by Hazel Keys
“Hey, you two! I see you finally made it!” Tristan turned his head at the sound of Amun’s voice, and when he caught sight of his friend he immediately noticed that he was touting Isabella around by her hand, the poor girl looking slightly overwhelmed. She seemed happy, though, so he didn’t think that he needed to bring anything up at that point. If she said anything that he took as worrisome, then he would get involved. For all intents and purposes, it seemed like she was having a genuinely good time. A small smile was spread across her lips, and the way that she was looking at Amun actually made Tristan feel a small pang in his heart.
If he had ever come to a point in his life when he thought that Isabella had grown out of his reach, it was in that moment. It didn’t sting nearly as much as he thought it would, but it was still quite a blow to his ego. It was the small sense of bitterness that the woman whose attention he had longed for so long was now showing affection towards the friend he had helped set her up with in the first place. It felt like it must have been against the bro code in some way, but he was never going to admit as much. This only fueled his resolve to follow his new path, and that path was with Bella.
The night went by almost like a blur, the four of them sitting there and chatting about a bunch of different topics. They all tried to gravitate their talk away from work, not wanting to spend their off the clock hours worrying about the very things that they had just spent the last 8 hours working on. He noticed that Isabella and Amun had started getting slightly inebriated, and their conversation soon turned into a lively debate revolving around the most interesting DC hero.
Bella seemed unfortunately lost in the conversation, and Tristan took that as an opportunity to pull her into a conversation of their own.
“I really enjoyed spending the day with you today, Bella,” Tristan said gently, his hand moving towards hers on the table, subtly gripping his water glass to cover up the action.
“I am so relieved to hear that. I was worried that you might have gotten bored at times since you seemed a little distracted,” Bella replied softly, speaking just loud enough that he could hear her.
“No, I was just caught up in the moment I guess. You could say that you are really good company. I just kind of got lost in myself when I was with you. It was a thoroughly enjoyable night, and I wouldn’t want to have spent it any other way,” he finished slowly, taking a sip of water from his glass to cover up a suddenly dry throat. He would have been hard pressed to say whether it had been caused by the couple of drinks he had drunk earlier or a sudden burst of emotion.
Bella didn’t immediately reply, though her eyes had gotten big in a way that Tristan somehow managed to find cute, unshed tears clinging to the corners of her eyes. She quickly moved her hand to brush her palms across her eyes lightly, wiping the excess moisture away before smiling at him once more. When she spoke, he could tell that she was doing her best to keep it from shaking.
“That is one of the nicest things that anyone has ever said to me. Thank you, Tristan. I haven’t been able to be this happy in a long time,” she said breathlessly, her pale face flushed slightly with a rosy tint that he recognized asembarrassment.
“I have a feeling that this night might still be able to get better,” Tristan said softly, his hand moving down to rub over the pocket of his suit jacket, where he could feel the rectangular box that housed her necklace resting gently just inside.
It was about two hours into their time at O’Cleary’sthat the urge to use the bathroom finally struck Amun and Isabella. The strange almost simultaneous nature of their need to go was not lost on Tristan, but he said nothing about it, immediately moving out of the way to let the two of them through. He couldn’t help but watch with amusement as they left, noting that Amun was already stumbling slightly as he walked. He made a mental note to inform his friend that he needed to slow down with his drinks if he had any plans of driving home that night.
Sitting alone with Bella, Tristan felt a lot more relaxed. He glanced over at her, catching her looking at him with an almost idolizing expression on her face. She just seemed so happy every time that they spent time together, something that was incredibly refreshing to Tristan. He pulled the box out of his pocket then, holding it on his lap beneath the table as he spoke.
“Hey Bella, I actually went out and got you a gift for today,” he said shyly, a nervous smile now spreading across his face.
“Aww, that is so sweet of you. You didn’t have to get me a gift,” she said, her hand moving in front of her heart in a gesture that told him that his gesture had touched her greatly.
