Tis the Season

Brooklyn Alexander stared at her phone, willing it to buzz with some words of encouragement from her best friend. Sighing, she shoved the phone back into the front pocket of her dark wash jeans. Giving herself a final check in the mirror, she straightened out her black wraparound sweater and fluffed out her light brown hair. Content with her reflection, she grabbed her keys and headed for the door.

The cool London air tickled the brunette’s exposed skin as she made a mad dash to her car. It was early afternoon and she was heading to her first ever blind date. His name was Niall. He was Irish. And cute. That’s what Grace had said when she set them up. And he seemed cute enough when they exchanged texts for a week before agreeing to meet. But Brooklyn’s hands were shaking slightly on the wheel of her car as she drove to the small diner they agreed to meet at.

It was a small little place, shoved between a dress boutique and a stationary store. The entrance was set back a little, with a bright green awning that identified it as Steffy’s. Sighing, Brooklyn drove around the block twice before a parking spot opened up. She pulled into the slot and nervously checked her phone. It was half past two and she was fifteen minutes late.

Sliding out of her car, the brunette quickly made her way to the entrance of the diner. A warm gust of air hit her as she stepped inside and despite just a few customers being inside it was loud. The place reminded her of a classic American diner she’d seen in movies from the fifties. Glancing around, she realized she had no idea what Niall looked like and no way to really know if he was already here.

Pulling out her phone again, she scrolled through her contacts before settling on the name that still looked wildly unfamiliar. Before she could open up a new message a customer entered and bumped her from behind.

“Oi! Sorry,” he exclaimed, his voice thick with an Irish accent.

Brooklyn froze. She watched as the Irish lad glanced around before turning back towards the door.

“Um, Niall?” She spoke up. The boy turned on his heel, a look of confusion on his face.

“Brooklyn?”

The girl nodded shyly. Grinning, Niall walked back over to her. “Let’s have a seat then, yeah?”

Nodding again, Brooklyn followed Niall towards a booth in the far corner of the diner. Sliding in, she grimaced against a spring that poked her in the back as she did. The bench seats were anything but comfortable – the back cushion jutted out and the seat itself was uneven and completely worn through in spots. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she grabbed a menu.

After a tall, curvy woman took their orders -with Niall ordering half the menu- silence fell over the table. Brooklyn picked at loose threads on the cushion and Niall leaned his head against the back of the booth. They both glanced around, waiting for the other to say something first but by the time either of them worked up the courage to do so their food arrived.

Brooklyn watched as Niall dove in head first, barely taking the time to unwrap his silverware before shoveling food into his mouth. It was fascinating, the way he seemed to chow down and eat without even tasting his food. Like he hadn’t eaten in days and he was afraid he wouldn’t eat for a couple more.

“So,” Niall started with a full mouth, “Chase said…”

The boy kept talking but Brooklyn couldn’t understand a word around the food rolling around in his mouth. If it weren’t so funny she would have been seriously grossed out. Instead of replying, the brunette dove into her own food and tried to ignore the sounds of Niall eating.



The pair finished their food in silence and they both continued to stare at each other without saying anything until the check came. Niall wordlessly paid for it and slipped out of the booth. It was obvious that Chase’s sister had no idea what she was doing when she suggested they go out. They were fine while texting but in person the pair didn’t have anything in common. She couldn’t even be bothered to say anything when he tried to start a conversation.

“See you around,” the Irish boy said, his lips drawing into a small frown before heading out.

He was disappointed. The girl was beautiful and he thought she was hilarious when they were setting up their meeting but this had to be in the top three worst dates he’d ever been on. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he headed towards his apartment down the street. Maybe if he hadn’t shown up late. Maybe if he didn’t eat so much. Maybe she just didn’t like the way he looked.

Niall ran through endless possibilities of why his date with Brooklyn failed before arriving at his apartment. Fumbling with his keys, he watched as a pretty girl knocked on the door next to his. Some guys have all the luck, he thought to himself as he finally opened the door and stepped inside. Maybe he still had some pie he could have before taking a nap.