Cupid's Last
Pleasantly Confused
December I
"Serena, it's perfectly fine." Michaela Kurtz reassured the girl on the other line. "I really don't mind doing this, although," She glanced back into the gala and watched Raye Harrington's friend Amy Merquise laughing with a tall stranger with red-gold hair longer than her own.
"I hope you plan on letting me in on your little scheme soon."
"Micha," The friendly nickname was covered so thickly in sarcasm that Michaela's ear needed a wipe. "Whatever are you talking about?"
"Alright, alright." The violinist conceded with a laugh. "I'll let you off the hook for now. Try to stay out of trouble and say hi to Trista for me."
"Yes ma'am!!" Serena chirped, hanging up on Trista's old colleague.
"Hey," Michaela turned around as she put her phone away to see the pianist calling to her. "We're on in ten again."
"Sure thing." She replied then started before the pianist disappeared back into the room. "Oh, by the way, I didn't get your name…"
She was a tall woman, with sandy blonde hair and strong features that made her more 'handsome' than 'beautiful.' The stranger smiled and extended a hand,
"Hi. My name's Haley Trask."
Michaela grasped the strong, slender fingers and a pleasant frisson ran along her spine. The violinist felt a brand new smile settle into the corners of her mouth.
"Hello Haley." Teal held aquamarine. "I'm Michaela. It's nice to meet you."
"…And I said, 'Good-bye Mr. Procella.'"
Lita's ponytail flicked the very tip of Nevan's nose and she turned away from him after rejecting him…yet again…for maybe the third time today. He glanced at his Rolex. And it wasn't even lunch yet.
"You know," He started off, following her as she walked between damaged cars and sweaty men to her station. "You're really bad at this whole customer service thing."
"And you really suck at taking 'no' for an answer." Lita threw over her shoulder, suddenly stopping before she swung onto the hood of a Honda that Larry was fixing and sliding across it cleanly, sticking her tongue out at him as she made more distance between them.
"Just when I don't think I deserve it." He retorted, still going after her.
"And what the hell makes you think that you deserve this?" She laughed at the incredulousness of his ego.
"Well, let's see," Nevan raised a hand and ticked off the numerous things that made him a fantastic candidate for anything, "I'm rich, damn good looking, a self-made man from humble beginnings-"
She actually barked in laughter!
"And several other great attributes that should make you insanely grateful to go out with me-"
"And yet," Lita gasped in mock-shock. "Here I am resisting your oh-so humble charms."
"Why not?" Lita looked up at him past her cap's flap, completely and utterly exasperated, her small smile notwithstanding.
"You're a persistent little parasite, aren't you?"
Nevan grinned and Lita's stomach did a little flop. "I know you say it out of all the fondness you have for me."
"Which could all fit in the palm of my hand." Lita retorted happily, about to go around a mustang with a dent on the right side when she was pulled back by a persistent, parasitic tug at her hand.
"You know what else could fit here?" Nevan Procella smiled seductively, holding Lita's hand in his own, examining the fingers and palm as if they held the secrets of the world. "This." It was at that moment that he chose to curl his fingers into hers, effectively linking their hands together.
Lita blushed heavily.
Nevan relished the moment.
The guys at the garage grinned and chuckled amongst themselves.
On the other side of the street, watching the scene through binoculars, Serena hooted in triumph and Darien pulled her back down to the ground next to his motorcycle which was positioned in the Wendy's parking lot (they would've conducted their observation at the Taco Bell parking lot as usual, but their multiple borderline-stalking voyeurism had made the managers very uncomfortable).
"Eeek!!" Serena shrieked happily. "Aaahh!! Darien did you see that?" She said, eyes sparkling and hands clapping in absolute glee that Darien had to smile. Even if she was punching his arm repeatedly in her happy daze.
"Look," Lita said, taking back her hand, still flustered. "I get that you're appreciative of the fact that I fixed your car-"
"Twice." He interjected, smiling proudly at her work, which was spiffed up and finally fixed, this time for good, he hoped, just outside of the garage.
"-Yes, well," Lita went on, beaming a little at her own handiwork. "I'm glad you like it and, really, you've already covered the expenses and, if you want to do more," She plowed on when she saw he was ready to say more, "You can just recommend us to the people you know. We could always use the business."
Nevan thought of his business associates chatting up with Lita at the garage and wasn't sure if the boiling in his stomach was irritation or just plain jealousy. It struck him, as it usually did, that it could very easily be either, probably the latter. But he wasn't about to tell her that so he settled with saying,
"Lita, please explain to me what is so horrible about the prospect of me taking you out to dinner?"