“I didn’t have to. I wanted to,” he replied smoothly, slowly bringing the rectangular box into sight, hand stretching across the table as he offered it to her. “I really hope you like it because how you respond to my gift will dictate how the rest of this night goes.”
Bella didn’t seem to know what to say at that point, her hand having moved in front of her mouth. Her eyes were wide with surprise, something that Tristan once again found to be quite cute to him. She was so beautifully innocent, a quality that he rather liked in a woman, though he would never dream of admitting to such out loud. Her hand was visibly shaking as she reached forward to gently lift the box from his hand, pulling it close to her body and staring down at it for a moment.
As she lifted the lid off the box, a beam of light from the lamp hanging above their table struck the center diamond in such a way that it began to shine brightly, casting little specks of light all across Bella’s face. Tristan couldn’t help but watch in a transfixed manner as she lifted the pendant out of the box, tears already streaming down her face as she looked towards him. Disbelief mixed with immense joy was spread across her face, and Tristan couldn’t help the goofy grin that spread across his lips.
“Bella, I’ve really enjoyed the time that I’ve spent with you as of late. I guess I was kind of oblivious before, but now that things have turned out the way they have I’ve made up my mind. To be fully truthful, I had a huge thing for Isabella. I thought that she was what I wanted for the longest time, but I never had the guts to tell her how I felt,” he said slowly, choosing his words carefully so as to not be misunderstood. “I admit that Amun’s timely confession of his own feelings has proved to be somewhat fortuitous for me since it has definitively cut off a possible path that I could have taken. In doing so I got to spend time with you, and I’ve greatly come to like the person I have come to know. I’d like to get to know you more.”
He realized that he might have said something wrong in that moment from the way that Bella’s eyes seemed to narrow. He swallowed gently as he watched her look up into his eyes, her hand moving to set the box back down on the table and sliding it back towards him. From the look in her eyes, she was quite hurt.
“So am I just your second pick then? You can’t have Isabella, so you are just settling for me?” He could hear the hurt in her voice, and as she glared back at him he could see a number of unshed tears threatening to escape from the corners of her eyes.
“No, Bella, it isn’t like that at all,” he said, trying to stop the situation from spiraling out of control the way that it seemed to be.
“Well, that is certainly what it feels like. Why would you tell me that you liked my roommate? Do you think it would be endearing? All it does is make me think that even if we were going to date that you are going to sit there every day and lament the fact that you couldn’t be with your beloved Isabella.” The alcohol in her was making her far angrier than she normally would have gotten, her emotions being amplified to an almost unbearable degree. It wouldn’t have hurt her so much to hear his confession if she hadn’t been pining after him for the longest time. She went to go stand up from the table, but Tristan gently caught her by the arm, the pleading look in his eyes making her pause.
“Bella, I never wanted to make you feel that way. It isn’t how I feel at all. Yes, I was crushing on Isabella for the longest time. I can’t deny that, and I won’t deny it. She is beautiful, af
ter all, so can you really blame me for wanting her?” He saw the expression on her face and continued hurriedly, knowing that there was a very real risk that she would run off if he didn’t fix the situation soon. “But that was only based on fantasies that I had in my head. I’ve never actually spent time with her out of work, and when we come out here to hang out she is always so engrossed with Amun that there is no chance for us to really talk.”
Bella sniffled at that, her arms still crossed in front of her small frame. Her brown eyes were still shimmering with unshed tears, though her expression had softened, just a little bit. He decided he should take advantage of her continued silence, his hand reaching forward to gently take her hand in his.
“Bella, ever since I asked you out for this date you have been the only one who has been on my mind. I came to the realization quite a while ago that Isabella would likely never feel the way about me that I had been feeling about her, and honestly, I am glad for that. I feel like we would have been the kind of relationship that fizzled out a few months down the line. But with you, I feel like we would be able to go so much further than that. I just want a chance to prove to you that my mind, and even my heart, can happily be yours. I promise I won’t have any regrets being with you. The only regret I’ll have is if a few careless words shut that path down for me forever,” he finished quietly, his thumb gently rubbing circles on the back of her palm.
