by Cherry Kay
“Not a problem.”
“What do you want?” he asked her, “I like their chicken shawarma.”
“I’ll have the same,” she said.
“Coke?” he offered.
“No, thank you.”
The small restaurant had begun filling up with customers and Alexis and Shaun were lucky enough to sit on tall stools by the window.
“So,” he began, unwrapping his shawarma slowly, “I haven’t seen you in two days. How are you feeling?”
“You asked me this already,” she said, “by text.”
He shrugged. “Doesn’t hurt to ask again, right?”
“I dislike small talk,” she retorted.
“Are you always this serious?” he asked her, taking a sip of his soda.
“Yes, it’s for when I’m uncomfortable.”
“You still think I’m a creepy stalker, huh? Well, you’d be glad to know, after I got your number from Janine, she’s had her first date with Dennis, my teammate.”
“Teammate?”
“Football.”
“You’re a player for what team?”
“None for now. Hoping to get drafted though.”
She didn’t say anything else. She wasn’t a fan of football. She so just nodded, at least there was some recognition there. She didn’t want to bruise this guy’s ego.
“Tell me about yourself?” he said as he took a bite. “Are you an only child? Overachiever ever since? What do your parents do?”
Her lips were drawn into a straight line. She didn’t want to talk. The questions he had given at first bordered on extremely personal.
“Alright, change of question. Why do you work at the coffee shop?”
“I think it’s a good stress reliever, plus it helps pay for tuition.”
He nodded, knowing full well the importance of his football scholarship. “How long have you been working there?”
“Around a year and a half.”
“Why not work somewhere else? Wait, what is your major?”
“Economics, with a minor in accounting.”
“Jesus, we’ve got a Brainiac on our hands here,” he joked, wrapping up the shawarma paper into a ball.
“I hope you weren’t one of those jocks who made fun of people who liked to read,” she said with a hint of disdain.
“I was one of the bullies,” he said sheepishly, “but it wasn’t too much bullying. It spells bad news for a scholarship.”
“Yeah, I bet it wasn’t too much,” she said without much feeling.
“I’m not kidding. You grow up in a military family, you’re bound to act tough but still maintain enough sensitivity to protect those you need to protect.”
“Is that what you did last Thursday?” she interjected.
He fell silent. “Well, yeah. I didn’t want you to roll under the bus, especially when you’re going to be my favorite barista.”
“Going to be?”
“Well, I’ve only been there three times. And you’re a standout barista.”
“Because my concoctions taste the same as every other barista’s and I have excellent customer service,” she replied sardonically.
He looked blank for a moment. Well, that was sarcasm right there, he realized. “Why’d you take up economics?”
“I like to learn how the business world works. And I like numbers.”
“Yeah, I took that as a foreign language class,” he muttered.
She heard him and burst out laughing. “What?”
“That was the smartest thing I heard you say, yet,” she responded, the corners of her eyes crinkling.
He liked looking at it. There was a complete change in her when she laughed aloud. He wondered how often this happened. She seemed to be edgy- since there was no other word for it. Sunlight hit the glass pane and it shone on her skin, casting a healthy bronzed look to her. Her wavy hair; bordering on curly, was in a messy bun but she still looked wonderful.
“You look like Dorothy Dandridge,” he suddenly blurted out.
She stopped laughing and eyed him curiously. “What?”
“You know, that hot chick from the 1950s or something,” he said, looking at Alexis. “What? You don’t know her? Come on, she’s pretty popular, right?”
“Of course I know her, she’s the first black woman to have an Oscar nomination.”
“Yeah, well you look like her.”
“I wish,” she said, suddenly embarrassed at the comparison. She wasn’t particular about her looks anyway. If she smelled nice and looked clean, that was that. Plus, a bit of bronzer and sunblock didn’t hurt. To be compared to the great Ms. Dandridge was an ego booster. She hadn’t been complimented on her looks in so long. It was always about how smart she was.
Hasn’t anyone told you that, yet?” he asked.
She shook her head. “No, not really.” She did get “you look like a supermodel” comparisons before, except for her height. Wait, was this guy for real? Or just really interested to get into her pants? Because she certainly wasn’t going to give him the time of the day.
He shrugged. “What time do you get off work?”
“Late.”
“Don’t go chasing after pendants now. I can’t pick you up tonight.”
“Who mentioned anything about you picking me up?”
“I did. I’d like to keep you safe. Plus, this is a pretty good start for our first date.”
She fought the urge to roll her eyes. And then she looked at her watch. “I have to get to work. Thanks for lunch,” she said standing up.
“Can we have another date? Lunch, brunch, booze, whatever.”
She shrugged. “Depends on our schedules. See you.”
“Bye,” he said.
She didn’t respond to it. He couldn’t read through her, he thought. She was guarded. Too guarded. He wondered if he did something wrong. Or said something wrong. Why were women always so friggin’ complicated? Especially her! He hoped for a quick turnaround time. He was running out of it already.
Chapter Six
As much as Alexis hated to admit it, he was a fun guy to talk to. A bit shallow, but that was to be expected from someone who had been a jock and bully in high school. They had their seventh “lunch” date, a shorter one than the previous days. They had almost nothing particular in common except for a love of good food.
