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“You ready to order yet, kid?”
“Uh…not yet.” Jimmy Jr. replied, his words muffled by the glass pressed against his cheek.
He’d been standing in the same spot for almost fifteen minutes now, and he still hadn’t seen Tina. The boy behind the counter at Fro-Yo-Momma seemed to be growing impatient with his loitering, but what was he supposed to do?
Leave?
What if Tina showed up, after all? He’d tried to send her a text, but she hadn’t responded. Maybe she didn’t have her family’s emergency cell-phone on her? Jimmy Jr. sighed, and the puff of breath made the window beneath his face fog up. Embarrassed, he pulled back, wiping the condensation away with his hands.
The buzzing of his phone in his pocket made him perk up - unfortunately, it was only Zeke, checking in to see how things were going.
It had been Zeke’s idea for him to ask Tina out, anyway.
“Sorry, J-ju. I got plans with my cousin Leslie. Why don’tcha ask Tina?”
It had seemed like a good idea at the time - after all, the “buy-one-get-one-free” coupon was burning a hole in his pocket, and Tina had been thrilled when he’d asked her out.
Why isn’t she here?
…Am I being stood up?
Tina wouldn’t do that…right?
He considered texting Zeke back, if only to ask his opinion on all of this, but he was reluctant to bring it up if he really was being stood up. He knew that Zeke wouldn’t judge him, but it would still be embarrassing.
Slumping against the wall of the fro-yo shop, he went over all of the reasons that she might not be there in his head.
Maybe their car broke down?
Unlikely - she could’ve just rode her bike, like he did. Or walked. Or gotten a ride from that handyman who was always hanging around their restaurant. Lack of transportation didn’t seem like enough to stop Tina from missing out on a date.
Maybe she’s sick?
Wouldn’t she have called him, then? They lived across from the street from each other - she could’ve just sent her siblings over to tell him, or one of her parents.
Of course…this was Tina Belcher, after all.
Maybe…maybe something bad happened?
Checking the time on his phone, he started to chew nervously at his thumbnail. Tina was nearly half an hour late now.
Something really bad.
He thought back to some of the stories Tina and her siblings had regaled him with - it seemed like something crazy was always happening to the Belcher family.
Maybe she’s…being held at gunpoint somewhere.
Or…maybe their restaurant caught on fire.
Nodding to himself, he decided to give it another ten minutes. If she didn’t show up, he could always run back home and grab Andy and Ollie - they could share the free yogurt, so he’d still get to use his coupon.
The boy behind the counter caught his eye as he turned restock something, looking more disgruntled as the minutes ticked by. Jimmy Jr. wondered if he should try making conversation - he couldn’t be kicked out if they were talking.
“So…uh…how long have you been in the fro-yo business?”
Nine minutes of awkward silence later, Jimmy Jr. sighed and headed towards the door. Tina clearly wasn’t coming, and his attempts at conversation had gotten him nowhere - he was sure that he was about to be kicked out.
Just as his hand reached out to grasp the sticky metal handle, the door flew open, nearly knocking him to the floor.
“Jimmy Jr.!”
Tina!
“Sorry. I know I’m late.” She said, gesturing to her parent’s car which was still idling by the curb. “It’s…a long story.”
Jimmy Jr. wondered if he should be upset by her lateness, but he couldn’t bring himself to feel anything but relief - she wasn’t standing him up, or being held at gunpoint, and the restaurant probably wasn’t on fire. If it was, surely her parents would be there, and not here, waving from the front seat of their car.
“It’s okay. I’m glad you’re here now.”
“Me too.”
“So, what are you going to get?” Jimmy Jr. asked, reaching for Tina’s hand as his eyes raked over the menu.
He probably should have decided on what he was going to order earlier, while he was waiting, but who could blame him? He’d been too nervous that she wasn’t going to show up.
Tina didn’t even look up at the menu, instead peering into the glass case in front of them.
“That one.” She said, pointing at her flavor of choice. “Cotton candy. What about you?”
The boy behind the counter was glaring at him, so Jimmy Jr. picked the first flavor that he saw - birthday cake.
As they approached the register, cups of frozen yogurt in hand, Tina cleared her throat and reached into the pocket of her skirt.
“Um…I wasn’t sure if I was the “buy-one”, so I brought money. Ya’ know, just in case.”
Brow furrowing, Jimmy Jr. nudged her out of the way with his hip.
“Why would you be the “buy-one”? I’m the one who invited you.”
“Oh, Louise said…never mind.”
After presenting his coupon to the boy with a flourish, Jimmy Jr. paid for his own frozen yogurt before leading Tina towards the door. He thought that he heard a quiet sigh of relief from behind the counter as they left, but he didn’t turn around to verify.
The sun was starting to set, but it was still warm enough to sit outside. Tina told him about her day, from the sugar on her eggs at breakfast to her dad's elaborate plan to get back at all of Mr. Fischoeder’s pranks.
“Seriously? It’s April Fools' Day?” He asked, the spoon in his hand freezing on its way to his mouth. “I thought that wasn’t until May.”
“No, it’s today. April first.” Tina clarified, and Jimmy Jr. felt silly for not knowing.
“Oh…is that why you were so late, Tina? Were you pranking me?”
It made sense, and it seemed like something that Louise might put her up to. Tina’s eyes darted around, looking at anything but him as she answered.
“...Yes?…April Fools?”
An unfamiliar feeling flooded through him at her words. He was glad that she hadn’t been in trouble, or standing him up. It was all just a prank, and a good one at that. Suddenly, he was really happy that Zeke hadn’t been able to come with him.
“Oh, man. You got me!” He grinned, taking another bite of his frozen yogurt.
At one point, they swapped cups, their fingers brushing as they traded - the small smile that Tina gave him as a result was almost as sweet as the cotton candy flavor she’d chosen.
Afterwards, when they walked home together, she took his hand again. Her hand was sticky from the yogurt, and he was sure that his was, too.
Neither of them minded, even when they’d had to pry their hands apart at her front door.