by PN Books
It was certainly a last-minute decision, but nothing something she regretted. The sex had been really, really good. Travis was hot, in his own nerd way. Plus, he was definitely packing. And he knew what he was doing.
She was still surprised about that.
“Don’t think I didn’t forget about that date,” Jasmine told him as she stood up to get dressed. “You still owe me that. This doesn’t count.”
“Of course,” Travis said. He still seemed sort of dazed. Maybe it was an out of body experience for him. It didn’t matter. She hoped they could do it again.
“So what do you think? This Saturday night?”
She looked at Travis as she pulled her shirt back on. He seemed to really enjoy her breasts. He was going at them. The thought made her cheeks heat up. She liked that feeling. She smiled to herself as she slowly lowered her shirt over her chest.
“Oh I don’t know,” Travis said. Jasmine froze.
Maybe now that she’d had sex with him, he didn’t want to go on the date anymore.
Not that Jasmine would mind. Her life wasn’t about dates. It was just that, for some silly reason, she’d been looking forward to it.
She didn’t know what that meant.
“I think I should surprise you,” Travis said. “Like you surprised me. Let me plan it. And I’ll tell you where to be. And when.”
Jasmine’s mouth twitched up into a small smirk. She liked that about him. These small bursts of braveness. That's what she could see in him from the beginning. When she looked over to his workstation, he was the only one out of all those other IT guys to ever look back.
“So you’re going to plan it?” Jasmine said. “And it’s going to be a surprise? What if I’m not good with surprises?”
Travis gave her a smile of his own. She watched him, unashamed, as he pulled his boxers on again. He seemed impressed that she was staring, even if his cheeks were adorably flushed.
“I have a feeling that you’ll be okay,” Travis said.
###
This was the first time that Jasmine had felt nervous in a long time.
She went through all the possible emotions she could be feeling. Her stomach was jumpy, tied up in knots. Her hands felt a little bit numb. She couldn’t stop pacing.
At first, she thought she might be hungry. Then she thought, maybe she was sleepy. Maybe she was angry. She tried punching a pillow but that didn’t help alleviate anything.
No, she must be nervous.
But it was just Travis, that nerd from the office. How could she be nervous about anything he had to do with? He probably wasn’t even going to show up. Real men couldn’t handle her. What made her think that Travis could?
But for some reason… she really did think that.
So yes, she was nervous. And now it was after eight on Saturday night and Travis still hadn’t texted her. He told her that he would say where to go. Her palms were sweaty. Yes, definitely nervous. Where was he? Could she get stood up for a date that wasn’t specifically planned?
Jasmine hated herself for thinking like this. This was why she never went on any dates.
Jasmine jumped when her phone buzzed. She checked the messages. For once, it wasn’t just an alert from her bank.
Meet me at the Veranda in an hour - T
She wanted to scream at him. Actually, she just wanted to scream. It would help all of these nerves. What was wrong with her? Jasmine was the first person to call herself a bad girl. She didn’t take anyone’s shit. She did what she wanted. So why was this nerdy guy making her feel like she could hide under her bed?
Jasmine looked at herself in the mirror. Today she was wearing a big, bushy Afro wig and it looked good with the jumpsuit she was wearing. The jumpsuit was tight and sexy, showing off her long legs. The air outside was warm but not too balmy. It was the perfect night to go to the Veranda.
Travis better have something good planned.
Jasmine didn’t turn up on time, of course. She got there about a half hour after he told her to meet. She expected to see him out there just waiting but she didn’t. Maybe he got tired of waiting because she was late. But she had to be late, there was no way she could have been on time so Jasmine wasn’t going to feel guilty about that. Maybe she had been stood up after all. After standing around for a couple of minutes, her hands started to sweat. It was very unattractive. Jasmine made a face and wiped her hands on her jumpsuit.
Then Travis walked out of the darkness.
Jasmine couldn’t help but smile. Cheesy, but there he was, carrying a bouquet of flowers. He walked over to her wearing good looking jeans, a stylish t-shirt and a leather jacket. He’d gotten a haircut and his hair was a bit shorter and more styledthan the last time she saw him.
She felt like she had made him a man.
“A wise person once told me,” Travis said, holding onto the bouquet and standing in front of her. “That a cool person is at least a half an hour late to the party. Am I cool yet?”
Jasmine burst out laughing. She couldn’t remember the last time someone made her laugh.
Travis presented her with the bouquet. Jasmine laughed again when she saw that the flowers weren't real. They were all made of chocolate.
“Damn, boy,” she said, looking up at him. “You know the way to my heart.”
“Do I?” Travis asked. He offered her his arm. “Come on. I want to go exploring with you.”
“And you’re not scared I’ll push you into that water?” Jasmine asked. She gestured towards the water that surrounded them. Travis shook his head.
“I have a lot of faith in you,” He said.
Jasmine looked at him, closely. She could tell that he meant it.
And for some reason, that kicked her heart into overdrive. She had to pause for a moment and take a deep breath or else she was scared that her heart would burst right out of her chest.
“Okay,” she said, for once just meaning what she said, no double meaning at all. She just meant okay.
