Limey fluff. Toothache warning :D

Dating 101

Nesa looked around the cafeteria anxiously, smoothing her hands over her black denim jean dress and wondering for the hundredth time if she was overdressed. The two were supposed to be discussing his hometown after all. It wasn't like it was a date or anything. And even if it was, this dress was horrible. It was at least two sizes too big since she'd successfully lost 150 pounds using a ketogenic diet. This dress was one that she'd bought about two-thirds of the way through the process, but she hadn't kept up with her clothes shopping. Her scrub shopping on the other hand…

Sighing because it was too late to fix this mistake - her bus had just pulled away - she took a seat and fretted some more. She should have gone more casual! She had a pair of black jeans that almost fit her size six frame. Combined with her trusty belt and a shirt it would have been perfect. Funny how that combo had looked so tacky to her when she was home and had the choice. Lamenting that she'd bought a house instead of a car, she settled in to wait.

… …

Nick watched his date smooth down her dress for the sixth time, obviously fretting over her attire, and smiled. So, he wasn't the only one who had lost sleep over what to wear. Her dress was a little too big for her, but the effect of it wasn't lost on him. She looked good, he decided. She likely just needed to go clothes shopping. It was amazing to him what nurses thought of as priorities. Her scrubs fit her to a tee, but those were likely everyday wear for the girl. Smoothing down his jeans and polo shirt one last time, he headed into the cafeteria before she decided that she'd been stood up and left.

"N-Nick!" she shouted, standing up guiltily when she caught sight of him. The man looked positively yummy in his polo shirt and jeans. No doubt he'd just thrown on the first thing in his closet to come to this meeting. Stupid! It wasn't even a date!

Before she could slip into more self-recrimination, Nick took her hand and kissed it.

You look lovely

Relax

Nesa blinked the tears out of her eyes and sat back down. Was this what normal people went through when they agreed to a date?

"It was hell figuring out what to wear. I haven't really updated my closet with anything but work clothes since I lost all that weight." She went to smooth down her dress again, but Nick was still holding her hand.

I'm not a shallow man, little one, but I tore my closet apart deciding what I should wear today. I rarely have cause to do more than throw on a pair of sweats or walk around naked in the house. I work all the time.

The girl giggled and nodded. "That sounds about right. Living on your own will do that. I'm hardly ever dressed at home. Oh, I'm so sorry. Nudity is hardly an appropriate date topic." Nick shrugged with a smile.

Hey, I started it

Besides, I think that anyone who lives alone finds themselves in that predicament "Where did I put my clothes this time?"

Nesa giggled in embarrassment. "You're not wrong. So, do you have your own place or…"

I'm just renting. I'm not exactly rolling in dough right now with classes. Even if I was, nothing has jumped out at me as a forever home.

"I found this sweet little place in Westover two years ago that I just had to snatch up. It's a ways away from my friends, but it's so close to my job and the pricing couldn't be beaten. It was a struggle at first, there was no regular bus back then, but I couldn't say 'no' to the environmentally friendly utilities and the reduced cost of the house itself."

You live in Westover? So do I!

"No kidding! Brilliant minds, eh?" she grinned. "I live up the street from the lake. It's the second entrance to the community. How about you?"

I'm right on that corner in the apartment complexes next to the bus stop. It makes it very easy to get to Sobeys or Shopper's

"Oh sweet! It's so convenient to be able to shop for stuff in my own community. I used to have to take a cab to Walmart or Safeway across 22x before the Sobeys opened. What kind of classes do you take? I haven't been back to school since I graduated four years ago."

I've been working on my bachelor's degree in IT for the past five years. It was hard going without a fixed address back in Nebraska. I wandered from place to place, picking up odd jobs and saving up money for classes. That is when I wasn't getting jumped for beer money by them good old boys. I wandered my way up to the border after I almost lost my eye to one of those ass-whippings and somehow ended up with a job in the healthcare system. I had just enough for a work permit when I got here and Darren Collins really stood up for me to the border guards. He was visiting from Vulcan and helped me out with a scrap I got into. Now he's my landlord here in Calgary. I owe him a lot. Now that I have a fixed address and my transcripts are here, I only have about a semester's worth of classes left until I graduate. I figure I'll have a real IT degree in my hands by year's end if I keep at this pace. Sooner if I drop my FTE to part-time and double up on classes.

