Wow! Thank you all so much for all the wonderful feedback! :D It's been a pretty crazy week for me with escaping into my creative writing outside work and walks as my only outlets. But, seriously thank you all so much for your kindness in expressing your opinions. This chapter begins right after Professor Utonium dashed out of the house to escape being questioned profusely and is now driving into Townsville on his way to dinner with Ms. Bellum. Hope you all enjoy it!
(The Professor's POV)
I was already on the highway heading into the city, even though I had to reroute to the tollway since the Townsville Memorial Highway was destroyed a couple hours ago.
I had known the girls were out fighting crime but it wasn't until I was listening to the radio just now that I found out about the fight the girls had earlier with the RowdyRuff Boys that completely destroyed both the inbound and outbound sides of the road.
It was nice to hear the girls were able to stop everything and come home safe as always, but I was also relying on the radio to help distract my thoughts and calm my nerves.
My thoughts and nerves feel about as chaotic and jumbled as an unstable isotope as I gripped the steering wheel tight and bit my lip as I started entering the city limits.
"Come on. You can do this." I said, mindlessly thinking out loud to myself.
Not that it helped.
I was still confused as ever about what I was even doing right now. Again, not that it's a bad thing or something I wasn't interested in.
That would be a lie to myself.
Honestly, earlier I was looking forward to meeting Ms. Bellum for dinner until the girls caught me off guard and reminded me of how nervous I actually was.
Ugh… why am I so atrociously pathetic when it comes to women?
It probably doesn't help that all my one on one experiences with women in the past were all a bunch of absolute failures.
I let a super villain trick and manipulate me into turning on my girls, I had things fall apart with Ms. Keane over something as ridiculously trivial as cats and has only created awkwardness every time we see each other for parent-teacher conferences now… and those are just my most recent experiences!
Not that I've had much experience with women I was interested in before to begin with since I've never been good with women.
Especially when I'm around a woman as beautiful, confident, and intelligent as Ms. Bellum.
But, I guess that goes without saying since I know I am far from the only man in Townsville who finds Ms. Bellum attractive. Although my attraction isn't just physical since I also respect her personally for her intellect from when we've talked in passing.
Not that it means anything really.
As I turned the corner, I took a deep breath as I parked several yards down in a meter parking spot. Not knowing how long this was going to go, I put enough change in for a couple hours just to be safe.
Even though I could still feel my nerves getting the better of me and a part of me wanted to run, I was determined to see this through. I took up the invitation from Ms. Bellum and promised I'd talk with her over dinner and I knew it wasn't fair to her if I didn't show.
Also I kept trying to remind myself of the facts.
As nervous as she makes me and even though we're just acquaintances at most, I knew I had no real reason to be nervous, right? After all, she seems like a very good natured and kind woman.
Not to mention my girls think so highly of her… then again, that's part of the reason why I didn't want to tell them I was going out to dinner with her in the first place and give them a false impression.
This wasn't a date, at least no mention of it being a date anyway.
Oh no, I'm back to square one again… Ugh! I'm such a…
"Hello Professor." I froze up, knowing it was Ms. Bellum.
My muscles clenched for a second before releasing and I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. I tried to straighten up as I turned around to greet her until… it felt as if every muscle and joint in my body locked up again as I faced her only to just stare as my mouth fell open a bit at what I was seeing.
Unlike normal her hair was pulled back a bit to show more of her face and she was in a beautiful red evening gown.
Wow… she looked absolutely breathtaking!
Not that she doesn't always look breathtaking in my opinion, but somehow she managed to surpass her usual level of class and beauty tonight.
I tried to clear my throat and fold my hands in front of me as I glanced away for a moment to gain some control, feeling awkward about just gawking at her a moment ago. "H-Hello Ms. Bellum. Y-you look stunning!"
I immediately felt like I wanted to phase through the sidewalk at the very moment that left my lips.