"It's Kingston," Lita corrected him. "And, there's nothing horrible about the idea, per se, it's just that I don't date customers-"
"Well, I'm no longer a customer anymore," Nevan interrupted. "Again."
"-Or ex-customers-" Lita continued to tick off.
"Hey, that's not fair." Nevan protested.
"-Or men that hand out their own business cards."
Nevan paused, staring at her incredulously. "Now I know you're only saying that to avoid going out with me."
"Don't give yourself too much credit." Lita said, rolling her eyes at his overconfidence.
"I'm not," Nevan insisted. "I just want to take you out. Where's the harm in that? Look, I have reservations at this place and-"
"And that's a little assumptive of you, isn't it?" Lita interrupted, with a hint of that sarcastic harpy Nevan was learning to enjoy.
"Look, I'm not being anything," He tried defending himself. "I'm just trying to let you know that I'm interested in spending some time with you outside of this grease pit- no offense guys." He added quickly, and a chorus followed his instant insult/apology:
"It's fine. We know it's greasy."
"Lita, just date him to get him out of here. Everyone thinks he's here to sue us."
"Anybody seen my toolbox?"
"Forget your toolbox. Anybody seen my sandwich?"
"Yeah, it was in Kenny's mouth ten minutes ago."
Lita chuckled and shook her head at the men she worked with turning her eyes to focus on the one man she didn't. She sighed, knowing that the more he showed up, the fewer defenses she had to keep him out.
"Procella, are you ever gonna give up on this?"
He smirked because she already knew the answer, "Lita, I am a –what did you call me? 'A persistent little parasite' who doesn't like the idea of giving up."
"Fabulous." Lita muttered, rolling her eyes. "Hold on while I go find my bug spray." She said smoothly loud enough for him to hear before turning her back to him and leaving him in her wake…again.
Nevan would've asked himself why he kept coming back even after she continued to reject him but, watching Lita's hips swinging this way and that as she walked away, he figured it didn't really matter.
"-and why exactly would I do that?" Kenny Dupree asked, leaning against the wall of Mike's office at Mikey's Garage as he pressed the phone into his ear with his shoulder while wiping the ketchup from Al's burger from the side of his mouth.
"Because you love me?"
He laughed, "Try again blondie."
Ken heard the laugh of Lita's long-time friend over the line and he knew it didn't matter why she was asking this, because he'd end up doing it anyway.
"Then how about because neither of us is blind to what's going on in that garage."
Ken frowned and glanced about in the garage, expecting to see a pair of yellow hair-balls bouncing around between the cars. "How exactly do you know what's going on here?" He demanded; his eyes fixated on Lita and Nevan arguing about one thing or another.
"Less questions, more action Kenny." Serena perkily commanded.
"And what's in it for me?"
"Are you trying to extort me you little grease-monkey?"
"Ooh ooh aah aah." Kenny monkey-mimicked with a grin.
Serena laughed once more. "Fine, you oiled-up blackmailer." She adjusted her hold on the phone, accepting a slurpie from Darien. "You've been looking for another job right?"
Ken pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it in wonderment. "How the hell did you know that?" He asked, genuinely surprised. "I don't think I even mentioned that to Lita. Or anyone for that matter." He added.
"Once again," Serena said carelessly, "Less questions, more action. Now go perform a little trick for me and I'll have a special banana for you when you're done."
Nevan swirled his red wine before taking a nice long sip. Chocolate eyes surveyed the field in front of him as he took in the view. A lazy smile curled around his mouth as he felt every muscle in his body loosen in relaxation, something he hadn't had in a long time.
Next week, he'd have contracts to deal with. He'd have to call some people, yell at a few others, and shirk from his mother's calls like usual. Nothing out of the ordinary, save for an occasional trip out of town that he'd have to take. Maybe, if he had a little bit of time, he could drop by the garage again.
Lita's amused face passed through his mind and Nevan had to smile. Sure, he may have thought she was his punishment from that time he put Jason's hand in a bowl of water at sleep-away camp, and he really didn't have any other reason to come around anymore, but the man was drawn to her in an almost hypnotic manner. Which was, let's be honest, kind of crazy considering that between Nevan's status and wealth and damn good looks he really could've gotten just about any other woman in place of the blushing smart-mouth teenager he went out of his way every week to see.
But he still went. And Nevan knew he probably would keep doing so for a while and for reasons that were beyond what he was willing to comprehend at the moment. But until that moment of clarity reached him…
He heard the 'clack' behind him and turned around in his seat, seeing that familiar silhouette approaching him, long hair swinging against the shadows. He set his drink down and stood up like the gentleman he was taught to be. Nevan smiled.
"Hey, glad you could make it."
