Okay, I like how this is going. I think I'm going to make this into a series. This story may only be a few chapters, like how they got together...or if they do. -cough, cough- I actually like this, ha.
Sighing as he shut off his car, Greg reached over and took the keys out pocketing them along with his wallet. He looked at the restaurant across the street and thought in his mind that his mother had gone completely crazy. But he knew he had to humor his mother. He got out of the car, locking it and walking across the street.
Greg was never one too hip about fancy food, but he was doing this for the sake of his mother and her inability to, lack of a better phrase, butt out of his love life or lack thereof. He straightened out his button down red shirt under his black jacket, debating whether or not to tuck into his black pants. He shrugged the idea off, not thinking it was a big deal. He opened the door, being met by florescent lights, air conditioning and the smell of fancy burn-a-hole-in-your-pocket type food.
"I understand that, but my Mom set me up and if it's not under Adams, they must have put it under the guy's last name and I don't know it." Greg turned his head to the podium where a young, probably fresh out of high school kid was being chewed out by a girl he thought sounded not too much older than the waiter.
He hoped this was the girl because if not, then he was about to make an ass out of himself. Approaching with caution, Greg cleared his throat, causing the waiter's eyes to move from the girl to Greg. The girl with her back to him turned, the material of her dress slightly twirling as she did so.
"Butt out, man. I think you can wait a few minutes to shove your face." she spoke, blue eyes twinkling with what looked like annoyance. Greg scoffed and raised an eyebrow and spoke his rebuttal.
"Well fine, Riley." he said, drawing out her name as he said it, "if you don't want me to help you, then so be it." he said, holding his hands up in defense. He took in the dropped jaw of the blondie with a smirk of his own on his face. The two's glares were interrupted by the waiter's slightly squeaky voice cutting into it.
"Excuse me, if you don't have a reservation, I'm going to ask you to leave." Greg was the first to break the staring contest and turned his attention to the waiter.
He leaned foward to look at his name tag. "Cory, I believe you'll find a reservation for two, under the name Sanders." he said, looking at Riley from the corner of his eye. She had reattached her jaw but the look of shock still dwindled within her face.
The kid looked down, nodding as he crossed the name off and reached into the side pocket pulling out two menus. "Of course, sir. Right this way." he looked up and smiled, leading the two into the dining area.
Greg looked behind him, swinging his arms in a motion that told Riley, 'after you.' She hesitantly did so, walking in front of him, every once in a while glancing back to glare at her date.
"Here we are; I'll take your orders in a bit, but can I start you off with something to drink?" he asked as the two sat in the seats across from each other and he handed them the menus.
"If I was old enough, I'd drink myself to death." she mumbled under her breath and the waiter raised an eyebrow.
"Pardon?"
Riley shook her head, "Oh, a coke is fine." she said, looking at her menu, avoiding eye contact. She heard Greg order the same and she heard Cory's diminishing footsteps.
"So, you go to the university, I hear." Greg attempted to make small talk as he looked over his own menu, occasionally stealing glances over the table.
"Mhm. I hear you work at the police lab." she said, more interested in what was going into her stomach than the man sitting across from her. She heard Greg give a reply.
"Yep. DNA technician." he said, his eyes raising again, but this time they met Riley's.
She chuckled dryly and spoke. "Let me guess. Your mom called you out of the blue to set you up on a blind date." she said, looking back down at the menu on the request of her near growling stomach.
With a nod, Greg replied. "Yup. Only agreed so she'd shut up. She's so hell bent on me settling down and making a family." Greg rolled his eyes.
Riley looked up to reply but then saw her waiter coming back with their drinks. He set the two Cokes down on the table and put the platter under his arm as he pulled out his notepad, looking to the pair. "So, if you're ready to order, go ahead." he said, waiting.
Riley looked up while closing her menu. "I'll have the grilled veal tenderloin." she gave a courteous smile, handing him the menu, which he took and and then turned to Greg who folded up his menu and handed it to him.