What is wrong with me?! Why did I have to mention anything about her looks when this is supposed to be a platonic dinner?! Plus I was completely gawking at her and probably made her uncomfortable. Why do I always ruin everything with these things?!
As I continued to scold myself internally, I was surprised to just see her smiling at me.
"Thank you for saying that, Professor. And it you don't mind me saying," She paused for a second as she walked closer to me and straightened the lapel that flipped up a bit on my jacket before continuing, "I think you look quite handsome as well."
I felt like my jaw was going to drop again or my eyes were going to fall out upon hearing that.
Handsome?...
She retracted her hand as she said, "Anyway, are you ready to go in? I made reservations just in case since I heard this place can get very busy. And unlike being late earlier, I actually got here earlier than usual to redeem myself."
She let out a laugh at herself in a self deprecating manner as I saw her still fighting off the shock and confusion of everything right now yet somehow I managed to say, "Y-yes. Of course. Let's go in."
I just acted on instinct and nervous impulse as I immediately shot in front of her and opened the door. I had no idea what I was doing or what was even happening right now anymore, but I was still determined to prove to myself that I could handle this.
Why do I even get so nervous about these things?
It isn't even a date and it's not her fault I can't get a hold over myself.
You can do this Antonio. Pull yourself together.
She gave me a smile as she said, referring to me opening the door, "Thank you, professor." I just gave her a smile and nod back, feeling scared to say anything and make a fool out of myself, especially in front of her.
As I followed in behind her, we approached the host station as we passed a crowd of people waiting in the lobby and saw a woman dressed in a skirt and nice blouse standing at the station.
The woman looked at us and said, "Welcome to Giovanni's. Do you have a reservation?"
"Yes, reservation for 2 under Sara." Ms. Bellum replied so smoothly that it made me jealous yet also immensely impressed by the confidence I always seem to see her possess whenever we interact with each other, especially recently.
The hostess scanned her list on her podium before saying, "There you are!" She reached behind her and got 2 menus and waved for us to follow her.
As I looked around at all the filled tables, I was surprised by how quickly we were able to get in even with our reservation if the crowded lobby was any indication. We kept going and somehow ended up in a different dining area. Unlike the main area that had a lot more noise from conversation and music, this area was more relaxed in its atmosphere.
It was lit a bit dimmer than the other room with tea lights in small decorative bowls on all the tables.
The hostess showed us to this 2 person booth in the corner of the room as we both sat across from each other, though it still felt quite cozy in my opinion.
The 2 menus were given to us as the hostess said, "Your waiter Carlo will come to your table shortly." "Thank you." Ms. Bellum responded as she picked up her menu with her pristinely manicured hands.
However, she put the menu down when she looked at me and asked, sounding slightly concerned, "Is something wrong?"
I bit my lip slightly for a second as I responded, deciding to just be honest, "Ms. Bellum, not that I am complaining or anything, but you really didn't need to issue this generous of an invitation to me if it's too much. I would have been happy to talk to you in a more casual environment if you had any questions than put you through any trouble."
After a second, she had this look and I immediately thought that I offended her somehow.
I hung my head and opened my mouth to apologize when she immediately cut me off with, "Professor, none of this was any trouble. Honestly I was just glad you wanted to go out to dinner so we could talk. And I just heard several good reviews from friends about this place so I thought we could both give it a try tonight. Not to mention it's been a while since I've been out for a fancy night out on the town. Unless this is not…" "No, no! I'm… I'm sorry. I just am not used to this kind of thing and I just didn't want you to feel like you had to ask us to go out to a place like this." I explained, even though I luckily left out the part that I also wasn't used to being in situations like this with a woman as beautiful as her.
Plus, I thought her response was very surprising to me to hear she didn't going out often to venues like this. I picture her being out at places like this regularly on dates with men much more confident and suave than I am.
Even though that isn't saying much coming from a socially awkward man like me who gets very easily nervous in situations like this.
