Seize the Day, Relish the Night

The walk back to his apartment felt long, depressing, and lonely. The winter cold didn't bother him earlier in the evening, but now he couldn't get his hands to stay warm even with his gloves on.

Jyrki sighed to himself, his breath clouding around him, as he unlocked the front door of the building. He rubbed his hands together to create some friction as he welcomed the heat from the lobby. He took the small elevator to his floor and walked down the dimly lit hallway.

"She's a nice girl." Jussi said lounging on his spot on the couch smoking a cigarette as Jyrki shut the door not wasting any time. "But, how would you know that? It didn't seem like you talked to her much tonight."

"We danced mostly, what's wrong with that?" He shrugged unraveling his scarf from around his neck and sat in the recliner.

"Why don't you know her name yet?" He smirked blowing the smoke out of his nostrils.

Jyrki shrugged not wanting to let Jussi know he was right. The buzzer went off interrupting their conversation anyway. Jyrki heaved himself off the chair and pressed the intercom button to see who was ringing from downstairs. "Hello?"

"Let me up you ass. It's fucking cold out here." Came Archzie's frustrated voice.

Jyrki chuckled and pressed the button to unlock the front door. He went back to his original seat and slouched in the chair.

"Well?" Jussi's smirk widened. He knew he wasn't going to get a response, but felt like pestering him nonetheless. "By the way, did you wash the shirt of mine you took?"

Jyrki shrugged. "If I did it's in the sac over there."

"It's gotten windy out there." Archzie shut the door quickly behind him and shoved Jussi's legs off the couch for somewhere to sit. "So how'd your date go?"

"He still doesn't know her name." Jussi smirked and heaved himself up off the couch giving Archzie a good kick for extra measure for shoving him in the first place. He laughed and dodged out of the way as Archzie's fist retaliated.

"Shouldn't you have shown you were worthy of her real name by now?" Archzie raised an eyebrow.

"He took her to the club." Jussi stabbed his cigarette out in the ashtray.

"I can speak for myself." Jyrki glared and crossed his arms in a huff.

"Sure now you speak." He rolled his eyes.

Archzie laid his head on the back of the couch and sighed. "Maybe it was a bad idea Jyrki."

"What? Why?" Jyrki's head shot over in his direction surprised.

"Because I have to watch out for her." He rubbed his face.

"And are you insinuating that I did something wrong?" Jyrki sat up and looked offended. "That I would treat her wrongly?"

"No." Archzie said slowly trying to keep his patience. He plopped his feet on the coffee table and rubbed his hand on his head moving his hat around. "I think she's just not your type is all."

"And what makes you say that?" Jyrki held a slight glare at Archzie feeling still insulted.

"Because Maizie's not a tough city girl at heart. Taking her to a club was a bad start." Archzie rolled his head and looked at him. "That's why you don't know her name yet."

"Shouldn't it be her decision then?" Jyrki ran his fingers through his hair untangling knots that gathered from the wind outside walking home.

"Well unless your color is lacey red," Jussi held up the thong. "You might just get your wish Jyrki."

"What?" He got off the couch and opened the bag wider, showing that it only consisted of female clothing and lingerie.

"Maybe that is your second chance." Archzie sighed not sure if it was a good thing or not. He knew Maizie could take care of herself, but that didn't mean he couldn't still keep an eye out for her as well for extra measure.

Jyrki grinned knowing that this time he wouldn't mess things up. It's not that he meant to in the first place. He was actually quite nervous around Maizie and being amongst the thick crowd helped ease that awkward sensation. Only it appears that that plan had backfired on him instead.

But, Jyrki frowned realizing another dilemma. "I don't have her phone number." Jyrki glared at Jussi who had broken out in laughter at his expense and gave Archzie a desperate look.

"She maybe a friend of mine, but that doesn't mean I know her all to well either." Archzie smiled sympathetically. He felt torn between looking out for his friend and helping out a dearer one. Archzie sat forward on the couch and pulled out his wallet from his back pocket. "Look, here's the card for Sinikka. You'll probably be able to reach her there." He pulled the card back, just out of Jyrki's reach. "Don't mess up this time."

I stripped out of my clothes wanting to get the stench of stale cigarettes and beer off of me. I dropped them in the wicker laundry basket and started the shower. Feeling refreshed and clean, I dried off and wrapped a short robe around my body. I made sure my alarm clock was set for the morning and just crawled under the covers to let sleep finally overcome me.

And instead of sleeping, I began to toss and turn uncomfortably thinking about tonight. I kicked the comforter off me and laid spread out on my bed. I let out a frustrated sigh and ran my hand threw my damp hair.

I sat up trying to think of what was keeping me up. It didn't take long to figure that out. I was disappointed in how the night went. The night went so different than how I though it would go.

I'm not sure how I wanted it to go, especially since it was only the first date. I chuckled to myself at how I was thinking that there would be more than tonight. I took a deep breath and laid back down forcing myself to sleep.

It felt like only minutes had passed before I heard the annoying beeping of my alarm clock. I groaned and moved my hand around the side table trying to fid the clock to do anything to stop the beeping. Finally finding it, I slammed my palm down on the snooze button before I was able to locate the off switch.

I rubbed my eyes trying to get them to open. I left the lights off as I walked down the dark hallway and pulled my robe closer. I filled the coffee pot with some stronger coffee grounds to help make me wake up from my restless night and placed it on the lit back burner.

I toasted some bread as I waited for the coffee to brew. I spread some butter and honey on the lightly brown bread and poured myself some coffee into the small black mug. I grabbed the milk out of the fridge and added a little sugar as well to my coffee.

