Garrett & Sunny: Sometimes Love is Funny

by Peter Butler

  Had that just changed?

  I had my home phone in my hand, but I didn't dial, I sat there deep in thought. I wanted to clear up some of my feelings before I spoke to her and I wanted to find out a lot more about her.

  I fired-up my computer, intent on booking three return airline tickets to Australia while I pondered my next move with Sunny. On a whim I quickly checked to see if she had tried to use the computer and was pleasantly surprised with the result.

  I managed three business-class tickets on a Malaysian Air flight at 7:05 p.m. tomorrow. I was lucky to get business-class at this late stage, I was expecting to have to fly first-class, which would have really stung. Never-the-less Tim was getting a bill for his part of this little trip.

  With that organized I returned my thoughts to Sunny.

  If my instincts were to be believed then it would be devastating to find out that she was just playing with me. Much better to play it cool and keep things at a moderate level. We had apparently slept together, but somehow I think she was toying with me on that one. Surely, if I was incapable of remembering, then I would have been incapable of doing that. Surely? Maybe I'd just invented a new psychological disorder - Sleep screwing.

  The more I thought about the missing hours in my memory, the more I believed that I had been drugged. When I was a teenager I'd had my appendix removed and I distinctly remembered the same situation. One minute I was being on a bed with a doctor saying, 'I want you to count backwards from one hundred.' Then, the next thing I knew I was on another bed in a different room with my family looking down at me. I can still remember saying, 'When are they going to do the operation?' Only to be told it was all finished over an hour ago.

  That blank empty nothingness between the two events seemed weird at the time, but I can remember being somewhat grateful that I'd missed all the action. This current situation was the opposite. I wanted to fill in every second of that time with Sunny.

  I looked at the clock. It was nearly eight and I hadn't eaten. Then I remembered that Sunny said she owed me a bowl of "muesli" and that euphemism, made me hungry in a more urgent way.

  I dialed.

  She answered, 'Hello.'

  'Is that Heidi?'

  'Who is this?'

  Here we go again. Game on.

  Five minutes later and for the second time in one day I was driving like a man-possessed, because of a woman I hardly knew. To my credit it was not only because I believed that sex might be on offer, it was equally the desire just to be with her.

  Wow! I realized that I had best keep that knowledge to myself. If I kept going on like this in no time I'd be watching daytime soaps and telling Truf how lovely he looked with his shirt collar tucked up on that angle. Get a grip old son.

  I might be okay at the banter and bullshit that the pickup game requires, but the area I struggle with is the truth and honesty thing. I tend to be pretty straight-up when I think it's required, and I knew I was at risk of saying too much tonight.

  Just relax, enjoy yourself, play a bit and... watch every bloody word that comes out of your mouth.

  I was so out of my depth.

  Her apartment was on the second floor and she greeted me at the door with a big smile, then a big hug, and then a kiss. At this rate we would be doing it in her doorway. And that didn't bother me one bit. She seemed to come to the same conclusion at that moment also, as she broke away from me and led me by the hand through the doorway.

  Fine by me. Let's just get that bloody door closed!

  The front door led into her lounge and I could see a balcony straight in front of me. A kitchen area seemed to be off to the right, there was another closed door beside that, which I guess is a bathroom and immediately beside the front door was another door that had to lead to her bedroom. I started to pull her in that direction.

  She held her ground, and said, 'I need to eat something.'

  She punched me on the chest when she saw that I had deliberately misinterpreted what she'd said and had a huge grin on my face.

  'How do you feel about Sushi?' she continued, adopting a more business-like tone. 'There's a place just around the corner and all the staff are authentic Japanese.' She paused, then added with a grin, 'I don't really know that, they might be Korean or Chinese, but the food is good. I just want somewhere that we can talk and not be distracted by, err... distractions.'

  'Unless we eat in different restaurants I'm guaranteeing you that I'm going to be too distracted to talk. Why don't we stay here and get the thing that's distracting us off the table. Then we can go out and eat?' I quite liked my little pun, but sadly she stuck to her guns.

