“Is everything all right?” Max asked, bringing me back to the present.

I banished all thoughts of those awful stems from my mind and stretched my gloss-covered lips into a smile. “Absolutely. Just wondering where we’re going.”

He adjusted his Ray-Ban aviators and smiled mischievously. “If I told you, that would ruin the surprise.”

WE DROVE INTO VIRGINIA over the Fourteenth Street Bridge and out past the airport before looping back toward the city and eventually pulling into a crowded parking lot.

“Where are we?” I asked as I climbed out of the car. I couldn’t see much of anything other than an expanse of grass hidden by some trees, a strip of water, and a row of porta potties. Near us, a rowdy pack of teenagers were chasing each other and waving a Frisbee in the air. Beyond them, I saw mostly sneaker-wearing couples pushing toddlers in strollers and people dressed in padded shorts and helmets walking bicycles. I looked down at my chambray sundress and platform sandals and sincerely hoped Max wasn’t expecting me to engage in some sort of physical activity.

“So many questions,” he teased, unloading a pair of reusable Trader Joe’s tote bags from the trunk.

“I don’t like secrets,” I said, grabbing the edge of one of the bags and peering inside. I spotted a cutting board and baguette and looked up triumphantly. “Aha! It’s a picnic.”

“You were the kind of kid who searched for her Christmas presents, weren’t you?” he guessed with a laugh. “But, yes, you caught me. It’s a picnic. Now that the weather is finally cooling down, I thought it would be nice to spend some time outside.”

I took one of the bags from him and together we began walking toward the grass. “I haven’t been on a picnic in ages. When I first moved to New York, I used to try to convince my roommates to picnic in Central Park with me. I’d get all this stuff from Zabar’s, but they weren’t really into eating, so—”

The rest of my words were drowned out by a sudden roar from above. I snapped my head up and saw an enormous airplane careening toward the ground in front of us. I froze, veins crackling with terror, unable to look away from the impending disaster.

“Oh my God,” I croaked out, clutching Max’s arm. “It’s—”

Before I could finish my panicked sentence, the plane landed gracefully on what I now recognized as a runway leading toward the airport. Fingertips still digging into Max’s biceps, I turned to him in shock.

“Holy shit, did you see that? That couldn’t have been normal, right?”

“Normal, expected, and the entire reason we’re here,” he said, dimples popping as he smiled impishly. He pointed across the water to where the plane was still taxiing. “That’s DCA over there. This park is called Gravelly Point, and people come out here to watch the planes land and take off.”

“That was wild. I had no idea this was out here.”