Chapter Four:

A few days later, Mallie headed to the gym with a friend. She had called the dating service about the guy who stood her up. They told her they were sorry and he would be dropped from their service. They offered to take fifty dollars off her fee and she said okay. She hoped the next date she had would be better. She got to the gym and she and her friend, Taylin, headed to the kickboxing class. Mallie had been taking kickboxing for a year now on John's suggestion. He told her that it would be a good thing if she knew how to take care of herself and kickboxing would do that. So, she talked Taylin into going with her.

"So, he just stood you up?" Taylin asked as they were punching the bag.

"Yeah, I sat there and waited. I felt like an idiot. All the waiters felt sorry for me so I got free crab cakes." She laughed.

"He's an idiot for standing you up."

"Thanks. I hope the next one is better."

"It will be. You're Mr. Right is out there."

"Thanks Taylin." She smiled at her friend and went back to the bag. She wondered was Taylin right. Mallie was beginning to think that she was destined to be alone.

"No problem. You know I'm here if you want to talk."

"Thanks."

After their work out, she and Taylin headed to a nearby sushi place for dinner. She then headed home. She had a big meeting the next day to discuss potential articles and the fact that the editor-in-chief was leaving.

John arrived at the firehouse for his shift. He was on the six p. eight a.m. shift. Then he was off the next four days. He headed in and to the area where they hung out. He saw Randy, Matt and Alex hanging out.

"Hey, man, how was your date?" Randy asked him.

"The worst date. She was an angry woman who liked to rant about her job." John said taking a seat on the sofa. "It was a crazy date."

"I'm sure the next one will be better." Alex said. He was the rookie of the group.

"I'm not sure I'm going on another one."

"John, we paid good money for that for your birthday. You're going on as many dates as you need to until you find Ms. Right."

"Guys, I'm not sure she is out there."

"Whoa." Randy said quickly. "John, she is out there and she is your soul mate as my wife would say. The perfect girl for you."

"We will see." He said getting up and heading to the kitchen. He wanted a cup of coffee.

Randy sighed and followed him into the kitchen. He didn't want John to give up on finding someone. John was a great guy who deserved to be happy.

"John, don't' give up on finding someone."

"I'm trying not to but it's like every girl I meet is crazy or not okay with my job. How did you manage to find someone who was okay with it?" John asked sitting down at the table.

"I don't' know." Randy laughed taking the seat across from him. "I met Leah when she had a fire in her apartment. I just liked her so I asked her out. It took a while but eventually we fell in love and got married. I'm not going to tell you that she is one hundred percent okay with my job, because she isn't. But she knows I love it and that it's all I've wanted to do. So she accepts it."

"My friend, Mallie, said that my job was important. That I was a hero and that anyone should be glad to have me even with my job."

"She's right. You know, I've heard you talk about her a good bit. She must be special."

"She is special but not in a romantic way. I have known Mallie since I was ten. We are great friends and can talk about things. That's all we are."

"Maybe you could be more."

"No, Mallie and I are friends and that's it."

"Alright, so, did the service set up another date or what?" Randy said changing the subject from Mallie to something. But he couldn't help but wonder if maybe there was something between Mallie and John and he was just in denial about it.

"The girl who answered the phone said they would see who is interested in me and let me know. Maybe crazy Jessie was the only one."

"I doubt that. You are a great catch for anyone."

"Thanks, man." He said just as the alarm went off. They stopped what they were doing and headed to the truck. They then headed to the fire. It was in a warehouse.

After the warehouse fire, the rest of the shift was pretty quiet. It gave John some time to think. He knew he would probably go on another date set up from the dating service. He wondered how many he would have to have before he found the so-called one. What did that even mean? The one. Your soul mate. Your destiny. Did that stuff truly exist? He wasn't sure anymore. He at one time had thought so but time and all the relationships he had, he wasn't inclined to believe that anymore. Besides wouldn't he have met her by now? Wouldn't they be together and have the family they were suppose to have? Soul mates were the story of fairytales and fiction he decided. It wasn't real life.

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