoes so much right now?”

“No idea.” Eline laughed. “But I like it. Will you take me there sometime? Make some recommendations?”

“Sure. They have pulled chicken that they brine and roast. It’s really good, too.”

“I love that you know the word brine now. I don’t think we were talking about brined food back in college.”

“No, I don’t remember any conversations about that,” Arlowe agreed.

“I feel like we talked about everything else, though.”