A Place on My Pillow

She met Darren right on time outside of the restaurant and he stared at her, almost as if she were a cross between an exotic supermodel and a piece of meat. She wasn’t sure which, but she didn’t particularly like either option.

“Wow. You look gorgeous,” he said, eying her up and down. It made her uncomfortable, and shift noticeably. What was so gorgeous about her? She wasn’t wearing anything spectacular. Her hair had just been left to wave on its own, the blonde crests framing her face. Sure, she’d let Cady do her make-up but even that was the bare minimum. The small brunette girl had lined her eyes with a brown eye pencil, swept her lashes up with black volumizing mascara and has brush just a bit of light pink blush over Polly’s high, noticeable cheekbones, accentuating them only a slight bit more. It reminded Polly of the days when she would spend an hour or so making herself look presentable, even just for a day at school or with her friends. There had only ever been two boys that had never needed a special amount of time, two boys that didn’t mind her bare face, two boys that were ripped from her.

“You’re making me nervous,” Polly muttered, smoothing her sweater down over her hips. Alex had been right about her outfit. She did look good in it.

“Sorry. You just, you look stunning, that’s all.”

“Thanks,” she said, trying not to blush underneath her blush.

“Ready to eat, then?”

She nodded and he lead the way into Bruchhausen Bar and Grill, waving at the bartender as he slid into a booth.

“They have the best burger here,” Darren said. Polly nodded as a waiter in black pants and a white button-up appeared beside them, his short black hair geled up straight and spiky. He looked tired, as if he hadn’t slept in a week. Even his smile was tired, from over use. Working in the service industry would do that to you. Polly had experienced that firsthand, when she worked at that café in town. Your smile grew forced and tired day after day of use, just as anything would.

“What can I get for you, Darren?” the waiter asked, pulling out an order pad from the apron tied around his thin waist.

“Hey Bobby. We’ll both have Megan’s burger and cokes. French fries, instead of chips.”

Bobby nodded, writing it down. Before Polly could correct Darren and order for herself, Bobby has disappeared. Polly couldn’t believe what had just happened. Darren had ordered for her, as if she were a child who couldn’t make up her mind. She hadn’t even gotten a menu. She had no other choice. She hated guys like that. She knew this was a mistake.

“What’s Megan’s burger?” Polly asked.

“It’s amazing. Megan, she’s perfected the recipe,” Darren said. “You’ll love it.”

Polly wasn’t happy. She stared at the table, playing with her fingers and waited for the date to be over. It seemed to drag on, however. Darren talked, mostly about himself. And then when the food came, Polly took one bite out of it and almost gagged. It wasn’t good. It was worse than not good. It was disgusting, repulsive even. She chewed and swallowed the bite with disdain and then washed it down with a big gulp of watery Coke. It wasn’t “the best burger,” not even close. What she hated even more was that she hadn’t decided to try Megan’s “perfected recipe” on her own. It had been thrust upon her. If she was going to try something gross, it was going to be her own decision. And the monstrosity of a burger in front of her wasn’t her own decision at all. That’s what made the night even worse.

It passed finally and Darren was finally driving Polly back to the Jackson home. He even walked her to the door.

“Are you alright?” he asked, blocking the door.

“Yeah, I’m just tired,” she replied.

“Too tired to kiss me?” he asked.

“I suppose not.”

He pulled her in close and pressed his lips to hers. There weren’t exactly fireworks for Polly but it was a decent kiss, she thought. It was more than decent. The boy was an excellent kisser, even if he was a horrible date.

That kiss saved the night, and Darren’s chances with Polly.