Wow, when was the last time I updated this? I don't even know... but, enjoy the latest chapter.
Chapter 4 – Quite a Catch
When Eugene strolled into the costume shop the next day, he was in for a big disappointment.
"Where's Rapunzel?" he asked the other two girls.
"Oh, we aren't good company?" inquired Esmeralda, pouting out her bottom lip in quite a seductive manner. She was glad Eugene was there; she needed a distraction from the hum-drum of sewing.
"Oh, of course, but I hear you're taken women and I am not a man without scruples."
"Mm-hm."
"She's down at the warehouse, pulling costumes and last little bits. We're sort of in a time crunch, by the way," said Cinderella, hoping that her last comment would detour Eugene from going to bother Rapunzel.
"Ah, then I suppose I shouldn't go nag her for a date, should I?" He gave a cocky grin.
"You're going to ask her out?" Esmeralda sat up in her seat, excited. Eugene shrugged.
"Maybe. Kind of depends on if I get the right vibe off her, you know?"
"And what is the right vibe?" inquired Cinderella.
"The vibe that says I'm not going to throw something, possibly pointy, at you."
"Ah, that is a very good vibe to read, but don't worry; she didn't bring her shears with her, only her tape measure. So, go get her," Esmeralda said encouragingly.
"Esmeralda! Rapunzel is working. You know she won't want to be bothered," scolded Cinderella.
"When was the last time she had a break?" asked Eugene.
"Ten this morning."
"T-ten? It's nearly three! I think she needs a break, and what's a better distraction from work than me?"
"Not a lot," voiced Esmeralda.
"You know, you know your stuff," Eugene said. Esmeralda shrugged.
"Mama didn't raise no dummy."
"No, she didn't. Toodles, ladies. Oh, wait." Eugene spun on his heel. "Does Rapunzel like coffee?"
"She prefers tea, but right now, I'd bring her chocolate."
"Suggestion taken. I'll be seeing you girls." He saluted them and left.
Cinderella turned to Esmeralda.
"We went from ladies to girls in less than ten seconds."
Esmeralda shrugged.
"Doesn't matter to me."
Rapunzel mumbled to herself up on the ladder.
"So that's all of the Edwardian clothes…" On the railing of the rolling ladder was a pile of clothes from various time periods. Rapunzel put her list in her mouth and lifted the pile up and carefully went down the ladder backwards. She hung the garments up on a z-rack, double checking to make sure she had what was on her list.
"Oh, really? I forgot that blue surcote I wanted. I have go back to the medieval section." Rapunzel turned to head back down the row of floor to ceiling racks, but was startled to see Eugene standing behind her. She patted her chest.
"Going back to the dark ages, eh? Say hi to Arthur for me."
"What are you doing here?" Rapunzel walked past Eugene. He followed her.
"I said I wanted to see you again."
"You were supposed to see me again in the shop."
"I was there, but you weren't."
"Exactly."
"Why Rapunzel Moore, you're playing hard to get."
"No, I'm not." Geez, she couldn't shake this guy.
She got back to the right section of the time period clothes and went up the ladder.
"You want me to spot you?" asked Eugene down below. Why couldn't he just go away?
"No, I'm fine. You know, you never answered what you were doing here."
"I bring food." He held up a candy bar.
"Mm, and such a fine delicacy."
"Might as well be. This was the last thing in the vending machine that wasn't a single packaged pickle. Who eats all the candy around here?"
"Aladdin. He has a terrible sweet tooth." Rapunzel tried to filter out Eugene as she found the blue surcote she was wanting. She tugged at it, but it barely budged. "Great, it's packed too tightly in there." She pulled harder at it and the ladder wobbled.
"Hey, be careful up there."
"Please, I do this sort of thing all the ti-AH!" Rapunzel yanked too hard at the hanger and it snapped on her. She lost her footing and fell over the side of the ladder railing.
"Shit!" Eugene put his arms out and caught Rapunzel just before she was splayed out on the concrete floor. For a few seconds, the two stared dumbly at one another.
