UPDATED 17/04/09 – certain things have been corrected and/or re-written to what I believe is better
-Thanks so much for all the reviews, I love em' all! Okay, enough of the small talk, here's Chapter 8 ;-)
Chapter 8
Her Plan Gets an Unexpected Turn
Two days after Amy and Jake's first initial date, she decided to call him up again, hoping to arrange another date and another "incidental" meeting with Sonic and Kathryn. Amy curled up on a love seat in her apartment and pressed her phone to her ear. "Hi, Jake," she began after she heard the phone on the other line being picked up.
"Oh, hey, Amy! How are things going with you?"
"Great! I mean…" Amy paused. "…Things are fine. You know, as usual." She didn't want to sound too chirpy or bubbly – she wanted to come off as cool.
"That's good."
"And yourself?"
"Eh…ever since I handed in that article that I had to leave our date early to get done – sorry again for that, by the way – things have been getting real busy over here at The Station Square Times, and my boss has already unloaded a ton of new assignments on me." Jake scratched his forehead. "It's been stressful, to say the least."
"I'm sorry to hear that." Amy frowned. "However, I think I have an idea to…" she struggled to find the right word,"…de-stressify you a little."
"'De-stressify'?" Jake questioned, a smile forming on his face. "Is that even a word?"
She laughed and shrugged. "I don't think so, but let's not change the topic of discussion. What do you say to dinner? Tonight."
"I say that sounds great." He reclined back in his chair. "Is there anywhere in particular you had in mind?"
"Well, I was thinking of a Chinese restaurant somewhere. Unless, of course, you don't have a taste for Chinese food."
"Are you kidding? I practically live on Chinese food. There's this one place near my apartment where they serve the best lemon chicken that you'll ever eat."
"Lemon chicken's my absolute favorite," Amy told him enthusiastically, forgetting all about trying to sound cool. "I'd love to try that place."
"Okay, we'll do that, then. What time should I pick you up?"
"Does 8:00 work for you?"
"Yep, 8:00 works just fine. I'll make sure my boss knows that I'm going out tonight so she won't call and nag me about anything." Jake ripped a piece of paper off the notepad on his desk, balancing his cell phone under his ear, and searched his desk for a pen. "What's your address?"
"Oh, right. You should probably know where I live if you're going to pick me up," she said, embarrassed. "My apartment building address is 1035 Weston St."
He wrote down the address and folded the paper in half, slipping in into his pocket. "Thanks. I got it."
"And about who's paying – I'd really like to, if you don't mind. You paid for everything the other night, so it's only fair."
"We could split the bill-"
"Jake, please."
"If you really want to, Amy, then I guess I can't stop you." He shook his head.
"Sorry – I'm hard-headed about this type of stuff. Anyway, I'll see you outside my apartment at 8:00."
"Alright. See you, Amy."
Amy hung her phone up on her receiver and let her head fall back, looking up at her ceiling. "Sonic is something of a connoisseur of Chinese food and restaurants, and he's crazy for lemon chicken, just like I am. So, if I know him well – and I do – he's probably intending on taking Kathryn out to the same Chinese restaurant." She folded her hands together on her stomach. "This is going a lot smoother than I imagined it would…"
-Later that night …-
Jake pulled up in front of Amy's apartment building in a modest-looking car – nothing that anyone would feel humiliated driving, but nothing flashy or awe-worthy either.
As soon as she spotted Jake, Amy waved at him, then walked over and got into his car. "Hey there, Jake!"
"Hi, Amy," Jake greeted her, turning in his seat. When he caught sight of her up close, his eyes widened a little. "Wow. You look…amazing."
She blushed deeply at his compliment. She had paired a short jean skirt and peep-toe high heels with a pretty, vibrant shirt that she had recently re-discovered in her closet after months of it being lost. She had also applied enough makeup so that her features were enhanced, without overdoing it. "Thank you."
He reluctantly swiveled his eyes back to the road ahead of him. "Shall we get going?"
Amy's stomach grumbled quietly. "You bet. I'm starved."
When they arrived at the Chinese restaurant – a small restaurant with limited seating space inside and neon signs in the windows – the man who seated them recognized Jake.
"Jake, how good it is to see you again!" he exclaimed warmly, putting a wrinkled hand on Jake's shoulder. Then the man noticed Amy. "And who is this lovely young lady?"
Jake made the introductions. "Lei, this is Amy, my date. Amy, this is Lei."
Amy held out her hand politely, which Lei accepted and shook. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lei."
"You, too, Amy." Lei leaned over to Jake and in a hushed aside told him, "This one is a keeper, Jake. I can feel it."
Jake didn't answer him, unsure of how to respond. His throat felt dry all of a sudden.