It was quiet for a moment before she smiled and said, "Not at all, professor. I'm just glad you accepted my invitation."
I managed to smile as I said, "Me too."
At that moment a slightly portly gentleman in black slacks and white dress shirt with a red vest and tie approached our table and greeted, "Hello and welcome to Giovanni's. My name is Carlo and I'll be your server this evening. Can I interest either of you in a glass of something from our extensive wine list?"
"I wouldn't mind a glass of something." Ms. Bellum said, looking at the list before looking at me and asking, "What about you, professor?"
"Well… you know, why not? I'll take whatever you're ordering." I replied as she looked toward our waiter and answered, "In that case, we'll take 2 glasses of your recommended Moscato and also some water please."
"Right away, ma'am. I'll leave you to look over the menu." He replied before walking off.
"I don't know about you? But I just feel like living a little tonight. I hope you don't mind?" "Oh no. I don't really have a drink too often so I'm definitely up for something different." I said, not believing how I actually got that out without stuttering.
She gave me a smile before looking at the menu and saying, "Let's order and then if you don't mind, can we get to talking and asking those questions I had?" "Absolutely." I said as I looked to the menu for a distraction.
Our waiter came back with our glasses and took our orders before taking off. I watched as she took her glass in hand and looked at me before saying, "How about a toast?"
It took a second for me to realize she was asking me to propose a toast as I quickly reached for my glass, nearly spilling it in the process, before saying knowing I was still showing my nerves, "Um… how about uh… to good conversation?"
She gave me a smile again and responded, "To good conversation." "Good conversation." I repeated as we both clinked our glasses before taking a sip. Mine was more of a gulp, but I know I was still struggling to control my nerves.
Honestly, I wasn't sure if it was just myself adjusting or even the drink, but I felt like I was adjusting slowly but surely to the situation and getting a bit more comfortable.
Ms. Bellum asked me various questions about some points from the seminar until our food was brought to the table. I don't know where I got the bravery from, but I looked to her and said, "So… you're working toward your Master's degree? What are you studying?"
After finishing a bite and waiting a second she responded, "Political Science. I've had my Bachelor's for 15 years and I've been working for Townsville city hall with the Mayor as both his personal and press secretary since I graduated from college. But recently… I don't know? I just had this drive to go back to school and get my Master's. So, I've been doing classes bit by bit for the past 3 years and I hope to be done within the next few years."
"I think that's great… I mean, pursuing education is so important and I feel like a lot of people usually aren't brave enough to do what you do by going back to school. That's why with my girls I always tell them that education is… I'm sorry. I'm getting off topic." I apologized, feeling awkward about bringing the conversation to my girls like I always seem to.
I hung my head a little until she said, "You don't need to apologize. I absolutely adore your girls and I think that's so great that you encourage their schooling so much. It shows you have good character and I admire that."
I was so stunned for a second that the piece of Chicken Parmesan on my fork slipped off and landed in my lap. What was worse is that I realized I was so distracted that I forgot to put my napkin on my lap and now had a giant white sauce stain from the creme sauce on the chicken on my dress pants and the lower portion of my jacket a bit.
I scrambled for a second before grabbing the napkin and started frantically wiping off my pants as Ms. Bellum said, her tone sounding concerned, "Oh, are you alright?"
"Y-yes! Sorry. Just… just a little stain that's all." I said with a nervous laugh until I realized several people around us were glancing toward the display I somehow always end up in.
I was so embarrassed that I just stood up and said, "I-I'm sorry, but excuse me for a moment." After recalling seeing where the restroom was on our way to the table, I immediately went into the men's room and made way for the sinks.
I took the opportunity to start cleaning off my pants as I was letting out all that nervous and embarrassed energy from just making a fool of myself in front of Ms. Bellum. I didn't know what else to do until I decided to splash some cold water on my face to help get myself back under control.