  'That's part of what I wanted to talk about. So. No. We need to eat, right now, and we need to do it somewhere other than here.'

  As we walked, hand-in-hand down the street, I tried to think of where she could be going with the thing about us having sex, being part of what she wanted to talk about. I couldn't find anything good that started with those words.

  We hadn't even begun to go out together and this seemed like we were going to have a "Honey, we need to talk" conversation. Yet, she was hot for me, I could tell that much for sure, and if I was any hotter for her I'd have flames coming out my ass.

  We entered the restaurant and instantly, every pair of male eyes fixated on her. She did look sensational. In what I was beginning to believe was typical Sunny, she wore a simple mini-skirt and one of those singlet T-shirts that manage to hug every contour of a female body. The type that make it very hard to maintain eye contact.

  'Arigatou!' I said to the waitress, and pointed to the two of us and then to the tables.

  This is the one Japanese word I know, I like the way it trips off my tongue and I use it whenever it seems appropriate. I think it means "Hello", but whatever its translation is, it works. Our waitress shows us to a table and bows at the waist as we take our seats. She hands us each a menu and bows again. We bow our heads in response and she backs away, leaving us to do our reading. It's very tiring trying to be Japanese.

  'Why did you thank her, before she did anything?' Sunny said, with a grin.

  'I didn't. I said "Hello".'

  The look on her face coupled with her raised eyebrows told me that I'd said, "Thank you", which made me worry about a previous incident a few years ago. I had turned a corner and crashed straight into a beautiful, young female Asian student. On reflection she must have thought I was some sort of creepy pervert when I uttered my only Japanese word to her.

  We studied our menus and then the ever vigilant waitress came back and took our drinks order, in near perfect English I should mention. She returned with a chilled bottle of Chardonnay for Sunny and a beer for me. She brought two wine glasses, just in case I suddenly acquired some class during the course of the meal.

  We ordered our food and after the waitress had left we looked at each other, both waiting for the other to set the course of the conversation.

  I took a big drink and went first. 'I have to go away for a few days. I'll be leaving in the morning.'

  She frowned, bit her bottom lip and rested her head on her hand with her index finger pointing up her cheek. She seemed to be weighing up what I had just said. It didn't seem to me to be that profound, but she was clearly pondering something that I wasn't aware of.

  'Can I come with you?' She lifted her glass to her lips and took a drink. Her eyes never left mine.

  I wasn't expecting that. Maybe I had misread this thing. This was definitely a bit too clingy. My face must have betrayed my thoughts because she suddenly broke into a broad smile and added, 'Huh! Got ya... You thought I was so totally into you, that I couldn't bear to be away from you for a second.'

  I laughed and visibly relaxed. 'In my defense it happens all the time.' I pointed my finger around the restaurant. 'Did you notice how the people here just couldn't keep their eyes off me, when I walked in?'

  She grinned. 'Yes, I did notice that. Very impressive.' She reached over the table and put her hand over mine. 'Bu
t they'll just have to wait their turn, tonight you're with me.' She withdrew her hand, then added, 'It did seem to be mainly the guys looking, though. Is there something about you my gaydar didn't pick up?'

  Our meals came and we shared parts of our dishes, which she handled expertly. In my case a chili prawn proved too elusive for my chopstick skills and ended up in my lap, instead of my mouth.

  Sunny grinned and said, 'Arigatou..?'

  The next hour passed in a comfortable, relaxed way. It really amazed me how quickly we had assumed a familiarity with each other. Kudos to my instincts. I told her about the trip I had planned, but I skirted around the reason it was being undertaken, telling her I was honoring a request from my Gran.

  Sunny told me that she was a TV Producer on a show called "Impressive People" which was in production and soon to air on the BBC, and that was her boss that I had met last night. I pretended that I knew who she was talking about, but apart from Truf's uncomplimentary description of him, I was clueless.

