Disclaimer: Don't own 'em… wish I did.
Chapter Two
The Evening Begins
Rowen sat outside of the restaurant, tapping his fingers nervously on the steering wheel. Why he was feeling so nervous, he couldn't understand. Mina had suggested a little semi-casual café that Rowen was not familiar with. He looked out the window of his car, which was parked across the street, watching the small Christmas lights blaze to life in the growing darkness. It looked cute enough, and the smell of the food was making his mouth water.
'Come on, Rowen,' he said to himself as he switched off the car, 'it's not going to be that bad.'
Rowen had called Sage in a panic that morning because he had no idea what to wear. Sage had suggested khaki pants and a nice shirt, which Rowen was growing a little sparse on because he hadn't done laundry in ages. As Rowen dove into his closet and called suggestions to Sage over the phone, he finally decided on a cream colored Henley shirt. As he dusted it off (since it had been sitting for God knows how long on the floor of his closet), he heard Sage offer a suggestion.
"Just watch what you say, man. You have such a dry sense of humor, it seems a little bit rude from time to time."
Rowen stared into the phone in shock, "Well, at least I don't suggest to the ladies about how they should wear tighter pants because they have such a sweet ass."
As Sage stuttered and stammered trying to explain why that was smooth, Rowen cut him off by placing the phone calmly on the receiver.
And here he was, staring at the quaint café like it was going to chop off his head if he stepped inside. Finally, he gathered up his strength and got out of the car and into the cool night air. He approached the doors, and spotted a fair hand waving to him from the corner of a decorative flowerpot. He spotted Mina, and waved back, a grin on his face.
Mina walked from beside the pot to meet up with him, her long raven hair flowing in the breeze. She was dressed in a knee-length gray skirt, and a pressed green button-up blouse. Her eyes shimmered an unusual emerald green shade and her face crinkled into a smile. As she opened her mouth to say "hello" to him, her heel caught in a crevice in the sidewalk, and she began to fall.
Rowen ran over to try and catch her, but as he stretched his arms out to catch her, she slipped in between them, and she fell to the ground with a thud.
"Oh my God, are you okay?" Rowen asked, trying to keep the obvious chuckle out of his voice.
She looked up at him with a bit of annoyance, but smiled anyway and rubbed her ankle, "Well, I guess that's what I get for trying to be over-dressed."
Rowen extended his hand to her, "Let me help you up. Sorry that I didn't catch you. I guess that I'm getting a little behind on the heroism bit."
Mina reached her hand up to him, and grasped it firmly, "That's okay. I'm not used to playing the damsel in distress."
Rowen pulled her up and began to dust off the bits of debris that had landed on her clothes. He didn't realize where he was brushing until he heard,
"Rowen."
"Yeah?" he asked as he continued to brush.
"You're being really sweet, but we can wait for later for that."
"What do you me-" he began as he stopped brushing, his sea-green eyes wide as he realized where his hand had stopped the task.
Right on her ass.
'Strike One', he thought to himself with a grimace.
He jerked his hand away almost immediately, and turned a shade of bright red, "Sorry." He mumbled as he hid his face in his hands.
Mina giggled as she pulled his hand down from his face, "It's okay. Like I said, you were being sweet… But maybe we could continue that later."
Rowen raised his eyebrows and stared down at her, trying to think of something to say. Instead, he remembered Sage's advice and only smiled instead of making a smart-aleck comment. He extended his elbow out to her, and she accepted it gratefully. As they approached the door, he held it open for her, and took the opportunity to view what he hadn't noticed a moment ago.
Maybe he'd onlyhit a foul ball earlier instead of a strike. Why else would she have said what she said? He smiled to himself as he walked in behind her and waited to be seated.
Maybe this wasn't going to turn out so bad after all! But then again, as he glanced down at his watch, he still had plenty of time to completely screw this up, and it was looking like it was going to be a long, challenging evening.
So, what do you think so far? This is my first humor fic, and it has been a lot of fun writing! What's going to happen to poor Rowen? Will he win the girl, or will outside forces interfere? Thanks to those with the kind words of encouragement. It has been greatly appreciated!