"I wonder where Lita is." Raye murmured, looking into the crowd of people waiting to get their tickets outside the movie theater.
"She's probably on her way over from work." Mina suggested, as she balanced a tub of popcorn that Serena would all but inhale later on tonight. "I'm sure she'll be here soon."
"I thought she wasn't working today." Amy said distractedly as she gripped two sodas in her hands.
"She was." Serena popped in. "I dropped by the garage and gave her her birthday present earlier today."
"Serena!" Raye admonished lightly. "I thought we were going to do that tomorrow at her birthday dinner."
"Either way," Serena interrupted. "She's bound to pop up soon enough. Let's just head inside and save a seat for her."
"Still," Raye murmured thoughtfully as she rummaged in her purse, "I should probably give her a call-"
"It's ok!" Serena said loudly, startling Mina into shaking the popcorn so that some kernels flew out of the tub. The meatball-headed blonde whipped out her phone out of thin air and smiled, "You guys go on ahead; I'll give her a call now."
The other three looked at her oddly before shrugging off Serena's behavior and ambling toward their movie, not noticing that Serena never hit the Call button on her phone…
Lita pulled up to the restaurant Adastra, frowning when the person on the other line didn't pick up.
"Geez, Serena," She muttered at the phone, a brand new Blackberry. "Where on earth are you?"
The brunette had been trying to get a hold of her best friends during her drive to the restaurant without any luck. She looked up to the restaurant sign, framed on either side by golden stars. She tucked her phone into her bag and got out of the car. Maybe they were already inside?
Adastra was a new restaurant in town that was being hailed as a connoisseur's paradise. Lita had expressed an interest in the place and Serena had suggested that they all go out together on the weekend of Lita's birthday. Although…
Lita took in literally the dozens of people packed at the front and along the outside patio and wondered if this was such a good idea. She bumped into a few people on her way to the host stand, including a young blonde couple too enthralled in each other's presence, a tall man with stark white hair, three rambunctious children, and a disgruntled old woman who demanded to talk to the manager.
"Excuse me," The hostess (whose nametag read Molly) was a redhead who glanced up with eyes that had too much shadow and not enough eyebrows. Lita tried to not make a face. "My friends and I have a reservation tonight?"
The hostess chewed her gum and popped a bubble as she looked at her roster. "Name?"
"My name is Lita Kingston, but the reservation should be under Serena Tyler-"
"Miss Kingston." Molly's eyes widened and suddenly a huge friendly smile plastered itself on her face. "We've been expecting you."
Lita blinked before following the hostess who gestured for her to follow. Molly walked ahead of her and through the restaurant, which Lita had to admire. The light was dimmed and romantic, with tea lights in short lotus-shaped holders at each table, and the air littered with the kind of sweet fragrance that you could only get from freshly cut flowers in deep crimson shades. Dozens of couples huddled in booths at raised platforms that hugged the walls while parties of more sat at large lazy Susan tables, laughing and talking under a ceiling that glowed midnight blue amidst twinkling lights meant to mimic the stars themselves. Upon closer inspection, Lita would see that the lights actually followed the constellations in the night sky.
"The ceiling is set up like a planetarium." Molly said and Lita realized that she had stopped walking. "The boss has it set so that it actually rotates to match the night sky outside. Cool huh?"
"A little anal, if you ask me." Lita said with a laugh, impressed nonetheless.
The hostess made a face like the idea of her boss being anything less than godly was beyond her comprehension. "Right. Well, we actually have to go up here."
Lita followed her gesture and realized that they were standing at a wall curtained by scarlet velvet drapes. Molly moved the drapes aside and Lita saw a staircase leading up.
"The Boss has a specific place he likes dining to. Although," Molly glanced at Lita up and down. "I gotta say; you're not what he usually brings up."
Lita stopped on her way. "Excuse me?"
"Don't take it personally." Molly smiled reassuringly. "It's just that the Boss hardly ever comes around and when he does, it's usually a tall guy in a stiff suit that gets the place of honor."
"Holdonholdon a minute." Lita said, confused. "I'm sorry, your boss?"
"Yeah," Molly said flippantly. "Just head up the stairs and he'll be up there."
"Wha- Hang on, I think there's been a misunderstanding." Lita insisted.
Molly quirked an almost nonexistent eyebrow at her. "You're Miss Kingston, aren't you?"
"Well, yeah but-"
"-Lita Kingston, right?"
"Yes." Lita said impatiently. "But I'm supposed to meet with my girlfriends, not-"
"Molly!" A busboy with dark harried hair and glasses that clearly needed to be downsized suddenly appeared at their side, clearly out of breath. "Molly," heave, "Get back to the front," heave, "We're booked solid tonight, some people are getting pissed and the boss is here!" He hissed.
