Au Revouir,
Luxy
***
The sun shone down through the trees for probably the first time that winter and lit up the posh Seatlle neighborhood so that the little bit of snow on the ground sparkled like a million gems. I was staring out the kitchen window while drinking a cup of coffee with my mother.
"Do you think that we should invite the Johntsons over for the Christmas party?" she asked, nibbling on the end of her pen. She was staring at the list of families in front of her intently. "I just don't know. Mary was never very nice to you, was she?" She was refering to the fact that Mrs. Johnston had always hated me. It was probably due to her daughter's thoughts on me that made her hate me. Plus, I'd always had a better singing voice than her child, something Mom had always said I'd gotten from my non-exsistent father.
I looked over at my mother. She was a stunning woman of thirty-six and she already had both me and my eighteen-year old brother, Stephen. Both of us had come from different relationships and had always watched our mother date men who were far beneath her. Currently she was single and both my brother and I were relieved that we had our mother to ourselves for the time being. I had inherited my wavy hair and sapphire blue eyes from her, while Stephen had gotten her pale blonde hair and dazzling smile.
"She's your friend though, Mom," I told her, patting her hand. "Even if she doesn't like me, you should still invite her over. Besides, no one likes me." I gave her a smile and got up to get another cup of coffee.
"They just don't know how to handle you," Mom said, looking up at me from her list. She gave me a sad look.
"Mom," I laughed. "Really. You know I don't give a crap about what people think of me." I smirked and helped myself to another cup of coffee. While I was stirring the cream and sugar into the steaming cup, I caught Mom looking at me again. "What?" I asked, leaning against the kitchen counter.
"I really wish you will find happiness someday, my darling," she murmured, dropping her pen and studying me more carefully. "You have only your brother, Lea, and I and it makes me worry about you."
I took another sip of coffee and sighed. "I like being on my own," was my simple reply.
She snorted. "I think I figured that one out already. You drive a Yugo, you read Shakespeare in your spare time, and you like sitting in a dark basement watching horror movies. And on top of all that, you verbally abuse your peers!" She let out an amused giggle and picked her pen back up. I took another drink from my mug and smirked. As I stood there staring blankly out the window again, my phone vibrated from over on the table. I went back to the table and set my mug down, assuming it was a text from Lea.
It was a call from an unknown number.
My heart fluttered. Was this the mysterious Logan Miller who hadn't bothered to call me since our heated kiss nearly two weeks ago? "I'm going to take this," I told Mom. She smiled and waved me off before returning to her possible guest list. Quickly, I ducked into our library and answered the call. "Hello?" I answered.
"Hello, Charlie," the seductive voice that made my heartrate speed up said.
"Hello to you too," I said, trying to hide the laugh in my voice. "Took you long enough to call."
"Hey, I remembered you," he laughed.
"Yes you did," I returned.
"Anyway," he continued. His voice still held the same joking tone. "I was wondering if you'd like to go out with me? Like, on a date." There was anticipation in his voice as he asked me.
"After it took you two weeks to call me?" I teased. "I don't know..."
His voice grew slightly tense at that. "Umm, that can be explained," he hurried. "How about I tell you all about it at dinner?" He was still pressing for dinner and I didn't think I could keep avoiding the answer forever. The truth was that I never dated; I had always stuck to meeting guys at clubs and never seeing them again afterwards. I had never found a reason to keep a boyfriend. It just wasn't in my DNA to date.
"Are you still there?" he asked. I snapped out of my daze and sighed.
"Before you make any plans, you need to know two things about me first. One, I don't really date. I don't know what to wear, how to act, and I talk like I came straight off of 'The Sopranos'."
"I can deal with that," he said sincerely. "What's number two?"
I took in a breath before answering him. "Two is... two is that I'm sixteen years old."
There were several more moments of silence. I bit my lip and prayed that he said 'yes'. The truth was that I wanted to go on this date with him. He was incredibley handsome, he had a sense of humor, and due to him being a medical student, he must have some intellect in his overly cute head.