She observed him casually, but she remembered little details, like the way he ate and the way he would open doors for her. There was some semblance of him being a gentleman against the occasional brutish talk he displayed. It wasn’t a heavy contrast to his face. His light brown eyes were bright and alert. He had a five o’clock shadow that she actually liked looking at. All in all, he was decent looking. Well, at least that was what she thought.
Shaun thought differently. He knew she had a strong personality, tougher than most of his teammates and he knew she was hiding something (well, he was too) and there was some part of her that stayed detached, no matter how charming he had tried to be. He had eased himself into playing the part quite well and he had thought that maybe he was a romantic, after all. But this was only for show, he kept telling himself.
He dropped her off at the coffee shop just in time for her shift. His gaze lingered on her back. She was undeniably beautiful, and she had curves in all the right places, unexaggerated curves that went well with her frame. He felt his hormones rage like a high schooler who had just discovered the wonders of online porn for the first time. He shook his head and then drove off, so he would not be late for practice.
She saw him drive off and she found herself smiling a little. Janine bounced beside her.
“Hey Lex,” she said with a grin, “so… how was the date?”
“What date?”
“With the player.”
Player? Like a woman player? Oh wait, she almost laughed aloud. That was slow. She meant football player. Two dates and she was getting stupid already? She heard her professor’s voice echo in her mind. She had said: “Never date
an idiot, chances are they’ll drag you down to their level.”
Well he wasn’t an idiot, maybe just not academically gifted, she reasoned. “Oh, you mean Shaun?” Alexis replied.
“First name basis now, I see,” Janine teased.
Alexis scoffed at her. “It’s not business, I don’t see why I should call him by his family name.”
Janine placed her elbows on the counter, as if suddenly eager to listen to her. “So, tell me. How was it? What was it like? Did he kiss you?”
She blushed. “Nothing like that,” she tried to sound as calm as possible. “He and I were civil.”
“You make it sound like it’s a high-profile divorce,” Janine laughed out loud.
Alexis took a breath. “He and I are just taking things one small step at a time. So, how did your date with Dennis go? Shaun told me all about it.”
It was Janine’s turn to redden. “Well, he’s a nice guy. He tells me Shaun is, too.”
“Good for the both of us, then.”
“Are you honestly not attracted to him?” Janine’s eyes widened.
Alexis shrugged. “He’s okay. I don’t know him too well.”
Janine gave a small smile. “I hope you still have time for romance despite finals coming up.”
“Finals is my biggest priority. I just said yes to the dates to relax once in a while.”
Janine gave a know-it-all grin. Despite Alexis being un-girly and more often quiet, it was obvious she had taken a liking to this Bradford guy. Dennis had told her that the first time Shaun had seen her, he immediately wanted to date her. How was that for romantic?
“Well, you should relax more often,” Janine chimed in.
“All in moderation,” Alexis murmured.
***
“You sure you still have money?” his grandfather asked in a gruff voice.
“Of course I do,” Shaun replied as they played a game of chess in the recreation room of the hospice. He move his pawn forward.
“Stupid move,” his grandfather cackled as he moved a knight, “didn’t I teach you enough as a kid? Or did the football damage your brain by now?” “Maybe it has, gramps,” Shaun sighed.
“How can you have money? You aren’t getting paid well enough for all this practice. I could pay you better by just throwing my crap away.”
“I’m doing this because I know I can make it. I don’t want to throw your crap away.”
“Well, at least you’re a fighter too. Now, why didn’t you get in the military again?”
“It’s not for me,” Shaun said.
“Have you visited your folks lately?” the Bradford senior asked.
“Not lately.”
“Well you should. I bet I see you more than you see them.”
“I’m just not comfy with dad around, gramps. He’ll just put me down again.”
“I put him down. Look what happened. He turned pretty okay,” his grandfather laughed.
Shaun found himself grinning despite losing the game. It was a quiet Sunday morning, some seniors were attending aerobics classes and some attended mass. Yet, here he was with his grandfather, playing their third game for the day. His grandfather had a shock of white hair and a deep jowl. His belly was a bit flabby from lack of exercise. Plus, the old man loved beer so much, he had to have one every day.
There were moments when his grandfather would get senile and it was something he dreaded a lot. He didn’t want his favorite father-figure to lose his memories and faculties.
“Tell me what happened to your week,” the senior demanded.
“Well, practice for ten hours, then I checked on your Facebook fan page last Wednesday. You’ve got a solid following of four million people now.”
“Ha, still got it,” the old man muttered, “is my book gone from the best seller’s list?”
“Still in the top 10 for crime fiction,” Shaun told him with a huge smile.
“What else?” his grandfather pressed on.
“I went out on a date. My first in a year.”
“Really now? Tell me more about it.” There was a gleam in his grandfather’s eye. “I hope she wasn’t anything like that ditzy female you introduced last Thanksgiving.”
“She’s pretty. And pretty smart. Consistent dean’s list. Works part-time in a coffee shop, although I get this strange feeling she doesn’t even need to work.”