"Okok Melvin! Calm down!" Molly commanded as she brushed past Lita, calling out as she moved back over to her stand, "Just head on up, ok? He's waiting."
Lita stared at the retreating redhead before turning to stare at the staircase like it was the first few steps to Mount Everest. The boss huh?
It was only one flight of stairs and she reached the top in less than a minute, even though each step felt like it took a lifetime. What was going on here? The door swung open at her touch, and Lita figured it didn't matter since she was about to find out…
…As she reached the top, it suddenly occurred to her that, in her walk through the restaurant, she didn't see her friends anywhere…
Toss. Catch. Munch. Swallow. Repeat.
Toss. Catch. Munch. "Did she pick up?"
"Who?"
"Lita," Raye said, exasperated. "Serena, I thought you called her."
"Oh yeah." Serena said, not meeting Raye's eyes and moving the popcorn tub from Mina's hands to her lap. "She didn't pick up. Maybe she knocked out after work?"
"I hope she doesn't over-exert herself before midterms." Amy said worriedly.
"I'm sure she's fine." Mina said reassuringly. "If anything, that'll be just a greater motivation for us to make tomorrow night even more special for her."
"Yeah." Serena conceded cheerfully as trumpet sounds came alive and the lights dimmed in the room. "Ooh, hush guys. The previews are starting."
The night air was crisp and Lita savored the feeling and…the smell? She sniffed. Was that…soup? The door shut behind her with an audible clack, and a movement on the roof caught her attention.
"Art? Is that you?" A voice called out and Lita turned to face the sound, realizing that the voice came from someone underneath a trellis on the restaurant rooftop. Waitwhat? A trellis? There came a pleasant chuckle.
"Hey, I thought you were heading out. Come over here. They just dropped off the bowls and you really need to try this-"
Lita froze, realizing that the dip in her stomach was her brain realizing that she, in fact, knew the voice that was speaking to her, thinking she was someone else.
She somehow found her voice. "Nevan?"
A figure rose suddenly from their chair under the trellis and Nevan Procella turned around to stare at the object of his distraction standing ten feet away from him.
The tall man with stark white hair that swung down to his waist stalked out of the restaurant, his job done. He had opened his car door just as his phone rang. He didn't even have time to speak when someone else on the other line went,
"So?"
His key slipped in and the car revved to life. "It's done." He pulled the gear to drive.
"Are you sure?" The question made him roll his eyes.
"Darien, who do you think you're talking to?"
"Well, I thought I was talking to a sane lawyer who was above playing along with a barely-legal teenager in her psychotic mission to-"
"Says the guy who acts as her get-away car." Artemis snorted, glancing at the two fading stars in his rear-view mirror. At this distance, he was sure if he turned around, he'd be able to see them.
"I take offense to that," Darien scoffed mockingly. "I have a motorcycle."
He heard Artemis laugh a little before saying good-bye. Then Darien hit a few more keys before clicking on the phone number under the name Cupid (Serena had insisted) and then hit "send."
Eros: Harpy at destination. Contact with Prick established.
Cupid: Other Targets preoccupied. It's a night.
Eros: Wait what? No sneaking from a distance? No semi-stalking? No creepily eavesdropping from under the dinner table??
Cupid: You're enjoying being a creeper way too much.
Eros: No I'm not. I've never been a creeper until four months ago. We're always creepers. Why aren't we creepers tonight?
Cupid: Because our bffs are getting suspicious. Why? Miss me already?
Eros: 1) Guys do not have bffs. 2) Hell no.
Cupid: I [less-than sign]3 you too Darien. :P
"You're wearing a dress."
"No shit."
It was an automatic response to Nevan's dumbly stated words, but Lita watched him slowly smile anyway. She crossed her arms over the forest-green bust line of her off-the shoulder bubble-skirt dress, a present from Trista that Lita had to wear the moment she opened it. Watching Nevan pleasantly shocked expression, she felt that she'd made the right decision.
'Even though you weren't planning on seeing him anyway.' Her mind dutifully reminded her.
"I'm kind of surprised you showed up." Nevan said, shaking her out of her thoughts, before a frown burrowed on his forehead. "Actually, I don't think I ever told you where to go-"
Lita shook her head furiously like there was some loose information she was rifling her mind to find. "Hold on a minute. I'm not here to meet you."
Nevan raised an eyebrow and looked her up and down like the hostess did, although this time with approving eyes. "Could've fooled me."
"Shut it, Procella." Lita commanded. "I'm supposed to be meeting my friends here, but I think there's been some kind of a misunderstanding."