When he finally spoke, he asked, "Do you like Indian food?"
***
I stood in front of my mirror and looked myself over. Lea had recommended I wear what I was most comfortable in, which resulted in me getting scolded for asking about sweatpants being okay. In the end both of us agreed on a delicate black Greek-goddess styled dress that hung tightly to my body without being overly revealing and a pair of flat booties. My hair was loose and in its natural wavy state and I had stuck a pair of strand earrings in my ears. I glanced at the clock on my dresser and groaned. It was time-to-go ten minutes ago. Hurriedly I ran to the bathroom and threw mascara and a soft pink lipstick before grabbing my winter coat.
"Don't you dare wear that damn sweatshirt again!" Lea had ordered me. "You need to look good on your first date. Ever." She had smiled and kissed my cheek before she had left. "You'll do wonderfully!" I could only hope she was right.
"Where are you off to in such a hurry, Charliekins?" Stephen asked as I was grabbing my keys from the tray in the entryway. "You look like you've got a date." He waggled his eyebrows and grinned wickedly at me from the entrance to the living room. Him and Mom were setting everything up for the Christmas party that was starting in approximately an hour.
Sticking my tongue out at him, I hissed, "Don't tell Mom, 'kay? She thinks that Lea and I are going to a movie."
He pushed me towards the door and whispered with a smile, "Get going then! Before she sees you looking all beautiful."
I stopped and looked at him carefully. "I look okay?" I asked.
He nodded and gave me a 'well, duh!' look. "You always look gorgeous, sis," he told me affectionately. "Now, go!"
Giving him a quick hug, I smiled and hurried out the door and towards my Yugo. Thankfully the engine started without too much trouble. It was a good thing because I was on the way to Seattle's University District which was a good twenty minute drive depending on the traffic. As I sped through the streets to get there, I began to panic. What if I showed up and he wasn't there? What if he'd decided not to go out with me? I spent the entire rest of the ride getting my self all worked up over what could possibly go wrong on this first date. Maybe I should just turn back now and forget any of this ever happened. I could return to my old activities until I found someone who was my age. Make it easier for everyone involved.
In the back of mind, a tiny little voice told me that I had to go on this date. I decided that I would give it a try. If this didn't work out, I would go home and not think about this again.
Almost half an hour later I arrived at my destination at Cedars. I had a huge fetish for Indian food and Logan swore that this was the best one in the whole city. I parked my Yugo and grabbed my small shoulder bag, locking the door as I wennt. Running up the sidewalk, I was about to turn to open the door when I felt my feet slide from under me. "Ah, hell!" I cried as I slipped on a sheet of ice and fell flat on my back.
Despite the fact that I would be finding a huge purple bruise on my but in the morning, I found myself laughing hysterically.
"You know, falling down generally doesn't result in laughter. Usually there's cursing or sometimes even painful screeches."
I giggled and turned to look over at Logan, who was standing over me with an amused smile on his face. Looking up at him made me feel warm and tingly all over. He had just shaved and was wearing a pair of black pants, a grey shirt, and a black dinner jacket over it. The faint smell of Dolce and Gabbana cologne wafted down to my nose from his body. "Ah, well. I did tell you last time that I was strange. Now, are you just going to stand there, or are you going to help me up?"
He shook his head and smiled. "Are you kidding? You look unbelievably adorable down there." I glared at him and he sighed while leaning down and giving me his hand. "I guess I should help you up."
I nodded. "Yeah, that would be good." I grabbed his offered hand and he pulled me to my feet. The heat of his hand made me blush bright pink and lose track of all thought. He brushed snow from my shoulders and my hair, making me blush even darker. "Thanks," I murmured softly.
"Better?" he asked with his killer smile. I all about melted right there and then.
"Yeah," I breathed. "Much better."
