20 days ago, he held my hand and smiled. We were in a crowded restaurant, but I didn't care. I was happy to be stress free. There were no failing classes, the road to college seemed clear, and I figured all was well with the world. I asked him "What do you feel about me?" He stopped smiling and said he'd be right back. He got up and exited the restaurant. I saw him get in his car. I thought he was going to leave, and it left me wondering whether I'd provoked some sort of discomfort. I was perplexed about his strange behavior. A few minutes later he walked back in.
"What were you doing?" I asked. His expression was neutral.
"Answering your question." He sat down next to me and put a small tin can of mentos in front of me.
"This is the metaphor. The tin can is me. The mentos is what I feel for you."
"Minty freshness?" I interjected, hoping to get a smile. None came my way.
"No, how much I care about you." We were quiet for a moment. Then I said, "What if they run out?"
The smile on his face returned. From his jacket pocket he pulled out a small package of mentos. He popped open the lid of the can and poured some more in.
"Then we keep on filling it. Does that answer your question?" I nodded, impressed at his analogy.
"Do you love me?" I said. He popped open the lid again and took out two mentos. He put one in his mouth and one in mine.
"Yes."