"Your friends?" Nevan would've looked hurt if Lita didn't know this man was too haughty to ever be hurt by anything. "That's a little mean considering that it's our date night."
Silence.
"…'Date night?'" The words came out like a croak. Nevan assessed her carefully before realizing that she wasn't kidding.
"Lita, don't you remember earlier this week when I stopped by?"
Lita frowned, racking her brain for whatever incident he seemed to be talking about. She recalled their exchange in the garage, and him persistently asking her out like he always did and…
"I just want to take you out." He'd said. "Where's the harm in that? Look, I have reservations at this place and-"
Lita blinked, the realization hitting her. "This is where you got a reservation?"
"Of course not, Lita," Nevan laughed. "Who needs a reservation at your own restaurant?"
"But he's never brought a girl over before!" She wrung her hands.
"I don't exactly think she's young enough to be a 'girl.'" He replied noncommittally, elbows into suds and dirty dishes.
"That's not the point though!" Molly whined, stomping her foot on the ground as she spoke to Melvin during her break.
"Molly," Melvin sighed, "Please calm down."
"I can't!" She insisted. "What if this girl is his girlfriend or something?"
"Well," He grasped. "At least now we know for sure he's not gay, right?"
"Melvin!" He rolled his eyes at her hyperventilation and swiped his forehead, inadvertently getting soap bubbles over his face and dripping some on his oversized glasses. The image got him a laugh from the girl he'd been in love with for years before she hopped off the counter and walked closer to him, "You dork, hold still." She admonished, wiping his forehead of the bubbles and taking his glasses down to clean them off.
Molly reached up to put them back on his face when she suddenly realized that [oh my] Melvin didn't look quite so…Melvin-like at a two feet distance and without his telescopic glasses. She stared. Melvin blinked.
"Molly?" He asked tentatively, wondering why she chose to keep him in his legally blind state. "Are you ok?"
She squeaked something that he could assume was a "Yes!" before slapping his glasses crookedly onto his face. Melvin could've sworn Molly was turning as red as her hair as she ran out the kitchen, but he figured he was seeing things through his askew vision…
"Are you really going to stand there all night?"
"I'm honestly not sure what to do right now."
"Well," He smiled, amused. "You could take the seat across from mine."
She crossed her arms and gave him an intent stare. "I wouldn't want to take your original date's place."
"'Date?'" Nevan repeated the word like it was foreign to him. And from how the hostess responded to Lita's presence, it might as well have been. The lights in Nevan's head seemed to go on suddenly and he laughed. "You mean Artemis? My lawyer?"
"Somehow having your lawyer over at your restaurant doesn't seem like a very reassuring thing."
"Hardly," Nevan dismissed with a regal hand wave. "He's a good friend who wanted to talk about planning a big event in a few months with my restaurant catering. Unless," He wiggled his eyebrows at her. "You're jealous."
Lita sighed. "And just like that, you hot-air balloon of an ego has just absorbed all the viable air on this roof."
Nevan laughed and rose, showing himself to be out of his suits and wearing a simple maroon V-neck sweater and dark slacks. "Have a seat, Lita." He pulled out the chair across from his. "You can tell me if you think Adastra has lived up to its latest hype and," He grinned, "I think the air is easier to breathe over here."
Lita sincerely doubted it because this man had the power to suck the air and resistance out of her, illustrated by the way her feet were willingly moving towards him.
"'Adastra?'" She repeated as she sat in the offered chair.
"It means 'to the stars' in Latin," Nevan shrugged as he walked back over to his seat. "Or at least I think so."
"You don't even know the name of your own restaurant?" She was smirking at him. He fought the urge to stick his tongue out at her.
"Latin wasn't my strongest subject." He admitted instead. "Astronomy, on the other hand, was."
"Astronomy?" Lita smiled disbelievingly. "Somehow you don't quite fit the type to stare at stars."
"I will have you know," Nevan began; clearly appalled that she couldn't see what he saw in the sky. "That intelligent men of all cultures and races turned to the heavens at some point in their history to determine and divine critical events."
"Like human sacrifice." Lita supplied with a quirky smile.
"Among other things." Nevan insisted. "Calendars, eclipses, and not to mention…"
And thus launched the great Stars-Are-Awesome lecture that had Lita torn between being surprisingly interested in the topic and being bemused over how excited this man looked by just talking about it. She found herself asking a question here and there and realized much later on that the conversation had moved on to different topics like movies ("I don't understand the buildup of Twilight." "FINALLY! SOMEONE UNDERSTANDS!!"), politics ("…I hope you realize that I haven't been following you since you mentioned something about the Chamber of something-"), music ("You know that song 'ten thousand fireflies-'" "Stop singing that song right now or I will have to throw you off this roof."), and their respective jobs ("What do you do anyway?" "Make money and scare people.").