"Good," he said. "Are you hungry?" he asked as we headed into the restaurant and out of the cold. When I nodded, he gave me another grin. "Again, good. This place has the best Tandoori dishes." He guided me into the restaurant and the waiter nodded.
"Ah, I see you found her," he said, sounding relieved. I gave him an apologetic smile and he let Logan pull my chair back for me so that I could sit down. "Now, can I get you both something to drink?"
Logan glanced at me. "Red or white wine?"
"Red," I said, smiling graciously at the waiter, hoping he would not bother to observe my age. For a second he studied me, before deciding that I didn't need to be carded.
He smiled and turned to the waiter. "We'll take a bottle of the House Shiraz."
"Right away," the waiter said, striding away from our table to get our bottle of wine.
Turning back to me, Logan grinned. "You really don't look like your age," he commented.
I batted my eyelashes and said, "Yeah, I get that a lot. My friend says that I'm going to get my ass busted one of these days. I figure until I do that I might as well live it up until then." I smiled brightly.
"Friend?" he asked. "Not multiple people? Just one?"
"Yes," I said, looking away uncomfortably. "I don't really like people."
"And why is that?" His look was probing, until he shook his head. "Sorry. It's just... usually women are very simple to me. You're... not. I'm just trying to understand you a little better."
Settling slightly, my muscles loosened and I let out a sigh of relief. "Well, I suppose that people are unpredictable. One minute they want you, the next minute their running out the door on you. I've seen it first hand with my mother. She's had it happen to her over and over again and I could never even imagine how that would feel. I wouldn't wish it on anyone, even if I hated their guts." I sighed. "All in all, I've got my mother and my brother and Lea. I'm quite content the way I am." I leaned my elbows against the table and smiled brightly at him.
"What about your father?" he asked. "You didn't mention him."
I let out a laugh. "Are you thinking about asking me to marry you already?" I asked with a flirtacious smile.
A strange look passed over his face. I couldn't quite make out what it was, but it was definitely emotional. Before I could ask what was wrong, he shook his head and chuckled. "I meant why didn't you mention him?"
Shifting in my seat, I replied, "I don't know my father. He left my mother when she told him that she was pregnant with me." He looked at me with pity, which made my temper flare. "Please don't look at me like that," I said. "I don't have daddy issues. I'm a smart, independent woman. I don't need a father to take care of me." I held my head high and sat straighter in my seat.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I wasn't judging you. It's just, I was very close to my father before he died. He taught me everything I know and he told me to follow my dreams. So when he died, I decided I wanted to go to medical school." His eyes grew forlorn.
"I'm sorry about your dad," I said, taking his right hand. "Do you mind me asking how he died?"
He was silent. "He died from a ruptured aorta." Before he could continue, the waiter returned to the table bearing our bottle of wine. Logan instantly brightened at the sight of the wine.
"Would your wife like to taste the wine?" the waiter asked Logan, while looking at me.
"Oh! We're not married," I stuttered. "First date." I smiled brightly, waiting for the waiter to pop the cork off the bottle.
Instead of pouring me a taste of the wine, he turned to Logan and hissed, "Do you just wear that ring for fun, or did you just forget to take it off before coming to dinner with this girl?" His face was red from being so mad.
"What's he talking about?" I asked Logan, letting go of his hand. I had been holding his right hand and hadn't bothered to look at his left. He brought it up to the tabletop and lo and behold, there was a golden wedding ring. Letting out a gasp, I sat farther back in my chair.
Logan threw me a pleading glance before the waiter sneered, "Oh, he didn't bother to mention that he has a beautiful, loving wife waiting for him back home?" I felt the blood flood from my face. He laughed at me. "Yes, Logan here knows all to well how to seduce a woman. Or a girl in your case." He looked me up and down and cackled. I was so stunned I didn't even move.
"You've never met me in your entire life!" Logan spat. "How much did Lisa pay you, huh? Or did she offer you something better than money?" His face was black with rage.
