"You know that art exhibit? The one that's out there on Pelican Beach?" Asked Cody.

Elaine gave a slight nod, "I do. I can't say that I've ever walked through and looked at the art, but I see it whenever I drive by it. It's one of those things where I always tell myself to stop by."

"Oh, it's pretty cool," Cody said as he slid his hands into his pockets. The sun was down now, and in its place was a round moon that radiated with confidence. "It's all people from around here, but for the most part it's all very good."

Elaine crossed her arms over her breasts and managed a laugh that sounded awkward, but somewhat genuine. The first-date jitters had their hold on her too. Jazz music funneled out of a small brewery up the street from them. The Avris Heights Promenade was busy, but not to the point of exhaustion, it was perfect.

"I had this friend named Eugene...acquaintance really," Cody said as he graciously stepped aside for a little girl and boy that ran by them. "I knew him back in college, I forget the class that we had, but that's where I met him. Anyway, one day he's out there with his group of friends and one of them convinces him that one of the exhibits was a portal into outer space."

Elaine snorted and laughed, this one was genuine. "Wow...is your friend Eugene, super gullible?"

Cody nodded, the infection of her smile and laugh taking possession of him. "That's exactly my point. Some people are just super gullible. Now, I'm not saying that Eugene was a bad guy, maybe a bit dull around the edges, but far from a bad person." It clicks into place, as the jazz music weaves around them. They stop out front. "We had English, I don't know why it came to me just now, it's not important, but that's what we had. Anyway. This particular art exhibit was two large paintings of outer space. It's really nice, and I'd even go as far as to say that it was my favorite piece throughout the entire exhibit."

"Are you an outer space guy?" Elaine asks, her head bobbing with the music.

"To an extent. You know? Don't go asking me anything about it because I wouldn't be able to answer a damn thing, but I have some form of interest." The music is very inviting, and the brewery isn't that full.

"Alright, so...what happened with the paintings?"

"Okay, so, one of them is this large black and blue painting that kind of just looks like the galaxy, and the other is red and orange and it looks like it could be a solar flare. Again, I don't know much about outer space, my description is essentially caveman talk."

Elaine laughed and shook her head, her right hand going up to her mouth. The first date was going good...really good, and Cody couldn't remember the last time an evening like this had gone so smoothly.

"His friend convinces him that if he jumps into one of the paintings it'll take him to outer space. Stupid right? Like that sounds absurd. Regardless, he convinces Eugene to do it, and he does." Her gaze is on him now, and only him. "He takes this mad running leap into one of the paintings, I forget which one, and...it goes crashing into the sand. I forgot to mention that Eugene isn't a small guy, dude's big. He brings the whole painting down, he essentially destroys it. The creator wasn't far, maybe standing off to the side. He sees this and obviously, all hell breaks loose. He charges him...a fortune."

"How much?" Questioned Elaine.

"Pfft. I don't know the precise amount, but I'd heard around twenty thousand. I didn't ask for the logistics of all of that, but that's the number that he told me. I'm not sure why he'd over-exaggerate something like that. Regardless, it put him into a massive financial deficit. He's around our age, maybe a year younger or older, I can't remember, but he's been paying that off for years."

"And that's why you're scared of art exhibits?" Elaine pried.

The laugh caught in Cody's throat, and she swept her hand across his arm. "I'm not scared of art exhibits, I said I was cautious of them. You accidentally walk into one of those things and you could be screwed for the rest of your twenties. Last I checked Eugene's working like three jobs and he's still nowhere near paying that artist off."

"What a funny story," Elaine said, returning her attention to the musician. They let the jazz music take them over, the ambiance of a busy promenade, bathing in the full and beautiful moon, and then she asked if he wanted to go in for a beer.

He agreed.