Lita found herself immersed into the dialogue as she had her soup (which was delicious) and the salad (which was nice but the dressing needed some changes), genuinely laughing as she watched Nevan's hand gestures and facial expressions change to the kinds she didn't know he could make when he wasn't hitting on her.
…Which of course, he had to eventually remind her of:
"You look beautiful, by the way," Nevan said suddenly, nodding in her direction.
"It's the dress," Lita said begrudgingly after a long blush. "My friend just gave it to me today."
"Sweet friend."
"Actually," Lita grinned widely. "She's the same girl that gave us our first meal together.
"Quesadilla girl?" Nevan laughed at the fond memory. "Remind me to get her a thank-you card."
"You could just take her out to dinner." Lita quipped. "Since this is apparently how you thank people."
"I thank people with gift baskets. This," He gestured to their table. "Is just because I like you."
Lita stared before shaking her head. "You like making me feel awkward, don't you?"
"I spend so much time getting hell from you that it's nice once in a while to make you feel out of place."
Lita laughed when a thought suddenly occurred to her. "Oh my God! I can't believe I forgot!"
"What is it?"
"The girls! I was supposed to meet them tonight!"
"Don't tell me you're bailing on me." Nevan half-joked, knowing that she could very easily rise out of her chair and down the staircase at any moment. He didn't like knowing this information. "They're bringing out the entrees soon."
"Maybe not," Lita admitted teasingly. "But I am wondering why no one's called me yet. You'd think they would, considering it's my birthday-"
"Your birthday?" Nevan repeated a little dumbly.
"Yeah." She said, not noticing the gears in his head turning over this piece of information as she pulled out her phone. "It's technically tomorrow but we were supposed to celebrate it tonight…"
Her voice trailed off while Nevan pondered what to do with this new fact. He'd have to get her a present or something, right? Wait, why would he? He was just an old client, right? One that she'd been spending the last few months avoiding or verbally attacking. He glanced at Lita over the candle centerpiece, brown curls glowing gold, and made a decision to make sure tonight was the first night to change that.
"That's weird." Nevan wiped the corner of his mouth with his napkin as her comment brought him from his thoughts.
"What is?"
"My friends' numbers…" Lita murmured, going through her phone and staring at the unfamiliar numbers. "They're…not right."
Nevan quirked an eyebrow. "Not right?"
"It's weird." She announced, frowning at her cell. "All their numbers are different on my phone."
"That's strange." Nevan agreed. "Maybe the numbers got corrupted when you switched phones?"
"Maybe," Lita said, not really believing it. Her mind flashed to earlier that afternoon,
"What're you doing?" Kenny demanded, slightly appalled.
"Ditching the old," Lita said with a smile as she jump-shot her old phone (which had been dropped in everything from oil to cake batter) into the trashcan. "And enjoying the new."
With that, she pulled out a shiny new phone she had just bought the other day, so new that the screen protector was still attached. Kenny nodded in approval.
"Cool," Kenny said, holding out a hand. "Can I see?"
"Sure." Lita said with a happy shrug. "Just wipe your grease off when you're done. I've got an engine to check and-"
"Hey! Lita!" The brunette spun around to see Serena appear out of nowhere, carrying a box at her side. Lita smiled.
"Serena? What're you doing here?" She began to walk over to her friend but paused before shooting over her shoulder, "Remember what I said, Kenny! Wipe your grease off!"
She barely caught the forebodingly mischievous smirk, "Sure thing Lita…"
[If she had looked closer, she would've seen it on two different faces]
"That dirty little s-"
"Lady words, Lita, lady words." Nevan laughed, watching her face contort into one of absolute hatred that promised years of revenge on some poor idiot. [Miles away, Kenneth Dupree felt an intense hatred bear into his soul]
"I just don't know why that idiot would do this." Lita was officially flabbergasted.
"Didn't you sneak a couple of bolts into his sandwich last week?"
"Yes and no." Lita defended. "I snuck in the bolts, but it was my sandwich. I was trying to teach him a lesson!"
"By making him rush to the dentist?" He shot back grinning at the memory.
"His teeth survived." Was her lame justification that made Nevan laugh out loud.
A waiter and waitress came up at the point and deposited the entrees on their tables. Lita watched the waitress shiver and realized that, even in her dress, she hadn't felt remotely cold since she sat down with Nevan. She kind of liked it.
"So what do you think?" Nevan nodded to her food.