  By the time we left the restaurant Sunny had finished her bottle of white, and I had gone through four beers. The extra wine glass would not need to be washed. We walked along the street hand-in-hand as before. I had a sublime feeling that the world couldn't get much better than it was right now. Then I remembered that we were heading back to her place and dropped my opinion down one notch.

  Once again Sunny seemed to be thinking pretty much the same thought as me. 'Gary, I know we planned to spend the night together and it would certainly make it just about the perfect date, from my point of view.' She paused long enough for me to realize there was a "But" coming. 'But, I want to wait.'

  That but... was the very worst one on the quick list I'd begun drawing up as she paused. My sublime feeling evaporated and was replaced with a combination of anxiety, anger and confusion. I could only stare at her, with my jaw open.

  'It's not that I don't like you, in fact it's the exact opposite.' She studied the footpath as she spoke, afraid to meet my gaze. 'I had a terrific time with you last night and again tonight. I think we have a shot at being incredibly special to each other and I need to wait before we move to that level. I know that probably sounds stupid to you, but sex would really fuck-up my brain, right now.'

  I think I knew what she was trying to say. As soon as we crossed that line, sex would become the main thing in our relationship. She wanted time to test the depth of her feelings before lust could take control and head the relationship off in a path resembling a skyrocket. All consuming, totally exciting and fulfilling, only to be followed by the inevitable big explosion, and then plateau and perhaps slide into oblivion. That's the way these things had gone in the past.

  I wanted it to last this time, too. I wasn't sure that sex would be a bad thing at this stage - for me anyway. But then I'd never had the thing where "two become one"; totally lost in each other and inseparable.

  Maybe I would, soon.

  She didn't want me to come inside her apartment, but I had to. Four beers needed to go somewhere and I was as sober as a judge after her announcement. I went to her bathroom and when I came out found her standing near the front door. It was wide open.

  There's a possibility she was telling me something, here.

  I walked over to her and took her in my arms. 'I already know you're special. But I think I understand what you're saying... and I'll go along with it.'

  We kissed and then we kissed again. My hands began to wander around the extremities of her miniskirt and she let them explore for a little bit, then she eased herself away. 'I'm serious, Gary. I need time.'

  I slowly shook my head at her.

  Then a thought occurred. 'This morning you told me that I had taken your virginity last night.' I raised my eyebrows in a questioning manner. It was more mocking than questioning, and she smiled back sheepishly and said, 'I might have lied a little bit about that.'

  'Which part?'

  'Both parts. You were pretty out of it when we got back to your place. You started to take your jacket and shirt off as soon as Truf got you off his shoulder. He thought it was a good time to leave, but I said I'd stay and look after you. As I was seeing him out you headed off to your bedroom. By the time I got there you were asleep on the bed.'

  'Then, how did I get to be naked?'

  She bit her lip and looked at the floor. 'I might have helped a little bit with that,' she looked back up and grinned an innocent little-girl look at me. 'I didn't want your clothes to get all crushed. I'm a very neat person, you know.'

  She was absolutely not that person she described. I would call her classy casual, and I hadn't seen any evidence of obsessive neatness. Interesting.

  'So you took advantage of me when you knew I wouldn't be able to resist?'

  'No. At that stage I wanted you to wake up and I would have been there with you. I lay beside you all night.. waiting.'

  'Aw, that's just wrong! You're going to send me off into the night with that thought in my head.'

  'I promise I'll make it up to you. You just need to hold on for a bit longer. Time is what I need.'

  Hold on a bit longer! I was going away for a week - at this rate I'd either be the size of a blimp or have already exploded. Cause of death - embarrassing.

  She led me by the hand to the doorway. Her fingers combed through the back of my hair and she pulled my face down for one last kiss.

  I walked slowly out, then I stopped, turned back and looked longingly at her. She stood, framed by the doorway and gave me the sweetest smile.

  'You promised me muesli.' I shook my head in disappointment.

