Lovely Rita

Chapter 6

Pete helped me out of the car, and held my hand as we entered a small cafe done up in an old American style. The floor was checkered, there were pop art images lining the walls and the waitresses all wore old style dress. Music from the likes of Elvis and Bob Dylan drifted from the retro jukebox. The smell of fast food chip friers and fresh coffee filled the air, and I was overwhelmed with a feeling of humble that I had not experienced often before.
"This place is so groovy!" I said to Pete as we chose a table and sat down. "What will you have?" I asked him.
"I was going to pay..." He said, looking up a little confusedly.
"Nonsense! I was the one that blackmailed you into taking me out, silly! And no protesting. I want to." I replied.
"You wouldn't have to blackmail me into going on a date with you, stupid. Okay... uhm, well I'll have a veggie burger then please." Pete said, as my mouth dropped open.
"You're a veggie too? This just get's better!" I replied, exaggerating the 'better'. I smiled and stood up, making my way over to the counter that I had to stand on tiptoes behind so that I could see over the top.
I ordered quickly, calling the lady behind the register 'sweetheart' to bring a nice end to her day at work. "Do you ever stop smiling?" Pete giggled raspily, in that Macca laugh I loved.
"Not when I'm happy, no." I winked. "So you're our new postman?" I said, changing the subject onto Pete. I was genuinely excited to learn about him.
"Yeah! I always wanted to be a musician, but I never built up the confidence to actually perform or showcase anything. I'm only mediocre anyway. What about you? What do you do?" Pete asked, rebounding the topic.
"You do music? Oh my gosh! What do you play?" I asked, leaning in closer, intently looking at him. My blue eyes met his and Pete seemed taken aback for a moment, fumbling with the right words to reply with.
"Yeah, I uh... I play a bit of guitar. I can play the drums and bass, and I sing a little too."
"So you're a multi instrumentalist then?" I smiled as he nodded. He was more like Paul than she imagined. "Just like Paul McCartney!" I exclaimed. He laughed at me.
"I'd say Macca's a bit better than me, lovely."
"Oh, psh. Paul who? It's all about Pete! I want to hear you play." I said, trying to draw him in with my eyes, the same way I did in drama classes with the audience.
"Maybe some time soon. Food's here," he said, as the waitress put the food down on the table, along with the bill book. "So what do you do?" Pete said, squirting the red sauce over his chips.
"I just graduated from the LCA with a Drama degree. I want to get into television and film, and hopefully do some music too. I play guitar, and sing a little too, but I'd love to do both professionally." I didn't tell him about the audition. I'd already gone on about The Beatles and I might end up sounding like a weird stalker, and if I mentioned that I was going to dinner with another guy to discuss a role, it might put him off.
"Awesome! I could tell you were an actress. You've just got that look about you." He said with a twinkle in his eye. I smiled, looking down at my food and picking at the fries.
"Oh yeah, what's that then? The haggard, overworked eyes and wrinkled skin from stress?" I laughed. Pete smiled, seemingly in deep thought.
"Hold on a second..." He trailed off, looking past me before standing and walking away.
"Where are you going?" I called across the empty cafe. He didn't answer, so I cocked my head to the side to try and see.
A new song came on over the speakers and I knew what he had done. I blushed as I heard the intro to 'Lovely Rita' play and buried my head in my hands as Pete came back.
"I know it's cliche, but I think it sums you up wonderfully. You don't even mean to be like Lovely Rita, and yet you are her. The song isn't just your namesake, it's as if it was ready made for you to come along. It's insane..." He said, pulling me up and dragging me to the empty space by the jukebox. He danced to the 60s track with me, spinning and pulling me in close. He held my waist and danced with me long into the night, laughing and smiling the whole time.