Feisty Fern #12
Nathan walked from the bathroom with a burgundy towel wrapped around his thin waist. His lightly sculpted abdominal muscles were still beaded with water, spotting his tan skin. In his bedroom, he stood in front of the mirror.
“You are looking good tonight, Nathan,” he said aloud. He dropped the towel, and examined what he saw with his ocean blue eyes. “Definitely looking good. Ready for a big night? I think you are.” Words of self-encouragement followed these for the remainder of his date preparation routine. The final step was a spritz of expensive cologne into the air, which Nathan walked through briskly on his way out of his bedroom.
Bonnie ducked slightly under Nathan’s door holding arm as she entered the restaurant. White linen cloths and dim candles were on the tables; understated photographs of the city and fresh floral arrangements were on the dark wooden walls. Nathan admired the smooth line of her neck, which lead the eye easily to her pleasantly plunging neckline. Her skin looked softer than his expensive 800 thread count sheets.
Nathan pulled her chair out, and as she leaned into the seat, his hand brushed her bare back. He felt the goosebumps flash across her skin. Bonnie’s smile was whiter than 92 brightness printer paper. The tip of her pink tongue stuck through her teeth when she giggled at his awestruck expression. Neither of them said anything—they just sat, smiling—until the waitress arrived with menus.
“I’m Jessica, and I’ll be your server this evening.” Both Nathan and Bonnie laughed as their silence was awkwardly interrupted and accepted the green leather wrapped menus. They examined the fare, eyes occasionally meeting over the tops of their menus like lover’s lips in the dark of night.
“It all looks delicious, Nathan, thank you for inviting me tonight,” Bonnie said.
“Of course, thank you for agreeing to come, and, also, for showing up.” They both laughed again.
“I’m going to freshen up; if the waitress comes back for our orders, I’ll have the chicken piccata,” Bonnie told Nathan. As she passed, she delicately touched his shoulder. His eyes followed the swishing of her short skirt as she rounded the corner.
“This is going well, it is, it’s really going well,” Nathan said.
Jessica appeared at the table, her voice was soothing to the ears, even if she was interrupting, “Excuse me, are you ready to order? Do you need me to wait for your date to get back?” Her pale face framed by short-cropped, very black hair. She offered Nathan a pleasant smile, which he returned politely.
“No, I’m ready. She’ll have the chicken piccata, and I’ll have the veal parm.” A very short pause to memorize the order, a nod and Jessica was gone. The plain black pants and white shirt didn’t do much for her as he watched her enter the kitchen, but she might be attractive in different clothes.
“Eh, not bad,” Nathan said too faintly for Bonnie to hear as she returned.
Nathan held Bonnie’s hand when their food arrived. Steam rose from the plates, and the smell of garlic, tomatoes and capers was mouthwatering. Jessica set the plates in front of her customers and left them.
“Hmmm, Nathan, that looks good. Is it chicken parmesan?” Bonnie asked.
“No, its veal,” Nathan said, a juicy morsel dangling on his fork inches from his mouth.
“You’re kidding, right? I mean, you know it’s a baby cow, right? How can you eat that?”
Nathan laughed a little. “I don’t think I should feel any worse than you; you are also eating meat,” he said.
“Chickens don’t count,” she started, as if everyone knew that chickens weren’t really living things. “They are creepy, the way their eyes are always on you. And they peck at you. I have never been pecked at by a cow,” Bonnie defended herself.
“So it’s okay to kill and eat something if it’s creepy?!”
“I can’t believe you messed that up over meat. Who cares if she has an irrational hatred for chicken and strange compassion for everything else?” Nathan said to no one specifically at the bar. After Bonnie left, he moved his plate and ordered a bourbon. “No reason not to now,” he said as he finished his drink.
“She was crazy, you’re better off now,” a familiar, soothing voice chimed in from behind him. It was Jessica.
“Still, that was a silly way to ruin a date. I feel ridiculous.”
Jessica pulled up a stool to Nathan’s left. “I’m sorry, I don’t usually interrupt people, but I thought you might like a person to talk to,” Jessica said, mocking him only a little. She waited, thinking he might have something more to say. “I have an idea, if I tell you the most ridiculous thing I ever did, will you feel better? I mean, I never had a date walk out on me over what I ordered, but I think I can make you smile.”
“That depends; did this thing you did keep you from getting laid?”
She smiled demurely, “It certainly didn’t help."
“When I was in high school, I didn’t have many friends. My parents went out of town my senior year, and they told me ‘no parties’ but in a way that I could tell they were expecting the house to be trashed when they got back.” Nathan nodded his understanding.
“Well, I didn’t know anyone to invite, or have any way to get beer, so I tried to fake a party. I unrolled toilet paper all over the house, and crushed up some potato chips on the kitchen floor,” Jessica’s pale skin was streaked with pink.
“What happened?” Nathan asked, his head turned facing her, now interested in the story.
“I’m pretty sure my parents figured it out. I barely got in any trouble. There was nothing broken or spilled, or even really messy. There were no empty cans or bottles anywhere. I had never really been to a party like that, so didn’t know for sure what kind of a mess it would leave. I felt so stupid, so I think my mom went easy on me,” she finished.
“And now I’ve gone and told my most embarrassing moment to a total stranger,” her face was fully flushed. She was nearly the color of a pink Starburst candy.
Nathan laughed a deep, full laugh. He put a hand over Jessica’s, covering hers completely. “Thank you,” he said. “I feel a little better.” Then he added, “You look like you’re done with work, would you care for a drink?”
