Re: [restaurant; ren & hannah]
"You're going to be wonderful when the time comes. You're going to be witty and funny and handsome and smart, and he's going to wonder how he got so lucky as to be having dinner with you." Unlike before, she wasn't teasing. Hannah was loyal as loyal could be, but, and more than that, she really thought Ren was wonderful, and she said it openly and without fear of being misunderstood. Like everything else about the girl, it was declared boldly and without the blush or shyness of a girl raised to be wary of placing her heart upon her sleeve or spilling affection like water from her lips.
She listened as he told her not to quit her job, and they'd maybe known each other long enough for some truths. Though, really, she was reluctant. Eddie, she was really sure, looked at her differently now that he knew what she was, and she wasn't eager to make admissions and declarations and lose the way Ren looked at her now. But little truths, tiny ones, she was ready to maybe tiptoe up to them and see if they stung. "I kind of would love to give up my coffee and ordering job, but it wouldn't be that easy. I'm on loan from the company I was at before, in New York, and I'm not actually allowed to quit." It was truth couched in innocence, and she danced a fingertip around the rim of her water glass, the music imaginary and the look she gave him from beneath copper lashes one that was clearly expectant, not knowing how he would react to the admission.
But the theater, the theater was fun, and even if it never came to fruition, it was still a dream. Hannah had lots of dreams, all new and unfulfilled, and she kind of liked sharing one with him. He played with his napkin, and she watched as he pressed his teeth to his lip as he thought. "Eddie's wonderful. I can talk to him, but only if you want. I can make introductions, too. And small and intimate is good. If you don't want to go big right away, we can always just reserve space at the rec center for starters, just to see how much interest there is." Dreams, Hannah thought, were absolutely fine in miniature. "What's a reading?" she added, sitting back and stopping the solo-ballet that was taking place along the rim of her cup. "Is it like people reading from books?" Wide eyed, and Amy had never been into theater or creative things, and Hannah knew very little about any of it. Like the books she was reading now, devouring voraciously, this was all new.