"That's… That's incredible, Nick. I admire your determination. You could have stopped at a GED, but you're going the extra mile to better yourself. And those fools down in Nebraska deserve to be tarred and feathered for picking on you like they were. Some people just can't see the big picture. I'm glad you were able to get out of a bad situation without giving up on your dream. Most people would have given up, facing all that opposition. But not you. God, Nick, you've been through so much..." she smiled at him. The two stared into each other's eyes before Nesa looked away in chagrin. "Sorry. I know it's rude to stare. You're just so… beautiful." Nick placed a hand against her cheek to get her to look at him again.

Thank you, Nesa. I happen to think that you're adorable

The girl huffed and blew a small raspberry at that. "Ugh. I hate being 'adorable'. I went to the Calgary Expo last year as a pirate - a flippin pirate! - and all anyone could say was how adorable I was! Pirates are scary and intimidating. They're not adorable!" She started pouting at that, and Nick had to resist the urge to ruffle her braids. She looked so dejected. Instead, he laughed in his silent way and placed a hand over hers.

Is it really such a bad thing to be cute as a button, love?

There are much worse things in the world than being adored. I should know.

Tell me about your family.

Nesa was blushing so hard that her face felt like it was on fire. 'Cute as a button'? 'Love'? It was all too much, but she'd take it coming from this rugged, sexy man. Shaking her head to try and clear it, she started talking about her four brothers and her mom and dad. He learned quickly that they sang gospel a capella as a group and that she and the youngest son of the family were writers. They were all back in Philly; the girl had gotten a partial scholarship to the University of Calgary where her online friends lived and had taken it, never looking back.

What first attracted you to Calgary, though? I doubt you would have given up your whole life for this city on a whim

The Registered Nurse looked like she might burst something important if she got any more embarrassed to his amusement. Pushing a braid behind her ear, she looked up at him through her lashes. "I've… I've just never fit in back home. I could always feel that there was something different about me, that I was meant for something else. I was searching the internet and stumbled across an extremely talented author of Sailor Moon fanfiction named Lyndon. He and I… Our manic energies matched up. We just… clicked. It was like magic. He was my first boyfriend after a while. We dated online for a few weeks, then he met his true girlfriend, Kate. She's from Georgia and the two of them seemed to really connect. I stepped aside. We've been close friends ever since. Along the way, he introduced me to his friends who became my friends. By the time I got that partial scholarship, I'd visited Calgary a couple of times and was in love with the rhythm of it. I knew that no matter what, this is where I was going to end up."

It sounds like there was a world of hurt behind that breakup, little one

"No!" she blinked, looking seconds from jumping out of her seat. "I was one of his groomsmen at his wedding. How could there possibly-" Nick touched her left cheek and that's when she felt the tear. Cursing, she wiped her face, losing her smile. "You know what? This is a bad idea. I should go. Thank you for-" He placed a strong hand on her shoulder and pressed down where she'd been about to stand. She drew a shuddering breath and stared into his light blue orbs. He only smiled at her confidently.

Have you ever talked to anyone about him, Nesa? The pain only festers the more it remains

Talk to me, little one

"Talking about one's ex seems like bad form when one is on a date," she looked down ruefully. "I-if this really is a date, that is." She looked up at his emphatic nod and her smile returned full-blown. The deafmute was entranced with that smile. He found that he wanted it to stay. But he'd stumbled across something important in his love's life that was affecting her self-esteem. This needed to be discussed. "Lyndon and I… I would never date someone that I didn't intend to marry. And I'm not talking about marriage as a 'limited time deal'. I'm a very old-fashioned girl and I wanted forever. 'The good times and the bad'. I thought that we were building up to that; we were such good friends and then when I asked him to be my boyfriend… I don't know… maybe… Well, he obviously didn't feel the same way. Our relationship was always so sweet and platonic, even after we started dating. It was easy to go back to that easy friendship. But there's always been that small voice in my head that wondered what it is about me that I was so easy to cast aside, you know? I'm sorry," she huffed, looking at the ceiling to hold back the tears. "I really feel like I'm exposing my vulnerable underbelly right now. And this can't be what you-" For a third time Nick stopped her from talking.

There's nothing wrong with you, Ganesa Eversteen. You are a sweet, charming, engaging woman and I can't figure out for the life of me why anyone would want to hurt you like he did. What's his wife like?

"Kate? Kate is a phony," Nesa shrugged. "She played the role of the innocent damsel to perfection to steal him away from me. She's still playing the role, though the strain of pretending is starting to wear on her I think. She had a kid when they met and when Lyndon started to see through her two years, she suddenly came up pregnant. All of us see right through her, but no one is brave enough to mention it to him. Now she's pregnant again even though those two can barely afford the kids they have. Lyndon works two jobs and barely sleeps trying to support his family and Kate refuses to get a job, claiming 'stress' and that 'it's a man's job to support his family'. It's such BS, but who am I to say anything about it? It's not my life that she's ruining."

