"How is it that you ignore me when I don't want you to, but listen to me when I'm saying something mundane?"

"I am a bit mundane," Matthew scratched his chin, contemplating on the word 'mundane.' "I think it encapsulates me pretty well. Not a hero, not a villain, not a badass criminal with a dark secret past, just…. Mundane."

"You're still not listening to me." Lisa pushed the purse on the coffee table closer to Matthew. The bag was a decorated, it was a simple purse with striped designs on the edge. Inside were various gifts that Matthew had filled it up with, but Lisa refused to accept it.

The waiter walked up to the both of them. She smiled. She was a young adult, and somewhat eager to be their server. "Is there anything more I can get you both?"

"Not now," Lisa said in a hard voice.

In an attempt to lighten Lisa up, the young waitress said, "can I just say you both make such a cute couple."

The girl was clearly new at her job, typically her compliments could defuse any situation she was in, and she was hoping to be doing Matthew a favor.

Lisa couldn't help herself, "question, are you saying that because we're actually cute together, or because we're an interracial couple and you think it's somehow progressive?"

The woman's face turned hot red, like she'd just been caught in a lie. "Um…"

"Wow, we're an interracial couple?" Matthew said it like he didn't realize he was tan skinned. Matthew was only slightly older than Lisa by three years. He was the same height as Brian but had more swurvy hair compared to him.

"Lisa," Matthew said in surprise, "I didn't know you were so liberal."

Lisa squinted at him, "of course you wouldn't notice that!"

The waitress asked, "um… I'll, give you two more time."

Shortly after the waitress left, Lisa whispered, "you do realize she recommended spicy foods to you because she thinks you're more tolerant towards them. It's prejudiced, and I like spicy food way more than you!"

Matthew replied, "I thought she was just being polite, and it's a good thing she said it so you could hear her. I figured just avoiding chicken everywhere I go helps prevent me from pushing out a stereotype. "

"God you're self conscious."

"Indeed I am…. Wait, did you order the papaya last time just to share them with me?"

Lisa crossed her arms. Matthew said, "wow, that's sweet."

"You're a tool… On so many levels."

Matthew pushed the purse gift towards her, "not on this level."

Lisa wrinkled her nose. "First off, I told you specifically not to get me an anniversary gift. One month anniversaries are annoying, and it comes off as obligatory traditions for couples that aren't creative in any way. Why celebrate one month? What about two months, then three? It's signing up for something meaningless, and the value of these pointless anniversaries always dwindles over time."

Matthew rested his hand on his cheek. He liked listening to Lisa talk, even if it was her scolding him. She continued, "so I told you, don't give me an anniversary gift. Don't even give me an anniversary dinner, we should forget we've been together for a full month, and do something else together any other time. So, on the day after our one month anniversary, you took me to this restaurant, and decide to give me this." Lisa thrusted the purse in Matthew's face. "The purse I said I liked five months ago when the mall first opened. Full of nit nacks of inside jokes between the both us. A glass grasshopper, preserved tulips, a plushie sloth I said that looked like you. You gave me a purse full of every mundane moments we've had together since we first met, and you give it to me, on our anniversary."

Lisa scowled at him, "I told you, don't give me a gift. And yet, vuala, here it is!" She pointed to the purse in disgust.

Matthew smiled at her, "you used your powers to figure out what's inside."

"It's not that hard to figure out."

Matthew said, "can you guess when I got the purse?"

Lisa, unfairly relying on her powers again, frowned, "this morning."

"The day after our one month anniversary. So technically, it's not a one month anniversary gift." Matthew raised a finger up, "I wanted to take you out on a date, so I did. On my way here, I saw a bunch of nit nacks that reminded me of you. So I picked out each of them, and bought that purse I knew you wanted from a few months ago. I didn't technically do it for an anniversary, I just did it because I thought you'd like it."

Lisa frowned as her powers filled her in with the truth.

Acted on a whim. Unplanned gift - Unrelated to Anniversary

Lisa's mouth shrunk.

Matthew grinned as he saw that she saw the truth.

"Stop smiling," Lisa growled.

Matthew walked up from the table and kissed her on the forehead. He said to her, "happy normal day. I'm glad we're still together, and I hope I can give you more gifts like this when I have more normal days with you."

Lisa stayed quiet. Matthew's aloof attitude and impulsive behaviour made him a little trickier to read, but it was his genuinity she liked the most about him. Lisa murmured, "thank you… You're normalcy is very refreshing..."