A/N: Inspired by this picture: (remove spaces) media-cache-ak0. pinimg. com736x / 32 / c6 / bf / 32c6bf35dc4069996f3856e36f8575ed . jpg
One drink. That was it. I was meeting my friend for one drink, and then I'd leave. It had been a hard day, and I really didn't feel like dealing with Tasha. She was overly perky, over ecstatic about life, and occasionally a little slow with the wit, if you know what I mean. On most days, she was great. She helped me remember the simple goodness of life when I felt dark and gloomy, and she taught me to do the same for her when she was feeling down. All in all, it was safe to say she's one of my best friends.
On any other day, I'd be more than happy to have an excuse to get all dressed up, meet her at some exclusive club due to her surprisingly well associated brother, down expensive drinks thanks to men who barely looked past our chests, giggle the whole way home after convincing one of those men to call us a cab (and if they were really nice, a car), then have a sleepover at either of our apartments, and try to sober up while talking about fears, hopes, dreams, etc. similar to what we did when we were younger.
But tonight, I just didn't have the energy. All week it felt as if something had been off; as if every time I'd feel happy, it was false and would fade within seconds. Tasha knew how I struggled with depression, and some weeks were definitely harder than others. I counted back the weeks making sure that this wasn't one of those "surprise, you've gotten your period, so enjoy your either shitty or frustratingly horny week!" deals. (Yes, I know, I have strange thoughts during that time, but oh well.)
I sighed a little out of relief, but mainly from disappointment, when I realized that wasn't supposed to come for another two weeks. So what was wrong then? My job was fine. I was making fairly decent money, and I honestly did love designing graphics-especially now that I was the assistant editor. I was getting to spend a balanced amount of genuine quality time with friends, and yet, something wasn't right. My apartment wasn't huge, but the fact that two people could somewhat comfortably live in it if they wanted was a huge bonus to me. I didn't have a roommate, so I didn't have to deal with that, even though some days it would be nice to have someone to come home to. But I liked living alone. I'd always been more on the independent side anyways. On paper, it looked like the ideal situation for a 20-something year old in New York City, but still. Something felt wrong.
I sighed and gave up on trying to figure out what it was. I assumed since the chemicals in my brain did what they wanted to anyways, despite my medications, that it was just that. Something, maybe something I ate, watched on TV, listened to, etc., could have affected me whether I was aware of it or not, and my hormones were just deciding to be little bitches tonight. I continued getting ready, and put on my favorite black dress. It hugged my body in all the right places while still allowing me to breathe, and practically any accessory could go with it. The V-neck line, along with my favorite lacy push up bra, lifted my breasts, making it seem as if there was more there than there actually was. I decided on wearing my thin black stilettos- the ones where the straps crossed over the top of my foot. I curled my medium length, strawberry blonde hair, and crunched it a bit, giving it the perfect aspect of sophisticated sexiness. I left my makeup light, with very subtle green eye shadow and cat eye effect. I wore my non-smudging (for the most part) wine red lipstick. It wasn't too bright, but also not too dark.
And finally, I put on my simple silver chained necklace with one single small, faux-diamond square dangling at the end, along with the simple square shaped studs to match. I was ready. I had put on my deodorant-and perfume (because Lord knows it gets hot in those places, and I did NOT want to smell like a rotting onion if my deodorant stopped working)-and loaded my keys, ID, debit card, lipstick (just in case), cash for the cab, and my phone into the black, silver studded clutch that matched oh-so-perfectly.
In a matter of minutes, I had left my place, hailed a cab, and arrived only to see Tasha waiting next to the bouncer. Like always, she was chatting him up as if they were old friends, and he didn't seem to mind. That was something that always amazing me about her. She knew no strangers, and most people seemed to be drawn to her natural charm. I smiled at the sight and nodded my head slightly as I got out of the cab. What was I going to do with her?
The second the car door shut, I heard a loud squeal, and was greeted with a giant, Tasha sized hug.
"Allie! So glad you could make it! Oh my gosh, have you heard about this place? It is incredible, or, so I've heard. C'mon, let's go inside!" She said as she pulled my behind her by my wrist, and winking at the bouncer as he let us pass. Of course, I noticed him take a look at her backside and make a "damn!" face. I rolled my eyes, but smiled politely as he looked up at me. With Tasha still tightly gripping my hand, she led me up a very crowded, dimly lit area, with several flights of stairs.