I unlocked the front door to grab the newspaper and chuckled remembering how we fell down the last few steps into the lobby yesterday. I sighed as I locked the door wondering if I should have told Jyrki my name. Was it stupid to play this small game of cat and mouse or whatever it was we were doing?

I laughed softly again thinking how I was acting like I knew him, like I was going to see him again. I folded the newspaper and finished the last bit of coffee in the mug before rinsing my dishes quickly so I could continue getting ready.

I grabbed my laundry sac into my room and dumped its contents on the bed to pick something out for work. "Great." I muttered to myself seeing that not a single item belonged to me.

I glanced over at the clock to see that I still had an hour to get ready and walk to the station. I sighed at the clothes and looked around my closet for anything I could find.

I sat on the bed and folded his clothes and put them back in the laundry sac. I pulled on my boots. I bundled up pulling on my hat, gloves and scarf. It really wasn't that bad out I happen to like the cold, but I knew it was better to bundle up than catch a cold.

I locked the door behind me and strolled down the sidewalk making my way to the metro. "Tuuli watch out!" I turned just in time to move out of the way of a football coming my way. The black and white checkered ball whizzed past me as did Max, a kid that lived in the apartment across the hall from mine. "Sorry Tuuli!"

"Shouldn't you be in school?" I smirked.

He caught the ball and jogged over to me and grinned. "Should being the operative word." I raised an eyebrow and crossed my arms giving him a stern look. "Don't worry I'm going. I'll see you later Tuuli."

"Have a good day Max." I laughed.

"Yeah right." He smiled sarcastically and turned around heading in the direction of the high school.

I ran my card through the slot and went through the turnstile and yawned as I waited on the platform for my train. I moved with the crowd into the car and sat next to the window watching the random advertisements and graffiti pass me by as the train took me out closer to the forest and away from the bay.

"Hey Tuuli." Karita smiled at me from the information/check-in desk.

"Hey Kari." I smiled back and went in the employee lounge to me locker. I turned the dial to the correct numbers and heard the tiny click as the door swung slowly open. I put my hat and gloves on the top shelf and hung up my coat and purse on the silver tarnished hooks. I ruffled my hair slamming the door shut and set out to take care of my clients until my lunch break.

Wednesdays are always slow. I smiled to my last client as she left for the sauna. I washed my hands and rubbed my hands together to rub in the left over oil. I sighed dramatically as I hopped up on the stool next to Karita.

"Bored already." She smirked.

"And tired." I yawned proving my point.

She chuckled. "Late night?"

"You have no idea." I shook my head chuckling softly and folded my arm leaning on the counter.

"Date?" She grinned excited when I nodded my head. "Good or bad?"

"Well, it wasn't bad." I said slowly. "But, it wasn't what I expected either."

"Maybe he was nervous?" She shrugged and answered the phone typing in an appointment on the computer before returning her attention to our conversation.

"No." I shook my head. "He shouldn't have been anyway."

"You can be intimidating." She laughed.

"Me?" I looked at her like she was crazy.

"You are beautiful and more on the quiet side. That can come off as intimidating." Karita smiled and went back to typing on the computer. She sat back in her chair and glanced at me. "To me you look like you have this secret and come off as 'see if you can try and get it out of me' attitude. Do you follow?"

"Not really." I laughed at her explanation.

She rubbed her forehead trying to thing of a better way to put what she was trying to say. "Love, you're a challenge. Some people like that, some find it intimidating."

"Huh, I didn't think I was that complex." I laughed.

I grabbed the nail file out of the pencil cup on Karita's desk and began to shape my nails while she went back to work and I waited for my next appointment.

"Um, not that I know of. Hold on I'll check." I listened to Karita's conversation and looked up when she turned to me. "Hey Tuuli, do you know anyone named Maizie around here?"

"That's what Archzie calls me you dope." I rolled my eyes and chuckled. "What does he want? He was here just yesterday."

"It's not Archzie." She frowned confused.

"Here," I nodded my head and held my hand out. "Let me see the phone." She handed it to me. I cradled it between my ear and shoulder as I continued to file my nails. "Hello?"

"Maizie?" I heard Jyrki's husky voice sound through the receiver.

"Jyrki." I smiled.

"Maybe he got over his nervousness." Karita smirked and went back to work.

"I believe you have something of mine." He chuckled. I grinned at the teasing tone in his voice picturing the smirk that he mostly likely wore on his lips.

"As do you." I smiled.

"Well I plan on keeping your clothes hostage until you agree to see me to night." He said confidently, like on the night I first met him.

"Tonight?" I stopped filing down a nail before there was nothing left from nerves. "I don't know. I promised to meet up with my friends." Which was no lie. I promised I'd meet up with Veera and Kale at the bar to get the material I had them pick up for me so I could make some new clothes.

"Oh," I frowned hearing the disappointment in his voice.

"Well," I began hoping I would regret this later. "You could meet me there as well."

"I don't want to impose." He said quickly. He sighed knowing he was screwing up already.

"Jyrki." I laughed. "I'm not staying long and even if I were you would be able to join me if you'd like." I looked over at the clock on the wall and calculated in my head how long I'd be. "I get off at 16.oo and I'll stop by Kale's, like I had planned on, on the way home and you meet me at my place about 17.00?"

Jyrki smiled. "I would love to. And you won't be disappointed tonight."

He hung up before I could make any response to that statement. "So, it sounds like someone has a date tonight." Karita smiled innocently.

I rolled my eyes. "I do. Maybe you were right. But, am I really that intimidating?"

She shrugged. "Sometimes. But, you're far too innocent looking than you really are."

I smiled and bit my lip. "He noticed that I wasn't too happy about how the night went last night."

"That's a start." She grinned. Karita was right; it was a start. Hopefully tonight would go better.