The sun broke through Hailey's window, signaling that morning had come. Funnily enough, Hailey didn't have any nightmares last night, she must have gotten home later than she usually did.
It was that thought that caused Hailey to truly wake up.
Last night. She went to the bar and saw Jay and had a... date? Was it even a date? All they did was eat some food and talk, mostly about her job, but still. And Jay did give her his number, which at the very least meant that he would like to talk to her again, hopefully.
Luckily it was Saturday morning and, on such days, Hailey met up with one of her best friends where they attended a yoga session together. Allison was one of the receptionists at Woodside and they had become fast friends once Allison had helped her out on her first day there.
Allison was a fun and bubbly woman which contrasted to Hailey's more serious demeaner, but it turns out that they balanced each other quite well. Allison would always have something fun planned for the weekend and Hailey would make sure that they never got into too much trouble.
Hailey smiled at that thought and checked her phone. It was early enough that she could get in a quick run before she left to meet Allie for yoga at ten.
She proceeded to throw on her workout clothes and a pair of running shoes and went out for her daily run. When she returned, she made herself a cup of coffee and she, once again, found her thoughts returning to last night. Jay had been so engaged in the conversation, always making eye contact, which was a good sign, and he had even shared her feelings on her not so pleasant childhood, though neither had said much, Hailey felt like they understood each other.
She downed the rest of her coffee and grabbed her bag before heading out the door. She drove to the studio and met Allie outside the door.
"Hey Hales! Let me tell you, I am ready to get my sweat on today, I just found out we're doing hot yoga." Allie said, smiling down at Hailey, who was a few inches shorter than her best friend.
"Oh, hot yoga, sounds intense. Let's go."
The two friends made their way inside and got out their mats and water bottles and found spots next to each other before the session began.
A little over an hour later, Hailey and Allison were chugging some water as the warm sun hit their faces.
"Damn, Allie. That was rough. I definitely need to refuel after, want to grab a late lunch at the diner on the corner?" Hailey questioned, looking to her best friend.
"Absolutely, I need to gain back all of the calories I just lost doing that."
They walked the couple blocks to the diner and found a table near the window. They each glazed over the menus, already knowing what they wanted. This wasn't the first time they had treated themselves after a particularly grueling yoga class. They did this quite often, especially when the instructor decided to pop in some ab workouts, 'Just for fun!' she would say. Hailey and Allie didn't always share that sentiment, but they'd gotten pretty good at the workouts by now.
"So, anything exciting happen since I saw you yesterday?" Allison asked.
"Actually. Kind of?" Said Hailey, she was still unsure what to make of last night.
"Wait, really? I didn't expect you to say yes. Spill. Now!"
"Okay, so do you remember a couple weeks ago when I told you how that creepy guy hit on me at the Blue Fox and I really wasn't feeling it, so I kind of punch him in the face?"
"Of course, I remember, that was one of the best stories you've told me so far!" Allie exclaimed, but soon calmed down once the waiter came by to get their orders, both stating their usual.
"Well, the bartender and I actually had a brief conversation and then I went back last night and we had an even better one. He asked me if I could wait till he finished his shift and we got some burgers at Joe's place. And then we just talked and it was really nice, he was super interested in my job and when I mentioned that my childhood kind of sucked, he actually sympathized! A lot of the time, once guys hear that, they look at me as if I have something wrong with me. It was just really nice to feel recognized, I guess."
"Oh Hales, that's amazing! I'm happy you didn't have another bad experience with men. The bad ones just seem drawn to you, which honestly sucks, because you are absolutely amazing."
"Yeah, he seems like a great guy, I just don't know of it was like a date or if he just needed conversation that wasn't drunk girls hitting on him at the bar."
"But Hales, he asked you to wait for him and then you guys ate food and had a wonderful conversation! How could that not be a date?" Allison asked, surprised at what Hailey was saying.
"I mean, he did give me his number at the end and said he wanted to talk to me again." Hailey suggested, as their meals were place in front of them.
"That's great, at least if it wasn't considered a date, you have his number and you can talk to him again, hopefully ask him on a real one."
"I wouldn't be opposed to that. Oh, Allie, you should have seen him, he's got these sweet freckles and a genuine smile that I don't normally see in men." Hailey stated, casting a slightly dazed look towards Allison.
"Aw, it sounds like you really like him Hales. I think you should definitely see if he's interested, this could be great for you!"
The women finished their meals and paid before taking a short walk down the street, talking about Allison's plans for that night to hit up a bar with a woman from her book club. Allison had asked Hailey if she would like to join, but Hailey politely declined, stating she wanted to catch up on some emails and household chores that weekend.
They parted ways, each heading for their own homes.
Hailey returned to her apartment with a mission to get ahead on the bit of work she had brought home with her as well as tidy up and get some laundry done.
She had made a deal with herself that if Jay didn't text her by the end of the weekend, she would. Well, hopefully.
Just as she was winding down for the night, Hailey heard a knock at her door. Getting up from her couch, she made her way over and opened it. Over the threshold stood Vanessa, her neighbor from a few doors down.
"Hey, Hailey. Mind if I come in for a sec? This case we're working just has me exhausted." Vanessa said smiling at Hailey.
They had met when they both moved into the same apartment building around the same time almost two years ago. Hailey had introduced herself one afternoon making an offhand comment about finally finding a good place to live in a city like Chicago. Vanessa quickly echoed that sentiment and the two had been friends ever since.
"Sure thing, come on in." Hailey opened the door and gestured into her apartment.
"Did you want something to drink?" Hailey asked.
"You have any beers left?"
"You're lucky I bought a new case a couple days ago."
"Oh, thank God, I needed a drink." Vanessa said with a sigh. Hailey could tell be her slouched shoulders and tired eyes that the case Vanessa and her team were working on was long and strenuous.
"Are you getting enough sleep? You have to take care of yourself, you can't be always running on empty."
"I know, I know. We've just been at this for a while and at this point we've only been circling the same ideas which haven't panned out at all. But enough about work. How have you been, Hales?" Vanessa asked before taking a swig of her beer.
"Pretty good, work is going steady and I got contacted by another detective about a homicide case."
"That's great! Who's the detective?"
"His name was Matthews, I think."
"Oh yeah, I've worked with him before, he's good police."
"Well that's good to know. Actually, something interesting did happen this week. Last night I had a sort of date." Hailey stated with a small smile on her face.
"Really? That's great Hales. What's his name?"
"Okay Vanessa, it was barely a date and all I've got is his first name and phone number."
"Well, can I see that then? I could look him up for you."
"No. You aren't going to do that. He seemed really nice and I don't need him discovering that I had my cop friend spy on him. He was really genuine and I trust him enough not to need a criminal history, which I doubt he has." Hailey finished her short speech and took a sip of her beer.
She loved that Vanessa was protective and caring, but Hailey knew people's minds and behaviors and that would tell her everything she needed to know about Jay and from what she had seen, he was a good guy.
"If you ever change your mind, hit me up. But as for now I think I'm gonna go crash at my place. I hope it goes well with your new guy. You let me know if you need back up." Vanessa said, getting up to leave.
"That won't be necessary, but I appreciate your concern. Have a good night, Vanessa." Hailey watched her leave and went to lock the door before heading to the bathroom to brush her teeth before turning in for the night
As she was lying in bed, Hailey thought back to last night and talking with Jay. She really hoped he was who he appeared to be; she had had enough experience with two faced men.