“Why’s that?”
And Shaun launched into the story of how it started out as a friendly challenge, seeing her on the stands, her conversations with her even if they only had two dates so far. He showed his grandfather a photo of her on Facebook (he had added her by then). His grandfather nodded in approval.
“Well, how do you think this’ll turn out for you, her being the daughter of your coach? I don’t approve of how you’re using the lady for stupid football bets.”
“I’m being really nice. And who knows what this might lead to? But for now my priority is first pick.”
His grandfather sighed. “I hope this leads to something good. Showing off against other men is pretty natural, but to have a woman in the middle of it all is something I don’t approve of.”
“You know how I am, gramps,” Shaun reasoned.
“Hot head, patience of a bomb fuse.”
“Gramps!”
“Well, are we still playing or what? ‘cause I want another game before I have my nap. If you lose, you’re gonna have to have your name and face plastered on a milk carton for missing persons.”
***
Hey, where are you?
She saw the text message ten minutes after it had been sent. It was becoming a bad habit, falling asleep in the guise of relaxing from reading too much. And then she would have snippets of nightmares. Nightmares were nightmares no matter how small, she thought. She was taking deep breaths to calm herself down. Must be the whole death anniversary thing again. It was nearing the date of their accident, her survival and their deaths. She replied.
Just at home. Resting.
His reply came less than a minute later.
Wanna have some pizza? If you don’t mind, we can eat at your place.
She shrugged, knowing full well she hadn’t had dinner yet. Pizza didn’t sound too bad. She could use the extra calories when burning the midnight oil.
Sure thing.
Be there in twenty.
She found herself off the couch, washing her face and combing her hair and changing into better looking sweats and a shirt. At least her house was clean. She was always a neat freak. She didn’t have soda. She didn’t like soda much. What would he drink? Just tap water and some pureed orange juice? Would he even like dessert? She didn’t even have dessert. She had celery sticks.
Why am I panicking? She stopped herself. This was beyond stupid. All for a guy. But the attention was on her. And it felt nice. Too nice. There was no such thing as too much happiness. Sadness yes, Stress, yes. Still, she found herself propping up the throw pillows and wiping down the tables and opening the window to let some fresh air in. She hoped her house didn’t smell strongly of potpourri. She had a huge basket of it in her bathroom.
Her doorbell rang. She walked out of her apartment and opened the front door. There he was with a big smile and a bigger box of pizza.
“I got pepperoni and four cheese, hope you don’t have lactose problems- oh shoot. I forgot drinks,” he exclaimed.
“I have pureed orange juice,” she chimed in.
“Great,” he said as he strode into her apartment. “You’re a neat freak. And you don’t have TV,” he looked surprised.
For the first time in her life, not having TV bothered her. “I have a fifteen inch laptop…”
“Great. We can watch a movie,” he eyed her. “Wait, you don’t like movies? Or you don’t have Wi-Fi connection?”
“You make me sound like I’m from the prehistoric period,” she frowned, “of course I have Wi-Fi. And of course I like movies. Star Wars is a movie. A franchise.”
“Guardians of the
Galaxy is showing. I haven’t seen it yet. Have you?”
She shook her head. “I’m not too well-versed with comic adaptations.”
“But you know it’s a comic,” he grinned, “One up for my book.”
Secretly she felt pleased. Then she paused. Why the hell would she be pleased? She didn’t exist for him. She suddenly felt petty- shallow. Yes, that was the right word. She frowned and he stopped smiling, seeing the look on her face.
“What’s wrong?”
“Just hungry,” she replied quickly.
He opened the box of pizza with much aplomb and it made her laugh. They sat on her three seater couch and she was careful to sit a few inches away from him as she propped open her laptop. The credits began and she saw that he looked eager for it. Just like a child. It was pretty cute to look at. Halfway through the movie, she found herself laughing aloud with him. The pizza had gone cold but still they ate it.
The movie was more fun than she had imagined. They talked about it for a solid ten minutes, exchanging theories and favorite bits.
“So… what do you want to do next?” she asked him, eyeing the clock. It was nearing ten in the evening.
“Are you sleepy?” he asked her.
“Nah,” Alexis said.
He looked at a cabinet and saw something he liked. “Hey, you have a chess set.”
She looked surprised. “Chess? You know about chess? I mean you play chess?”
“Whenever I can. It keeps my brain in check,” he joked.
She smiled. “You want to play chess?”
“One game?” Shaun suggested.
“Sure,” she replied as they both transferred to her tiny dining table.
“Loser does what?” he asked.
“What does the winner do?” Alexis retorted.
“Alright, winner gets to decide whatever the loser should do.”
“Nothing dirty,” Alexis warned.
“No cleaning of the toilet, got it.”
“No!” she laughed, “nothing too obscene.”
“Like stripping in front of each other?” Shaun grinned, “I was kidding. Yeah, something decent.”
They began to play. In less than ten minutes, she had lost. It infuriated her and embarrassed her. How could she lose against him? He hadn’t shown any signs of Mensa-caliber intelligence.