As I was splashing water on my face; however, I heard people enter and two men talking to each other as they made their way toward the urinals behind this wall in the bathroom.
"What do you think? Sheila's friend your type?" One asked. "Nah. She's cute but not for me. Thanks anyway for trying to set me up with this double date. Speaking of my type, did you see that red head in the red dress that walked in earlier?" The other responded, knowing he was referring to Ms. Bellum.
"You mean the one who walked in with that total square?" His friend said, making me realize they were definitely talking about Ms. Bellum now… and me.
The guy sighed in an annoyed fashion before saying , "I know! What's a total bombshell like her doing with a guy like that? Some guys get all the luck. Hey, maybe I could try to get her number on the way out and show her what a real good time is."
Both of them started laughing and snickering to themselves at the snide joke and… I felt my eyebrows furrow and my knuckles clench on reflex out of slight anger and jealousy when I heard them talking about Ms. Bellum that way.
I walked out of the bathroom, but paused for a moment when I realized that I wasn't really justified in my jealousy.
We weren't on a date. In fact, we aren't even necessarily that close either, so why am I jealous? I tried to shake the whole side conversation out of my head as I returned to the table as Ms. Bellum asked, "Professor, are you sure you're alright?"
I tried really hard to maintain my composure this time as I replied, "Oh yes! Yes, I'm fine. Just wanted to wash up a bit. But anyway, were there any other questions you had for me?"
To my surprise, I saw her look down slightly, thrumming her nails on the side of her glass of water for a moment until she said, "Actually professor… would you mind if I just made an honest confession?" I tilted my head as I inquired, "Confession?"
She brushed a little bit of her hair behind her ear as she said, "Well, more just being honest. I didn't invite you to dinner just to ask questions I had about your seminar…" "O-Oh?" I stuttered, not knowing what was currently happening.
"Honestly, I really just wanted to invite you out to dinner just to be able to talk to you." She stated, giving me a smile.
My mind was still wrapped up in total confusion as I just mindlessly let out, "W-why?"
She let out a slight laugh as she said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh. But, after that last time we saw each other after the girls took down Mojo Jojo again, I realized that we've never really gotten the chance to really talk to each other in the past very much. And when I saw the posters up at Townsville College for your seminar, I just really wanted to go to see if I could get the chance to talk to you."
I was still in shock by her confession and I think she saw I was not capable of coherent speech at the moment since she immediately elaborated, "You see, professor, I hope you don't mind my saying so, but… I really do admire you. You just always come off as a very kind, genuine, and interesting man to me. Also, your girls absolutely adore you, but I realized I never really took the time to get to know you. So, I hope you don't mind if I asked you out to dinner with a bit of an ulterior motive."
She let out a slight laugh at the end but was still smiling at me as I continued to stare at her in absolute disbelief.
My mind was still processing everything I just heard her say until I cleared my throat a couple times, nervously clasping my hands together, before saying, "N-no! I'm not upset at all. But… I'm just… I'm just confused? If I'm honest, I don't think you really know me at all if you think I'm interesting considering I don't think I am. I'm sure you're a lot more interesting than I am."
"I disagree," She said immediately before taking a brief pause and continuing, "I think you're very interesting. You're a scientist, an inventor, and you're a father to girls who make a difference for so many people. Not to mention, if you think my life is more interesting than yours... then you definitely heave the wrong impression about me as well. I'm really not as interesting as you probably think I am. To be fair, you also aren't the first person to assume that about me."
She let out a slight self-deprecating laugh again.
I had no idea what to even say anymore, but luckily she kept talking as she said, "I'm sorry if I maybe went a bit too much on the dinner and made you uncomfortable, but…" "Oh no! Don't be! I just… I'm sorry, I'm just not really used to these kinds of situations. So, please don't take any of this personally. It has nothing to do with you. Trust me I… I may not be very good at showing it, but I value your company very much Ms. Bellum, really."