What, is the club in heaven?
Finally, we reached the top of the seemingly never ending staircase, and made our way to the end of the bar, where her finely dressed brother sat on a stool, sipping a cocktail, like a gentleman. I swear, if he hadn't have been Tasha's brother, and I didn't know strange details about him (on account of Tasha's amusing drunk rantings and confessions), I'd shove him into the nearest restroom and take him right then and there.
He smiled up at us, and greeted Tasha with a big, brotherly hug, followed by him taking my hand, and placing a kiss upon the back of it. I grinned at him, hoping to hide the little blush that was threatening to form.
"Allie, Tasha, how are you two this evening?" He yelled over the noise.
"Awesome! This place is amazing! Gosh, what did you do to get in here, sleep with the owner?" Tasha joked.
Her brother laughed a little before replying, "No, but dating his daughter seems to do the trick." He looked over at me, smiling, before looking back at his sister. He handed us both an appletini before saying, "Come with me; I have a few people I want you to meet." He picked up his drink again, and we followed as he lead us to a little less chaotic area with a few couches and tables, and sat down next to two, very well dressed men. Tasha's brother had always had this thing about setting his sister and I up on blind dates. While Tasha loved the idea of this, I was always a bit more hesitant. Almost instantly, I could pick out which one was my date.
"Todd, who are these visions of loveliness?" said the more, in my opinion, sickeningly charming of the two. He winked at me before turning his attention back to Tasha, grabbing her hand across the table, and kissing the top of it. She giggled, and I smiled politely, while I inwardly wanted to roll my eyes and say something snarky. Instead, I downed my drink before I shifted my focus to the seemingly brooding man that was sitting across from me. He was staring at the ground almost absentmindedly, completely ignoring me.
"Tom, be polite and say hello, won't you?" Tom glanced up at the charming man next to him, giving him a bit of an exhausted glare. "Sorry he's being such a grumpy pants tonight. He's not usually like this."
Tom sighed and glanced towards the ground again. I barely-just barely- heard him mumble something about how 'getting dumped does that to you' before he looked up at me almost a little sheepishly, while trying to flash a tiny hint of a smile, and saying "Hello."
I softened my features a little once I saw how broken up he looked. This truly was the face of a man with an aching heart, and while part of me could relate (seeing as how I'd gotten out of a relationship not too long ago-maybe that was my mood problem), the other part wondered why he'd come tonight if he wasn't ready to date anyone yet.
I gave him a kind, understanding smile, hoping it might help the situation be less awkward. Tasha immediately grabbed Mr. Charming's hand, and pulled him towards the dance floor, all while yelling "let's dance!", and tripping over and kicking me on the way by.
Todd, who was placed at the center of this U shaped couch, leaned forward and yelled, "Tom here is an actor. He's shooting a movie in NYC right now." Tom looked towards the ground again at the mention of that, giving me the impression that that's where the cause of all of this agony came from. Todd eventually stood up and excused himself, before he made his way over to talk to a few women who had been eying him by the bar.
I sat with my ankles crossed, and my hands in my lap as I began to think of things to say, or do, or I don't know, make this less uncomfortable. I had been staring at the ground in front of me, lost in thought, when a calming, smooth voice spoke, "So, Allie is it? Where are you from?"
My eyes shot up to meet his clear blue ones, and I answered, "Wisconsin. You?"
"London." British, nice.
He spoke again, but after having to repeat it twice, I decided to just stand up and sit directly next to him in order to hear him better.
"I said, you look very lovely tonight." He said into my ear, while smiling sweetly. I smiled as well.
"Well, thank you. You look quite handsome yourself." I said while blushing. I didn't know why, but complimenting guys always made me blush. It was like I was suddenly very aware of every thought I had about how they looked, and they knew it too. He seemed to be an actual gentleman though, and just smiled back.
He was closer to my face than I realized, as I felt his breath and he asked, "Have you ever seen a harvest moon before?"
I smiled at this, recalling the many times I'd seen them as a child. "Of course. Seeing one brings wonderful memories." He smiled.