“Do you promise? Can you promise that you won’t ever think of her when you are with me? I don’t want to have to spend every waking moment wondering if you are thinking about her when you are with me. If you want to be with me, then I have to have some idea that you are willing to be devoted to me,” she said, her free hand moving to wipe the tears from her eyes, never attempting to pull her hand out of his grip.
“I can easily promise that, and I will mean every word of it. I swear that you will be the only woman I think about,” he said smoothly, putting a reassuring smile on his face as he looked directly back into her eyes.
Bella sighed then, her eyes finally breaking from Tristan’s gaze to look down at the table. “I’ve seen what happens with couples with who didn’t marry their first choice. My own parents had a relationship like that. My mother ended up with my father after her first love ran off with another woman, and she never really seemed to get over it. I could see the way that it would tear my father apart, and I don’t want to have to live like that. I want to know that the person I love loves me back, and that they would pick me above anyone else. Can you promise me that? Can you truly promise me that you won’t subject me to that pain?”
Tristan sighed then, standing up out of his seat so that he could pull her to him suddenly. Bella squeaked in mild protest at the sudden movement, but she didn’t try to pull away. His voice was gentle in her ear, the male whispering so that only she could hear. “I chose you the moment that I invited you out for Valentine’s Day. I chose you when I went out and spent almost $500 dollars on this necklace. And when I saw you weeping at the thought that I might not love you completely, my heart almost broke. I want to make you happy, Bella. I am willing to do whatever I can to make sure that I make it so that you know every single day that I love you. That is my solemn vow to you, and if I have to spend the rest of my life to fulfill that promise, I will consider it time well spent.”
“Oh, Tristan. I don’t know what to say,” she said tearfully, her voice thick with emotion.
“Just answer one simple question. Will you go out with me?” he sounded so much more confident than he felt, and despite how quickly his heart was beating in his chest he managed to keep his breathing calm and even.
“I would love nothing more,” she said quietly, the two moving to sit back down in their seats, Bella slowly scooting around the table so that the two could be closer to one another, turning slightly so that Tristan could fix her necklace into place.
Tristan watched as she turned back to face him, and seemingly of its own accord, his hand moved to gently cup her cheek. His lips were soon pressing against hers, and even though he felt her body stiffen slightly at first she didn’t move to try and pull away. Her lips were so soft on his, though in the back of his mind he knew that he had probably just gotten her lipstick smeared onto his lips. The clearing of someone’s throat caused them to break their kiss apart, Tristan whirling around to find Amun and Isabella having returned.
There was a surprised look on Isabella’s face, though Amun had a dopey grin that was somehow the most awkward part of the whole situation. Tristan didn’t move away from Bella, figuring that there was no reason to try and cover things up at this point.
“Welcome back, guys—you were gone an awfully long time. Did you go and have a quickie in the bathroom or something?” Tristan asked casually, lifting his drink to his lips and taking a sip, noting the fact that his drink had become watered down from how long it had sat before him.
Isabella shook her head, casting him a look that made Tristan actually break into laughter. She looked so defensive about his comment that he couldn’t help but wonder if he had actually struck a nerve, and he immediately turned to look towards Amun so that he could avoid her gaze.
“I asked Bella out,” he said casually, looking over at his friend with what he hoped was a somewhat passive face. His cheeks didn’t feel flushed at the moment, though he wouldn’t have been surprised if he had started blushing. He lifted his napkin casually to his lip, wiping it subtly so that he could check to see whether he had in fact gotten makeup on his lips.