There was a period of silence between us until I saw her slowly start to smile at me and I smiled back on reflex. We kept smiling until Carlo came back to the table with the check.
I started to reach for it until I realized she reached for it at the exact same time as our hands touched for a moment. I could feel myself start to overheat again from nerves as I heard her say, "I can take the check, professor."
I whipped my head up at her as I started, "Oh I couldn't possibly…" "Please, it's no trouble. I insist since it was my idea. But I appreciate the gesture. You can cover next time if you like… if you'd like to meet again to chat? Maybe we can do something more casual like coffee or lunch?"
I felt almost paralyzed for a second until I said, almost not believing how mindlessly the words came out of my mouth, "Lunch sounds great."
She gave me a smile again before reaching into her hand bag and put a credit card into the book.
After our check was paid for, I stood up from the table and held my hand out to her to help her out of her seat at the booth. Even though we agreed I'd pay next time, I still felt bad she wouldn't let me at least pay for my meal since this was kind of pricey.
She looked a little taken back by my gesture at first, smiled and grabbed my hand before saying, "Thank you professor."
I was trying to fight off my nerves as I just smiled as best as I could and gave her a nod. I was too scared to say anything at the moment and completely make a fool out of myself for the millionth time tonight. We made our way out of the bistro and to my immense relief, neither of those men from the restroom crossed our path.
She looked like she was going off in a different direction as I immediately stepped in and said, "Please, Ms. Bellum. I'll walk you to your car." "Oh that's very nice, but you don't have to if you don't…" "Please, I insist." I cut in quickly as I motioned for us to walk.
We both started walking until we got to her car several yards away. We got to her red sedan as she said, "Well, thank you for a nice evening, professor. Maybe now that we got past this, perhaps we can have a bit more easy going conversation next time?"
"I-I'm glad and… I'd like that, very much." I said.
Even though I just felt like I was being a nervous wreck the whole time and couldn't possibly understand why she was saying she had a nice time with me.
I was about to turn when I heard, "Also, if it's all the same to you, I'd prefer it if you called me Sara."
I looked up only to go into a state of catatonic shock when she gave me a kiss on the cheek. My whole body felt paralyzed as she said, a small smile on her face, "Good night."
My mouth was open and I felt like I was unable to speak as I just gave her a slow wave. After that I watched as she climbed into her car and drove off.
I kept standing there, collecting myself before turning and making my way back to my car.
As I walked, I slowly lifted my hand to my cheek as I smiled a little to myself.
Well, I hope you all enjoyed my perspective of how a date between Ms. Bellum and Professor Utonium would go… well, a "date". Haha. XD After all the times I've seen Ms. Bellum in the show being this woman who radiates confidence and the Professor having some nervous reaction when around women he's attracted to, I just wanted to represent that as best as I could in this chapter. In particular, I wanted to show an insecure side of Professor Utonium. To me, I just think he would be one of those guys who would always underrate himself and not understand why in his mind a woman like Ms. Bellum would show any interest in a guy like him at all... even though he couldn't be more wrong. This then plays into Ms. Bellum, who while an intelligent woman, I could see getting singled out by a lot of shallow men for her looks alone and values someone like the professor who is far from just treating her like just a pretty face (no pun intended considering we've still never fully seen Ms. Bellum's face). Haha. To me, I could completely see her being secretly sweet on a man like the professor who, while not the most confident with women, is drawn to his genuine personality and nerdy charm so to speak. Not going to lie but as an adult, I'd personally say that Professor Utonium is one of my cartoon character crushes. A handsome yet adorkable man in a lab coat? Sign me up! XD But, since they were already kind of acquainted in the series, I wanted to make their first "date" energy a bit different since they aren't necessarily strangers to each other. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and as always constructive feedback is always appreciated! Thank you so much for reading and I hope you all are staying safe and well out there. :)
Stay Classy!
Dexter1995