"Go finish getting ready, let's go eat!"

Alice smiles at you and says, "sounds great! Let me finish my shower, and you can change out of your work clothes. Put on something nice, because I expect to be impressed!" She walks back into the bathroom, shuts the door, and a moment later you can hear the water running again.

"Yeah, impressed," you think to yourself. This was a spur of the moment decision, and you didn't actually make reservations anywhere. Considering the way this afternoon has gone so far, casual dining restaurant chains that allow walk-ins, but with insanely long waiting times, aren't making the cut tonight. You have to think fast, you have to be smart, and you have to get plans set before Alice gets out of the bathroom.

That means you throw on the first decent thing you can find to wear, and spend fifteen minutes calling her favorite restaurants nearby in a rush to make last-minute reservations, only to find every place is completely booked. Finally, you decide to make a Hail Mary pass, and order carry-out from her favorite Italian restaurant and sneak some picnic supplies and a bottle of wine into a tote bag. As you're finishing up, Alice walks out of the bathroom with a towel around her waist, drying her hair and already having put on her makeup. She shoos you out of the bedroom to dress, and you finish your last-minute preparations while she's occupied.

At least, the bedroom door opens, and she walks out with her hair put up in a French bun, wearing a sleeveless sundress with a shawl over her shoulders, and carrying her handbag. She smiles at you, saying "ready?"

You smile back at her, hoping to yourself this works. "Yup," you say, grabbing your tote bag. "Let's go". The two of you get in your car, and drive to the Italian restaurant. She beams as you pull into the parking lot, and her smile dampens somewhat as you park next to the building in the carry-out lane. "I thought we would make it a picnic?" you say sheepishly.

"You couldn't get reservations, could you?" she asks, flatly. You admit it, "no...I made a last minute decision today to come home early. I'm sorry if I got your hopes up."

She looks out the passenger side window, and says "it's fine". Oh boy. You know she's not the type to take these things personally and too harshly, and she'll understand that you were just trying to do something nice, but until she gets to that point you can expect a bumpy ride. You make the call inside, and in just a few minutes a waitress comes out with your order. You pick it up, tip the waitress nicely, and get back on the road.

You look at her through the corner of your eye, trying to figure out where to go that will blunt her annoyance with you, and likely herself for expecting more out of a spontaneous night out. You run through the list of potential locations in your head, and you finally hit on an idea -- the park where you first met. If you're lucky, you can get a picnic table to yourself where you can watch the sunset together. It's a short, but uncomfortable drive there, and she realizes where you've taken her as you pull into the park's parking lot.

She kisses you on the cheek, and says "you remembered...well, consider yourself forgiven. For now." You internally breathe a sigh of relief, park, and carry the food and tote as you walk beside her. You are lucky enough to find a decent spot, and she excuses herself to use the park's restroom as you lay the food and necessary utensils out. You finish laying things out, and sit waiting for her.

You realize she's been gone longer than usual, and after a few more minutes' wait consider going to see if she's okay.