Disclaimer: Don't own 'em, don't make money off 'em, just write about 'em
4. Like Minds
Tom picked Daria up the next evening around six. She found his parents had also towed his latest junker car, causing him to borrow the keys to his mother's Audi. Mrs. Sloane didn't mind, wanting Tom to make a good new start with Daria. She was such a sensible girl; Mrs. Sloane felt her to be a good influence on her boy from day one. She even wouldn't have minded bringing that Morgendorffer under the Sloane name as a daughter in law; maybe the couple wasn't thinking along those lines, but time would pass more quickly than they realized. It was a concept hard for youth to grasp.
Daria raised an eyebrow at the Audi, but let it go, figuring the last one had been impounded. Probably for the best safety interests of all drivers on the road. Tom wanted to surprise his old girlfriend with something new, instead of the same old Pizza King pies. She concealed it well, but Daria found herself subject to an interesting surprise when they pulled into the parking lot of Chez Pierre. Once upon a time, she would have felt uneasy with the thought of even stepping near the place. Now, she only felt bored. Boston had that effect on one's personality.
"I hope you like escargot," said Tom, holding out his arm for Daria. She declined to take it, pretending that she hadn't noticed the offer.
"Who can resist gastropods fried in garlic butter?" she asked, leaving Tom questioning her sincerity. Always with Daria, he had trouble reading her moods. Most of the time it was refreshing to spend time with someone who shared his sarcastic outlook on life. However, sometimes he felt Daria talked the talk all too well, and often felt he was at the indirect receiving end of her sarcasm.
She was one of the few women whose opinion he cared about, and strangely always felt under the microscope when with her, no matter how subtle her snarky wit. Daria kept Tom on his toes. Not long ago, he realized that was part of her appeal. She challenged him, and kept him guessing, without even meaning to.
Over dinner they compared their notes, as promised. Nothing too monumental caught Daria's ear in Tom's life, although she listened intently. Strange as it may have been, it was good to hear his voice. Perhaps because it was familiar territory.
However, there was something just under the surface about her ex that threw Daria. She couldn't quite put her finger on it at the moment, but it almost seemed tricky. Illusive. They both had undergone their changes during the first year of college. It would happen again next year, and the year after that, and so forth. Humans mistakenly view themselves as unchanging creatures, when indeed transitions constantly shift and slide personality and condition.
It wasn't until the end of dinner that Daria identified that which inspired her confusion with Tom. Although not yet completely transformed, he'd become a smooth talker. He'd sunk into that old-money charm and sickness, that consuming confidence that money and a polite winning smile could fix nearly anything.
She noticed it when he insisted on taking the check for dinner. She noticed it when he smiled at her. And the straw that broke the camel's back? Tom winked at her, as if she were some drunken sorority girl just waiting for the light to turn green. It was at that moment Daria decided not to trust him anymore. On the inside, the loss saddened her.
The boy couldn't have made matters more confusing for Daria if he'd tried. During the movie they shared their sarcastic comments, cutting apart the cheesy lines and acting, as if no time had passed at all between them. It was as if he'd slipped back into his old skin, the Tom Daria knew and had loved. What if he could act himself all the time, she asked herself? Then summer could hold much fun for them. There were simply too many variables to solve. Luckily patience came easily to Daria.
Tom dropped Daria off around midnight, and insisted on walking her to the door. They stood across from each other on the stoop, both uneasy, but for different reasons. "I had fun, Tom," said Daria finally. "Thanks."
"No, thank you. I'm glad I got to see you tonight." Tom looked down at her, searching her expression for any hint of…anything. But as usual, she kept her emotions under lock and key, so he kept talking. "Can we do it again sometime soon?"
Daria nodded silently, asking herself if she was getting herself into a mess. "That would be nice."
Tom smiled appreciatively. It would be nice, to be with someone he viewed as an intellectual equal again. Someone worthy, someone even his parents approved of. That had never before been an issue for him, but now? It seemed vaguely important. They'd both grown so much over the past year…Raft had sharpened her mind to an even deadlier point, and she looked amazing. Daria's old garb had never really bothered Tom; it wasn't important. But now, it didn't seem fair. How could anyone sane stand a chance against her? Maybe a little exaggeration, but not much, as far as he was concerned.
It was the anticipation of the bright future that gave Tom the courage for his next action: he leaned down to steal a kiss. Their lips barely brushed before Daria jerked back, both surprised and unwilling to leap to that step again so soon. He laughed softly, holding hands up in a sign of retreat. "I'm sorry, it was an impulse."
"I'm not ready for that again yet, Tom."
He nodded, concealing the feeling of bitter disappointment he felt weighing on his chest. The memory of her soft full lips haunted him; she would never know how much he enjoyed kissing her. "I can see that," he said. "That's alright. Besides, I should have known better. We weren't in a car." He flashed that new smile, the one Daria felt so alien in his repertoire of expressions. It was meant to smooth things over with women. It failed beautifully on Daria.
Daria turned to go inside her house. "I'll see you later, Tom," she said, cracking the door.
"Ok, I'll catch you later. Sweet dreams."
Daria paused, but finally answered, "You too."
We weren't in a car.
Daria resented that sarcastic remark. Maybe she deserved it, although she didn't exactly think so. A medley of confusing thoughts swam around her head, the same as clashing emotions gripped her chest and terrorized her stomach. What exactly had she gotten herself into? She decided she needed a like mind to sort things out with. None resided within her house.
Once sure that Tom was long gone, Daria headed back out the door and down the street.