"I'll have the same, actually." he said. Cory nodded and walked away after writing down the orders they'd placed.
Now with the menus gone, they had little excuse to not make eye contact. They both made attempts to open their mouths, but every time they did so, it would be at the same time as the other.
They'd occupied their time waiting for food with small talk about the surroundings and the dull weather talk about Las Vegas.
Finally after about ten minutes of drab conversation, Riley sighed and spoke. "Listen, Greg, You seem like an okay guy. Well, what I've seen in the past,-" Riley paused to look at her faux diamond watch, "-half hour or so, but...we both know this isn't going to go anywhere. You're working, I'm in school. Just like you, I only did this to make my mom happy." while in the middle of her little speech, neither noticed one of the restaurant's other waiters approaching their area, probably to the table in front of their own, nor did they notice that one of the patron's purse had been left on the floor, farther away from the table than it should have been.
But they both sure as hell noticed said waiter tumbling to his feet and the platter he was holding go down with him, but it landed a bit farther than expected.
Riley, to be exact. In three seconds flat, without any time to react, Riley had a hot plate of food stuck to her chest and had been covered almost chest to toe with what she thought, but didn't care, was fettuccine Alfredo. Greg, with his jaw dropped, turned in his seat to the fallen waiter behind him. "You just covered my date in pasta!" he half yelled as Riley attempted to scoop the food out of her cleavage and out of the bottom of her hair, eventually giving up.
The waiter stumbled to his feet as the other eating patrons watched; some in shock and some holding back snickers. Before the clumsy waiter could say anything, a large, stocky man appeared from the back employee's section. "Marcus! What's happened here?" he said, his gaze moving from the shocked waiter to the fuming blond covered in someone else's dinner.
"Sir, I tripped. I'm sorry." he said, swallowing deeply.
The man grimaced. "Not me you should be apologizing to." he said, turning to Greg and shaking his head. "Sir, I am so sorry. Your meal is on the house." he said, forcing a sympathetic smile to which Greg scoffed.
He stood up, sliding his jacket off and walking around the table to Riley, who was finally standing up, more pasta falling from her lap to the carpeted floor. He slipped the jacket around her shoulders and picked up her purse from the back of her chair. "Damn right. Don't even bring us the food." he said, quietly ushering Riley out of the building.
Once they were outside, the people walking sidewalks and crossing the street took time out to look at the sauce covered girl. Greg turned and stood in front of Riley. "I am so sorry that happened." he said, handing back the purse he'd carried out. They already looked foolish enough, him carrying a purse would've had mixed into the equation.
Riley scoffed. "Don't be sorry for me. Be sorry for this dress. My dad spent almost two hundred on it for me to wear at my cousin's wedding." she said, taking her purse back and threading her arms through the arms of the jacket.
"Well, if it's any consolation, you look beautiful; pasta or not." he gave a smile to which Riley actually felt a warm heat on her cheeks. 'Why is this kid so awkwardly sweet?' Riley asked herself.
She smiled. "Thanks. You don't look too bad yourself." she said, reaching out and wiping her fingers on a part of his shirt and pulling her fingers back. "Minus the sauce that I got on you." she said, looking at her index finger and wiping the sauce onto Greg's nose to which he crinked it up and wiped furiously at it with his hand.
Riley laughed. "Hey, what do you say McDonalds? On me. I mean, I'd rather eat there than that hoity-toity shit." she said, waving her arm in the direction of the restaurant. Greg nodded, pulling his keys from his pants pocket.
"Come on, I'll drive." he offered to which Riley looked down at her appearal and shrugged.
"Do you mind a pit stop to my dorm? I really don't want to go back out looking like this." she motioned towards her ruined dress. She looked back up to see Greg smiling yet again.
He nodded as they walked across the street after they'd been given the signal. "No problem." he said, clicking the unlock button on his keys, unlocking the vehicle's doors as the two of them got in.
Ha, I actually enjoyed writing that. I love writing disasterous dates, haha. So, comments and I'll update faster. (:
