A/N: I hope you like this story, I think it'll have 1 or 2 more chapters. Maybe I'll do it in one so it's a bit longer. I submitted it to a writing contest and it's a finalist, let's just cross fingers. Anyways, hope you like it. If you do, I would love it if you left a review, followed and liked the story.
This is uncomfortable, really uncomfortable. What do I say? Do I look up and smile? Do I try to start a conversation that will most likely end up being even more uncomfortable? God, this is why I hate eating with people. And who the hell invites to sit at their table someone they don't know? Oh, wait, that's me.
I don't even know why I did it. Did it really matter to me that the girl I now have in front looked for another restaurant that wasn't this one to eat? In that moment it looked like the most reasonable option, the girl seemed exhausted and hungry, her eyes looked desperate for not finding a table on what could possibly be her third or fourth option.
It was 3pm, for God's sake! If she didn't end up sitting with me I would have probably bought her something to eat on the way so she could eat it at home. Even though the food at this place isn't exactly la crème de la crème.
Either way, I reacted by instinct. When I saw her going towards the door, with her head low, sighting and getting her hair out of her face, trying to relax, my brain made me get up as quickly as I could and grab her by the arm.
"What the…?" The mysterious girl turned around and freed her arm like my hand burned her skin. She looked at me from head to toe like I was some kind of criminal. "What do you think you are doing?" Her tone was so harsh that made me stumble backwards a bit. Almost everyone at the restaurant was looking at us, like we were performing on a stage.
"No… I just…. I wanted to know if…" I started to stutter like I was a kid, I tend to do it when I'm nervous. The mysterious girl looked at me, trying to decipher what I was trying to say, but I didn't even know it. "It's just that I saw you looking for a table, it's 3pm, I 'm alone, you looked hungry…" Looking back, none of what I said made sense, but it was enough for her to understand.
"Do you… uhm, do you want me to sit with you?" I could only nod, I didn't know what else to say. "Are you really willing to let me sit with you just because I couldn't find a table?" If you say it like that, it did look weird, but it didn't bother me letting her sit with me anyways, so I just nodded again like a fool. "You don't need to…"
"Rick, my name is Rick. And it's not a problem, really. Company is always good, right?" I wish it was true, but eating with someone is even worse than sleeping with them. I'm someone who is very good at details, and it has a lot of advantages, but it also has its disadvantages. One of them being the need to observe people while they eat. It may sound disturbing, which it is, but it helps you getting to know people better.
"Are you serious? You would do me a big favor." I finally saw a glimpse of a smile on her face, it looked like she needed my help after all. I pointed at the only free table, seeing as she was standing still, waiting for me to go first. She walked right pass me and sat down across from me. I offered her a polite smile and turned my attention back to the menu. "By the way." I looked up a bit and looked at her in the eyes. "My name is Kate."