As I approached my apartment complex, I saw Newman walking out the front doors. "Hey there, Gilbert. Happy birthday!" Newman was our apartment's mailman robot. He delivered all the packages and mail to our building. "Got anything special planned for the big day?" he said, walking over to his truck to meet me at the door.
"Nope, just having a relaxing night with my kitty," I said. He took out a large package from his truck. I opened the door and followed him in.
"Really? Man, you have to do something special to celebrate! Last I checked, you humans sure love to celebrate things, and especially birthdays."
"Yeah, I know, but I like simplicity," I said as we walked to the mailroom. "I just want to live a quiet, peaceful life."
"Hmm, interesting. Hey, let me pick your brain for a second. Isn't it weird that you humans have built these incredible robots and flying cars and hoverboards, but you still rely on physical paper mail?"
I opened the door to the mailroom. "Well, I mean, if it's not broke, don't fix it, right?"
"That's one compelling argument." Newman laughed as he walked in. Following behind him, there was someone I hadn't seen before in the mailroom. I stood there speechless as she opened her mailbox and looked at her mail. Newman must have noticed, so he nudged me to talk to her.
"Hey, are you a new tenant?" I asked, walking past her to my mailbox. I shifted the food to one hand, giving me a free hand to open my mailbox.
The girl pulled the last bit of her mail out of the cubby and shut it firmly. As she turned to face me, I realized just how absolutely stunning she was. Her hair was as black as night, making her hazel eyes even more captivating. She wore a dress and gladiator boots that were laced to her knees.
Extending out her right hand, I noticed each finger on her left hand had a ring with a different color gem and on her wrist, she had a bracelet with a purple gemstone in the middle. "Hi, I'm Diana Laskaris. It's nice to meet you, I just moved in today!"
Taking my hand out of my mailbox and grabbing hers, I winced at her tight grip. I guess she's a undercover muscle mommy. "I'm Gilbert Gataki. It's a pleasure to meet you. By the way, that's a unique last name. Is it Greek?"
Letting go of my hand, she said, "Ah, I see you're a man of culture! You’re absolutely correct. I was born in Terme, near the banks of Thermodon River."
"Oh wow, yeah, I know exactly where that is! My family is originally from Athens, Greece. They moved to America, and after obtaining citizenship, they started a family here."
"I’m guessing you live here with your family?"
"No, actually, my parents moved back to Athens for a bit. My grandparents are sick, and they went over to take care of them. Now it's just me and my cat, Theseus" I said.
Looking past Diana, I saw Newman behind her, displaying a hologram from his eyes that said, ‘Ask her out on a date!’ Diane noticed my gaze and looked back to Newman. Luckily, he had stopped displaying the message and was staring at his clipboard.
Newman's right. I should do something fun for my birthday and spend it with someone besides Theseus. "Hey, uh, today's my birthday, and I don't have any plans. Do you want to go out tonight?" I asked Diana.
I instantly reconsidered every decision I’ve ever made in my entire life. What was I thinking? I can't believe I asked the new tenant out on a date the first day I see her! Not to mention this was our first time meeting each other. Looking back at Newman, he turned off his voice box and was laughing hysterically. Great, I hope this doesn't make things awkward between us.
"Wow, you move quick! How could any girl say no to someone so bold?" she she let out a kiddish chuckle and bounced on her heels. Newman's jaw and mine dropped in perfect sync. We both must have thought, there is no way It's this easy? "But more importantly, I love birthday dates! We have to do something extra special!"
"Awesome. Just let me get changed and feed my cat first. Uh, you can meet me at my apartment. It's apartment number 553," I said. There's no going back now. If she's crazy, I'll have to move immediately.
"Perfect. I'll pick out the perfect outfit for tonight's events," Diana said as she walked past me. Watching her step into the elevator, her hand moved toward the side and she selected her floor. Just before the doors slid shut, she met my eyes one more time and gave me a playful wink that made my heart skip.
"Well, kid." Newman chuckled walking over and putting a hand on my shoulder, shaking my head in disbelief. "you somehow landed yourself a date with all the grace of a stumbling penguin. I was ready to offer my shoulder to cry on, watching you trip over your words like that. Good luck, champ. Don't mess it up in the second half." Taking his hand off my shoulder, he left the mailroom.
Today was turning out to be one of the best birthdays I've ever had! Taking out my mail, I shuffled through it quickly, but there was no letter from my parents.
That’s fine because if things work out with Diana, I could tell her about my new girlfriend. All at once, it hit me. I had a date tonight that I wasn't prepared for! I had to get ready. I still had to feed Theseus, get showered, and get dressed. There was no time to delay! I closed the mailbox and made my way to the elevator to get ready for the night.
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