"I think your restaurant does pretty well for being owned by a guy who makes money and scares people." Lita laughed.
"Thanks, I think." Nevan accepted. "You know, there's this nice place by the beach that serves amazing lobster-"
Lita's utensils froze in mid-air. "Nevan." She began to object. "I really don't think that's a good idea."
"You didn't think going out with me would be a good idea either did you?" He argued. "And yet, here you are, not screaming at me."
"Technically, I'm still not going out with you." Lita pointed out in an attempt to lift the serious tones Nevan was taking this conversation.
"Come out with me then." Nevan said, rushing when he saw her about to protest again. "For real, this time, and not because you thought you were having a girls' night out."
"Look, Nevan." Lita tried to grasp what patience and self-control she had. "I get that you may be attracted to me but you shouldn't try to push those kinds of feelings-"
"Even when I know you feel the same way?" Nevan demanded, a hint of impatience creeping into his voice.
Lita paused, looking away before slowly saying, "You don't know that."
"Yes, I do." Nevan insisted, leaning across the table, food forgotten. "Lita, you may think that I'm doing this because I like playing around with people but I swear to you that this isn't the case."
"So you're honestly serious about dating a teenager?"
"Do I look like I'm joking with you?"
"I don't know what you look like when you're joking because we've only known each other for the past four months when we're yelling at each other!"
"Then get to know me!" He retorted. "Talk to me! Give me a chance," Nevan found that he actually sounded like he was pleading with her. God, what was his problem? He stared down at the girl in front of him, pretty brown waves cascading on either side of her face and knew that she was it.
"Lita, I like you." Nevan confessed honestly. He watched her face grimace, as if the words hurt to hear. Or believe. Did she really think so little of herself? "I'll admit I thought you were a demon from hell when we first met but I can't leave you alone anymore. I like seeing you, I like talking to you even if it's not about my car or how much I owe you. I even like you when we're arguing!" He threw up his hands in exasperation to illustrate the ludicrousness of it all. "Do you honestly believe that I would go through all this just because I need to amuse myself?"
"Maybe you're a masochist." Lita muttered off-hand.
"Or maybe I want to be with you." He purported.
"I sincerely doubt that." The comment was said so softly that Nevan had to wonder if he'd really heard such a ludicrous statement. He shook his head as if to shake off the words.
"W-what did you say?" Lita closed her eyes for a moment as if to gather strength before opening them to stare at anywhere but him.
"Guys don't fall for me." Lita spoke the words slowly even as her voice hitched in the middle. She forced the lump in her throat to go down as words flowed. "They like sweet little girls who have pretty hair and spend their days shopping for shiny things with Daddy's money to amuse their little minds.
"I fix cars for a living because my parents died. I've paid back every cent anyone's ever given me because I don't like owing people anything. I've worked hard for everything that I have today and it's made me strong." He saw the muscles on her forearms tighten as she balled her fists in her lap. "Too strong sometimes, for some guys to deal with."
Nevan watched her lift her face to him and he was surprised to see neither the harpy from hell that he first encountered at Big Mikey's Garage or the sweetly embarrassed young woman who blushed every time he attempted a come on. No, today in those emerald depths he saw a broken girl, abandoned and hardened from years of being shunned by people who decided that she wasn't refined or normal or whatever it was they were looking for. His jaw tightened.
"Fuck 'em."
Lita wasn't sure she'd heard the curse word leave his mouth so she blinked once more just in case she was hallucinating.
"You heard me." Nevan shot at her as though he read her mind. "Fuck 'em.
"I'm not sure how much punier they're making high school kids nowadays, but they sound a lot like a couple of sissies who can't handle a woman."
"This coming from the guy who thought 'something could fall and hit me' when he first met me?" Lita quipped, a growing smile threatening to dry up those tears welling up in her eyes. It had to be insane to realize she wanted to castrate this man just a few months ago. And now…
Nevan met her clearing eyes with a cool honesty that made her believe every word coming out of his mouth,
"Just because something's strong doesn't give anyone the right to knock it down."
And Lita Kingston was suddenly fairly certain that she had just fallen in love with Nevan Procella.
"…I just can't believe Kenny did that." Mina said, her prank-admiring smile notwithstanding, as she sat next to Lita at another restaurant the following night. Lita had insisted on going somewhere else for her birthday after having to explain to the rest what took place when they didn't arrive at Adastra the night before.
"It's fine." Lita said with a smile that hadn't quite left her face throughout the day. "I'll get him back eventually."
"We're so sorry we didn't spend last night with you, though." Amy said sadly.
"Don't be too sorry." Raye laughed. "She got to spend some time with her little boy toy."
