Status: HIATUS. (apologies & many hugs to all; it is much appreciated)

Heartbreaker

Three.

I had no idea where Marina was taking me, but somehow I didn’t want to know. The uneasy lurch of my stomach settled when her hand slipped into mine, her palm warm against my clammy one. If it bothered her, she didn’t let on because there was no hesitation in her eyes and she was smiling. I was wondering whether or not she’d be taking her motorcycle before she looked over her shoulder at the parking lot. “Do you mind if we take your car? My bike’s in the shop so I’ve been taking the bus or a taxi.”

“Are you going to be driving there or. . .?” I wasn’t sure how good I would be at figuring out her directions if she were to be a navigator.

“You’re going to make your date drive to the restaurant? Jesus, Tristan, I thought you were a gentleman.” She was grinning from ear to ear now like the Cheshire cat. I blanched.

“D-date? Is that what t-this is?” I cringed at how I stuttered; sometimes I thought I’d gotten rid of the speech impediment that’d plagued a portion of my childhood but then it slipped out and I was reminded of it. There was something about Marina that reduced me to a blabbering mess, especially when she was being so coy. If it were anyone else, I would’ve been annoyed, but it suited her so well. I had to be careful around her because she was already wrapping me around her finger; I wasn’t sure if that was a good or a bad thing yet.

She squeezed my hand, sensing my distress. “You know I’m just kidding around. But yeah, we’re going to get something to eat. And if you’re up for dessert, we’ll see how it goes.” I tried to ignore the double meaning but it was obvious that my face was heating up like a beacon. She laughed good naturedly and tugged on my hand. “I’ll be sure to pick someplace that isn’t too difficult to find. What are you in the mood for?”

“Italian? Japanese? Mexican?” I was fine with any option but it would be polite to ask her what she preferred.

She pondered it for a couple of minutes, biting her lower lip thoughtfully. “Japanese. I know a really good sushi bar. Is that cool with you?”

“Yeah, of course. Just let me know where to go.”

We got in my car and on the drive there, when she wasn’t telling me where to go, we talked about the classes we had and a bit about our friends. She didn’t really have many close friends, mainly her half sister, Charise, and Charise’s boyfriend, Evan. “I have acquaintances but they’re shady as hell so I try to stay away from them unless I have a creep stalking me.” Marina shrugged. “Nobody really sticks around; people are just unreliable like that.”

“Such a cynic,” I teased, glancing at her for a few seconds. Her expression was unreadable, but I noticed how her lips morphed from a frown into a slight smirk.

“I prefer the term ‘realist.’ Plus, you kind of have to be one in the world we live in, babe. Otherwise you get fucked over.” She shook her head. “Anyway, it’s right up here. Turn right into the parking lot.”

After ordering an assortment of sushi and sashimi, we were well on our way to getting past the small talk that formed an invisible barrier between us. Marina talked about how her mom had been a single mother after her dad and Charise’s had walked out on her. Her mother lived pay check to pay check, setting aside a significant amount of the child support she received as an emergency fund. Marina had taken care of her half sister, who was two years younger, while her mom worked at two jobs to make ends meet. They’d moved too many times for her to count because job opportunities became scarce after awhile.

There was no denying that we’d led very different lives. I’d lived in middle class suburbia with my parents who were both lawyers. As she told me about the violence she’d seen in some of the neighborhoods she lived in, realization set in why she turned out the way she did. I was a firm believer that everyone was a product of their environment; Marina was no exception. What impressed me, though, was how she wanted to make things in her life better. She had considered being an engineer since she really liked the sciences. I didn’t expect that at all, which further supported the fact that I still had a lot to learn. There was more to the girl with the motorcycle.

“You’re one of the only people I’ve told my whole story to,” she confessed after a long pause, her eyes meeting mine. “I don’t know why, but I feel as if you’re trustworthy. I have this intuitive feeling about it.” She rolled her eyes. “I’m sorry, that sounded like some New Age-y bullshit but I can’t explain it any other way.”

“I know what you mean,” I laughed, taking another bite of sushi, putting my chopsticks down. “I’m about done. That was a lot of food.”

Marina popped another piece of sushi into her mouth. “One more and I’ll be good. Do you wanna come over to my place?” Her hand covered mine, a tingle shooting up my spine as her voice lowered to a sultry whisper.

“You didn’t want to go out to some bar or club tonight?” Admittedly, I had pegged her as the type to stay out until the early hours of the morning.

“Mhmm, no, not tonight. But we could go see my friend’s band play tonight if you want to.”

“Is it the Battle of the Bands opening night that everyone’s been talking about?”

“That’s the one.”

“Sure, I’ll go.”

Marina nodded. “Battle of the Bands it is.”
♠ ♠ ♠
I finally regained inspiration; it struck me out of nowhere.

I believe that I'll be taking this story off hiatus, I can't believe it took me that long to figure out less than 1,000 words for this chapter (but Mibba counts it as more than 1,000 which is grrrreaaaaat!). I apologize for that. But yeah, hope you're all enjoying the story and that everything is ~*~all good in da hood~*~ so stay peachy keen, everyone. c: