I was sure the waiter said something
after that, but I hardly heard it. All
I could see, the only thing that mattered suddenly, was us. It felt as if everything but just the two of
us and that short distance between us that felt like miles was all that
existed.
The waiter left, but James' eyes
didn't leave mine, mesmerizing me into a world of our own. It was an incredible feeling; it was
intoxicating.
And it felt like a prelude. My heart couldn't imagine anything greater
than what was happening now, drowning in his emerald eyes, other than holding
him and having him for my own, but somehow the possibility of it ever happening
still seemed unreachable.
I picked up my wineglass, giving him
a careless smile that was much more confident than I felt.
"Here's to Meowth and the vacation
he's provided us with," I proclaimed, waiting for him to lift his own glass
then striking it in a toast with my own. I hadn't wanted to break the mood but felt the need to say something.
Luckily, my casual toast didn't seem
to waive his gaze.
"To Meowth," he repeated, returning
my smile and endless gaze. At least,
his mouth answered that. I knew his
eyes whispered, "To us…", whether it
was my imagination or not.
We both took a deep sip of our
drinks. I felt heady, and wasn't sure
whether it was the wine or just him, there, gazing at me like I was the only
woman alive and the most exciting thing he had ever seen.
Before I knew it, I was on my third
glass, laughing and reminiscing over my half-finished lobster. Our hands met again and again as we reached
for the wine bottle, pouring glass after glass, and hours passed by like
minutes, turning the sky a breath-taking shade of violet that eventually faded
to star-coated black. We emptied the
first bottle and James tagged down the waiter, ordering another.
"I can't remember when we had this much
fun last," I commented slowly, putting an effort into not slurring my
words. James poured us each another
glass, missing our glasses for a moment and spilling wine onto the table.
"Hmm, I think I can," he replied,
annunciating carefully. He took a sip of his wine, rolling his eyes back in his
head thoughtfully.
"Remember that time…we—we had
that…ah…test, and we went to that party…the night before…and got…completely—really
smashed," he said with some difficulty, stumbling over the sentence. I laughed giddily. My whole body felt warm and heady, the edges of my vision
blurring just slightly and giving everything a surreal, dream-like quality.
"That was the—the…um…that entrance…exam
thing for…damnit…uh," I struggled to reply, eventually bursting into
uncontrollable laughter and giving up. James snorted at my failed attempt to remember and burst into a similar
fit of laughter, leaning on the table for support.
After a few minutes, I recovered from
my laughter, still giggling slightly. "We should get going," I pointed out, still coherent enough to remember
our little money problem. James nodded,
finishing off his most recent glass of wine and trying to control the urge to
burst into laughter again.
"How…do you want to do this?" he asked
me, occasionally broken by a giggle. I
hit him in the arm playfully, unable to stop myself from giggling as well when
he started.
"Cut it out, you're gonna' make me
laugh!" I giggled, finishing the last drop of my wine. He nodded with some difficulty, bowing his
head in an effort to control his laughter.
I put down my glass and leaned back in
my chair, trying to appear serious. "I'm gonna' go to the ladies' room. Five minutes after I've left, you follow. Leave your…I dunno'…Leave your wallet or something so the waiter
will think you're coming back."
James nodded grimly, then unexpectedly
burst into laughter.
"James!" I yelled, trying to look stern
but bursting into laughter as well. He
continued to laugh uncontrollably, leaning his face in his hand for support.
"Sorry! I'm sorry!" he cried, choking through his laughter. "You just look so damned serious!"
"I am serious!" I answered
angrily. Well, as angrily as I could
while laughing my head off. The room
was starting to spin lazily, my body seeming to sink into a warm haze.
James finally seemed to get his
laughter under control, breathing deeply to steady himself.
"Okay, I think I've got it," he
answered seriously. "Then we both sneak
out the bathroom windows and meet up outside, right?"
I nodded, taking a few deep breaths of
my own to steady my own nerves, which only succeeded in making me even dizzier;
my stomach fluttering with nauseous.
James leaned his head on his hand in a
quizzical manner. "This reminds me of
high school all over again," he remarked nostalgically. Then he burst into laughter once again,
forcing me to hit him with my purse.
Getting up from the table, I made to
leave, a sudden wave of dizziness washing over me. Taking a moment to let the dizziness pass, I carefully made my
way away from the patio and into the ladies' bathroom.
Luckily for me, the room was
empty. I dizzily made my way over to
the mirror, deciding to touch up my make-up while I waited for the five minutes
to pass.
Staring at my rosy-cheeked image in the
mirror, I suddenly felt doubtful. I was
drunk, and not quite sure how much longer I could remain coherent, and James
and I were about to go home together to an empty, one-bed motel room. Nothing had happened the last time we got
smashed together, other than the both of us waking up with screaming hangovers,
but I couldn't be so sure about this time. After all, we had both only been about 14 or 15 at the time. Now we were adults, and very aware of one
another's attractiveness. I knew that I
was in love with James, but I was still drunk and sure I wouldn't remember a
thing in the morning. And I wasn't even
sure if James felt the same way.
"Jesse!" came James' voice impatiently
from outside the window, startling me out of my suddenly serious
reflection. I hadn't realized that five
minutes had gone by.
Taking one last look at my reflection
in the mirror, I questioned myself on what I was about to do. And then he called me again, sending a warm thrill
up my spine even more thrilling and seducing than that caused by the wine, and
I was assured of my choice; going over to the window and throwing open the
sash.
I climbed out the window, allowing him
to catch me, and wrapped my arms around his neck comfortingly.
"I lost track of time," I whispered, my
lips aching for his.
He smiled, his green eyes sparkling in
the dim moonlight.
"Don't worry about it," he replied,
gently putting me on my feet. He was
surprisingly calm and rational for the amount of wine we had consumed. I realized it was the fresh air away from
the crowded, smoky atmosphere of the café; feeling my own head beginning to
clear from it's affects.
I gazed at him in the dark, the
moonlight playing across his features in a way I had never seen his face
before, and suddenly I couldn't control the longing to touch him anymore;
reaching out to touch his face tenderly, tracing the shadows with my
fingers. He pulled me towards him
hastily, kissing me deeply. He was
kissing me into oblivion, taking my breath away, and I wanted the moment to
last forever; losing myself in the heat of his body against mine…his hands
sliding upwards from my waist, painfully slow like sweet torture, my skin
tingling where he touched it. His hair,
brushing softly at the sides of my face…the taste of the wine we had shared on
his lips and tongue…everything about him sending me to heaven.
And then we were back at the motel and
I was lost to the passion…
* * *