Lita glared, her blush not withstanding when she looked away from them and their ensuing friendly ribbing.
Amy stifled her laughter first before suddenly saying, "Oh, Lita. Those earrings are gorgeous."
That grabbed Mina's attention. "Wow, she's right. They're like…
"Little pink diamond roses." Serena finished in prideful appraisal.
'Something as strong as she is beautiful." Had been Serena's suggestion when Nevan dragged his closest female friend to shop for something special for his someone special earlier that afternoon. After hearing the words, he immediately fixated on an exclusive jeweler whom he had legally sworn to never again make the same rose pair for anyone.
Lita's blush deepened and it only took the rest a single beat before the teasing came out in full force.
chickay: Soo…yeah. I felt that this chapter was a little rushed and long [is that possible?], but one of my objectives in writing this story was to show the different ways people can fall for each other and I hope someone (anyone) can see it. Please please please review on what you liked, what you didn't like, and all the stuff in between that you couldn't decide on. I love hearing all about it no matter what.
Also, I know a lot of readers of CL are really gearing me to finish MAMC and, please believe me when I say that no one wants my original baby to be finished more than I do. That being said [please don't run away] I have to be honest, reading MAMC now is a lot like meeting that best friend you had in 2nd grade after a 10-year absence: You see a lot of what you used to love and know, but so much has happened in the years between the juice boxes and graduating, that you're essentially looking at someone you can't recognize anymore. That's what it's like for me to look at MAMC right now. I'm not saying it's a lost cause; I need to finish it up and I will. But not anytime soon and not without a hefty relook at where I want it to go, or changing a lot of what's already there, which I'm not a big fan of doing…
And for those of you who stuck around…
"So, they're official?"
"Pretty much."
"Stop smiling." Darien commanded, although he was very aware of the grin on his own face.
"I can't help it!" Serena declared, just about jumping for joy with their latest successful interventions. Some of the children at the orphanage turned around to stare at the odd girl doing her happy dance by their "big brother."
"Yes you can." Darien insisted. "Especially since you're kind of forgetting one little thing."
"And what's that, party pooper?" Serena demanded, sitting back down next to him on the steps of St. Jude's.
"Let's see, Jason's gotten suspicious, we haven't made any headway on Mina and Keith, and now that our friends are quasi-dating, there's a bigger chance of them running into each other and starting to connect the dots between you and me."
"…you call that 'one little thing?'"
"Sorry to bust your little bubble Tyler," Darien said unrepentantly, "But now everything else gets harder. And-"
"Darien?" The voice was eerily familiar to Serena and she watched Darien stand in recognition as well. Her chest was starting to pound, but she knew right then and there that it had nothing to do with what was happening to her body. Serena watched as the familiar dark buns and curls and matching lab coat come into view and felt her mouth go dry.
"There you are, Darien. I was hoping you could help me do the check-ups and Cathy told me you were hanging arou-"
Darien was oblivious to how quickly Dr. Luna Maui cut herself off as she approached him, bringing the sitting blonde at his feet to her view. The unnecessarily familiar sitting blonde…
"Hey, I didn't realize you were stopping by today." Darien was saying as he stood up and gave her a peck on her cheek. He followed her line of sight and interpreted her stare as one of curiosity and not impending doom.
"Oh, Luna, this is Serena." Darien said, introducing his aunt to his partner in crime, not even noticing the shock the older woman seemed to be going into. Luna stared as her mind struggled to convince her that, yes, this girl who stood by her nephew was indeed the same girl who'd she'd given a death sentence to months ago.
Serena smiled and extended a hand in greeting (the same hand that pushed her out of the elevator) like she wasn't dying, "Hello Doctor Maui."
Luna shook the outreached hand dumbly. A small frown formed across Darien's forehead as he looked at Serena. Luna watched the movement out of the corner of her eye with a faint horror that was trouncing her overwhelming distress. She watched Darien's face look over at the young girl with a soft teasing expression that hammered at her chest.
'No, Darien.' DIK-DUN. DIK-DUN. 'Please, not her.'
"That's weird." Darien's voice floated into Luna's pounding head.
DIK-DUN. DIK-DUN.
"What is?" Serena glanced over at him with a quirky smile that spoke volumes of their connection. Luna couldn't do anything but stare.
"I never told you she was a doctor."
The pounding became a deafening thunderous roar as it hailed the start of a storm that Luna could only watch roll over her nephew's life.
chickay: ...Yup. That's it. ::happy wave:: Hope you enjoyed it enough to wait for the next round!
Until then, let me if you like what I'm doing. Or even if you don't. Honesty's the best policy…just don't wrap it with too much flaming toilet paper .
posted: 10/24/09