"I was so relieved to move down here. Before I lived in the Northeast of the city, they had me babysitting their children every day off I had from work. It was crazy; Kate was literally refusing to raise her children. And don't get me wrong; Danny and Jerica are adorable together. But after a while, it gets to be a bit much to watch, feed, and clothe two little kids out of your own pocket that aren't even yours. By moving too far away to be reached at a moment's notice, I essentially took myself out of the equation of their ongoing argument about Kate's refusal to work for a living. Thus the new little one, I suspect. I don't know how they're going to make it without declaring bankruptcy, but I wish them all the best from the bottom of my heart. Lord knows they're going to need it." She looked up into his eyes; God, he was so much taller than her, even sitting down. Strangely, she didn't feel dwarfed by him like she usually did with men. It was rather like having someone watching over her. What was happening to her? She'd never been like this before.

"See? And now I sound like a shrew for ragging on my old boyfriend's wife and home life. But I was the first to see through her, probably because she was taking something so precious to me away at the time. It's been years, Nick. I've never told a soul the real reason we broke up. It shouldn't still bother me like it does."

An unlanced wound will never heal properly, little one. Talking about it is the first step in truly putting it behind you. And I have a vested interest in you putting it behind you. Kate sounds like the shrew here, not you. And you're right to be very angry with her. Hell, you have every right to be upset with him. He should have known better

"Wow," she blinked, then grinned. "Okay there, Treebeard. No need to get riled up. This little drama was over eight years ago. And while I agree with you that Kate is a shrew, there's no need to go dredging up the past. I don't even know why I brought it up in the first place."

I asked you to. If you're going to be my woman, I don't want you having this kind of baggage haunting you. You are not to blame for what happened, little one. And as your man, I won't stand for you to be dragging this around anymore. You've suffered long enough.

Nesa looked at him in shock. "Y-your woman?" He nodded. "Really?" He smirked and caressed her cheek. "But… but we just met. How can we be…" He leaned forward and silenced her with a soft kiss to her plush lips. He slanted his hot mouth over hers when she gasped in shock, his tongue slipping into her mouth. Then he was engulfed in her sweetness and fire. It wasn't an artificial sweetness either. She tasted like nothing he had ever eaten or drunk and he was instantly addicted to the taste of her. He pulled her forward in her seat so that he could get a proper taste and smiled against her lips when she shivered. Sitting forward himself, the man plundered her mouth gently, keeping his exploration non-threatening. He licked her tongue and the roof of her mouth, reveling in the vibrations he could feel coming from his new girlfriend. Not wishing to scare her with everything he felt for her, he reluctantly tapered the kiss. She was warm and pliant in his arms, her hands were in his hair and it felt like Heaven.

When her innocent eyes fluttered open, Nick knew that he was in love. The girl looked at him from her place lying in his arms, her eyes filled with terror suddenly as she pulled away.

What's the matter, love?

"That… That was my very first kiss." He sighed when she continued to look as if she were going to cry.

Was it scary?

She seemed to really think about her answer and the deafmute found himself holding his breath as the seconds ticked by. Finally, she smiled like dawn breaking and shook her head. He smiled back happily and took her hand.

I'm glad, little one. I like kissing you. You taste so sweet, like nothing I've ever tasted.

You've never been kissed at all? Not even as a child?

"Never. I wanted my first kiss to be special. I remember Reggie Brown broke up with me in the sixth grade because I wouldn't kiss him. Well, to be fair, he wanted a lot more of me than a kiss. I'm saving myself for marriage."

How old are you?

That stubborn chin of hers jutted out as she backed away from him. "I'm 26. What's that got to do with anything?" Nick pulled her back from where she was pushing herself out of his arms.

I was only curious, love. You're such a rare bird. I believe that I'm going to enjoy our lives together

He was rewarded with the return of her smile. The two talked more after that, neither in a hurry to end the date.

"Hey, Nesa," Dayna interrupted her a few hours later as she read his explanation of his time in the orphanage. "I barely recognized you without your scrubs."

Nesa grinned happily. "Thank you. I really have to shop for clothes that fit me. But shopping is so exhausting! Not to mention I never fit into anything I want."

"Sounds like you need someone to go with you when you shop, sweetie. Maybe your man here can be 'persuaded' to join you next time." She winked and left to get some dinner. Nesa was left gawking after her, afraid to face her suitor. She felt Nick right behind her and refused to turn around. He held a note in front of her face.

Don't be embarrassed, Sweetness. I'd be happy to go with you when you shop for clothes next time.

