Seth walked into the bar next day and spotted Teal right away. She was standing by the bar, chatting with the bartender. On stage someone finished a song and took a bow while everyone clapped. As soon as the guy walked down, Seth quickly jumped up on the stage before anyone else could do so.
"Hi," he said.
He looked at Teal. She leaned her back against the counter and smiled at him. Clearly she was curious.
"This scares me. I'm an introvert which is ironic since I'm a professional wrestler," he said.
"Burn it down!" Someone yelled.
"You've heard of me," Seth smirked.
He looked at Teal again. Her blue-green eyes made him feel calm. He could do this. He might not have a song to sing or a poem to read but he could talk. And right now he needed to talk.
"I talk a lot in my line of work. Half of the work is cutting promos, but it's rare I get to speak from my heart," he said. "I'm scared. A lot of people think I'm fearless but I'm just a normal man like everyone else. I fear, I cry, I hurt, I worry. And the world won't let me. I'm supposed to be this big, bad wrestler that got it all. How dare I feel sad when I got money and fame? How dare I feel lonely when I got so many fans? How dare I complain at all? I'm just a normal man. I just wanna be understood and loved like everyone else. Can anyone hear me? Can anyone understand me?"
He locked eyes with Teal again.
"Can anyone love me for who I truly am?" He asked.
He took a step back and people started clapping. He felt himself shake slightly as he took a bow and walked down the stage. He walked directly over to her.
"Very good," she said.
"I've never been so scared about talking before," he said.
"I could tell. It was real. It was you," she said.
She took his hand and dragged him to a free table where they could talk more privately.
"I used to be anorexic," she said. "I had this boyfriend who always told me I was fat. I was young and insecure so I started starving myself to meet his crazy demands. Eventually we broke up but I kept going on in that evil spiral for years. It took me almost dying to finally realize how much power both my ex and this disease had over me. A whole lot of therapy later, and I sit before you as a woman with a troubled past but a brighter future."
"Thank you for telling me," he said.
He took her hand and caressed the top of it. There was a small scar on her pinky. He ran his thumb over it to feel it.
"I got it caught in a car door as a kid. One of the scars on my body that are safe to talk about," she said.
"None of your scars will ever be unsafe to talk about around me," he said. "You can't scare me away like that."
She smiled at him. He could get used to seeing that smile everyday. Something about her made him feel right at home.
"Do you want an answer to your question?" She asked.
"What question?" He asked.
"The final one you asked on stage," she answered.
"Oh," he said. "Yes, please."
He could only hope she wouldn't break his heart but he doubted it. He knew this was crazy. Asking a woman if she could love him after only having met her the night before.
"I can," she said. "In time when I get to know you, I know I will love you."
"And I'll love you too," he said.
"This is insane. I normally don't rush things like this but it feels like I've known you forever. Like all my life I was waiting for you to show up," she said.
"I feel the same," he said.
He leaned in and kissed her without warning. He had to feel those lips against his own. She kissed him back and placed her hand on his thigh, slowly caressing him through his jeans. They broke the kiss and smiled at each other.
"Hi," he said.
"Hi yourself," she said.
"What do we do from here?" He asked.
"Your place or mine?" She asked.
"I don't live close by but I got a car," he said.
"I can't wait that long. I live around the corner. We'll go to my place now, and you can take me to your place tomorrow," she said. "Sound good?"
"Sounds perfect," he grinned.