Before I knew it, he had taken my hand in his, and led me towards the balcony outside. We stood, overlooking some of the city and talking for a long while about anything from work, to movies, to music, to dreams before Tasha came out (a little drunk, and a little too friendly) and mumbled that she was going to go have some "after party" fun with Mr. Charming and giggled. As I cautioned her to be safe, as usual, Mr. Charming came out, seeming just as drunk as she was, and led her back into the haze of lights and sound, leaving Tom and I alone again.
I turned back to him, giving him a warm smile before turning to look at the city again. I could see out of the corner of my eye that although he had also gone back to facing the city, he was looking at me. I pretended not to notice, and focused my attention on watching the small people below fetch cabs, and make their way about the ever-buzzing city.
"Allie?" I jumped a bit, not realizing that I'd become lost in my train of thought again.
"Oh, sorry. I-I was just…..sorry." I smiled apologetically.
"It's alright." Damn him and that warm smile. It send shivers down to my toes. "I was wondering, if I wanted to see you again, could I?"
I turned my body to face him, a slight bit of shot passing over me as I smiled, tried to muster up as much coy-ness as possible, and replied in a teasing matter, "I suppose that'd be alright." His smile grew, and pulled out a piece of paper and pen from his jacket. He held the items in front of me with a hopeful smile on his face. I took the bait, and wrote my name, number, and address down before handing it back to him. He placed the paper back into his jacket, took the hand that hadn't been trying to support my clutch under my arm, and then placed a kiss on the back of it. Another shiver passed through me, as I smiled at him. He had most certainly been far more pleasant than I originally anticipated.
"Um, since my friend sort of left me by myself, would you mind walking me home? I don't live far from here. Only a block or two." He smiled and took the bait. I knew I could have either gotten a cab or just walked the distance alone, but after seeing how well the night had gone, I craved more time with him, and to be honest, I felt safe with him. With my hand still in his, he led me back into the club. We deciding not to let Todd know we were leaving, seeing as how he was on the dance floor, surrounded by lots of women, and clearly drunk. We made our way down the stairway to heaven, finally reaching the night of the not as busy streets. Being just right outside of the club earlier, there was enough heat radiating from that place that it wasn't even cold. But down here, in the breeze, I shivered. Tom noticed, and offered his jacket, which I graciously accepted.
It was warm and smelled like cinnamon and a nice, spiced cologne. Even the smell was warm. He held my hand the whole way there, and I almost didn't recognize the building when we had arrived at it, being so caught up in the moment and conversation, and all.
"Well," I removed the jacket and handed it back to him, "this is it. Thank you for a truly wonderful evening. " He smiled up at me before replying, "I do believe I should be thanking you for being so delightful."
I tucked a curl behind my ear, and smiled towards the ground, avoiding his gaze a little.
He hooked a finger up under my chin, lifting it to meet his soft gaze. He had apparently closed the distance between us when I wasn't paying attention, because I could practically feel his breath against my cheeks as he asked, "If I kissed you, would that be ok?"
I melted at the sound of that. Being asked if I'd be ok with being kissed was something I was not used to, and I was quite frankly a little turned on by his chivalry. I smiled and whispered, "Yes."
Seconds later, his lips were on mine, and I felt my whole body relax and my eyes fluttered shut. I began to move my lips against his, and he moved his hand that had been under my chin to my neck, as he deepened it. He kissed slowly, but sensuously, making my whole body tingle with pleasure all the way down to my toes. I had no idea how long we had been standing like this, but eventually, he pulled away, lingering for a second or two before he met my eyes.
"May I call you tomorrow?" I leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his lips, lingering a little.
"You may." I smiled. He smiled as well, and I moved to unlock my door, as he placed his hands into his jacket. Just before I closed the door, I smiled and waved at him, and he did the same before turning around to walk down the street. I shut the door, and leaned against it, trying to take in all that had just happened. I grinned as my 85 year old neighbor, Nancy, who was walking back into her apartment on the main floor commented with, "Ah, young love." She smiled at me and shut the door, and I made my way upstairs to my place. I thought over every moment with him as I laid in bed that night, memorizing every detail about his lips, and how his fingers sent little sparks down my spine. I couldn't wait for tomorrow, and I thanked God that this date turned out like it did. Knowing he was going to call made my heart soar, and I knew whatever crappy feelings I had before were long gone. This was the best blind date ever.