"Let's just say, she paid me very well." He let out another laugh. That was enough for me to get up and make a run for the door. Behind me I heard Logan get up and say something to the man who had outed his secret. I was running, so I didn't hear what he said. When I reached the outside, I stopped running and cursed at myself for forgetting my coat in the restaurant. Small snowflakes began to trickle out of the sky and I was forced to wrap my arms around myself to keep warm at all.
What had I done? I had just gone on a date with a married man! If I had known I never would have done it! How did I not know? Of course a man like him would be married. He wasn't one of the drunk guys I slept with on my escapades at nightclubs and bars. Unless some of the men I'd slept with were married and they had remembered to take off their rings.
Oh, God.
Behind me I heard the sound of running footsteps that were cushioned by the snow. "Charlie!" Logan yelled. His voice was growing closer. "Charlie, wait!" By now, a few tears had squeezed out of my eyes and were freezing their way down my cheeks. I didn't want to turn around and listen to him. He'd lied to me and I'd fallen for it. I'd told him my fear of people.
By now, Logan had caught me in his arms and I kicked out, trying to get away. "Get. Off. Of. Me!" I shrieked. His strong arms held me tightly to his body, the way he had the night I'd met him. The heat of his body made me warm up and I had to fight the tingles that were invading my body.
"Charlie, I'm sorry," he murmured, when I'd finally stopped fighting him. He still hadn't let me go. I felt tears roll down my face and I bit my lip to keep from sobbing. Why was I getting so emotional over this? Was it because I'd trusted someone for a brief second? "You have to trust me when I say that I was going to tell you! Do remember when I told you that I would explain why I didn't call right away?" When I didn't respond, he shook me a little.
"Yes," I choked.
He loosened his grip on me slightly. "When I was in my senior year of high school, Lisa, who was my girlfriend then, kept hinting that she wanted me to marry her. I told her that I didn't plan on having a future with her, that I was going to go to school to get my M.D. She went ballistic on me. She completely destroyed my room and she slit her wrists and decided to fling her blood all over me. She ended by bursting into tears and telling me that she was pregnant. We got married and she wasn't pregnant." He turned me around to face him.
"Then why are you still married to her?" I asked, generally curious now. I still didn't know if I wanted to take the chance of dating him. There was no part of me that wanted to be a whoring mistress. A whore I was (somewhat) fine with. A homewrecking bitch, not so much.
He let the corners of his lips turn up as if he was trying to smile but couldn't. "I've been asking myself that question since day one She's gotten more crazy since we got married. That guy that was in the restaurant, he was one of many people she's had to come 'check up' on me." His eyes were pleading as he looked at me. "I don't love her."
I sighed. "You don't love me either. We hardly know each other."
"Then let's get to know each other." He was incredibley stubborn and I couldn't help but think that it was sexy. "Charlie, you're, for lack of a better term, my type. You're smart, you're funny, and you seem to care about the people you love deeply. I want a second chance at love, and if it doesn't work out between us, so be it."
His small speech seemed like it wasn't very realistic. He was almost ten years older than I was. How could a girl like me, a misanthrope, a Yugo-driving, potty mouth, be the girl he dreamed of falling in love with? This seemed too much like a fairytale for my taste. But maybe a fairytale, totally not realistic romance was something I needed. I'd never fallen in love with anyone. Maybe Logan would be that first love that I had yet to experience. So in response to him, I leaned up and planted a soft kiss on his lips. Not a hungry lust filled kiss, but a tentative, unsure kiss. I pulled away and smiled slightly. "Ah, what the hell. Maybe we're what each other needs for the time being."
Logan let a smile creep over his face and he pulled me towards him, giving me that same kiss that I had given him. "Maybe."
***
For some reason this one was harder than the other three to write. Again, I'm sorry this has taken so long to get out. Hope you like it and will be willing to give me some feedback!
So That's all the advice I can give. Keep the plot going and Good luck- keep writing,
<3