  She laughed. It was sexy, dirty laugh. 'You'll just have to settle for a banquet, when you get back from Australia.'

  Chapter 4

  I woke-up lying on my back after a fitful sleep that definitely included a dream about Sunny. I knew this because the sheet that covered me resembled a tent. In spite of what I said to her I really couldn't understand her need to wait.

  Women... Go figure.

  I had a lot to do and the first thing I needed was a shower. The blast of cold water on my chest cleared away more than just the cobwebs. While I soaped myself up I started to make a mental list of what I needed to accomplish before Truf and I got together. Information on Plutarch Resources was needed so I was going to have to get both Sophie and Sky into research mode. That would piss them off as they valued their weekend free-time. They were both in-between relationships and hitting the dating pool pretty hard, so I determined to call them later. Hopefully the extra few hours sleep would gain me some brownie-points with them - but I wouldn't put money on it. Most of the information they'd be looking for would be found on the stock exchange databases I paid handsomely to access, and they could Google the rest. I paid for their home internet connections for this very reason; it was a two way deal. By that I mean I got to get work out of them from home. Both girls were in their element rummaging through complex, esoteric web minefields.

  I used both my hands to squeeze the last of the shampoo out of my hair and as I rinsed it all, one last time, I thought of the problem of communicating with everyone from the outback. I knew Truf had a satellite phone and I hoped I could use that to connect my laptop. The thought of being out of touch with the market for a few days is my definition of a nightmare. I would leave the girls with a set of instructions in case of a calamity. The first line on the list will be: call me on Truf's satellite phone.

  The markets had been relatively stable for the past few weeks and I didn't expect any major moves, but who can predict something like an earthquake in a major US city or the actions of the idiots running the global economies. As I said, you need to be informed and in-touch.

  I rubbed myself dry with a towel and contemplated the tension that Tim's presence would cause. Truf had a relationship with Tim that was cold and distant; much worse than mine with Tim. He was my brother-in-law and I had to be civil with him for Meg's sake. Truf had no such restriction and usually referred to him as the weenie. Now, it's f
air to say that most people are weenies when compared to Truf's gigantic frame, but in Tim's case Truf is also referring to his character and personality. Tim has a talent for annoying people because he is totally self-absorbed, a trait that would be intolerable even if he was successful. Which he isn't. So, all my diplomatic skills would be tested over the coming days.

  I knew Gran was an early riser, she is an avid gardener, probably already pruning her carrots or mulching her lawn, so I called her first. She answered almost immediately which made me happy as you can never be totally sure with early calls. People do occasionally like a sleep-in.

  'It's Gary, Gran.'

  'I know that, sweetheart. It is illuminated on my phone,' she offered in a cheerful voice. 'Are you calling to tell me that you can't help me with my dilemma?'

  'Exactly the opposite, well at least hopefully. I'm flying to Australia this afternoon and I'm taking Truf with me. Tim has decided he needs to come along, also. We intend to find out everything we can about Plutarch and what they are doing. Then we'll see if we can come up with a plan to help your friends out.'

  'Oh, Gary, I never intended to take up that much of your time. And Truf's also. I thought you'd be able to do it over the web.'

  'It's just a quick visit, Gran, we'll be back in a week. It's essential to know exactly what we're dealing with.'

  'You're the expert. I'll Direct Deposit some money into your account for expenses. Have you got a pen handy?'

  'You don't need to pay the expenses, you've already given us the shares.'

  She ignored what I said and began to give me a list of names and phone numbers of people who would be able to help with our visit. She ended with; 'Text me your final flight number and arrival time and I will arrange for a cousin of yours, called Sammy, to meet you at the airport in Brisbane.'

  The way Gran got on-board with the organizing made me realize just how sharp her mind was. On a health level this made me happy, but regarding Plutarch it worried me: If she and Ed had no success then I was definitely not in for an easy job. I ended the call by giving her Truf's satellite phone number.