When are we going?

She blushed and turned around to face him at last. "I don't-" He kissed her passionately and she melted against him with more of those lovely vibrations that he was starting to like. He wrapped her in his arms and savaged her mouth with abandon. He kissed her the way he'd always dreamed of kissing a woman, long and slow and hot.

She moaned into his mouth, never having experienced anything like this before. Everything in her wanted to melt into him. In fact, she had the desperate need to crawl out of her skin and into his. Giving herself over to the sensations he was creating in her, Nesa relaxed in his arms and let him lead her into this new world. It felt like hours before he released her from his most pleasant spell. When he finally tapered the kiss, she felt dizzy and elated.

"Wow…" She whimpered something unintelligible and smiled up at him. Nick smiled down at her hungrily, looking seconds from taking her lips again. She sat up before he could, looking around the room at the knowing smirks from the staff. Groaning, she turned to Nick. "You know it's going to be all over the hospital now, right? People around here love to gossip and you kissing me in the middle of the cafeteria is going to be the talk of the proverbial town by tomorrow."

I don't care. Your lips are the sweetest I've ever tasted. I could spend a lifetime exploring your mouth and never be satisfied. I want you, Ganesa, make no mistake.

She ducked her head and looked at him. "Um, I should… I should be getting home. It's been… Holy crap, it's been five hours!" she exclaimed with a look at her watch. She jumped up from the table, only to have him grab her arm.

Where are you going, Cinderella? Have you forgotten that we both need to take the bus to Westover?

"Oh yeah…" she whispered, stopping her forward charge. Remembering that he couldn't hear her unless she turned around, she sighed and did just that. "Sorry, Nick, I forgot." He nodded his forgiveness, caressing her cheek tenderly.

Come on, milady. Let's get you home.

The girl giggled. "Funny, you don't look like a neckbeard." She took his hand as she exited the building, already starting her explanation of that statement. The ride to their home community was a continuation of their date, the two chatting about their lives as children. When they reached her bus stop, he got off with her.

"Oh no. You didn't have to-" He kissed her again before writing in his pad.

I'm going to walk you home, Sweetness. It's my right since I asked you out in the first place. My apartment is right down the street from here. I'm fine to get home tonight

Nesa wanted to argue his logic, she really did. But he was smiling at her in a way that muddled her mind. Without a word, she headed for her three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bathroom house. The place was too big for her all by her lonesome, but owning a house was a sign of status in her family as she'd explained to her new boyfriend on the ride over.

Nick watched her walk, noting what her gait was doing to her hips. Lost weight or not, she had an impressive figure. Once they were at her front door, he asked the question that he'd been afraid to since they'd met.

Ganesa, why haven't you asked me about my disabilities yet? I've been waiting for you to question it like everyone always does.

The girl smiled beatifically. "Oh honey, haven't you figured out that I'm not like everyone else yet? I'm just more interested in your personality than the fact that you can't talk or hear anything. I've never met a deafmute person; I'm sure there are plenty on the east coast, but I've never run into any. Plus, what does it matter how you got the way you are? You're incredibly smart and talented. I'd just prefer to talk about that. It's-." Nick attacked her mouth at this point before she could get another word out. The nurse could only wrap her arms around him and hold on for dear life. Lord above, this man could kiss! He took possession of her mouth like he had every right and devastated her senses every time. She'd read about kisses like these in those romance novels that she would never admit to owning, but of course, she'd never experienced them. Her whole body felt tingly and full of carbonation. It was like she was a champagne bottle that had been shaken and needed to be uncorked; the need to be uncorked somehow was consuming her at the moment. She moaned when he did something perfectly delightful with his tongue in her mouth, just barely noticing his arrogant smirk against her lips. Was this what a real relationship was? No wonder her family didn't count her time with Lyndon as a real relationship! She'd never felt anything like this before for anyone. She never wanted it to end.

Then she heard the last thing she wanted to hear, the sound of her phone ringing. That's right, she'd told her mother about this date of hers and the older woman said she would call afterward. She hesitated to pull away, but that ringing was persistent. It was very hard not to give in when he followed her lips for more, but she somehow managed it. "I'm sorry, Nick. My phone is ringing in the house. It's likely my Mum, I have to go."

Well, it's been a lovely date, Sweetling. I enjoyed our time together. I'll see you again soon.

With that, he grabbed her hand and kissed it sweetly before starting off for his own home. Letting the door take her weight, she shivered and blew out her breath explosively.

Wow! Nick doesn't do anything halfway, does he? ::grins:: Well, it seems that Nick and Ganesa are a couple now. See ya next week! :D