“You are looking good tonight, Nathan,” he said aloud. He dropped the towel, and examined what he saw with his ocean blue eyes. “Definitely looking good. Ready for a big night? I think you are.” Words of self-encouragement followed these for the remainder of his date preparation routine. The final step was a spritz of expensive cologne into the air, which Nathan walked through briskly on his way out of his bedroom.
Bonnie ducked slightly under Nathan’s door holding arm as she entered the restaurant. White linen cloths and dim candles were on the tables; understated photographs of the city and fresh floral arrangements were on the dark wooden walls. Nathan admired the smooth line of her neck, which lead the eye easily to her pleasantly plunging neckline. Her skin looked softer than his expensive 800 thread count sheets.
Nathan pulled her chair out, and as she leaned into the seat, his hand brushed her bare back. He felt the goosebumps flash across her skin. Bonnie’s smile was whiter than 92 brightness printer paper. The tip of her pink tongue stuck through her teeth when she giggled at his awestruck expression. Neither of them said anything—they just sat, smiling—until the waitress arrived with menus.
“I’m Jessica, and I’ll be your server this evening.” Both Nathan and Bonnie laughed as their silence was awkwardly interrupted and accepted the green leather wrapped menus. They examined the fare, eyes occasionally meeting over the tops of their menus like lover’s lips in the dark of night.
“It all looks delicious, Nathan, thank you for inviting me tonight,” Bonnie said.
“Of course, thank you for agreeing to come, and, also, for showing up.” They both laughed again.
“I’m going to freshen up; if the waitress comes back for our orders, I’ll have the chicken piccata,” Bonnie told Nathan. As she passed, she delicately touched his shoulder. His eyes followed the swishing of her short skirt as she rounded the corner.
“This is going well, it is, it’s really going well,” Nathan said.
Jessica appeared at the table, her voice was soothing to the ears, even if she was interrupting, “Excuse me, are you ready to order? Do you need me to wait for your date to get back?” Her pale face framed by short-cropped, very black hair. She offered Nathan a pleasant smile, which he returned politely.
“No, I’m ready. She’ll have the chicken piccata, and I’ll have the veal parm.” A very short pause to memorize the order, a nod and Jessica was gone. The plain black pants and white shirt didn’t do much for her as he watched her enter the kitchen, but she might be attractive in different clothes.
“Eh, not bad,” Nathan said too faintly for Bonnie to hear as she returned.
Nathan held Bonnie’s hand when their food arrived. Steam rose from the plates, and the smell of garlic, tomatoes and capers was mouthwatering. Jessica set the plates in front of her customers and left them.
“Hmmm, Nathan, that looks good. Is it chicken parmesan?” Bonnie asked.
“No, its veal,” Nathan said, a juicy morsel dangling on his fork inches from his mouth.
“You’re kidding, right? I mean, you know it’s a baby cow, right? How can you eat that?”
Nathan laughed a little. “I don’t think I should feel any worse than you; you are also eating meat,” he said.
“Chickens don’t count,” she started, as if everyone knew that chickens weren’t really living things. “They are creepy, the way their eyes are always on you. And they peck at you. I have never been pecked at by a cow,” Bonnie defended herself.
“So it’s okay to kill and eat something if it’s creepy?!”
“I can’t believe you messed that up over meat. Who cares if she has an irrational hatred for chicken and strange compassion for everything else?” Nathan said to no one specifically at the bar. After Bonnie left, he moved his plate and ordered a bourbon. “No reason not to now,” he said as he finished his drink.
“She was crazy, you’re better off now,” a familiar, soothing voice chimed in from behind him. It was Jessica.
“Still, that was a silly way to ruin a date. I feel ridiculous.”
Jessica pulled up a stool to Nathan’s left. “I’m sorry, I don’t usually interrupt people, but I thought you might like a person to talk to,” Jessica said, mocking him only a little. She waited, thinking he might have something more to say. “I have an idea, if I tell you the most ridiculous thing I ever did, will you feel better? I mean, I never had a date walk out on me over what I ordered, but I think I can make you smile.”
“That depends; did this thing you did keep you from getting laid?”
She smiled demurely, “It certainly didn’t help."
“When I was in high school, I didn’t have many friends. My parents went out of town my senior year, and they told me ‘no parties’ but in a way that I could tell they were expecting the house to be trashed when they got back.” Nathan nodded his understanding.
“Well, I didn’t know anyone to invite, or have any way to get beer, so I tried to fake a party. I unrolled toilet paper all over the house, and crushed up some potato chips on the kitchen floor,” Jessica’s pale skin was streaked with pink.
“What happened?” Nathan asked, his head turned facing her, now interested in the story.
“I’m pretty sure my parents figured it out. I barely got in any trouble. There was nothing broken or spilled, or even really messy. There were no empty cans or bottles anywhere. I had never really been to a party like that, so didn’t know for sure what kind of a mess it would leave. I felt so stupid, so I think my mom went easy on me,” she finished.
“And now I’ve gone and told my most embarrassing moment to a total stranger,” her face was fully flushed. She was nearly the color of a pink Starburst candy.
Nathan laughed a deep, full laugh. He put a hand over Jessica’s, covering hers completely. “Thank you,” he said. “I feel a little better.” Then he added, “You look like you’re done with work, would you care for a drink?”
posted by Feisty Fern at 7:59 PM
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