Lei placed menus into Amy's and Jake's hands. "Would you two like something to drink to start you off?"
"Could I get a Diet Coke, please?" Amy asked, surveying the menu.
"I'll have a regular Coke," Jake informed Lei, who nodded his head and hurried off to the kitchen.
Amy put her menu down on the table. "Do you want to get a few plates of different things to share?"
"Sure, that works for me. What would you like to get orders of?" Jake hardly glanced at his menu – he had been to the restaurant so many times that he knew the dishes by heart.
"Let's see…an order of lemon chicken, obviously. Hmm…an order of rice, too. Do you prefer steamed or fried?"
"Either is good. Whatever you want. I'm not picky," Jake said casually.
"If you say so. Any other dish recommendations?"
He folded his arms, resting his elbows on the table. "My personal recommendations? Well, off the top of my head, I'd say the Moo Shu pork, the Shanghai noodles, and the Cantonese chow mein."
"It's decided, then," she announced, raising her eyes from the menu. "I haven't had any of those dishes before…but I trust you, so I'm willing to try them."
Lei returned to serve them their drinks and to take their main course orders. Soon, he left them alone again.
"So, Jake, how long have you been working for the city newspaper?" Amy asked after taking a sip of her Diet Coke.
"Not very long – I started working for the newspaper just a few months ago. It's…well…the first 'real' job I've ever had," Jake replied, reaching for his own drink.
"That's exciting."
"How about you? Do you have a steady job?"
She hesitated briefly, wondering how she should answer. "Um…"
He raised his eyebrow slightly, intrigued by her sudden reluctance, as he waited for her to respond.
May as well just get it out in the open. "I don't need to work. I'm actually…something of a millionaire." Amy gave a bashful smile.
Jake's eyes noticeably widened. "A millionaire?"
"Yeah, I…um…recently won the Annual Station Square Lottery. Crazy, right?"
He leaned back in his chair, running both of his hands through his quills. "Wow! The odds of winning that thing are one in a million."
"Don't I know it." She shrugged her shoulders. "I guess I got lucky."
"No kidding!" Jake began shaking his head in disbelief, and then he stopped, having suddenly had a thought enter his mind. "If you don't mind me asking, Amy, what exactly does one DO with that kind of money?"
"Oh, the usual – hiring a staff of butlers, maids, personal chefs, and massage therapists to dote on me; buying islands out in the Caribbean; you know," Amy joked.
He chuckled at her teasing. "What, no mansion?"
"No ONE mansion," she pretended to corrected him. "I have at least a dozen mansions in various exotic locations."
"Ah. That seems sensible."
"It is, isn't it?"
"You're really living the dream."
"What can I say."
They both grinned at each other, greatly enjoying the other's company.
Just at that moment, Lei came back with five piping-hot plates of food. He set them down wherever there was space available on the table, and with a quick chiming of, "Bon appétit!" he disappeared once more.
"This all looks delicious," Amy commented, deeply inhaling the sweet aroma wafting off the dishes.
"Hey, what are we waiting for? Let's dig in."
-After dinner…-
The whole night had been like a dream; everything had gone so well. Amy had paid the bill like she had promised she would – although it prompted a millionaire-related quip from Jake – and they were now walking back to Amy's apartment building.
Amy was disappointed when her building eventually came into view, as she had been having such a fantastic time with Jake. The two of them wandered under the glow of a streetlamp, which was situated right next to the entrance steps of the building. She turned to him, biting her lip. "Well, this is my building."
He looked the building up and down, seeming as disappointed as she was that the night had reached its end, saying nothing.
Feeling both confident and painfully shy at the same time, Amy stepped closer and gave Jake a kiss on his cheek. "Goodnight, Jake. I had a wonderful time."
He ceased staring at her building once she had kissed him, his attention immediately being drawn back to her, but she was already up the entrance steps at that point. "Goodnight, Amy," he called to her, a little flushed – embarrassingly enough – from her display of affection.
She flashed him a final smile and waved at him over her shoulder before she brought out her key and unlocked the building door, making her way inside.
The minute Amy was back in her apartment, she flopped down her bed, exhilarated from her date. "That was without a doubt one of the best dates I've ever been on!" What about Sonic? "Sonic? Sonic doesn't even compare to Jake!" Are you even LISTENING to yourself? "What do you mean? All I'm saying is Jake is eons past Sonic. Jake is mature, intelligent, considerate, witty, and…oh my God." Amy sat up quickly, finally hearing the words that were coming out of her mouth. "I think I might be in love all over again!" You got that right.
-Didya all think it was cute? I hope you guys will keep reviewing! ;-)
