Accompanying soundtrack: Saint Etienne – "We're In The City"
Jen watched Jess walk in, and she looked good. Dressed in a black t-shirt, amply demonstrating her assets, and jeans with a loose studded belt that slouched down more than they probably ought, revealing the waist band of her pants. She had a couple of tattoos on her arms peeking out from her turned up t-shirt sleeves. She was the kind of girl your mother would not approve of, and that was never a bad thing. Jess looked over and caught Jen's eyes. Jen gave herself away slightly, Smiling broadly, eyes widening, she could feel her heart rate increased and the nerves kicked in. They fixed their stares until just before Jess reached the table Jen was sitting at.
"Hey, how're you doing?" said Jess grinning.
"Yeah, I'm good thanks, you?" replied Jen.
"Pretty good, ta, but I'm parched. Drink?"
Trying to work out what was an appropriate drink to start with, Jen decided on something middle of the road, until she could see what Jess brought back for herself.
"Some kind of fruit cider will be lovely, thanks," she replied.
Jess turned and headed towards the bar and Jen watched her go, taking the opportunity to check her out a little more subtly. She looked Jess up and down and Jen felt quite drawn to her, she watched her stride confidently away and stand at the bar with purpose and presence. Jen congratulated herself on her good taste, although it's fair to say she felt a little intimidated.
As she sat and admired Jess from afar, she wondered what the evening would hold. Conversation aside, Jen hoped there would be some chemistry between the two of them. There was certainly attraction, but the media teaches us that some of the most attractive looking people are the dullest, most vapid creatures on earth. Jess turned and walked back to where Jen was sat, put the drink down, and took a seat herself.
"It's a fruity little number, with undertones of raspberry and lime," Jess winked.
"I'm also getting cinnamon... And twigs..." Jen mocked, pretending to be a wine connoisseur, "and it sits just lovely on the palette," and she swirled the drink around in her mouth. They both laughed, and at that moment it had been the perfect ice breaker.
"So tell me Jen, what do you do that keeps you off the streets during the day?"
"For my sins," Jen replied, "I'm a teacher - an art teacher to be exact, at a local comprehensive. Some of the kids are a little rowdy, but I'm pretty sure it's easier than teaching maths!"
"A teacher huh? I've got to confess I was never the best student at school," Jess wrinkled her nose in a suggestion of her semi-apathy towards education.
"I always ended up being disciplined for some reason or other, usually for not doing my homework!"
"Ah, we've plenty like you," smirked Jen. "They just need a firm hand and support down the right track."
"Hmm yeah, well some of prefer a more vocational direction. I mean, I don't work in a bar to get rich, BUT I have some business ideas kicking around in my head I just need to formulate how they take shape. We'll see how it pans out."
Jen looked at the girl with admiration; such forthrightness and not even with a proper set of education under her belt. Jen felt a twinge of envy. She'd never had a real passion to do anything but teach, but it was a restrictive and controlling choice of employment sometimes. Art is freedom to be as one chooses, but teaching art could never been truly free.
The conversation continued apace and it flowed without interruption. Jen felt surprisingly comfortable with someone she'd never really met before.
"Listen, Jess said, "I'm just going to pop outside for a smoke, I'll be right back."
Jess stood and Jen looked up at her, replied, "I'll join you."
"You smoke?" queried Jess?
"Nope, but I don't need to sit here on my own waiting for you to come back, when I can be outside talking to you." At this point even Jen surprised herself with her actions.
As they stepped outside the bar they leant against the wall outside whilst Jess lit a cigarette. Unusually there were no other smokers out there at the same time, but it was cold, and people weren't hanging around. The flame lit up her face, and the smoke wafted past her eyes. Jess drew deeply and smiled as she lowered her cigarette. She slowly exhaled and her warm breath mixed with smoke spiralled up into the cold night sky. Jen assumed this to be the perfect opportunity and she leant in to Jess and kissed her. She pulled back, and as she caught Jess' eyes she smiled. Jen could taste the smoke in her mouth, and licked her lips. Usually she would have been a little bothered by this, but now was not the time. Jess smiled and returned the cigarette to her lips, inhaling once more, and as she exhaled it was she that leaned towards Jen and they kissed again. Jen exerted a little force and pushed Jess back onto the wall. She pulled back once again, smiled and said softly, "It's cold outside, come back and join me inside quickly," and Jen walked back inside the pub. Jess didn't take her eyes off Jen as she walked back inside.
Jen felt pretty proud of herself, mixed with great relief as she walked back to their seats. This was the second time she'd made the first move on this woman, and both times she'd read the signs correctly. She'd toyed with the idea of being assertive earlier, whilst thinking about how things might go, but until in a situation which seems right, it's impossible to plan. She sat down and picked up her glass, running the rim against her lips, waiting for Jess to return, which didn't take long.
Jess hurried back to her seat, cheeks flushed pink, 'maybe from the cold… maybe from our kiss' Jen thought.
"So… it seems you left me alone in the cold after all," Jess said, leaning back in her chair, resting her hand on her chin, and trailing a single finger along the line of her lips. She knew what reaction she wanted to evoke from Jen, and it was the one she achieved.
"Well, it turns out I didn't go out there to talk to you, "Jen said solemnly, fixing her gaze. "I wanted to give you something to consider that might influence your decision on whether you might like a second date with me."
"Aww, are we ready to call it a night already?" Jess pulled an over-exaggerated sad face, and looked at her watch. It was 10.45.
Jen smiled back receptively. "Unfortunately," she started, "It's a school night. And that means no matter how much I want to explore any alternatives that might be on offer, I'd rather give myself something to look forward to when I don't have to get up at 6.30am." Jen raised both her eyebrows at Jess, searching for the response she was looking for.
"OK then JenJen," she paused, "I'd like that very much. And it so happens that I'm not working on Friday night if I can tempt you?"
"You can indeed – I accept your er temptation," and at that point Jen felt like a complete dick because she just couldn't do smooth convincingly no matter how hard she tried. Jess could see Jen was kicking herself and she laughed, but in a supportive way.
"I knew what you meant. And…," she leant in closer towards Jen, "…I'm looking forward to it," said Jess in a slightly softer tone.
They said their goodbyes and Jen left the bar feeling a strong sense of achievement and the warm feeling that comes with success. As she walked down the street she couldn't help but smile to herself, and she licked her lips at the prospect of what the next date might entail.