She took his arm.
*****
Travis was nervous until the moment he saw her.
There was something about Jasmine. She brought out another side he’d never known about before. Travis thought of himself as this meek nobody, just working in IT and trying to get by. But with Jasmine, he could see so much more.
With Jasmine, he wanted to be someone different. But not too different from what he already was. He wanted to be someone better.
Yes, he thought that he did like her.
The sex had been amazing but he was just as excited about this date. He’d never taken anyone to the Veranda before. That was what they called their waterfront. You could walk along the pier and visit the shops and the night market. There were cafes and sometimes even street performers. It was just a nice place to hang out, and here he was with Jasmine.
They were strolling hand in hand.
Of course, Travis thought he might try to find something dangerous for them to do. But in the end, he decided to be more traditional. After all, that was more him. He didn’t want to change everything about himself just to please one person.
Travis looked over at Jasmine as they strolled. She seemed to be smiling.
“So tell me about yourself,” Travis said.
“Oh you know me,” Jasmine said. “I’m a badass bitch. I’m from Atlanta.”
Travis wrinkled his nose and shook his head. Jasmine stopped them in their tracks.
“Wait,” She said. “What was that look about? You don’t think I’m who I said I was?”
“No,” Travis said. “I just think that there’s more to you than that. I mean… you did organize an awesome party for the whole office.”
Jasmine paused for a moment. She seemed to be working her jaw and thinking. Then she started moving again.
“Come here,” she said. Travis followed her, puzzled, as she led him inside one of the stores.
A lot of the stores at the Veranda sold fancy, hand-crafted goods. This store was no different. I
t was a new age jewelry store with a lot of crystals.
“Hi,” Jasmine said, going up to the front. She pressed herself against the counter. The man behind the counter took notice. “Can you show me some of those bracelets that are supposed to help with pain?”
The man had a stash under the counter. He pulled the box up and started leafing through them with Jasmine. Travis watched her flirt and talk with the sales guy… at the same time, she pulled a bracelet off the rack right beside her. Then, right under the man’s nose, she pocketed the bracelet.
All the while, she was smiling and talking.
Travis wondered if he should say something. Was this some sort of test? But he didn’t interfere. He just stood there until she was done. Then Jasmine thanked him for showing her the bracelets.
They left.
Jasmine showed him the bracelet once they had walked away from the store as if he hadn’t noticed. The crystals glittered in the palm of her hand. It didn’t look that expensive but that didn’t mean she should have taken it.
“Still think that I have some secret past? Some buried deep down good side?” Jasmine said. “I am who I am.”
Travis shook his head. “No,” he said. Jasmine’s mouth dropped open. So he tried again. “No. I don’t believe it. I don’t believe that’s all you are.”
Jasmine slipped the bracelet on her wrist. She seemed to be thinking. She led him over to a bench and sat down. Travis sat down next to her. He didn’t say anything. He just waited.
Finally, Jasmine took a deep breath with a sigh. He looked down at her. She was still beautiful, but it was in a different way, under the moonlight, for some reason, she looked a little smaller, a little softer. Travis reached out and took her hand. He pressed his palm to hers. He laced his fingers between her own and gave her hand a squeeze.
She squeezed his hand back.
“Well,” Jasmine said, starting over again. “I grew up in Atlanta and… it was hard. I just... didn’t have that many people there for me, you know?”
She looked over at Travis. He knew that she wasn’t expecting to find much understanding but he really did know. He had been there when he was a kid. He didn’t grow up with his parents really around. He had to learn everything on his own.
“So I just had to do everything. I had to… get the things I needed. So I found the best way to do that was through attracting attention to myself,” Jasmine said, slowly. She took a deep breath again and Travis just waited. He wondered if she had said this to anyone else before.
“Good or bad,” Jasmine continued. “Just attention. I didn’t have anything. So I also became accustomed to taking the things I needed. That was all I had going for me, you know?”
Travis nodded again. He didn’t say anything. He was just there to listen.
“So I think that’s why…” Jasmine paused for a moment. “Nothing is given to you, you know. Even if it’s the most basic thing and you need it. So that’s kind of like… why I am the way that I am. Even if I know it’s not the best thing to do sometimes. I just do it. And… it’s not easy. It’s hard to find someone who wants to be close to me.”
Travis held his breath. He couldn’t believe she was so honest with him but he felt honored. She was looked away, towards the water. Travis gently grabbed her chin and turned her face so she would be looking at him again.
“Well, maybe it’s hard. But you’ve found someone. I want to be close to you.”
Jasmine stared at him. Travis looked back. He held her gaze for as long as it took. Then finally, Jasmine smiled. It was so beautiful on her, that smile. Her lips were thick and wonderful, her teeth straight and the smile seemed to reach all the way to the corner of her eyes, brightening up her face and filling it with life.
“I want to be close to you, too,” Jasmine said.
“Come on,” Travis stood up and offered his hands. “Let’s return that bracelet.”
Jasmine nodded as she slipped it off her wrist. Travis held her hand proudly as they walked back to the store. He distracted the man by asking some more question as Jasmine slipped the bracelet back where she found it.