Amun looked almost as surprised as Bella had been, though he recovered a lot quicker than Isabella had. His smile was almost dazzling as he reached forward and shook Tristan’s hand eagerly. Tristan raised his eyebrow in curiosity, not quite understanding what had brought about the sudden change in his friend’s behavior. When he spoke again, Amun seemed like he was trying to keep himself from excitedly gushing.
“I asked Isabella out too,” he said proudly, his chest sticking out just a little bit. “I stopped her near the bathrooms when we were coming out. I figured it would be the subtlest way that we could be alone to ask. You are welcome, by the way,” he added, moving to take a seat on the side of the table opposite Tristan and Bella. After another moment of silence, Isabella slowly slid into the seat next to him, gazing at Bella with an almost devilish grin spread across her features.
“What are you smiling about?” Bella finally asked, the uncertainty in her voice plain as day to Tristan, and he reached over to gently squeeze her hand.
“Wait until I tell Rachel what happened,” Isabella said with a smirk, a small giggle bubbling up from her chest.
The rest of the group laughed at the worried expression that actually crossed Bella’s features, but after a little bit of reassuring from her friends, they managed to fall back into conversation for a while longer. It eventually got to be late, and as Tristan prepared to leave he turned to Bella once more, catching her by the hand as she went to move towards the door.
“Hey, Bella, would you like to come home with me tonight?” He towered over her slightly, something that he couldn’t help but feel slightly self-conscious about. He didn’t know what he would do if she turned him down at this point, though with how she had been acting all throughout their date tonight he figured those chances were pretty low.
***
Turns out his hunch was right because after taking the thirty-minutedrive from the bar back to his place, he was leading Bella up to the porch of his house. He had driven them back to his place, managing to not swerve the whole way, which was something that he was rather proud of. Especially with how lightheaded he felt, though he could confidently say that it had nothing to do with the alcohol he had drunk earlier. This time, it was just a nervous excitement for how well the night had been going.
She complimented him on how tidy he kept his house, though Tristan couldn’t tell if she was being playful with him or not. They ended up sitting together on the couch, with Bella leaning against Tristan gently,
her head resting lightly on his shoulder. Tristan had poured each of them a mixed drink using the brandy in his liquor cabinet, but that single drink proved to have been one too many. It was like his fuel gauge tipped from tipsy to straight up drunk, and judging from the hiccupping fit that Bella had just recently begun to suffer, she was feeling similar if not worse effects.
They soon began to kiss, Tristan getting surprised constantly by the drunken fervor that Bella put into each one. He could feel her soft lips pressing against his own, her tongue occasionally slipping out to slowly brush across his lips in an invitational gesture. His mind saw no problem with continuing what they had started, his own tongue slipping out to wrestle gently with hers. The small moan of approval that she let out told him that he was doing more than a good job, and it was with surprise that he felt her lips slowly move away.
“I want you to have sex with me,” Bella whispered quietly, looking up at him with a look in her eyes that Tristan couldn’t quite place.
“I can’t. We are both way too drunk to be able to do that. It just wouldn’t feel right to me to have our first time be during a time that we might not even remember it. I want the first time we do it to be vivid in my mind for years to come,” he said with a wink, leaning forward to kiss her cheek.
He could see the look of disappointment spread across her face, the small Asian woman biting her bottom lip gently. Her hands were gently folded in front of her lap, though he noticed that she seemed to be clenching the hem of her Qipao a little tighter than he thought was necessary. It was enough to make him realize that she might actually be hurt by his rejection of her. He didn’t want their relationship to start out like that, so he swallowed his pride slightly before moving to kneel in front of her on the floor, tugging her by her lower body towards him.
Bella squealed in mild protest as he moved her, but she didn’t struggle, choosing instead to allow him to move her as he wished. He gently pulled up the hem of her Qipao, his fingers gently tugging the black panties that she was wearing down till they were hanging around her ankles. He looked up at her as he tugged her panties the rest of the way off and let them fall to the floor gently. His hands moved to gently spread her legs open, and then he allowed himself to take a look at his prize.