Rapunzel cleared her throat.
"Um, are you going to…?"
"Oh, yeah."
"Put me back on…"
"Yeah, sure here you go."
"My feet, yeah."
Eugene put her back on her feet and she kept her eyes on the floor, embarrassed. Eugene tried to look at her face.
"Hey, you okay?"
"I'm fine, who's asking." Rapunzel turned to walk back up to her z-rack.
"I am. Rapunzel, if I wasn't here, you could have seriously gotten hurt."
"Well, I wasn't, so thank you for not letting my brains be splattered."
"Geez, you don't have to sound so coarse about it," Eugene huffed as he crossed his arms.
Rapunzel sighed. She turned around to Eugene.
"You're right. I'm sorry. Thank you." She picked up her list again. "Uh….what do I still need to get?"
"Why don't you take a break?"
"Break? What is break? You've obviously never worked in a costume shop before. We don't take breaks usually."
"Aren't you hungry."
"I learned back in college to live without food."
"You need something." Eugene held out the candy bar. Rapunzel took it.
"You're just trying to be a knight in shining armor, aren't you?"
"Just yours. Which segways into my next order of business."
Cinderella and Esmeralda heard Rapunzel before they saw her.
"No."
"Please?"
"No."
"Come on."
"No."
"One hour."
"No."
"Thirty minutes."
"No."
"I'll pay."
"No."
"We don't even have to sit at the same table."
"No. Stop begging."
"I'm not begging, I'm complaining. Give me one good reason why you won't go on a date with me."
Rapunzel walked into the costume shop, lugging a z-rack full of clothes behind her. Eugene strolled in behind her, steering the rack. She pushed it aside and rounded on Eugene, fists on her hips.
"I can give you more than one." Rapunzel held up her hands and counted off. "I just met you-"
"Hey, I just met you, and this crazy-"
"Don't interrupt me while I'm talking to you! I don't date people I work with, I don't date actors, you're too much of a flirt, and above all else, you're trying too hard."
Eugene put a hand over his heart and took a step back.
"Wha- trying too hard? That is an insult to my pride." Rapunzel rolled her eyes and turned back to her rack of clothes and began to organize them to the actor wearing them. "You know," said Eugene after awhile, "I'm not leaving here without a yes answer."
"Then set up a tent."
Cinderella and Esmeralda got up from their sewing machines and dragged Rapunzel aside and out of ear shot of Eugene.
"Come on, Rapunzel, stop giving him a hard time. He's cute and charming. Give him a chance," said Esmeralda.
"And it would only have to be one date," said Cinderella. "If you don't have a good time, you can leave it at that."
"I have a feeling he won't leave it at that," Rapunzel told her friends.
"At least find out what he wants to do on the date."
Rapunzel breathed out, exasperated.
"Fine." She went back to Eugene. "What do you intend to do on this date?" Her friends came up behind her.
"Hm, well, first, I plan to walk you through a park filled with the fading embers of dusk. Then, I wish to treat you to the cuisine fit for such a delicate palette. Over dinner, I hope to discuss nothing but you, your likes, your dislikes. And then at the end, after, we've strolled the beach and seen the moon, I want to kiss you underneath the light of your street lamp, and tell you good night." Through his whole monologue, Eugene's voice became deeper, and silky. He leaned in close to Rapunzel and stroked her face. "Is that acceptable as a first date?"
The three seamstress made a funny little noise that wasn't quite a whimper or a sound of unexpected pleasure.
Esmeralda and Cinderella cleared their throats.
"She'll be ready by seven."
"Great." Eugene pulled away and just like that, he was his normal, cheeky self. "I will be seeing you tomorrow and you are going to have the time of your life. Trust me; you haven't seen L.A. till you see it with Eugene Fitzherbert." And like a wind, he was gone.
The three women staggered back to what they had been doing,
"What…just…happened?" asked Cinderella shakily.
"We got sung to by a siren," whispered Esmeralda.
And I liked what I heard, thought Rapunzel.