Mission accomplished.
After that, they got some ice cream and laughed together. Standing there, in the slight wind coming off of the water, with ice cream on the corner of her lips, Travis decided to just go for it. He leaned in and gave her a sweet kiss.
It was like their first kiss. It was unlike anything they had ever shared before. Sweet, light, unhurried. Travis thought it might be his favorite kiss yet.
When he looked up, Cyrus was staring at them.
“Hey Travis,” he said. “Didn’t expect to see you here. Wow, you sure are taking your bet seriously. We said you only had to ask her out. You didn’t have to take her on a date. The bathroom thing, well, I thought that was just bonus.”
Travis stared at his friend. He wasn’t quite sure what to say.
Then Jasmine smashed her ice cream right in Travis’s face.
*****
Jasmine didn’t want to see him again.
The next day, she laid in bed, humiliated. The words kept running through her head. The one ugly word. A bet.
She should have known it was too good to be true.
Jasmine just felt awful. After pouring her heart to him, it turned out that everything he told her was a lie. That whole thing, from the moment he’d gotten on stage and asked her out, was something orchestrated by his cronies.
They were even laughing about how she had screwed him in the bathroom.
Jasmine didn’t think she could feel embarrassed like this. Normally, something like this wouldn’t even phase her.
But she had really liked him.
Wow. It was hard to admit to herself but it was true. She had really liked that loser.
And that was why she never let anyone get close to her.
Her phone was full of messages.
Jasmine, I’m sorry. It wasn’t like that. Please call me.
Jasmine, I’d really like to talk to you. Give me a chance to explain. Please.
Jasmine, I really want to get to know you. I have feelings for you. Please believe me. Call me back. Please. -T
Nope. She wasn’t going to fall for it again.
The next day at work Jasmine made sure no one was going to mess with her. She wore her hair long and wavy and green, like a mermaid. Her eye makeup matched, unapologetically green. Her outfit was army camo with dusty army boots. She marched through the halls like a sergeant.
She wasn’t going to let them see that they had broken her.
And they hadn’t. So she fell for one practical joke. That wasn’t going to happen again. She was going to have her guard up. Even higher than before. No one was getting over that wall. And they weren’t going to get to see the good side of her ever again.
“Move!” Jasmine screamed at someone who got in her way.
“Why don’t you get your head out of your ass and work?” Jasmine told her co-worker, who was taking too long with their assignment. She could feel everyone looking at her. She knew it was probably because Travis had told them everything. She could imagine him giggling with his friends in that obnoxious male way, “And then she told me that she didn’t have any family that was there for her? Isn’t that hilarious?”
And they would just laugh and laugh. Jasmine tore her report up at her desk.
It wasn’t good enough anyway.
When she looked up, Travis was standing there.
“Jasmine,” he said, in an urgent voice. “Can we talk?”
“No,” She said, simply. “I never want to talk to you again.”
“Please,” he said. “Let me explain myself. It’s not what it looks like. I really need a chance.”
Jasmine threw her stapler at him. He seemed to get the hint. He left.
Jasmine didn’t feel any better.
*****
After work, Jasmine went home, put on her sweats and opened a bottle of wine. There was no other choice but to drown her
sorrows. She watched Netflix for a while and then grabbed her computer. As she was opening her email, something caught her eye. It said OPEN ME.
Jasmine opened the email.
Inside was a video. When she hit play, Jasmine saw Travis smiling into the camera.
“Hi,” he said. “You know, I could infect your computer with a virus and make you watch this. But I thought an email was easier so this was my first resort. Look, Jasmine, I never meant to hurt you. Things just got a little out of control. Everything I told you was true. I really liked everything that we shared. I won’t share what you told me with another soul, not unless I have your permission. Now… I have something else for you. I hope you can forgive me… for the bet but also for this… because this might be bad.”
He gave the camera a goofy smile. Jasmine found herself smiling back, unbidden. Then she watched as he grabbed a guitar.
He began to strum the guitar. He began to sing.
It was a song he had obviously written because it was about her. Jasmine sat back and listened. His voice wasn’t bad at all. It was rich and deeper than she expected, smooth and quietly sure of itself. The tempo of the song was slow, with a folk pop beat. He sang about this unusual girl he knew, different from the norm, who kept catching his eye. He wanted to catch hers back. He really cared about this girl.
She makes my heart skip a beat. That’s a feeling I cannot beat.
Jasmine smiled at the cheesy lyrics. They might not have been Shakespeare but it was more effort than a guy had ever put into her before. No one had ever tried to impress her like that. No one had ever tried to apologize.
Then all of a sudden the video cut out.
The song wasn’t over yet. Jasmine bit her lip, wishing she could hear the rest. Then she heard something outside her door, rustling on the porch. Jasmine paused for a moment. It was still there. She grabbed a bat and headed for the front door. Jasmine ripped the door open, bat in hand, ready to pounce.
But it was just Travis.
*****
He was carrying his guitar and he didn’t skip a beat. He continued the song right where it cut off in the video.